Kingston, Massachusetts. — Emily Colson of Duxbury is author of “Dancing with Max,” a memoir about her 23 year old autistic son.
She wrote in her blog her experience of visiting a movie theatre with Max and being jeered out due to Max making noise.
Emily told WCVB News that answering cruelty with cruelty “doesn’t get anybody anywhere,”
Renee Walston, who attends Pembroke’s North River Community Church with Emily is renting the Regal Cinema in Kingston for a showing of “Muppets Most Wanted.” 300 children including many with special needs will attend.
Renee who has 3 children all under the age of 5 said:
“As Christians, we’re supposed to love our neighbor as ourselves,”
She then added:
“I just thought that if it were my child, I would have to find a way to make this right for him.”
Emily posted her blog in December and described how Max became frightened during the previews at the start of the movie. She told of how he became loud and that others in the audience began calling out insults.
When she left the cinema with Max, the audience applauded.
What bothered her the most, she said, was that other people in the theatre were so quick to lash out that she and Max didn’t have time to use coping strategies they had successfully implemented many times before.
“We hadn’t even gotten past the previews. I know most of us, as families of children with disabilities, have all these plans in mind, but we couldn’t even get there,”
While Emily understood that “someone paying good money for a movie … wants it to be quiet,” she did feel discouraged by the crowd’s “ugly” attitude.
“There are so many families (of children with special needs) that are very isolated, and there are other people that really don’t have any experience with disabilities and they don’t know what to do.”
The event Renee has called “Movie with Max” has nearly sold out a 294-seat theatre.
Emily said:
“It has generated a huge amount of conversation about our families in the community, and I’m so thankful for that,”
The special showing of “Muppets Most Wanted” will take place at 6 p.m. on March 27 at Regal Cinema in Kingston. Limited tickets are still available, but messages of support are encouraged.
The original article by Lauren DiTullio/The Patriot Ledger on the WCVB News website can be read here