I would like to start by saying as a UMBC student, I find my university to be mostly good and I am proud that this is the university in which I attend. However, tonight I ran into a situation that was totally unruly and preventable.

While walking to my 4:30 evening class I noticed a special needs boy sitting on one of the benches outside of the Commons. I noticed him as I do most special needs kids- I think they bring a light to this world that is unlike many other things. He also impressed me with his killer mustache! Anyways, I continued on to my class. After class was over I walked by the Commons again. To my dismay, the boy was still sitting on the bench. My class is a three hour social work lecture. I didn’t know much about the situation but I did know he had been there a very long time. I tried to walk to my car with the mentality that it was none of my business however; I made it only a fraction of the way before I turned around.

When I approached the boy he told me his name was Brian and that he was waiting for the MTA bus to pick him up. He said that his mom told him it would be there at 5:30. This was later than the time he was supposed to get pickup but the bus had been late nearly every day this week. I asked Brian if he tried to contact anyone and he said his phone was out of minutes but that his mom sent him a text message asking if he has gotten on the bus yet. Brian did not know how to text (I couldn’t really blame him his phone was something from the 90’s with T9 typing). I let him borrow my phone but he got no answer from his mom. I calmly told Brain that we should go see what the Common Information desk could do for us. The girl at the front desk called Campus Police at my request, but after a short phone call hung up explaining that, “they said there was nothing they could do”.

Nothing they could do?! I requested the number for Campus Police and called myself not understanding how the police could do nothing for a member of a vulnerable population. When explaining that it is “insane” that they could do nothing about a special needs boy who is alone in the middle of winter at seven o’clock at night waiting for a bus that’s clearly not coming, the dispatcher laughed at me and told me to “hold up” defending himself against my insanity comment.

The situation that I ran into tonight blew my mind. Brian was failed by numerous resources that he has the right to access. Brain has a Job Coach named Kat who just left him at the bus stop unconcerned with his safety or likelihood of getting home. The MTA bus service that is assigned to pick him up every day is continually late and never showed up tonight. When the police finally got into contact with the MTA bus service they said they tried to call Brian. However, Brian had no missed calls. The only resource that Brian had tonight that did not fail him was the mere kindness of strangers. Luckily, I made this my business because I am confident that he would have waited there all night for someone familiar to picked him up.

I am extremely disappointed with UMBC, their faculty, and the resources they prove to students that are in great need of them. I know that the special needs population often gets cheated and mistreated as I have seen it firsthand with my sister, but UMBC?  The “#1 Up and Coming University” can’t even make sure that a special needs kid gets on a damn bus and makes it home okay? Not a good look.

I encourage people to share this story and help bring justice to Brian and the special needs population as a whole. Our society has done them a huge disservice. They offer nothing but goodness to this world and it’s fucked up that people aren’t giving all their goodness back. #justiceforBrian #justiceforspecialneeds