It was raining cats and dogs the other day so I jumped in a taxi to getto work. On giving the driver our centre address he responded "Oh, areyou seeing the little treasures today?" in a tone that raised myeyebrows.
Another adult with prejudices about looked-after children.
"What makes you ask?" I smiled through gritted teeth. "We pick them upall the time," he responded. "You want to hear the mouths on some ofthem." Okay, I thought, here we go.
"Like what?" I asked. "Have they been swearing?" "No, but some of themmake me laugh. Take the biscuit these kids do. There's one that's alwaysgoing on about what she's entitled to, what social services need to dofor her. Right little madam. Don't know who's feeding them thisrubbish," he sneered.
"Us, actually," I replied. "And if she knows what her rights are, thenthat means we're doing our job properly - thanks for that!" He gave me alook that made me wonder if I was going to be turfed out into therain.
"Yes, but ...," he began and I cut in: "Have you any idea what some ofthe children we work with have been through to bring them into care?Abuse, neglect, violence - some of the children we work with have hadthe most basic human rights taken away from them. And it is our job tohelp them to get over that, to make them feel better about themselves,to give them back some of their childhood." I paused for breath and thenranted on.
"And if they have some sense of what is and isn't okay and what they areentitled to, including the right to be taken home by someone who has gotrespect for them and not such bigoted views as you, then I'm a happywoman. What's your badge number?"
As he drove off I stood there seething in the rain, but also burstingwith pride for our children. If we can help them to understand that theyhave the right to support and opportunities that will help them grow upand be healthy, happy adults then we might just have begun to get itright.
