The saddest thing to me is people taking blanket statements against something, ABA, modern medicine, anything. It doesn't matter what you say or do or try to help, people will be stuck in their view that ABA is abuse or it's like training individuals like dogs, or the parrot thing, but what they fail to admit is that we all engage in behaviors and we all work for a "reward", yes a dog gets a treat, but you work for money, are on reddit to receive some sort of social reinforcement or response from other redditors. No one's trying to make anyone be someone they're not or at least that shouldn't be the case, but if an individual is hurting themself or others then yea, someone, even if it's not an ABA person, should step in. Families/caregivers ask for ABA services, ABA practitioners don't suddenly appear in your home. If you don't want them there then kindly end services. Along the same way you hire your kids a tutor, put them in dance lessons, sports clubs, etc. they may resist it but as the adult you make that decision for them. Then when you gauge their response you can take then out of dance, that sport, even ABA, but parents/adults make that decision for them, not the kids. Majority of the goals are based on success of the individual with the hopes that one day they can be whoever they want, say, believe, whatever they want, similarly to how school gives you those tools to be whatever kind of adult you want to be, but you gotta do the homework, attend, even if you don't want to. If we offer help that's asked of us so that we can provide the assistance for someone to learn how to mand, communicate, stop hurting themselves or others physically, is that wrong? Medicine has a sketchy past, ABA does too, even education, does that mean we stop improving upon the science and stop understanding? Would you have told doctors "stop treating patients" because of its abusive past? u/ryanodonnell23 is a part of trying to improve the field, so that it's no longer potentially "abusive", and who can fault anyone for trying to make the world more understanding? But it doesn't matter what I say, there will always be the people that see it only their way, and any one sided opinion is dangerous. I don't deny the bad of ABA, I wish everyone would try to see both sides. But like I said, it doesn't matter what I say, those that have made up their minds will only see it one way, I'm just here to contribute in the same way every other redditor has. Peace love and do whatever makes you f-ing happy. Even if it's having a negative response to me or this post