Tuesday 23 June 2015

Plight of a girl named 'Isis'

I found this interesting article on Scrippsmedia and I thought to share unedited!

What goes into a name? For some it was a grandparent's name. For others, it was just because their parents liked it. That is the case for a five-year-old girl in Picture Rocks, Arizona, named Isis.
Isis was named after an Egyptian goddess who is considered the ideal woman or mother.
"It suits her perfectly with her condition now because she's beaten so many odds," said Ciara Martinez, Isis's mother.


This little girl's name is an unfortunate coincidence, being the same as the Islamic terrorist group, but the story does not just end there. Isis has a rare condition similar to Autism called Rett Syndrome, and it almost exclusively affects girls. About 1 in 10,000 will get it.
Martinez created a group called Pretty Halos that works to raise awareness for the disease. They put on an annual car show in Tucson, Arizona, as a fundraiser and in the past they have sold window stickers that say #TeamIsis. The decal has caused major problems for those who displayed it on their car.
"There were people trying to run me off the road, people flipping me off, cursing at me," said Martinez.
A friend who had the sticker on a car was even investigated by the FBI because of the decal.
Martinez says she has since taken the decal off her car, and so have her friends, but it went beyond a car window.
"The hardest part is people saying 'You really should change her name, its not an appropriate name, it's a disgrace to America,'" said Martinez.
Now Martinez feels as though she is fighting two battles: one against Rett Syndrome and another for her daughter's name.
Isis pictured with her mom, Ciara Martinez

"With the whole ISIS situation it is even worse because I have to fight for her name and her disability and it's really hard for me as a mom to have to see her go through that," said Martinez.
Martinez says she will not change Isis's name and will continue to fight for other girls with that name.
As for her battle with the disease, Martinez says her daughter goes through hours of therapy each week. She hopes one day Isis will speak a full sentence.
"I would love an 'I love you', I would probably cry for weeks," said Martinez.

1 comment:

  1. i will advice the mom to change her name

    ReplyDelete