A newly opened Down’s syndrome centre in Roseville, in the U.S. state of California, has been vandalised. The offensive act has been labelled a “hate crime”.

The new Down’s syndrome centre known as GiGi’s playhouse provides educational, therapeutic and career-building courses for individuals with Down’s syndrome. The staff is made up of volunteers, and their services are completely free, being funded by donations.

Just days are its official opening, an unknown person graffitied a poster exhibited on the front of the centre.

The poster – displaying a child with Down’s syndrome named Jayden – was defaced with offensive, stating that “incest isn’t right”.

“It underscores the absolute need for us to be here”

Nicole Harrigan, board president of GiGi’s Playhouse, said: “To have it open for not even a full week and then find this awful hate speech written on one of our welcome windows was just an absolute gut punch…

“It also underscores the absolute need for us to be here.”

An official statement released by GiGi’s Playhouse, responding to the incident, stated that:

“People with Down’s syndrome face lifelong discrimination and are often targeted for the disability that is written on their face. This act of hate speech was, quite literally, written on the images of local Sacramento-area children.”

“Blatant bigotry”

SPUC’s Michael Robinson said: “Yet again, hate crime is taking place against those with disabilities.

“It is awful to see that some people cannot embrace a centre that assists those with disabilities, allowing them to live a fulfilled life.

“It is quite simply outrageous that an image of a child has been defaced like this. Society should be welcoming those who are deemed different.

“Unfortunately, such blatant bigotry is an example of the broader discrimination shown towards persons with Down’s syndrome, which, at its extreme, is carried out in the disgusting form of abortion – a type of discrimination that is, by definition, fatal.

“An example of this bigotry occurred last year, in the ITV soap opera Emmerdale, in which a baby was aborted because it had Down’s syndrome. Bridget Jones actress Sally Phillips condemned the storyline as ‘thoughtless’ and ‘irresponsible’.”