#Southwest Airlines boots family after autistic toddler refuses to wear mask

A Texas mom says Southwest Airlines kicked her off a flight from Midland to Houston after her 3-year-old autistic son refused to wear a mask.

“He is three and has autism and sensory processing disorders, so he wouldn’t keep the mask on,” Alyssa Sadler, of Houston, told ABC affiliate KTRK.

“They’re trying to talk to him, tell him, ‘You have to wear it. It’s not an option,’ and I’m trying to explain to them, you know, he doesn’t understand what you’re saying.”

The mom said her son “doesn’t like things touching his face.”

“He was screaming. He was throwing a fit. He was screaming no, no, no,” she told NBC Houston.

After the child refused to mask up, the captain returned the plane to its gate and booted the woman, her son and her 1-year-old daughter.

Sadler told KTRK she wears a mask “everywhere I go,” but said there should be exemptions.

“You’ve got to have some kind of exemption, especially for people with disabilities, [and] kids with disabilities,” she told the outlet.

“I mean, no 3-year-old, who is autistic and has sensory processing disorder, is going to put anything on their face.”

Southwest began requiring face coverings for all passengers at all times in late July. The airline does not allow for health-related exceptions, but children under 2 may fly sans mask.

An airline spokesperson told Fox News the mask policies are communicated to flyers “at multiple touchpoints throughout the journey.”

“If a customer is unable to wear a face covering for any reason, Southwest regrets that we are unable to transport the individual,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

“In those cases, we will issue a full refund and hope to welcome the customer on board in the future, if public health guidance regarding face coverings changes.”

Salder told NBC Houston a family member would drive her family from Midland to Houston on Thursday.