‘Down syndrome is the best thing that ever happened to me’: NS father’s emotional message

A Nova Scotia man wants to send a message to the world: His son has Down syndrome and it’s a beautiful thing.

Robb Scott posted a Facebook video message Feb. 20, shortly after observing an interaction between a man and his son.

Saying he needs to “karmically reset” what just happened, Scott recounts watching a boy ask his father about Down syndrome.

“He asked his dad, ‘What is Down syndrome?'”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "He asked his dad, 'What is Down syndrome?'"

Scott says the father paused, searching for an answer for his son.

WATCH: 2-year-old with Down syndrome recites alphabet in viral video

“I don’t think his dad was trying to be mean…and he said it was an illness, and that it was an illness of not knowing anything.”

At that moment, Scott says he didn’t know how to act or react, and isn’t the type to confront others. He felt compelled to tell the father and son what Down syndrome is, “but I didn’t” he says, appearing perplexed by his own lack of reaction.

“I let that ignorance grow in another generation.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "I let that ignorance grow in another generation."

At that moment, he says, he failed his son.

READ MORE: Mom’s emotional Facebook post about daughter with Down syndrome goes viral

“Down syndrome is literally one of the most beautiful things that’s ever happened to my life. It’s fun, it’s brilliant, it’s amazing, it’s funny, it’s kind, it’s loving, it’s cuddly,” Scott says.

“They’re great teachers, people with Down syndrome. it’s not an illness. It’s not an illness. It’s not even a disability.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Down syndrome is literally one of the most beautiful things that's ever happened to my life. It's fun, it's brilliant, it's amazing, it's funny, it's kind, it's loving, it's cuddly," Scott says.</p><p>"They're great teachers, people with Down syndrome. it's not an illness. It's not an illness. It's not even a disability."

Disabilities are perception, he says, something he has learned from his son Turner. And we’re all here to both teach and learn.

“A well-educated man doesn’t not have more to teach, than my son. He has different things to teach.”

“Down syndrome is the best thing that ever happened to me. But I didn’t say that. I didn’t step up for my son and for other people with Down syndrome. And that was devastating to me in that moment.”

While Scott might not have spoken up at that moment, his message has been heard: So far the video has been shared more than 9,000 times and garnered more than 6,600 likes.

Global News has reached out to Scott for comment.