Autism Redefined
Please view and/or download my “Autism Redefined” handout below.
autism awareness
Let’s hope they don’t kick me off: these IACC public comments though…
So…I was recently appointed to the IACC, which is the federal advisory board that handles important autism-related matters at the national level. There were ~40-ish? people appointed in total, including 23 public members…and a full EIGHT of us public members are autistic! I am beyond grateful to have an opportunity to serve my community in …
Let’s hope they don’t kick me off: these IACC public comments though… Read More »
“Neurodiversity Is Dead?” Ion think so. Letter to the Mad In America Editor.
(Image is an autism acceptance word cloud of multiple colors. Source: unknown) Today I wrote a letter to the editor and the president of “Mad in America” about an ableist and disturbing article that they published on their site. Here is what I wrote: “Dear editor, I am writing to express major concerns over your …
“Neurodiversity Is Dead?” Ion think so. Letter to the Mad In America Editor. Read More »
All I Have, All I Am
“Don’t tell me that this isn’t real. Don’t tell me this ain’t how I feel. This is all I have. All I have…” –NF “All I Have”(video) This is my first blog post of 2017. And I’m writing it out of…I’m not sure which emotion, truthfully. I guess a mix of them. Frustration. Sadness. Anger. …
Accommodation is What Respect Looks Like in Public/Upbeat CPR Rocks
Yesterday my youngest child turned five years old. Birthdays are a big deal around here, as no day is promised to any of us and I view a new year of life as a new adventure to be embarked on in the story of our lives. Additionally, in our family we don’t believe in a …
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I don’t want your autism awareness; I want autism acceptance.
Today is “World Autism Awareness Day.” While I think awareness is important, I ask you, as a Autistic mom to Autistic and non-Autistic kids: What value is awareness without acceptance? We have been “aware” of HIV for decades and yet people still choose to fear and stigmatize those living with it (case in point: HIV …
I don’t want your autism awareness; I want autism acceptance. Read More »
Attachment Parenting While Black and Autistic
(This post also appears on the “Respectfully Connected: Journeys in Parenting and Neurodivergence” blog HERE.) As much as I can, I avoid those types of offices when my younger children are with me. You know the type: quiet, sterile, not child friendly. Offices where food, drinks, and/or electronic devices are not allowed and where a security …
Autism, Therapies and Acceptance: A Mother’s Perspective
(This is also cross-posted on the Autism Women’s Network blog, available HERE.) Long before the day we received a formal autism diagnosis, I already knew my daughter was Autistic. However, I hadn’t picked it up at first – not because the signs weren’t there, because they were, but because I didn’t see anything problematic in …
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Autism Defined: A Poem
This is autism. A world where we are defined as a list of “deficits” and “problems” needing to be overcome. This is autism. A world where our killers can be showered with sympathy and compassion for having had to endure a life with us. This is autism. Incessant fatigue created by having to navigate societies …
Face the truth: what you REALLY mean when you say “low-functioning”
I’m so freaking tired of people throwing around functioning labels. “High” functioning autism. “Low” functioning autism. “Moderately,” “mildly,” or “severely” affected by autism. Aside from the fact that these labels are arbitrary, divisive, imprecise, and inaccurate, they just don’t make sense. As someone (not me) brilliantly stated, “Low functioning means that your strengths are ignored; …
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