Category Archives: Autism

Autism, Employment

Innovative Approach on Autism May Prove a Key to Solving Silicon Valley’s Diversity Problem

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Over three days in mid-April, leading thinkers from across the technology sector met at SAP Labs in Palo Alto, California. The mood was urgent. The pace frantic. Conversations were ecstatic. At the end of the three-day process, technology executives emerged from their under-the-radar gathering carrying with them the models and metrics that may just prove to be a deciding factor in solving for Silicon Valley’s diversity problem. Silicon Valley’s challenges in building diverse workforces are well-documented. In 2016, Deloitte reported that only 2% of the tech workforce is black, 3% Latino, and 24% female. Difficulties in recruiting and supporting talent from underrepresented backgrounds have been met with attitudes of blissful ignorance by corporate leaders to all-out panic among public relations executives. This is an image of Code 2040 CEO Laura Weidman POwers. She is a young woman with long black hair and … <a href=Continue Reading ››
Autism

50+ Autistic People You Should Know

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Not too long ago, Kerry Magro released a list called “100 People with Autism You Should Know,” with the intent of introducing autistic people and their allies to a variety of autistic advocates. Unfortunately, Magro’s list doesn’t really reflect the autistic community. Magro’s list contributes to the idea that autistic people are predominantly white men who don’t view their disability as political. This alternative list is an effort to reflect the diversity of the autistic community. I wanted to highlight fierce advocates for civil rights and inclusion that reject the idea that we must comply in order to be acceptable. You can find these trailblazing autistic activists on personal blogs, Facebook pages, Twitter, Tumblr, YouTube and other social media.

Autism

5 Awful Autism Awareness Month Products

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TS Eliot was right -- April is the cruelest month. Autism Awareness Month can be an anxious, or at least facepalm-inducing time for many autistic folks, myself included. Whether it's harebrained celebrities endorsing Autism Speaks or President Trump lighting it up blue at the White House, non-autistic people are ready to shout how very aware they are. With that in mind, here are 5 cringe-worthy autism awareness products for sale this April. These are all real things for sale on the internet. Really. 5. This shirt isn't even blue. This is a red t-shirt with a puzzle piece on it. It reads "I wear blue for autism awareness." There is no blue on the t-shirt anywhere. 4. Nothing says "love" like what could easily be interpreted as a violent threat by someone very literal. Like say, an autistic person. This is an … <a href=Continue Reading ››
Autism, Future of Neurodiversity

Why NOS Matters

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What makes a people? For the last two decades, the Autistic community has struggled with that question. As a community first defined by doctors and researchers, portrayed to the public mainly by outsiders, and often born to non-autistic parents, it can be hard to sort out who we are and how we should relate to each other. Despite these difficulties, the last few years have found us starting to figure things out. Thanks to an active blogosphere, advocacy organizations like ASAN and AWN, and a strong coalition of leaders young and old working to build our grassroots, the Autistic culture, community and identity is stronger now than it has ever been. In the words of Jim Sinclair, the neurodiversity movement’s earliest leader, "Our community is still young, but a generation of autistic children has already grown up having experience and familiarity with autistic togetherness." The Autistic identity has grown … Continue Reading ››
Autism

Autistic Enough?

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Two people point at a number that is either a six or a nine on the floor. One is saying it is a six and one is saying it is a nine.
Pop quiz: Which cartoon drawing lacks Theory of Mind?
For the past few days, I’ve been working my way through In a Different Key, a new book about the history of autism. There are many things wrong with In a Different Key. The Thinking Person’s Guide to Autism has been livetweeting a read-through, and I think they cover a lot of the ethical problems with the book – Justifying the murder of disabled kids and minimizing the problems with punishing autistic people with cattle prods and electric shocks is troubling, to say the least. I plan on writing more about that, and I encourage … Continue Reading ››