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The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network: A Giving Tuesday Org to Support

TPGA Editor Carol Greenburg [Image: Woman with short platinum hair, beige skin, rimless glasses; wearing a red shirt and holding a sign that reads, “I support ASAN because we’re the best experts on what we need.”] It’s Giving Tuesday. And we’re just going to quote Ari Ne’eman of The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network: “December 2nd is #GivingTuesday — a national initiative in which those who can are urged to make a contribution to a cause that matters. For those of you who can afford to do so, I’d like to ask you to make a contribution to support ASAN’s ongoing work to empower people with disabilities and our allies. If you can’t afford to make a financial contribution, consider urging your friends on social media to do so by joining our thunderclap on Facebook, Twitter or Tumblr. “Please consider making a contribution to support ASAN’s important work and help advance the…

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Voices for Vaccines: A Giving Tuesday Org to Support

We’re grateful to our friends at Voices for Vaccines for helping us bust vaccine-autism myths while supporting autistic people. We’re also grateful for their tireless work in making sure the anti-vaccine voice is not the default parent voice broadcast during conversations about immunization. Tomorrow, December 2, they are asking for our help in getting pro-vaccine voices heard by gathering 1,000 donors who are willing to put their money where their anti-disease opinion is and give to VFV as part of their Giving Tuesday drive. TPGA is happy to support Voices for Vaccines and to take these simple steps to help spread the word to 1,000 potential donors for tomorrow! Here’s how you can help: 1) Join the Facebook event and invite friends: https://www.facebook.com/events/666509686779809/ 2) Visit VFV on Giving Tuesday and donate any amount, great or small. www.voicesforvaccines.org/support 3) Share this video widely with friends, family, and colleagues: Thank you for…

Autism Parents, Self-Advocates, and Shared Concerns

Shannon Des Roches Rosa Let me tell you something that may or may not surprise you: When it comes to public discussions about autism, parent and professional voices tend to dominate, and autistic voices tend to be excluded. While that dynamic is changing, primarily due to autistic advocates’ refusal to be sidelined in stories about their own community, and in part through the many communities that encourage parents to discover, listen to, and respect the experiences of those who have lived autistic lives — autistic voices too often still get dismissed, ignored, or outright disrespected. I’m not begrudging parents of autistic kids the right to tell their own stories from parent perspectives, obviously, being that I’m one of those parents myself. But I do find it unsettling when parent stories mention autistic perspectives only to belittle or reject them, as Anne Spence did recently in her otherwise thoughtful story When…