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The National Autistic Society has pledged support for the Justice for LB Bill. 
 
The campaign for the Bill was set up following the death in hospital of Connor Sparrowhawk – also known as Laughing Boy (LB).
 
Connor had autism and epilepsy, which sometimes caused seizures, but his family describe him as “generally a fit and healthy young man, who loved buses, London, Eddie Stobart and speaking his mind”.
 
On March 19 2013, he was admitted to an assessment and treatment unit – a type of hospital. He drowned in the bath on July 4 2013, a death which has been described as “entirely avoidable”’ as his condition meant he should have been supervised.
 
His story alongside other stories of people with a disability being moved out of their homes into unsuitable accommodation, led to the setting up of the Justice For LB campaign.
 
Organisers of the campaign have written a draft law which would give clearer legal rights to people with complex needs to have greater choice and control over where they live.
 
The law also seeks to ensure that local councils develop better support locally so people do not have to live far away from their families and the communities they know.
 
It further looks to amend the Mental Health Act so that having autism is not in itself a reason to be sectioned.

 

The campaign is seeking comments on the first draft of their Bill and we will be feeding our thoughts into the draft Bill setting out how we think it should be improved. They are also encouraging individuals, MP, members of the House of Lords and organisations to pledge their support.

 

To find out more, to comment on the draft and to pledge your support, see: https://lbbill.wordpress.com/

 

Source:

http://www.autism.org.uk/news-and-events/news-from-the-nas/justice-for-lb-bill.aspx



 

by: Mary E. Stewart, Louise Barnard, Joanne Pearson, Reem Hasan, Gregory O’Brien

 

Autism, Vol. 10, No. 1. (1 January 2006), pp. 103-116, doi:10.1177/1362361306062013  Key: citeulike:12220121

 

Abstract

Depression is common in autism and Asperger syndrome, but despite this, there has been little research into this issue. This review considers the current literature on the prevalence, presentation, treatment and assessment of depression in autism and Asperger syndrome. There are diagnostic difficulties when considering depression in autism and Asperger syndrome, as the characteristics of these disorders, such as social withdrawal and appetite and sleep disturbance, are also core symptoms of depression. Impaired verbal and non-verbal communication can mask the symptoms of depression. Symptoms associated with autism and Asperger syndrome such as obsessionality and self-injury may be increased during an episode of depression. There is a clear need to develop specific tools both for diagnostic purposes and for measurement of depression in autism and Asperger syndrome in order to help alleviate the distress caused by this treatable illness.

 

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by: Jinah Kim, Tony Wigram, Christian Gold

 

Autism, Vol. 13, No. 4. (1 July 2009), pp. 389-409, doi:10.1177/1362361309105660  Key: citeulike:5393385

 

Abstract

 

Through behavioural analysis, this study investigated the social-motivational aspects of musical interaction between the child and the therapist in improvisational music therapy by measuring emotional, motivational and interpersonal responsiveness in children with autism during joint engagement episodes. The randomized controlled study (n = 10) employed a single subject comparison design in two different conditions, improvisational music therapy and toy play sessions, and DVD analysis of sessions. Improvisational music therapy produced markedly more and longer events of `joy’, `emotional synchronicity’ and `initiation of engagement’ behaviours in the children than toy play sessions. In response to the therapist’s interpersonal demands, `compliant (positive) responses’ were observed more in music therapy than in toy play sessions, and `no responses’ were twice as frequent in toy play sessions as in music therapy. The results of this exploratory study found significant evidence supporting the value of music therapy in promoting social, emotional and motivational development in children with autism. 

 

View FullText article



In the play (and movie) "Steel Magnolias," the character, Shelby, sits in a beauty salon chair while others discuss her medical condition. Autistic people often report this same type of treatment from those around them.

 

In the play (and movie) “Steel Magnolias,” the character, Shelby, sits in a beauty salon chair while others discuss her medical condition. Autistic people often report this same type of treatment from those around them.
Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images

 

 

 

December 1, 2014

 

In the movie, Steel Magnolias, Shelby, following a reaction to an excess of insulin, struggles to blurt out the sentence, “Don’t talk about me like I’m not here!”

 

Autism Speaks controversial video, “Autism Every Day” features a scene where a mother briefly discusses committing suicide in her car with her autistic daughter. The girl is seen playing in the background as she says this.

 

It would seem impolite to talk about someone when they are standing within earshot, yet autistics experience this behavior on a regular basis.

 

In today’s world, a quick assessment of a person’s intelligence is often made on the basis of social skills.

 

Failure to respond in a “typical” way is equated with a failure to understand.

 

Autistics at every level of the spectrum can understand. Some with exceptionally high I.Q.s may understand a situation better than the person who is speaking to them.

 

They, simply, do not know how to respond.

 

A condition such as selective mutism, or apraxia of speech might be behind this failure to respond. A person with Asperger’s syndrome might be able to respond, but is reluctant to do so due to past social failures.

 

Non-verbal autistics who communicate with keyboards will report understanding what was being said around them, including being called “damaged” or a “burden.”

 

Many in the autistic community would call this a form of discrimination.

 

Read in Full:

http://www.examiner.com/article/autistic-person-the-room?cid=rss



Sara Krulwich/The New York Times

 

Tim Teeman

 

Alex Sharp is 25, fresh out of Juilliard, and suddenly the hottest star on Broadway, receiving raves for his role in ‘The Curious Case of The Dog In The Night-Time.’

 
If Alex Sharp is in the middle of a “dream come true,” as he puts it, he is also suffering for it. When the 25-year-old British star of Broadway hit The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time takes his seat in the midtown Manhattan restaurant what is immediately apparent is the mauve-colored bandage covering Sharp’s left palm and wrist.
 
His Broadway debut has been universally acclaimed, and audiences electrified, by his performance as Christopher, a 15-year-old English teenager with Asperger’s syndrome, who discovers a neighbor’s dead dog, and becomes determined to discover how it died.
 
The words “Asperger’s” and “autism” are never mentioned in Simon Stephens’ brilliant adaptation of Mark Haddon’s 2003 novel, in which the audience is plunged, like Christopher, into a world of clashing sounds, images, and movement.
 
Bunny Christie’s stage design—a stunning matrix of lights, tracks, maps, and grids—means Curious Incident is, as the New York Times’ rave review put it, “one of the most fully immersive works ever to wallop Broadway.”
 
The injuries are the inevitable result of Sharp’s deeply committed performance: in Marianne Elliott’s enveloping production, he clambers, jumps, leaps, crouches, literally throws himself around a stage that convincingly transforms from an English suburban street, to high-speed train, a terrifying London Underground station, and the teeming, jostling streets of the British capital.
 
All the time Sharp, wittily and movingly, takes us inside Christopher’s mind, as it struggles to impose order—and keep its owner safe—as the world around him clatters and moves. He cogitates maths problems, and sees things absolutely literally, in a world that is far from orderly and layered with meanings we are all too aware of.

 

Read in Full:

http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/12/07/the-brit-who-stormed-broadway.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+thedailybeast%2Farticles+%28The+Daily+Beast+-+Latest+Articles%29



Raising Three Children W/ Disabilities Alone

by JTeam  |  Posted December 6, 2014  |  Chatham, Illinois

 

You think raising one special needs child can be hard. I am a single father who worked full time and raised three boys with three different disabilities. While I got divorced when the kids were 8 and 11, it was not because of their disabilities that we divorced but my wife’s mental condition that was getting worse.

 

 

My oldest son (r) has Angelman Syndrome, can’t communicate with his voice or hands, sleeps 8 hours in a 36 hour day, can’t stand on his own, feed himself, dress himself and has seizures. He is now in a group home because I locked him in his room at night for his own safety and the state felt that it was a danger to him and offered to pay for his care in a group home if I wouldn’t fight it.

 

 

The son in the middle has Autism. He can talk but most of his words are “scripted” or “parroting” what he had heard. When he was younger, he would have violent outbursts clearing off tables, shelves and hitting himself. But with patience, I have taught him how to deal with the things in life that would trigger these outbursts. He would leave the house and run off to do his own things which I also addressed and he no longer does.

 

 

And my youngest son (l) had Asperger’s Syndrome which is a social disorder in the Autistic Spectrum.. I say had because through my putting him into social situations and many discussions, we have worked on his issues and while he still has concerns about social situations, he is in college, living in a dorm and seems to be doing very well. Not a social butterfly but he has made some friends.

 

Read More …

http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1194930?ref=feeds%2Flatest



Dear Friends,

 

Like me, many of you spent this past Thursday with those you care about celebrating Thanksgiving and thinking about the things in your lives that matter most. 

 

I’ve always enjoyed these moments. Aside from the food and good company, they represent an opportunity for us to take a moment and reflect both on how far we’ve come and how far is still left to go. 

 

This has been a big year for the Autistic community and the progressive disability rights movement. In January, ASAN and our allies successfully lobbied the White House to include people with disabilities in their groundbreaking executive order requiring a $10.10/hour minimum wage for workers employed under federal service and concessions contracts. 

 

Shortly afterwards, after five years of pressure, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a groundbreaking new regulation spelling out for the first time what Home and Community Based Services are – and more importantly, what they are not. Thanks to this new rule and ASAN’s toolkit on how to make it work, advocates have a new tool to move our people out of sheltered workshops and group homes and into truly inclusive environments.

 

And this summer, after years of trying, ASAN and our allies succeeded in ending the Combating Autism Act. Thanks to our allies in Congress, we are putting pressure on the administration to implement its replacement in a way that values and elevates Autistic voices. Because the national conversation on autism shouldn’t be happening about us, without us.S

 

Still, despite these steps forward, there’s much to be done. Hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities still suffer segregation in sheltered workshops and institutions. The national conversation on autism is still dominated by organizations that exclude autistic people and work to silence our voices. Even of those in our community who are included, too many face violence in schools, from law enforcement and, at times, even at home.

 

Tomorrow, 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 cause of disability rights. Your support makes what we do possible and helps us invest in the next generation of disability rights leadership and advocacy.

 

Thank you for your support this year, and in the year to come. As always, Nothing About Us, Without Us!

 

Support Our Work

 

Warm regards,

 

Ari Ne’eman

President

Autistic Self Advocacy Network





The Autistic Self Advocacy Network is looking for a full-time Technical Assistance Coordinator.

 

The Technical Assistance Coordinator will play an integral role on ASAN’s community engagement team and will work closely with ASAN leadership to supervise the Pacific Alliance on Disability Self Advocacy, provide support to ASAN’s chapter network, assist in the planning and coordination of ASAN’s leadership trainings, and coordinate national self-advocacy efforts in conjunction with the Director of Programs, Leadership Programs Coordinator, and other ASAN staff. The job is a salaried position based out of ASAN’s Washington, DC office.

 

To learn more about the position, click here.

 

Familiarity with the disability rights, self-advocacy, and neurodiversity movements, and ASAN’s work is a must. Prior experience with grassroots organizing and event planning and coordination is strongly preferred. We strongly encourage applicants with disabilities, as well as applicants of color, to apply. 

 

Interested parties should send their resume, cover letter, and 2 references to jbascom@autisticadvocacy.org.

 

Job responsibilities:

 

Coordinate and support the activities of ASAN’s national chapter network, providing:

  •  
  • * Vetting & quality control for current and prospective chapters;
  • * Resource dissemination as needed;
  • * Technical assistance for chapter activities as needed;
  • * Project coordination for national chapter projects;
  • * Support in integrating ASAN’s chapter network with the rest of ASAN’s advocacy work;

 

Coordinate, track, and expand ASAN’s overall resource dissemination;

 

Facilitate ongoing resource dissemination for the Pacific Alliance, including:

  •  
  • * Monthly webinars and accompanying written guides;
  • * Regular website updates to reflect new resources, opportunities, and developments;
  • * Regular email updates to a variety of constituencies on an as-needed basis;

 

Conduct ongoing outreach to a variety of Pacific Alliance stakeholders:

  •  
  • * Moderate the Pacific Alliance online community of practice;
  • * Lead systematic outreach to state groups, individual self-advocate leaders, and TA partners;
  • * Manage relations with and connect self-advocates to existing leadership and advocacy opportunities in Pacific Alliance states and support Pacific Leadership Academy participants and alumni in their advocacy development following trainings;
  • * Facilitate regular meetings among individuals involved in the Pacific Alliance consultant pool and mini-grant program, state TA partners, the advisory council, and other relevant parties;

 

Supervise and coordinate the Pacific Alliance consultant pool and mini-grant program;

 

In conjunction with the Leadership Programs Coordinator:

  •  
  • * Undertake and coordinate preparations for ASAN’s annual Pacific Leadership Academy;
  • * Assist in the preparation of other ASAN leadership trainings as needed;

 

In collaboration with the Director of Programs and in conjunction with other Community Engagement team members, work to integrate ASAN’s technical assistance programming with the organization’s broader activities and mission.

 

Skills needed:

    •  
    • *Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and Google Apps;
    • * Familiarity with the GoToWebinar platform;
    • * Knowledge of Doodle scheduling tools;
    • * Strong phone, email, and written communication skills;
    • * Strong interpersonal skills
    • * Superb organizational skills;
    • * Ability to take direction and work in a team;
    • * Ability to juggle multiple projects at once;
    • * Ability to deliver assignments on a deadline.


Dear friends,

 

We need your help. This summer, President Obama signed into law the Autism CARES Act, replacing the Combating Autism Act and giving us an opportunity to turn over a new leaf in federal autism policy. But we need more than just a change in name – we need a change in policy.

 

Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky has drafted a letter to the Administration urging them to implement Autism CARES in a way that includes Autistic people and increases the amount of funding going towards services research. The letter will be going out to the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institutes of Health soon. We need you to help us get your Member of Congress on it. 

 

Here’s what you can do:

 

1) Call the Capitol Switchboard at (202) 224-3121.

 

2) Tell the Operator you’re calling to speak to your Representative’s office and give your zip code to let them find it.

 

3) After they connect you with the office, use the following script:

 

“Hi, my name is [YOUR NAME], I’m a constituent and live in [YOUR TOWN] and am calling to urge Congressman/Congresswoman [THEIR LAST NAME] to sign on to the Schakowsky letter about including autistic adults in the research process. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky is the lead signatory. Could I speak with the staffer in your office responsible for health policy issues?”

 

[After being connected with that staffer]

 

“Hi, I’m a constituent and am calling to encourage you to sign on to Congresswoman Schakowsky’s letter to the Administration urging the inclusion of autistic adults in the autism research process. This is a very important issue – today, only 2.4% of federal autism research dollars go to services and less than 1.5% go to the needs of adults. Waverly Gordon is the staff member in Rep. Schakowsky’s office responsible for the letter. Would you be willing to reach out to her to discuss your office signing on?”

 

[After they give you a response]

 

“Thanks so much. Can I get your e-mail address so I can send you a copy of the letter and follow up with you afterwards?”

 

[After they give you a response to this]

 

“Thanks so much for taking the time. Have a good day!”

 

4) Follow up with an e-mail to the office, attaching a copy of this letter and urging them to sign on to support the inclusion of autistic people in autism research.

 

After you make the call, reach out to ASAN’s Director of Public Policy, Samantha Crane, at scrane@autisticadvocacy.org and let us know how it went so we can keep track of progress. We need your help to make a difference.

 

Thank you, and as always, Nothing About Us, Without Us.

 

Warm regards,

 

Ari Ne’eman

President

Autistic Self Advocacy Network