Autism Acceptance Month
Each month, our communities commemorate and honor distinct groups of people (Black people in February, women in March), and bring awareness to causes or diseases (bullying and breast cancer in October). Many of these commemorations have brought visibility to lesser-known topics and have created symbols that we have come to recognize, such as the pink ribbon for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. However, not all campaigns or symbols are well-received by the communities they were created to support.
This is the case with the puzzle piece symbol, originally designed in the 1960s by Gerald Gasson, a parent of individuals with Autism, to represent, “the incompleteness and unknowns” of people with Autism.
The puzzle piece has come to symbolize a view of Autism as a void to be filled, or a problem to be fixed, rather than a complex, beautiful, multi-layered form of neurodiversity.
In February 2018, the Autism Research Journal changed the symbol to a rainbow colored infinity symbol, to represent a spectrum, diversity, and difference. Then in March 2021, the Autism Society of America shifted from referring to April as Autism Awareness Month to Autism Acceptance Month.
So…. Happy Autism Acceptance Month! We have a number of members of the Worldmind community who have Autism, and we are so grateful for their incredible contributions to our school. We strive to support our neurodiverse students every day and enjoy celebrating the fascinating ways they perceive our world.
Are you doing anything specific to honor and celebrate Autism Acceptance Month? If so, please let us know, especially if there are ways for us to join you!
- Megan and the Worldmind Team
Below please find the video of Dr. Ali Hill's presentation from our last community event and information about this month’s community event.
Dr. Ali Hill provided families with a parenting framework that enables our children to be independent, within the boundaries of clearly-established behavioral expectations and consistent consequences for breaking the rules. Her talk includes strategies for creating a "culture of inquiry" in our homes that prioritizes asking meaningful questions in order to prevent and resolve interpersonal conflict.