Easter, Jesus, and Autism Awareness Month: Bridging the Gap to Understand Neurodiversity

I am sorry I have not blogged for so long. Life has been very hectic for me, and I've thought a lot about issues that have come up. Nonetheless, I read a very interesting story that I think may be valid in how we convey the message of Neurodiversity to people. It is the story of Don Richardson and the Sawi tribe.

Don Richardson was a Christian missionary who was sent to New Guinea to preach Christianity to the Sawi tribe. However, the basic messages of Christianity consisting of love and forgiveness had no appeal to the Sawi, who held deceit to be of the highest value. In fact, the only story the Sawi found interesting was the story of Judas, who was considered by the tribe to be a hero! Judas successfully used deceit to gain Jesus' trust and betray him.

Richardson had no idea how to get through to the Sawi people, who were violent, cruel, and cannibalistic. After witnessing repeated incidents of war between the Sawi and their enemy the Haenam, Richardson was ready to give up. But one incident convinced him to stay.

The Sawi and the Haenam staged a traditional peace ceremony where both tribes gathered. Everyone was silent except for the Sawi chief's wife. She was sobbing uncontrollably as the chief siezed his own 6-month-old son from her arms and handed the infant to the enemy chief. One of the tribesmembers explained to Richardson the enemy tribe members will rename the baby and raise it as though it were their own. As long as the child lived, no wars can be fought between the tribes.

Suddenly, Richardson had a flash of insight. He had finally found a parallel story in the Sawi culture that he could use as an analogy to teach the tribe about Christianity. He gathered all of the people in the tribe and told them just as their chief handed his own son to enemy tribe to make peace, God sent his son Jesus to die for humanity and be resurrected in order to make peace. God too had sent his son to live amongst the enemy.

Now what does this have to do with autism? It has to do with finding a way to connect with the autism establishment and create positive change in leadership and direction. Most of the parents I've spoken to have indicated a greater desire for a sense of direction in guiding their children rather than a cure for autism per se. All we have to do is steer that flexibility of thinking to our side by creating public awareness campaigns that realistically emphasize the challenges of autism while giving the people on the spectrum dignity.

Of course, not all people can be convinced so easily, including the Wrights, Allison Tepper-Singer, and John Best Jr. However, I believe that most parents and caregivers involved in autism are simply scared and confused. It is because of this lack of direction that they fall prey to the rhetoric of organizations like Autism Speaks, which offers them a place to whine and the potential for a quick solution to their problems. Most of these followers otherwise probably just want their kids to reach their full potentialn and do well in life.

On the other hand, the establishment does raise a valid point in the overall public apathy regarding autism. It is this concern that both groups have in common. However, neurodiversity is a highly nuanced position, and not something that can be explained in a 30 second TV spot. Nonetheless, a commercial I would make about autism would include Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" playing in the background that lists a series of things autistic kids can do followed by a challenge they face (i.e. "In my mind, I can build anything with my imagination. But I need your help with language to express it" This sentence can be used to express language challenges with autism). I would use a finishing message of "Autistic children have many challenges in life. They need your help to reach their potential. But more importantly, they need your respect." Then perhaps the end will show a website people can go to read more about neurodiversity.

This kind of message can realistically emphasize the needs of us and our families and at the same give our population dignity to show we are people who although struggle in many ways are proud of our identity. Please this autism awareness month share the message of neurodiversity in appealing to a parent's desire to help their kid reach the highest potential. This will rouse people's sense of egalitarianism rather than pity. I think it is a much better way of advocating for the autistic population, as it puts autistics on the level of equals rather than simply marginalized people.

I write this entry because I realize that we can't do it alone on blogs. The people in the establishment have most of the attention, money, and media control, which means someday, someone is going to have to confront them head-on about positive changes in autism awareness. Using a transitional message may help us ease our way to the more open-minded members of the autism establishment. Maybe then we can inspire positive change in them so subtly that they may not even notice it.