CAN to be under the aegis of Autism Speaks
November 29, 2006 by Kristina Chew, PhD
Filed under Health
Rome, as is said, was not built in a day, and neither was the far-flung Roman Empire. It was under the Roman Republic (509 – 23 BC) that the neighboring peoples and cities on the Italian peninsula were gradually brought under Rome’s influence and, following the Punic Wars in the third and second centuries BC, that the province of Africa was annexed, and then Macedonia and Asia Minor. At its height (around 116 AD), the Roman Empire extended all the way from parts of Saudi Arabia to Great Britain. Rome absorbed her allies or socii and the use of Latin was very much encouraged among them and in Rome’s provinces. Latin is no longer the universal language it once was, and yet it and also the roads the Romans built helped to connect many diverse peoples, cultures, nations in Rome’s empire.
It was back in February 2006 that Autism Speaks partnered with NAAR (National Alliance for Autism Research) and today Autism Speaks announced that CAN (Cure Autism Now) will also be under its aegis by February 1st of 2007. Autism Speaks is indeed on its way not simply to becoming but to being “largest single organization devoted to autism in the nation,” as stated in its Founders’ Message. The panoply of autism organizations, from the ASA to CAN to DAN, that Jim and I encountered when Charlie was diagnosed back in 1999 seem gradually to be subsumed within Autism Speaks.
Will the puzzle ribbon fade away into the blue puzzle piece, as diverse autism organizations alike become one for the history books, partners to Autism Speaks, and partners in its mission of helping to “find a cure for autism by raising the funds that will facilitate and quicken the pace of research, to raise public awareness of autism, and to give hope to all those who suffer from this disorder”?
Time, of course will tell. The ruins of the Romans’ Forum, and of monuments like the Colisseum and the Ara Pacis (altar of Peace) still stand, and Latin is still taught (by classicists like me) and the words of Romans like the great orator Cicero and the poet Virgil (and not those of the Etruscans, whom the Romans conquered and whose language is lost) still read. As the proverb goes, “all roads lead to Rome.”
I really hate this. Shrieks is going to screw up everything, I can just see it now.
All roads will lead to making more money for the people who run Autism Shrieks, um, Speaks.
If you look through their website you’ll come across pages like the “final annual report of NAAR.”
It seems like Autism Speaks has a strong momentum behind their cause along with a strong leadership at the helm, Similar to the Roman Empire. I guess we will just have to watch and see how big Autism Speaks gets.
It also seems like some autistics may oppose any efforts to alter who or what they are. I respect their position and opinion.
As a parent of a low functioning non verbal child who will never live independently, a parent who is concerned for the well being of my son when I leave this planet, I hope Autism Speaks can make a difference in my son’s life and the life of people who can never live alone and want this assistance.
I also hope they can make a difference in the lives of those who are yet to be born. To those bloggers who oppose or mock Autism Speaks please be patient with me as I am vulnerable in this area.
Gerard Petillo
Parents of ANGELS Bronx NY
I think the mergers on the Autism world are winderful and long over do. As a father of an autistic son, I know the money for research may not solve my issues, but may solve and prevent issues in the future.
This news leaves me with three words.
Excitement, Relief & Hope.
Bob
This merger of autism groups feels to me a lot like one of those mega-media corporation mergers- less message for more bucks. The autism community is extremely diverse, so it does not make me hopeful to hear that the message is being codified rather than diversified, particularly the message of Autism Speaks, which considers the sanctioning & normalising of murderous thoughts in parents to be a “hopeful” message. Autism Speaks does not speak for this autism family, with an autistic child who does not conform to the easily tossed-about “high-functioning” & “low-functioning” labels. Autism is too complicated for such labels & my son deserves better than to be represented by a group that will ignore him once he reaches adulthood & has his own opinions about himself & his autism. In a culture where money speaks louder than actions, I can only hope that those of us who do not agree with Autism Speaks’ mission will be able to have our hopeful, diverse messages of acceptance heard…
I’m a “non-verbal” person who will probably “never live independently” and I can’t stand Autism Speaks, nor can I stand the existence of people like me being used to justify that crap.
“I cannot view Jodie as differently abled, for I cannot view her as abled”-Alison Tepper-Singer, Vice President, AutismWeeps.
Anyone who can say that about their child has long since stopped seeing them as a child, and has been seeing them as a cash cow for their new job for quite some time.
ESPECIALLY so soon after the cute little drive off the George Washington Bridge comment.
NO organization that thinks that is remotely acceptable speaks for me. And I’m no where near as “high functioning” as people assume.
I hate it when I’m right. In the spring I started researching Autism Speaks and was astounded by the media connections and money behing the organization. I started predicting to some folks here that it was a 300-lb gorilla that was rapidly gaining wait and could conceivably gobble up all other autism groups over time.
To Gerard:
It’s nice that you respect those of us who fell differently about autism and what advocacy should be. But it really doesn’t mean anything, since the real implication of a juggernaut like the one that is “Autism Speaks” is that the voices you respect (but disagree with) will have an even harder time getting heard over the PR blitz than is the case now.
–Stephen
It’s going to be interesting to see which autism organization next goes under the Autism Speaks umbrella.
We’ll just have to keep at it to get every voice heard—to let every voice speak.
Why do we critize an organization that promotes awareness and raise millions for research.
Take the time and think!
Thanks for commenting here, Bob—my sense is that they are big enough to withstand criticism.
I criticize organizations that make it acceptable to murder your child…that call it COURAGEOUS to talk about your plans to do so. That have the cash to get around the CPS visit. Uh-huh. They can handle a little criticism.
I critcize organizations that lie. I criticize organizations that promote eugenics.
In short, I am against devaluing human lives because of the kind of human they happen to belong to, and will stand up against any person or group that does it, be it ONE person or an organazation one million strong-whether I do it myself, or with thousands at my back.
The “voiceless” will not have the tripe Autism Speaks and their ilk pour into their mouths unchallenged-there will always be another option on the menu so long as I am alive to challenge it.