Note:  Below is a letter sent to the New York Times by disability community voices in response to the "cancel culture" that those with more severe behaviors and challenges (and their families) face.  We have been excluded from mainstream disability conversations forever.  A prime example, and ironic, is that we were not contacted to participate in this letter, and yet, ignoring us has not helped them make any gains with The NYT. 

That being said, the overall message is applicable to the Age of Autism Community.  We are being left in the dust, "objects in mirror are closer than they appear" without services or even a willingness to acknowledge the severity of challenges. Even with some advocates trying to shut down housing options. And Lord knows the medical industry is wholly untrained for patients with autism related issues.  Personally, I'd like to thank John Robison, a friend of mine for many years now, for standing up for the rights of people like my three daughters.

There are times when you have to bail the boat together, and then choose which side to row on after you're afloat.

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The following letter was sent to The New York Times on behalf of 75 organizations and leaders in the disability community in response to the paper’s editorial choices omitting serious issues facing those with significant intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Dozens of Disability Leaders Decry Cancel Culture at the New York Times

The following letter was sent to The New York Times on behalf of 75 organizations and leaders in the disability community in response to the paper’s editorial choices omitting serious issues facing those with significant intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Dear Editors:

July 26th marked the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). To honor this unquestionably historic legislation, The New York Times has published over two dozen articles over the past few weeks celebrating disability. But with the exception of a brief mention in an article on caregiving, those with significant intellectual and developmental disabilities were notably absent from the Times’ coverage.

People with disabilities who win Academy and Tony awards, lobby Congress, and shape a new variant of hip-hop music absolutely deserve to be honored, as the Times did in its supplement dedicated to the ADA. But that isn’t the whole story. The whole story would include those whose profound intellectual and developmental disabilities preclude the autonomous decision-making, independent living, and competitive, minimum-wage employment that are the cornerstones of the Disability Rights movement. And it would also acknowledge that, in their zest to eliminate the specialized supports that don’t comport with this vision, advocates are doing exactly what Justice Anthony Kennedy feared would happen, when he wrote in his concurring opinion to the Olmstead decision referenced by the Times as a landmark in disability history: “It would be unreasonable, it would be a tragic event, then, were the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 to be interpreted so that States had some incentive…to drive those in need of medical care and treatment out of appropriate care and into settings with too little assistance and supervision.”   

Our community’s absence from your coverage was not for lack of trying. Several prominent voices submitted responses — either to individual pieces or to the Times’ request for contributions from the public. Not one of these was published. Some excerpts:

From John Elder Robison, autistic self-advocate and Neurodiversity scholar, the College of William and Mary; Neurodiversity Advisor, Landmark College: “In her essay [“Dear Parents: Your Child with Autism is Perfect”], Ms. Ryan writes: Your child might be verbal, nonverbal, aggressive, passive, introverted or extroverted. It doesn’t matter. It troubles me greatly to see those words published in The New York Times. I have represented the autism community before the federal government for 10 years. In that role I have talked to thousands of parents and even more autistic people. My experience has shown me how diverse the autism community is. It has also shown me something else: If your child is nonverbal, passive, or aggressive, it most certainly does matter.”  Read more Dozens of Disability Leaders Decry Cancel Culture at the New York Times