A open letter to: Radio station "fashion rocks autism" event

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Hey everyone!

Idk how others feel about this, and I welcome all insights, however I've been hearing this advertised on the radio station every day that I'm at work. Paraphrasing it says "help cure the world wide epidemic." And I'm a little bit peeved, so I decided to write an open letter. the radio station is 107 the bay:


https://www.thebayonline.com/2018/08/27 ... tism-2018/

And the people helping Sponsor it is safe minds
https://safeminds.org/about/


I wrote an open letter and just wanted to get some input. I read it at a poetry meet up recently but haven't sent it to them yet. I'd like some input because this is all about us and I don't want more than just my voice in it. I would really like some constructiv input and your honest thoughts on this matter.

An open letter to the bay 100.7 FM and their partner Safeminds who sponsored “Fashion Rocks Autism: Help cure the epidemic”



We don’t feel safe


We know the fashion of the times

With Tiki-torches and shouts of

Blood and soil…

Clean blood





Was it because

it became uncool to be homophobic and racist

So a redirection was needed

And since its not really right to talk against people

You decided to change tactics and speak for us?



When you say your autistic

Your not greeted with acceptance

But rather a patronizing demeanor

That stokes the flames of some white man’s burden



For without you and your guidance

Oh where would we be?



It doesn’t matter that without

Henry David Thoreau, Emily Dickinson, Nikoli Tesla, or Steven Wazniak

You wouldn’t have modern American literature, electric lights or even the f*****g modern computer.



Oh, but they were aspergers

That’s right… they were



And so was I…



Until you robbed us of our identity with the DSM-5

And pushed us all onto a spectrum

That in reality is biased against the respectful identity of millions of people on this planet.

It’s alright. We’re a family now; and stronger for it.



But when have you really listened

To the people with “the condition”



There definitely is an anger, depression, and suicide

Spurred by isolation and the bastardization and

To live correctly for others



But we shine, colors you don’t understand.



Like the non-verbal Amy sequenzia

A fierce advocate of all human rights

Who has published volumes worth of essays

And poetry about the matter

By ways of communication or the hundreds of others

Typing out fire on fluorescent screens

To blogs and message boards



I don’t think you want us to speak



I don’t think you want us to express ourselves

Because we want to be happy.

We want to feel proud of who we are



But the truth is,

And you’ll be proud to say,

“We don’t want you”



So of course

we have to go.



Because after all, its not fashionable.



Eugenics is.

Thanks!

Er . . . without getting at all militant or socially justicey warrior like about it, I notice that the Safe Minds website includes the words "end the autism epidemic" - when Autism is NOT an infectious disease, so therefore CANNOT be an epidemic.

And you do not even have to go that far, the strap line at the top left of the page says "resolving the autism epidemic".

Call me reactionary, but I hate them already.

Oh look, "Autism is environmentally-induced" they claim. Funny that. I haven't heard of anyone actually proving what causes Autism yet.

AND the front for Eugenics confirming words "The cost to society is now estimated at $268 billion." - whether it is smoking, drinking, seat belts or anything ALWAYS be suspicious of this kind of cost to society argument.

They look like Curebies, and a possible front for selling this ABA thing (is that what it is called?). Not only that, this team of self styled concerned professionals not only want to cure us, they want to cure the f*****g planet as shown in the words "accelerating environmental research and demanding reform in public health policies."

Just looking at this page https://safeminds.org/about/executive-board/ - which details members of the executive board of Safeminds.

Americans will know more about this lot than I do, but I notice that the board president was also the board president of an organisation called "Cure Autism Now", later the director of the Autism Speaks board (need I go on?).

There is an insurance specialist involved on the board as well.

"mercury poisoning" and "Mercury Toxicity,” both get a mention, in fact one of the board members wrote a paper called “Autism: A Novel Form of Mercury Toxicity,”

There is a professional rape victim counsellor in there as well.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I would not trust a single one of these people to put bottles on a conveyor belt.

https://safeminds.org/about/safeminds-activism/ - this page claims that vaccinations have caused autism.

So do you believe the letter I wrote is justified, has any innacurasies, or could be shaped better to express our common views better? I'd like to send this to them soon, but I want to make sure to get this as right as I can without ignorance or jumping the gun (which I don't believe I'm doing).

Someone else's opinion will be better than mine, but I think your letter is justified.

Sending a letter of complaint to the radio station might be the best thing to do, and I am no expert, and it might be not worth bothering at all. We need people who know more than me how these things work.

My open letter would be " Go f*ck yourselves!"

I think you have expressed some good points in your poem OP, but I would not send it as a poem. Poems are too good for them and it would go over their heads. I would say very plainly "Autism isn't curable it a matter of brain wiring. Don't try and raise money on our behalf, don't speak on our behalf. You know nothing about this." Or something like that.

SafeMinds History

This is my letter



Believing people like me are part of some horrific epidemic or a mutation caused by poisoning is not at all the way to help us, it is quite the opposite. If we are a mutating epidemic then it is an emergency that needs to be stopped NOW. This makes it tempting to use all sorts of shortcuts and risks that would not be taken otherwise, this is rarely good.

Another factor to be taken into consideration is how it affects autistic people to read this stuff about themselves. I am older and able to handle these things but imagine being an autistic child or teen already having all sorts or problems with exclusion and bullying having to read they are part of a mutating epidemic. They say we do not have empathy, where is yours?

Besides you are wrong I was born this way not created by some poison or poisons. People that believe autism is a toxin caused epidemic often point out that there were no autistics around when they were growing up. That is because we were around and you could not see us for reasons not your fault. At the time only the most severe cases were reconized. The rest were usually misdiagnosed and institutionilized with the other what were called “mental defectives” . You can read about it in the well researched Autism history books “In a Different Key” and “Neurotribes”. In that era people just did not talk about those things. As for the less severe or higher functioning autistics we were undiagnosed and left to our own devices. Some failed, many floundred under the assumption of character flaws, and some figured enough out to get by. Every class had that weird kid or two who the bullies had a field day with. Some of them were autistic.

To the OP. I understand and agree with your frustration. There is at least one grammatical error in your poem a "your" when it should be "you're". I understand you're expressing yourself, but just my opinion, it detracts for me that it's in the form of a poem that I have to then try to interpret and figure out. I think it's perfectly suited for a poetry group which is where you said you read it as a draft. But if your intent is to submit it to the station to communicate your issues with and opposition to the function they're planning, I think it's best to be as straightforward as possible in format and design to articulate your position.

There are posts that I see on WP that are not written in metre and verse specifically, but are so lengthy and seem to be purposely designed visually in an artfully cryptic way, I don't even bother to try to read/figure out the posts.

You have a voice and you have opinions that deserve to be heard just like anyone else. I think if you present your statements as written, it may fall on deaf ears.