Criticism from the Autism Rights Movement
Many vocal autistic self-advocacy groups as well as some autism
parent activists criticize Autism Speaks for focusing its efforts
into developing a cure and prevention for autism. Additional
concerns are the focus on parents and children and negativity
toward living with autism in its charity campaigns.
Autism Network Inernational (ANI), a self-advocacy group
established in 1992 was one of the first to object to the notion
that a cure was in the best interests of autistic people. The
anti-cure essay Don''t Mourn For Us presented by ANI
co-founder Jim Sinclair during an autism conference in 1993 gained
a lot of attention in the autism community1. The group
Aspies For Freedom established in 2004 encouraged several protests
against charities directed toward developing a cure and prevention
of autism.2
Kevin Leitch, a British web-developer and parent of a
classically autistic daughter, launched a petition on the popular
blogging portal Autism Hub in 2006 called Don''t Speak For
Me, protesting against the film Autism Every
Day presented by Autism Speaks. The petition argues
that the film depicts living with autism as overly negative, and
finds a segment of the film where a mother of an autistic daughter
says that she had contemplated driving off the George Washington
Bridge with her daughter inappropriate.3
Amanda Baggs, a non-speaking autistic woman who uses typed
communication, argues that not only individuals less disabled by
autism dislike the idea of a cure.4
1 Harmon, Amy (December 20, 2004). "How About
Not ''Curing'' Us, Some Autistics Are Pleading", New York
Times.
2 Saner, Emine (August 7, 2007)
"It is not a disease, it is a way of life", The Guardian
3 (July 17, 2006)
"Autism Speaks: Don''t Speak For Me", Autism Hub
4 Baggs, Amanda (October 30, 2006)
"Captioned Reply to GRASP/Autism Speaks Articles",
YouTube