Opinion, Parenting

An Interview With An Expert For World Autism Awareness Day

The United Nations has established April 2 as World Autism Awareness Day to increase understanding of the condition as its prevalence rises around the world - now affecting 1 in 68 in the USA.  On this day, we need to listen to the voices of the real experts, the people who have autism.  Some prefer to call it Autism Acceptance Day, and some choose not to recognize the day at all, since autism is simply a natural part of life.  But not my son Louie - he likes to talk about it.  In honor of World Autism Awareness Day, he gave me permission to interview him to share his ideas about autism and autism awareness.

Karen Wang: What day is April 2, 2014? Louie Wang: World Autism Awareness Day is on April 2, 2014.

KW: Is this day important to you?  Why? LW: Yes, because we love someone with autism.

KW: Will you celebrate on April 2?  How? LW: Yes, I will wear a bracelet. I will give bracelets to all my teachers. It is a world autism awareness bracelet in rainbow colors.

KW: How do you want others to celebrate on April 2? LW: They should show love.

KW: What do you want people to know about autism? LW: They should know that some people have special needs.

KW: When and how did you learn about autism? LW: When I was 8 or 9, I learned about autism.  I wrote a report on Temple Grandin. She was sensitive like me.

KW: What is hard about autism? LW: It is hard to behave the way everyone else is behaving.

KW: What is awesome about autism? LW: Doing fun things is awesome about autism.  I like to go to museums, malls and the library.  I like to go to swimming pools. I like waterslides, roller coasters and elevators.  I go to fun places because it helps me learn. Mom and Dad want me to have fun, because I work hard all the time.

KW: What type of activities do you like to do? LW: I like to do science activities. I watch science videos and take notes. I go on nature walks. I do science experiments.

KW: What type of activities do you dislike? LW: I dislike staying home on the weekend.

KW: What do you need help with? LW: I need help with homework.

KW: What do you need the most? LW: I need our fun activities not canceled. 

KW: What is the best thing about school? LW: The best thing about school is science.

KW: What is the worst thing about school? LW: The worst thing about school is trying to get people to play with me at recess.

KW: What is the best thing about our home? LW: The best thing about our home is computer time.

KW: What is the worst thing about our home? LW:The worst thing about our home is that I gag on food sometimes.

KW: What do you want to learn more about? LW: I want to learn more about ancient civilizations. I want to learn how to sew.

KW: What do you want to do when you’re grown up?LW: I want to work in an office building.

 KW: What would you like to change about people?LW: I would like to help them be kind to others.

KW: What would you like to change about the world? LW: I think the world is a fun place already.

KW: What are you most proud of? LW: I am most proud of my high scores on pinball.

KW: What color should I use for your words on the blog? LW: You should use blue for my words on the blog.

 How will you celebrate on April 2?