[Note: Shared for #AutisticHistory archive purposes. This is NOT An Autistic Ally.]

Wright Urges Autism Community to Resist Potential Federal Research Funding Cuts

March 04, 2012

WEST PALM BEACH, FL (March 4, 2012) — With the budget clock ticking, Autism Speaks Co-founder Bob Wright today called on the nation’s autism community to urge Congress to protect $21.3 million in autism funding that could be in jeopardy.

The President’s 2013 budget request includes this amount to support autism spectrum disorders research and surveillance at the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a slight increase from 2012. But the money for 2013 for the first time is linked to the politically sensitive Prevention and Public Health Fund, which was created by the Affordable Care Act, the health care law of 2010 whose constitutionality will soon be decided by the Supreme Court.

Autism Speaks is concerned that the budget proposal jeopardizes this vital autism funding. Wright said the autism funding, which was authorized last year through the Combating Autism Reauthorization Act, should be considered independently by Congress.

Autism Votes will be leading the effort to protect the funding.

The Autism Community Is Not The Autistic Community

Note/Warning:

Autistic people have fought the inclusion of ABA in therapy for us since before Autism Speaks, and other non-Autistic-led autism organizations, started lobbying legislation to get it covered by insurances and Medicaid.

ABA is a myth originally sold to parents that it would keep their Autistic child out of an institution. Today, parents are told that with early intervention therapy their child will either be less Autistic or no longer Autistic by elementary school, and can be mainstreamed in typical education classes. ABA is very expensive to pay out of pocket. Essentially, Autism Speaks has justified the big price tag up front will offset the overall burden on resources for an Autistic’s lifetime. The recommendation for this therapy is 40 hours a week for children and toddlers.

The original study that showed the success rate of ABA to be at 50% has never been replicated. In fact, the study of ABA by United States Department of Defense was denounced as a failure. Not just once, but multiple times. Simply stated: ABA doesn’t work. In study after repeated study: ABA (conversion therapy) doesn’t work.

What more recent studies do show: Autistics who experienced ABA therapy are at high risk to develop PTSD and other lifelong trauma-related conditions. Historically, the autism organizations promoting ABA as a cure or solution have silenced Autistic advocates’ opposition. ABA is also known as gay conversion therapy.

The ‘cure’ for Autistics not born yet is the prevention of birth.

The ‘cure’ is a choice to terminate a pregnancy based on ‘autism risk.’ The cure is abortion. This is the same ‘cure’ society has for Down Syndrome.

This is eugenics 2021. Instead of killing Autistics and disabled children in gas chambers or ‘mercy killings’ like in Aktion T4, it’ll happen at the doctor’s office, quietly, one Autistic baby at a time. Different approaches yes, but still eugenics and the extinction of an entire minority group of people.

Fact: You can’t cure Autistics from being Autistic.

Fact: You can’t recover an Autistic from being Autistic.

Fact: You can groom an Autistic to mask and hide their traits. Somewhat. … however, this comes at the expense of the Autistic child, promotes Autistic Burnout (this should not be confused with typical burnout, Autistic Burnout can kill Autistics), and places the Autistic child at high risk for PTSD and other lifelong trauma-related conditions.

[Note: Autism is NOT a disease, but a neurodevelopmental difference and disability.]

Fact: Vaccines Do Not Cause Autism.