By Yamila Garcia
Last Saturday was World Autism Day. I wanted to write about it but I didn’t really know what is it about, so I started reading about it and I found out many things are going on this day. There are talks, walks, people wearing something blue, and posters with pictures of puzzles everywhere. They talk about promoting inclusion, raising awareness, recognizing abilities, and not stigmatizing. It all sounds interesting, but I wonder who participates in these activities? I found that most of the participants are family and friends of people on the spectrum. Precisely, I do not believe that these people are the main target of the awareness activities. I think this is why so many people still don’t know what ASD is all about. Since I was diagnosed I have asked myself many times whether or not I should share it with others. I had very mixed reactions to sharing it with a few people. Some reacted with concern, fear, and rejection. Others with acceptance and ease that comes from knowing another person on the spectrum or being on the spectrum themselves. I wish we could sensitize the first group, which has nothing to do with the spectrum but probably will come across more people like me and will continue without knowing what it is, and therefore, how to act or work with us.
It is known that we fear what we do not know. So, what can we do so that what we are is not unknown to others? Well, I guess we can share, occupy spaces, get closer and invite them to get to know us as we are. I think an amazing way to do this is the Human Library. If you haven’t heard of this project before, its goal is “to promote inclusion and diversity by challenging stereotypes and discrimination.” The “books” are people who have experienced some kind of discrimination and who lend their time to talk about their experiences. The idea of not judging a book by its cover takes a deeper meaning when getting to know people and stories you wouldn’t know otherwise. How much easier it would be to understand others if we were encouraged to get to know them and not expect uniform behaviors and thoughts. Getting to know people who are different not only opens the doors to others so that they can show you who they are, but it will also leave you learning. After all, who learns by surrounding themselves with people who do and think the same as themselves? I invite you to approach whoever you think is most different from you and see what happens. I am sure that you will be surprised to realize that some of those “differences” that you saw on the cover are not differences and how enriching the exchange is.