Autistic Self Advocacy Network

Autistic Self Advocacy Network
	ASAN logo
Founded	November 2006
Founder	Ari Ne'eman and Scott Michael Robertson
Type	501(c)(3)
Focus	Public policy
Location	Washington, DC;
Method	Publications, policy advocacy
Revenue	Grants and donations
Website	Autistic Self Advocacy Network

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network, or ASAN, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocacy organization run by and for individuals on the autism spectrum. ASAN holds that the goal of autism advocacy should be a world in which Autistic people enjoy the same access, rights, and opportunities as all other people, and that Autistic voices should be included in the national conversation about autism.

Services

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network provides community organizing, self-advocacy support, and public policy advocacy & education for Autistic youth and adults, as well as working to improve the general public's understanding of autism and related conditions. ASAN's mission statement says that Autistic people are equal to everyone else, and important and necessary members of society,^[1] a concept called neurodiversity.

As opposed to the medical model of disability, ASAN supports the social model, which holds that negative attitudes and prejudices are the main factor in whether or not people are considered disabled, rather than objective flaws in their bodies or minds.

History

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network was founded in November 2006 by its current President, Ari Ne'eman, and current Board of Trustees member and Vice Chair of Development, Scott Michael Robertson.

ASAN's early work mostly focused on fighting the use of aversives, restraint and seclusion in special education;^[2]^[3] in December 2007, they spoke out publicly against Autism Speaks,^[4] and against the NYU Child Study Center's Ransom Notes ad campaign, which compared autism, ADHD, OCD and eating disorders to kidnappers holding children hostage. This counter-campaign^[5] put ASAN on the public's radar and has been referred to as the neurodiversity movement's coming of age.^[6]

National Branch and Local Chapters

The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network has a national branch in Washington, DC, and numerous chapters across the United States. These chapters' focuses are diverse, but are all somehow focused on collaborative self-advocacy. These chapters often host social groups for Autistic people.

ASAN's chapters sometimes work collaboratively with the national branch on nation-wide projects; an example of this is Day of Mourning, an event on March 1 where local chapters of ASAN, as well as independent groups, host candlelight vigils in remembrance of disabled people murdered by their caregivers.^[7]

Activism

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network promotes autism awareness and acceptance through public policy initiatives,^[8] research reform and cross-disability collaboration, community outreach,^[9] college advocacy,^[10] publishing,^[11]^[12] and employment initiatives.^[13]

ASAN is the Autistic community partner for the Academic Autistic Spectrum Partnership In Research and Education (AASPIRE).^[14] The AASPIRE project brings together the academic community and the Autistic community, in a research format called community-based participatory research, to develop and perform research projects relevant to the needs of autistic adults.

In 2012, ASAN began the annual Autism Campus Inclusion (ACI) Summer Institute,^[15] a week-long workshop teaching Autistic students to engage in activism and advocacy on their campuses. The Loud Hands Project, a transmedia publishing effort for curating and hosting submissions by Autistic people about voice, has also been active during 2012, in the form of a Kickstarter campaign and an anthology, both founded and organized by Julia Bascom. The anthology Loud Hands: Autistic People, Speaking was published by ASAN in 2012.^[16]

In April 2013, as part of Autism Acceptance Month – a counter-movement against the cure-focused Light It Up Blue and Autism Awareness Month movements – ASAN launched an Autism Acceptance Month web site.^[17]

References

External links

Autistic Self Advocacy Network homepage

[1] ASAN: About

[2] Testimony on Aversives & Restraints

[3] ACTION ALERT: Autistic Six-Year-Old Charged With Assault

[4] Comments at November 30, 2007 IACC Meeting

[5] Tell NYU Child Study Center to Abandon Stereotypes

[6] The "Ransom Notes" Affair: When the Neurodiversity Movement Came of Age

[7] ASAN: Day of Mourning on March 1st

[8] ASAN: Policy Advocacy

[9] ASAN: Changing Perceptions

[10] Navigating College homepage

[11] ASAN: Books

[12] ASAN: Reports and Brief Materials

[13] ASAN: Employment

[14] AASPIRE homepage

[15] ASAN is Now Accepting Applications for the 2013 Summer Leadership Academy

[16] ttp://www.amazon.com/Loud-Hands-Autistic-People-Speaking/dp/1938800028/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1374440414&sr=1-1&keywords=loud+hands

[17] Autism Acceptance Month: About

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v t e Autism
Main	Causes Diagnosis Epidemiology Epigenetics Heritability History Memory Pathophysiology Sex and gender Societal and cultural aspects LGBTQ identities Monotropism Therapies
Diagnoses	Pervasive developmental disorder Classic autism Asperger syndrome Pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified Childhood disintegrative disorder High-functioning autism
Associated conditions and phenomena	Alexithymia Autistic burnout Autistic catatonia Autistic masking Autistic meltdown Hyperlexia Late talker Nonverbal autism Pathological demand avoidance Savant syndrome Special interests Infodumping Dopamine Dressing Stimming Echolalia Echopraxia Emotional dysregulation
Comorbid conditions	Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder Anxiety disorder obsessive–compulsive disorder Developmental coordination disorder Epilepsy Intellectual disability Sensory processing disorder Global developmental delay Developmental verbal dyspraxia
Associated syndromes	22q13 deletion syndrome Angelman syndrome CHARGE syndrome Cohen syndrome Cornelia de Lange syndrome DiGeorge syndrome Down syndrome Fetal valproate spectrum disorder Fragile X syndrome MECP2 duplication syndrome Neurofibromatosis type I Noonan syndrome Multiple hamartoma syndrome Rett syndrome Smith–Lemli–Opitz syndrome Timothy syndrome Tuberous sclerosis Williams syndrome
Related issues	Autism rights movement Critical autism studies Discrimination Double empathy problem Employment Multiple complex developmental disorder Neurodiversity TEACCH program Violence and autism
Controversies	Facilitated communication Lancet MMR autism fraud MMR vaccine Rapid prompting method Thiomersal Chelation Combating Autism Act
Diagnostic scales	Autism Diagnostic Interview Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule Childhood Autism Rating Scale Gilliam Asperger's disorder scale
Screening scales	Autism-spectrum quotient Childhood Autism Spectrum Test Ritvo Autism and Asperger Diagnostic Scale
Lists	Autism-related topics Fictional characters Schools
Accommodations	Autism-friendly Sensory friendly