We’re Not Broken: Changing the Autism Conversation

We’re Not Broken: Changing the Autism Conversation

April 2, 2022

 [You will notice that some words have a strike through font.  These are to reflect the new website created in September 2022]

Welcome everyone to this special edition of Today’s Autistic Moment: A Podcast for Autistic Adults by An Autistic Adult, on Autism Acceptance Day, April 2^nd, 2022.  My name is Philip King-Lowe. I am the owner, producer, and host, and I am an Autistic Adult. Thank you so very much for listening.

Today’s Autistic Moment is a member of the National Podcast Association.

Today’s Autistic Moment is always a free to listen to podcast that gives Autistic Adults access to important information, helps us learn about our barriers to discover the strengths and tools we already have to use for the work of self-advocacy.

This first segment of Today’s Autistic Moment is sponsored by The Autism Society of Minnesota: Minnesota’s First Autism Resource.  For over 50 years, The Autism Society of Minnesota has been honored to support Minnesota’s Autism Community.  Visit them online at ausm.org.

Please go to the New Podcast Episodes Page of todaysautisticmoment.com where you will find the lineup for the new shows, with the description of each show from now through the end of May.  When I publish new shows, you can click on the title and guest of each show to listen to the episodes.  You can also find the Program Script that includes all of the hyperlinks I mention on each show and the Interview Transcript links will be available to download.  Interview Transcripts for 2022 are sponsored by Minnesota Independence College & Community.  If you want to listen to any previously published shows, go to the Episode Index Page. 

Also, be sure to follow Today’s Autistic Moment on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Tik Tok.  Please join Today’s Autistic Moment Community Group page on Facebook, where you can talk with me and other listeners.

Please visit my home page for todaysautisticmoment.com.  There is a video entitled What is Autism, Really?  This video was made by Sarah Hamel and Stephanie A. Izzi.  In the video, Sarah explains what Autism is from the point of view of the Neurodiversity Positive Movement.  The video is a great explanation of what the work of Today’s Autistic Moment is attempting to do.

Applications are now being accepted through April 29^th to be a panelist on the next live virtual Autistic Voices Round Table Discussion that will take place on Wednesday, May 25^th at 2:00pm Central Standard Time.  The topic is The Truth About ABA (Applied Behavioral Analysis) Therapy.  I am seeking four to six Autistic individuals from diverse races, cultures, sexual orientations, gender identities/expressions who have received ABA Therapy in part or as a whole therapy to be panelists.  Autistic individuals who have not received ABA therapy including parents and caregivers, and therapists who use ABA therapy are not eligible.   Round table discussions are an opportunity to have a calm, civil and upfront conversation about the chosen topic.  Round table discussions are not an appropriate place for arguments in order to persuade people to change their opinions or positions about the topic.  I am more than aware of how triggering the topic of ABA therapy can be for many Autistic people.  All applicants that are selected will need to participate in a 30 minute live virtual conversation with me to ask your questions and see if this is the right panel discussion for you to participate in.  Go to todaysautisticmoment.com/autisticvoices/ to read up about this round table discussion and apply.  Once again, all applications must be completed and sent to me by April 29^th.  

April is Autism Acceptance Month and is still called by many as Autism Awareness Month.  If you want to know why many of us are calling it Autism Acceptance Month, please go to the Episode Index Page and listen to the episode I published one year ago  the entitled Autistic Adults and Autism Acceptance with my guest Ellie Wilson, the Executive Director at The Autism Society of Minnesota.  Over this past month, I have been very interested in some of the comments from actually Autistic people who are not satisfied with the words Autism Acceptance.  Some of the feelings expressed include those who want to know exactly who is needing to do the accepting during Autism Acceptance Month.  There are many Autistic Adults who feel that the words used were designed by and for individuals who are not Autistics, yet are claiming April as Autism Acceptance or Autism Awareness to tokenize Autistic people.  Many Autistic people find Autism Awareness and/or Autism Acceptance Month as a living hell, because they are not accepted.  If we take a note from them, why should they be aware of or accepting their Autism when most of the world isn’t accepting of them?    Dr. Scott Frasard whom you heard on the episode about The Medical and Social Models of Autism is celebrating from the position of Flip the Autistic Script.  Others would like it to be called Autism Advocacy Month.  I wrote a blog on my website entitled Autistics: Claim Autism Acceptance Month. In the blog I suggested that Autistics would do well to claim Autistic Acceptance Month by accepting our own Autism and learning to live it proudly.  I am interested in what your thoughts are.  What do you think of calling April as Autism Acceptance Month or Autism Awareness Month?  What would you prefer we name April to represent who Autistic people are?  Write and send an email to PKLowe@todaysautisitcmoment.com todaysautisticmoment@gmail.com and tell me what you think.  You can also join Today’s Autistic Moment Community Group Page on Facebook and discuss this with me and other listeners. 

I am so very honored and excited to have Eric Garcia as my guest today.  When I started reading his book We’re Not Broken: Changing the Autism Conversation, I knew I just had to find a way to invite him on Today’s Autistic Moment.  Eric tells so much of his own story of how Autism impacted his life and how Autism Acceptance is an important part of his journey.  I cannot say enough about what a great book Eric wrote.  If you want a great overview of the history of Autism and the progress we have made up to this point, along with a great explanation of how prevalent Autism is in diverse groups of people, along with Eric’s own personal story, you will want to read his book. 

Eric is here to talk about how important Autism Acceptance is for him, and why he feels that it is essential for Autistics to accept ourselves.  Eric’s insightful understanding of what Autistics are dealing with, is making him an in-demand speaker at Autism conferences and podcasts around the U.S.A. and potentially beyond. 

After this first commercial break, Eric will talk about why it is important that Autistics be understood as people who do not need to be fixed or cured, and how Autistics from all walks of life need to be accepted and celebrated.  Please stay tuned. 

Commercial Break I

Philip King-Lowe  
Eric, I am so very excited to have you on this episode of Today's Autistic Moment. I have wanted to have you on ever since I started reading your book. So welcome. Welcome today. Welcome. 

Eric Garcia
Thank you. 

Philip King-Lowe
Welcome. So, um, we're in Autism Acceptance Month, April 2022. And I felt that talking about Autism Acceptance, and using the title of your book is a perfect way to begin this month. Because it yes, because it is the topic, We're Not Broken: Changing the Autism Conversation. And part of the work. Part of the efforts of Autism Acceptance Month is to change that Autism conversation. To change people's perceptions understanding about Autistic people. So my question that we begin with is, What important information do you feel Autistic Adults and our caregivers need to know about? Like, why did you write this book? And what, what is the most important and the important points that you wanted to convey? 

Eric Garcia 
Certainly, certainly, um, I think one of the things that I wanted to convey first and foremost is the idea that I think that we focus too much on trying to cure Autistic people, and try to focus too, and we focus too much on treating Autistic people and not enough on trying to help Autistic people live more fulfilling lives. I think what I want Autistic people to know is that they are not failed versions of normal. They are not flawed. They are not broken, as the book says they're not a, you know, a deficient version of neurotypical. Rather, they are human beings with whole selves and their, the way that their brains function and the way that they are as human beings is good and whole. And that doesn't mean that they don't come with certain impairments doesn't mean they don't cover challenges doesn't mean that they don't have certain differences. It doesn't mean that, you know, it isn't a disability, it is a disability. It's classified under the Americans with Disabilities Act as a disability. But it ultim. But that doesn't mean but that means that Autistic people are entitled to a good at whole life and a world that adapts around them, rather than forcing them to change.

Philip King-Lowe  
Yeah, I couldn't help notice in your book that you address many, many forms of diversity. You acknowledge people of different races, you acknowledge the LGBTQ communities. And you also talk about ways that you have both found and struggled with finding places in schools and other communities that have services to help Autistic people. Can you talk a little bit about about, about how, how, how you're representing all those differences? And why that is so important?

Eric Garcia 
Well, first, let's just say that I don't think I did. I was I tried to be as comprehensive as possible. I don't think I got all of it. I would have liked to have done all that. But I tried to be as comprehensive as possible. One of the things but I think that the main goal that I was trying to do is show that Autism affects people of all walks of life. So even if I didn't get all walks of life, and I didn't get every type of person that I wanted to. I tried very bad. The goal of it was to show that Autism isn't something that affects only one group of people. I think that for too long our focus on autism has been mostly on white adolescents, cisgender, heterosexual males, when in fact it affects people all walks of life. It affects, as I said, people in the LGBTQ community. It affects adults. It affects people of color, it affects women, and affects transgender people and non binary people. It affects people of all classes and all incomes, it affects immigrants and native born Americans. It affects the indigenous community affects all people, regardless of their income status. And I think that all of these things are important because our understanding of Autism has mostly focused on a very narrow group of people. And the consequences of that is that people who don't fit into that frame, often don't get the services that they need, and don't get the access if the world isn't made accessible for them in ways that it would for the we typically think of as Autistic. Now, that doesn't mean that everything is lovely for white, adolescent, male, Autistic children, isn't the windfall from the Americans with Disabilities Act and the residual Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, never was fully realized. The letter of the law is very different from the law in action. Right. But that base, they still aren't acknowledged as Autistic. And Autism is you know recognized. And for too long, that's been the case for a lot of people. That has been the exact opposite case for people. Right, those identities.

Philip King-Lowe  
Yeah, I agree with that so much. I mean, one example of what you're talking about, is a quote that I use from your book. It's a quote that said, "No one should presume what Autistic people can do. What should be presumed is that Autistic people belong in whichever profession they choose. That being said, Autistic people's value and worth should not be tied to whether they are employable. It doesn't matter if an Autistic person holds a high paying job, or receives government assistance. Autistic people should be viewed with the same dignity that all people deserve." That really moved me.

Eric Garcia  
I'm the kind of bearer to that for the for those who haven't read the book and who wanted the full context of it and without giving away too much, is essentially what I was arguing was that I think that for a lot of our you know, we're not moving if for a long time, people thought that Autistic people couldn't hold jobs. We are now moving toward an understanding that Autistic people can work. And you're seeing a lot of companies begin Autism hiring initiatives. You're seeing it with Microsoft, you're seeing it with square I profile, the company Square, the book, I think now it's called blocks, though, but tech companies. You see this with SAP, you see this with a lot of financial institutions and consulting companies like Ey and UBS and Goldman Sachs. But oftentimes, this this classification ignores a lot of Autistic people who work in other sectors. So for example, I don't work in that sector. I work as a journalist. A lot of people don't think when they hear that I'm a journalist, and I'm Autistic. They're like, How could that be possible? You know, it's a very social profession. And this is a profession where you have to interact with people and you have to respect social norms and respect, customs and you have to constantly interact with people, there's a very rich. But, my response is that there are Autistic people in every profession. I've met Autistic lawyers, I've met Autistic people in the United States military or veterans. That is not something that is considered a lot of the time. And I think what my my goal was in arguing that was that Autistic people can do whatever they want. They should be given the tools, the resources necessary to do whatever they want, as long as they have as long as they have the skills to do so and as long as they want to do so. But at the same time, I think that we are almost trying not to get in trouble. Because I often do. People's values shouldn't be tied to their output economically. I think that what you're seeing now is that it's almost kind of the inverse of a lot of the discussions we had about Autism in the past, which was that their lives are finished, they're looking, you know, they should be sent to institutions, there's nothing really that can be assumed for them to now it's almost like we're having the almost the opposite conversation conversation. Which is that Autistic people are great, because they're awesome for your bottom line, they are 140%, as productive as their neurotypical counterparts. They will make your company more efficient. They are more loyal to the company. And that's not really a good barometer either. It almost reminds me of kind of the model minority concept for Asian Americans, that, Oh, they all get straight A's, and they go to medical school, and they all have tiger moms or whatever. People's value is should not be tied to how much they're worth. That's, that's, that's true for disability. And that's true for non disabled people. You know, so everybody has aparent worth.

Commerical Break II

Today’s Autistic Moment at the Minnesota Autism Conference 2022

Today’s Autistic Moment will have an exhibit table at the 27^th Annual Minnesota Autism Conference April 27^th through the 29^th.  Stop by to meet me and get a free ticket to be entered in a drawing to be one of two winners to receive a free coffee mug with Today’s Autistic Moment’s logo on them.  There will be free stylus/ballpoint pens.  Today’s Autistic Spinner Fidgets will be on sale in the Autism Society of Minnesota’s book shop. 

If you are not going to the conference and/or want to get your fidget earlier, please go to the home page todaysautisticmoment.com and purchase your spinner fidget.  They have a nice weight to them, and are purple in color to help with sight sensitivity.  They will give you hours of stimming pleasure.  These fidgets are the perfect gift for any Autistic individual.  Hurry to get yours before they are sold out. 50% of all sales during April will be given to The Autism Society of Minnesota.

I would love to have your help to support the work of Today’s Autistic Moment.  When you visit any of the pages on todaysautisticmoment.com please click on the blue button to be taken to my Patreon Page. You can become a patron for $1.00 or more. 

Thank you for listening to and supporting Today’s Autistic Moment.

Philip King-Lowe  
What are the barriers for Autistic Adults of all ages? We're talking about so many of these things. There's the issue of how Autistic individuals are perceived. And then, you know, one of the things that one of the things that I do, you know, I work in this work, being a podcaster. And part of that is because I don't function very well in what many would call a traditional employment environment. Where there's a, there's a job, there's a job ad, you fill out an application, send a resume, or a cover letter. You meet with an interview committee, maybe you get hired, maybe you don't meet, you know, all that I don't fit into that category. And what I hear you saying is that, you know, that we shouldn't our I hate using the word, but I'm going to use it our "function ability" is not based on, on on how, how much we fit into the, again, bad word, but the, "normal way of living life."

Eric Garcia
Well, I mean, even more than is functional ability, it's your value your worth, you know, I think a lot of it is yeah, people tie your worth to how much you how much could work and how much you can consume. And these are, these are interrelated, then, they're correlated. And I think that what I what I what I say a lot of times is what I what I believe in my heart of hearts. Yes, Autistic people do have hearts and we do have empathy. Is that, you know, Autistic people should be included, and disability as a whole should be included in our understanding of normal. Yes, well, what I'm trying to do is I'm trying to say that our understanding of normal changes constantly and we should consider Autism and disability as a whole as normal. We do not you know, just for people who are just listening right now, you you, you have eyeglasses, you know, that is an adaptation, nobody is forcing you to see, you know, right, but somewhere, really, for some reason, we are we try to do the same, we try to do the opposite for Autistic people. You know, we you know, people who are deaf, they can get culture implants they can get, you know, they can have surgery or whatever, but we don't force them you don't say you have to have this, it's an option. But, but it's something that you're not. You're not mandated to do, but we tend to do that with Autism. You know, we have ASL ideally, we should have ASL for people who are deaf, and we ideally should have braille or we ideally should have a ramp for people in wheelchairs, but we don't do that for Autism, we immediately go to ABA, or we go to try to help force them to speak or trying to force them to do this or that, that, that really doesn't do a service to anybody.

Philip King-Lowe  
Agreed. Agreed. Agreed. Yeah, and I mean, you know, I just said that word, but now I'm going to going to undo that word. You know, that's where again, those functioning labels do us so much harm. How many people have you heard of including myself that someone says, Well, they're high functioning, so therefore, they don't seem Autistic enough. Yeah, because of whatever we're supposed to not be able to do versus what we're supposed to be able to do.

Eric Garcia  
It's like, the analogy I use a lot is, um, you know, I live in a big, I live in a big city, I live in Washington, DC. And you see a lot of you don't see a lot of skyscrapers, because, you know, none of the buildings are taller than the Capitol. But but one of the things that you think of, but but one of the things we don't see is, we don't see the scaffolding that, you know, that supports the building. We don't see all the work. When you see someone who's "high functioning," you don't see all the work that that it takes to get them through the day. And in the same way, I don't think that we see the scaffolding for, for Autistic people. And I think similarly with functioning with labels. They often betray reality. So people like yourself, you mentioned that, like a lot of people would see you as high functioning because you can host a podcast, but doesn't erase, the very legitimate challenges you mentioned when it comes to your job? And by the way, can we just say that, even for neurotypicals, the job hiring process is bad. Like writing a cover letter is bad, because I'm sure plenty of neurotypicals will feel the same way. But why do we force people to do this? But anyway, that's,

Philip King-Lowe  
Yeah, no. Yeah, go ahead.

Eric Garcia  
But like, you know, but that doesn't, but by saying someone is high functioning, that erases the legitimate needs. And what it does is it gives society rationale to not give them any services or accommodations to people who are seen as high functioning. Yeah. And I think that when you call someone low functioning, you set the assumptions so low, criminally low, to the point, it's almost underwater. So that they can't achieve anything. Or we make the argument that we don't need to spend that much on this person. Because,

Philip King-Lowe  
My explanation and my Do's and Don'ts page on todaysautisticmoment.com is that when we say that somebody, someone is low functioning, Autistic, or Autism, basically, it has a very damaging effect of a presumption of incompetence.

Eric Garcia 
Yes. And it says that they're going back to this concept of worth, it says that they're not worth salvaging. We're saying that they're not worth our time and our money and our resources, because they're not going to get a job. They're not going to get, they're not going to graduate college, they're not going to do all these things. So why should we spend the time and the money to help them? That's, that's really what we're saying. So either way, these binaries are incredibly damaging.

Philip King-Lowe  
Yeah. Yeah. And boy, I mean, I've known I've known of parents and caretakers of Autistic individuals with higher support needs, they've actually gone to the process of trying to get them into some kind of community housing or anything like that. And amazingly, they get, they get turned down because they require too much care. So, you know, things like that come up, and it's really foolish.

Eric Garcia  
Yeah, it does nobody any favors whatsoever. Yeah. Um, and I think the more than that, it's just not accurate. It's just not accurate.

Philip King-Lowe  
No, no, it's not. No.

Eric Garcia  
Even if you even if you believe that, you know, so you know, even if you're not a fan of the concept of  neurodiversity, it just isn't an accurate description, you know.

Philip King-Lowe  
Exactly. Yeah. Well, um, my third question is my favorite. I like to say, What steps should Autistic Adults and our supporters need to take to advocate for our needs? And this is where we talk about helping Autistics find the strengths and tools we already have and use them for the work of self advocacy. And you just been speaking that very language. You know, in this changing of the Autism conversation, I believe it begins with saying, we do have tools and strengths. We sometimes just need some help to find them and put them to use.

Eric Garcia  
Absolutely. I think that's I think that's absolutely the case. I think the thing that Autistic people need to do is recognize that, it's also I think a lot of it is overcoming our internalized ableism. So, a lot of times, because of how we're told and what's constantly drilled in our head, we are less willing to ask for accommodations, because we don't want people to see it. Like, we don't want it to seem like we're getting special treatment. We are afraid to, we also just think that it might be too onerous. We also oftentimes, I think, have to overcome our fear of others. And I think that in some ways, though, at the same time, I think I don't think I can prescribe one single antidote for any group of people because ot for something as diverse as Autism, one thing isn't going to be perfect for everything. But on the other hand, I also think that people's reactions to Autism are very different. So I would never tell an Autistic person who feels uncomfortable disclosing at work to disclose at work that they're Autistic. Because you don't know the reaction from your employer. That's not to say, if you have a good employer, you can disclose great, cool, you know, if you're, but, you know, if you were that it might cost your job, then like, I can't, I can't tell somebody, hey, you need to disclose. You know, I think one of the good barometers is, you know, when I say disclose when I talk about when people ask me, but disclosure is like, take a look at everything around your, your employer, around your employer. Is the place accessible through a wheelchair, that might be a good barometer. How many women are in leadership? How many people of color? How many, not just employees, but actual managerial leadership? That improves the prospect that that make getting can make you feel more comfortable. And it might also show that you might have prospects to move up as well. And, you know, some people might say, Oh, well, you know, you have to be the first person to do it for their EBA thing. I get that. But also, you know, some people have to feed their families and somebody books. So I can't prescribe one thing. You know, it was interesting, I was talking with a woman, right over the book, and and she says, You know, I've never, not regretted disclosing that I was Autistic. And, though, because the problems? I think that, so I think that what I'd say is that, you know, the most important thing is changing attitudes and changing your own, removing any of that internalized ableism. That is not your fault. It's just that we've been constantly conditioned to believe that disability and Autism is a negative thing.

Philip King-Lowe  
Right? You know, I feel like one of those ways that we can really advocate for ourselves is that we have been influenced, taught that a lot of the things that go with being Autistic, or it could be having a monotropic mind. It could be our limited self interests. It could be our unusual ways of communicating. It could be any number of those things. Rather than seeing those things as things that hold us back. I feel like if we can instead bring those things forward, and use them to our advantage, like in a workplace, that would be one of the best ways we could do some self-advocacy,

Eric Garcia  
Absolutely, recognizing that the things that make us that a lot of people consider bad things or negative things can also be the good things. Similarly, what I should say is that the impairments also can be things that we can highlight, because what usually affects Autistic people is usually a magnified version of what other people do. So like, you know, you talk. I hate to keep on flogging this dead horse, but like, you talked about the job application thing. I'm sure a lot of neurotypicals don't like the job application process. But if we change the job application process to be no more neurodivergent friendly, there's a chance a lot of people might take that up. Similarly, you know, you know, not having blasting or blaring fluorescent lights might be something that can, you know, can be the difference between a meltdown and not a meltdown for Autistic people. But I'm sure a lot of neurotypical people would like not having just sensory assault. I think that, you know, Autistic people, a lot of times we require clear, succinct directions, not kind of speaking in metaphors today that many of us not all of us are very literal people. A lot of workers would benefit from that as well. You know, your boss being direct with you. Or your employer or your manager, your employees being direct with you.

Philip King-Lowe  
Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, a lot of this goes back to my show with Samuel J. Levine about a year ago, we did a we did a great show about Justice in Employment for Autistic people. And Samuel J. Levine is an advocate for Autistic people and people with disabilities in general about employment matters. And he, he said, basically, what you're saying is that, instead of saying we're not going to hire or work with this person, because of, rather to look at the talents and skills we bring, and to be putting those to use.

Eric Garcia  
Absolutely. And I think that, you know, I don't think that is a very bold argument, because we do the same thing with neurotypical employees. Exactly. We look for their strengths, we look for the positive traits, and we, and we adapt to the things to the challenges now that we have. That's what we do for neurotypical people all the time.

Philip King-Lowe  
So why can't Why isn't that done more for Autistics? 

Eric Garcia  
I think for a long time, a lot of people think that it's too onerous. I think that were the works unfamiliarity, or it's feeling like this is something that will disrupt our neurotypical impulse. A lot of it is just the unknown. And a lot of it is just a lack of understanding.

Philip King-Lowe  
Yeah. Yeah. And I think it's also just, again, this issue with diversity period that, you know, we have our, you know, there are these ideas of how things should look like act like, and, and so on. Would you like to share with us a little bit? Go ahead.

Eric Garcia  
And then the same thing, you know, it's reason why a lot of employers don't hire women because they don't want to offer maternity leave, you know, yeah. It's same reason why a lot of employers don't hire people of color, you know, whatever.

Commercial Break III

Future Shows

Today’s Autistic Moment continues our celebration of

Autism Acceptance Month.

On April 18^th, I will be sharing a very special show with my guest Ben Levin entitled Autism is Not A Curse.  Ben Levin is the author of the book In The Hole.  Ben’s novel is a story depicting a child’s experience with homelessness.  Ben has been in love with stories ever since he was a little boy.  Ben is also proud to be Autistic and wants to use his status as an author to be an example of how Autism is not a setback, but a gift.  “Autism is Not A Curse” is one of Ben’s favorite sayings.  Ben will share with us his personal story of accepting his Autism and how his writing is an important piece of self-acceptance.

On May 9^th, Lyric Holmans the Neurodivergent Rebel returns to Today’s Autistic Moment to talk about Autistic Masking and Burnout. One of the reasons many Autistics find it difficult to celebrate Autism Acceptance is because of having to mask our Autism because of a society that has not accepted us.  What is masking?  How does burnout happen?  Listen to this exceptional conversation between Lyric and myself and get the answers with some tips about what you can do to live a healthier life.

On May 23^rd, Eric Garcia will return to Today’s Autistic Moment to talk about a very important topic. Overcoming Internalized Ableism.  Just as trauma is an unavoidable consequence because of a society that is made for and by neurotypical people, so is internalized ableism.  We continually get the messages that being disabled is wrong and we internalize those micro aggressive messages.  Eric and I will talk about how Autistics can work towards overcoming internalized ableism.  Don’t miss these shows.

Today’s Autistic Moment is a proud Autism Acceptance Month Partner in 2022 with The Autism Society of Minnesota.

Thank you for listening to Today’s Autistic Moment.

Today’s Autistic Community Bulletin Board

Philip King-Lowe  
Um, would you like to kind of talk about because you do journalism, I've read that you do you have done journalism for The Washington Post. Are you working for the Atlantic? Now? Is that still the case. I work for the Independent. Okay, but, um, point being is that, um, in what ways do you find that you're being Autistic helps you?

Eric Garcia  
That is a good question, and it's one of those things I'd say a lot of people say, How does it make you a better journalist, doesn't make you worse journalists? I can't say it does, either. It just makes me a different journalist. So yeah, I'm a I'm a bag of nerves. So like, example, a lot of my job is just picking up the phone and calling people. I'm a bag of nerves. Before I call someone. I may take me like 10 minutes after getting off the phone, interviewing someone sothat I can like, decompress. I think I've been masking that whole time. I've been, you know, putting on a good face for people to hold time and things like that. And then afterward, I do take a sensory break that I can go back to call. I think I would take a lot more BS, if I were not Autistic. I would not belabor points so much when I'm interviewing people, when I think that they're not giving me a straight answer. If I were neurotypical, I think that's I think that's a really good strength. I think the fact that I'm able to focus almost laser like on anything that I'm supposed to be covering. And I won't stop until I get it right, until and until I do it do do the thing. That is something that I that I think is it makes me a great job makes me a good journalist, I think my ability to just kind of absorb information and have kind of that memory. So I think that I say is that like I don't think that it makes me a better or worse journals, there are probably not probably there are better journals that need tons of great journalists. There are better Autistic journalists than me. So Ludum is probably immediately comes to mind. But it does allow me to be a good journalist in my own way.

Philip King-Lowe  
Yeah, I would have to agree with that. Eric, this is such a great conversation. And I think it's just such a great way to begin Autism Acceptance Month with this message. We're Not Broken: Changing the Autism Conversation. And boy, there's a lot of what we're talking what we've talked about today. Change that conversation. And I hope that this benefits my audience as we make our way through Autism Acceptance Month. So um, Eric thank you so much for being here today

Eric Garcia  
Thank you for having me.

Philip King-Lowe
You're welcome

Transcribed by https://otter.ai 

Today's Autistic Community Bulletin Board 

You can now find the links for all events announced in

Today’s Autistic Community Bulletin Board by going to todaysautisticmoment.com/bulletinboard/

The Ordinary Marathon Foundation Invites Autistics from the ages 15 to 24 to participate in Actually Autistic Athletes. The program will include one set of shoes, shorts, socks, shirt, one pair of running shoes, a running ban, and one-on-one coaching from a Certified Athletic Coach for up to six months.  Go to todaysautisticmoment.com/bulletinboard/ and click on Actually Autistic Athletes for more information and to apply anytime, but especially through Mid-April. 

Driving with Autism is a supportive webinar that offers Autistic Adults the opportunity to learn about driving with the uniqueness of Autistic people in mind.  Go to autismdriving.com to learn about the program and sign up for the Autism Preparatory Virtual Driving Training Classes.  The link will also be available on todaysautisticmoment.com/bulletinboard/.

Understanding Autism virtual classes will be offered by The Autism Society of Minnesota. These classes are perfect for Autistic individuals, caregivers, those who want to understand the basics of Autism and support Autistic people.  Classes will be held on April 18^th from 6pm to 8pm. May 16^th from 2pm to 4pm. Classes are free of charge, but you must register to attend.

On Tuesday, April 12^th from 7-9pm, Kendall Mager will present a virtual skillshop at the Autism Society of Minnesota, entitled: Online Dating: From Profile to Potential Relationship.  Many unspoken rules come with dating and even more with online dating. Learn about some social rules as well as how to set up an online dating profile, discuss some popular online dating apps, how to prepare for a date, and how to clarify and communicate what you want from online dating. 

On May 10^th from 7-9pm Alyssa Perau will present a virtual skillshop at the Autism Society of Minnesota entitled Communicating Consent and Boundaries.  Knowing how to communicate boundaries and consent can be a struggle at times.  Learn what healthy consent and boundaries look like and how to tell if consent is happening to ensure boundaries are respected.  Answer and ask questions, read through scenarios, and gain new skills to help you communicate in a healthy way.

The Autism Society of Minnesota invites you to join them for Steps for Autism in Minnesota 2022, on Sunday, May 22^nd beginning at 9am to 12pm at the Como Lakeside Pavilion located at 1360 Lexington Pkwy in St. Paul, Minnesota.

To get information about these and other events at the Autism Society of Minnesota, please go to ausm.org.  You can also go to todaysautisticmoment.com/bulletinboard/ and click on The Autism Society of Minnesota to register for their events.

In person registration to attend the 27^th Annual Minnesota Autism Conference is sold out. However, there will be 14 pre-recorded virtual breakout sessions available May 3^rd through June 3^rd. Go to ausm.org for more information and to register.

Today’s Autistic Moment is sponsored in part by Looking Forward Life Coaching.  Looking Forward turns stumbling blocks into stepping stones towards success.  Go to lookingforwardlc.org for more information.

If you would like to have your business or organization mentioned, have questions or comments about Today’s Autistic Moment, please send an email to PKLowe@todaysautisticmoment.com.

Thank you for listening to Today’s Autistic Moment: A Podcast for Autistic Adults by An Autistic Adult.

May you have an Autistically Amazing day.