Spring has sprung at the Autistic Self Advocacy Network and brought an unexpected migration to the ASAN office — dinosaurs.

Four toy dinosaurs enter the door to the ASAN office. [[link removed]]

We weren’t sure what brought this wave of prehistoric visitors to our door until one of them managed to get to a computer and let us know.

A toy Tyrannosaurus rex stands on a laptop keyboard. On screen there is a word document that says Autism Acceptance Month. [[link removed]]

It turns out, while our Dinosaur Donors prove that plenty of self-advocates have a special interest in our prehistoric pals, the dinosaurs themselves have a special interest in us too. Specifically, they have an interest in the history of Autism Acceptance Month and are eager to make sure we know it. Soon, we had dinosaurs popping up all over the office insisting they share facts with us.

A team member went to wash their mug in the sink only for this miniature mosasaur to swim up and ask if they knew that Paula C. Durbin-Westby started Autism Acceptance Day in 2011, as a way to push back against the idea that autism is something to “watch out for.” Durbin-Westby and other self-advocates wanted to change the story to focus on the ways autistic people deserve community, the freedom to live our lives, and the support we need.

A toy mosasaur sits in the kitchen sink with mugs. [[link removed]]

We thanked the Mosasaur for this fact and offered to adjust the temperature of the sink water for them since they’re probably used to the warmer waters of the cretaceous period. They said the water was fine, but did ask us for some snacks.

Someone else was startled by this velociraptor at the printer, who wouldn’t let them take their papers until they listened to them. The velociraptor shared that the Autistic Archive [[link removed]] is a free resource chronicling the history of the autistic self-advocacy movement. Its creator, Ira Eidle, is an alumni of ASAN’s Autistic Campus Inclusion program [[link removed]], a free ten-day training that gives self-advocates the tools to create change on their campuses. The support from community members like you [[link removed]] allows ASAN to offer ACI for free to autistic college students each year. Ira created the archive to keep important resources and documents from the early history of the autistic self-advocacy movement from being lost.

A toy velociraptor sits in the paper tray of the office printer. [[link removed]]

We didn’t want to hurt the dinosaur’s feelings by telling them we already knew about ACI, since we created it, so we thanked them for sharing and took our print outs.

A group of dinosaurs crashed our afternoon meeting when we found them already circling around a piece of paper on the conference table.

Three toy dinosaurs stand on a piece of paper on a desk. One of them has a pen in their mouth and the paper has written Support Autistic Self Advocacy Network. [[link removed]]

We are touched by our prehistoric pals’ support and their passion for autistic self-advocacy. They’ve let us know they plan to stick around all of April to share about Autism Acceptance Month and the history of the self-advocacy movement. ASAN could not do our work without the passionate support of our community and as we kick off Autism Acceptance Month, we hope you’ll help make sure resources get into the hands of self-advocates. [[link removed]]

Want to help us do more for our community? Your support [[link removed]] lets us make sure everyone has accessible information about the issues that affect them. Here’s how you can help us keep that going:

* Donate to us directly here [[link removed]]
* Or become a member and get exclusive perks here [[link removed]]
* Start a Facebook fundraiser [[link removed]] at no cost to you, and share with friends
* Buy a copy of Loud Hands or another one of our books here [[link removed]]
* Get a sticker or other item from our Threadless shop [[link removed]]
* Spread the word about us! You can tell your friends about us on social media, via email, or in person

Our friends came across time, from the triassic, jurassic, and cretaceous periods to visit us this month in celebration of how far the self-advocacy movement has come. We look forward to reflecting on our history with them this month as we dream of a future where autism acceptance is the standard.

Four toy dinosaurs sit on an ASAN t-shirt. One of them is in an ASAN mug. [[link removed]]


Autistic Self Advocacy Network
PO Box 66122
Washington, DC 20035
United States
If you believe you received this message in error or wish to no longer receive email from us, please unsubscribe: [link removed] .