Join us for a special virtual edition of our annual celebration and fundraising event on Wednesday, October 30! We’re so excited to share this gala with our community later this month, and we’re grateful to continue doing this event virtually so we can celebrate with our community across the country and around the world.

We’re happy to announce the panelists for both of our panels this year! 

As mask bans have continued popping up and pandemic protections are lifted, many disabled people are disproportionately impacted, facing heightened risks in a society increasingly eager to move on from the pandemic. We know that COVID-19 is still an issue. Joining us for Sowing Safety: Cultivating Protections and Weeding Out Harmful Policies During the Ongoing Pandemic from 3:00 to 4:45 PM ET are our phenomenal panelists Ngozi Alston, Emi Kane, and Eiryn Griest Schwartzman, CHES.

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) often have mental health disabilities too, but it's harder to get the right care. This is because mental health services and IDD services are kept separate, creating gaps in support. Most of the time, people with IDD can only get either mental health care or IDD supports—not both. “Behavior support services” tend to focus on controlling or changing behavior and don't meet people's needs. This can contribute to trauma and mental health burden for many people with IDD. To discuss how the current systems are failing people with both IDD and mental health disabilities and what changes we want to see, we’ll be joined at Digging Deeper: Autism and Mental Health from 5:15 to 7:00 PM ET by our extraordinary panelists Karyn Harvey, Perri Spencer, Nancy Thaler, Héctor Manuel Ramírez, and Jenny Phan.

We look forward to hearing from our panelists on October 30th and hope that you can come celebrate with us!

We ask that our gala attendees donate if they are able, but no donation will be required to attend our virtual gala events. Your ticket will be good for all events, screening, and panels. Proceeds will support our advocacy work and programs for the coming year, and allow us to continue working to empower disabled people across the country.

Make sure to save your spot, and RSVP on Facebook so you don’t miss a thing. We look forward to honoring our awardees with you!

Nothing About Us Without Us Award: CommunicationFIRST

Creating Community Together Award: Pauline Bosma and Long COVID Justice

Mel Baggs Down In The Valley Award: L. "Dax" Daxer

Loud Hands Award for Autistic Storytellers: Ashley Storrie

Harriet McBryde Johnson Award for Nonfiction: Katherine Gilyard

Ally to the Autistic Community 2024 Award: Shannon Des Roches Rosa

Autistic Self Advocacy Network

PO Box 66122
Washington, DC 20035

 

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