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Dear friend,
The end of the year is coming fast, but during this hard month we were busier than ever! We’re making sure our community has the tools to fight for our rights together. Check out what we’ve been working on this month and what you can do to help.
This month has been hard for our community. The election highlighted the role of racism and other forms of discrimination in our country’s politics, and many of us are angry and exhausted. The last time Trump was president, we came together to protect important laws and programs that help us all survive. We will keep fighting for what matters to us. This could mean joining a protest, helping your community, or looking out for each other. Keeping yourself alive is a victory too. We’re counting on you to stay in this fight with us — and whatever’s coming, we’ll face it together. Keep an eye out for action alerts and statements from ASAN on the fights to come.
One of those statements came very fast. Earlier this month we opposed Trump choosing Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Kennedy has said things about autism and public health that are not true. These things make him a bad choice to be the Secretary of HHS. He is against vaccines which save lives. He questions whether HIV causes AIDS. He wants to use more quack autism “treatments” that could hurt people. He has also suggested putting people who take psychiatric medication in labor camps. These dangerous views should stop him from getting the role. We are upset about his nomination as self-advocates, professionals in health policy, and people who want the government to protect our health and trust science. The Senate must not confirm Kennedy as Secretary of HHS.
We as a community recognized the 25th anniversary of Trans Day of Remembrance on November 20th. We remember the trans people who were killed for being trans, especially trans women of color. We support our trans siblings, and we know that our communities overlap. Trans and gender-nonconforming (GNC) people are an important part of the autistic community. Our communities and our struggles are mixed together. A lot of the time, people do not understand or respect transgender autistic people. Their autonomy is not respected, and that makes it hard to live according to their gender identity. Laws and rules keep trying to take rights away from trans people. This makes life harder for trans people everywhere, especially trans women of color. We can see that play out when we look at all the trans people who were killed this year. It is important to mourn for the people who are gone. It is also important to do things to protect our trans community from discrimination. ASAN will keep fighting against attacks on trans rights. We will keep working to make sure transgender autistic people are respected and included everywhere.
This year, we’ve worked together to push for the Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act (TCIEA) to pass. TCIEA gives states and employers help to move disabled employees from sheltered workshops to competitive integrated employment opportunities. Competitive integrated employment (CIE) means a job where disabled people are paid a fair wage and work with nondisabled people. There's still a chance to pass TCIEA — read our latest action alert to find out more.
As we prepare for the fights ahead, we know we cannot do it without your help. Whether you choose to donate, contact your representative about our action alerts, or share our toolkits, we know that our community is our strength. Thank you for everything you do to keep ASAN, and our wider community, going.
Sincerely,
The Team at ASAN
- ASAN urged Congress to continue funding for Medicare low-income outreach and enrollment efforts.
- As a part of the End Subminimum Wage coalition, we urged Congress to pass the Transformation to Competitive Integrated Employment Act.
- We signed onto a letter from Human Rights First about the amendments in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which would restrict or eliminate gender affirming care and DEIA initiatives.
- ASAN signed onto comments in support of the Census Bureau researching approaches to counting incarcerated people in their home addresses rather than their location of incarceration.
- As a part of the Consortium for Constituents with Disabilities Long Term Services and Supports Task Force, we signed onto a letter in support of S. 5070, the Ensuring Access to Medicaid Buy-In Programs Act. This would make sure disabled workers can keep their jobs without losing Medicaid services.
- ASAN endorsed Representative McMorris Rodgers' ABLE Tomorrow Act.
- We joined two Amicus Briefs alongside other organizations that represent and advocate for the rights of people with disabilities, including one case about discrimination against disabled students.
- ASAN signed on to a letter from the Leadership Conference urging the Senate to confirm all of their pending judges with the available time they have.
- We endorsed the Educational Equity Challenge Grant Act 2024.
- ASAN urged Congress to include funding for early care and education in their disaster relief package.
- We signed onto a letter urging the Biden Administration to commute the sentences of all federal death row prisoners before the end of his administration.
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