Autism Awareness

By Winter Brooks Editor in Chief

The Month of April is exciting for many reasons: flowers start blooming, the weather gets warmer, and it’s the Month of Autism Awareness! Showing appreciation and respect toward Autistic individuals is very important because there are struggles that Allistic individuals won’t ever understand. 

“I think we should be highlighting their personalities, abilities, and the awesome things that they do. It would be powerful,” said Ms. Mitchell. 

Accommodations play a very important role in autistic learning. Adults and children with autism learn differently from allistic people, by establishing the accommodations needed by each student. Thus, it will allow them to learn in a less stressful environment. 

“It’s much too difficult to get accommodations, especially with headphones, and hoods. Though it's generally seen as a bad thing and disobedience, I think it should be easier to get those accommodations,” said Eli Gallegos. 

For accommodations to be respected and upheld, there needs to be better education with the staff at Crete-Monee High School. Taking courses or training on how to help autistic students is a must, and disrespecting their accommodations should receive a reprimand. 

“Some individuals are more aware. I, myself have autistic family members, and so I understand the struggle a little bit more. Those who have never experienced an autistic individual may not know enough, so they would have to have some extra training or extra info or just exposure,” said Mr. Cook. 

Support groups or clubs for neurodivergent students could be beneficial at Crete-Monee. It would be a welcoming place with people with the same struggles as each other. 

“Everyone needs a place where they can feel welcomed and accepted, and if we need to create a space for that, then we create a space for that,” said Mr. Cook.

Many autistic people are misdiagnosed with other disorders before being diagnosed with autism. National Institutes of Health states, “Approximately a quarter of autistic adults reported being misdiagnosed with at least one psychiatric condition before receiving an autism diagnosis. Personality disorders, mood disorders, and anxiety disorders were most frequently perceived as misdiagnoses.”

People of color are typically diagnosed less frequently than white people. This may be caused by a lack of research on autism in people of color, or even just a lack of research on autistic adults at all. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states, “ADDM reports have consistently noted that more white children are identified with ASD than black or Hispanic children. Previous studies have shown that stigma, lack of access to healthcare services due to non-citizenship or low income, and non-English primary language are potential barriers to the identification of children with ASD especially among Hispanic children. A difference in identifying black and Hispanic children with ASD relative to white children means these children may not be getting the services they need to reach their full potential.”

Needless to say, there are flaws in how people are receiving, or not receiving, their diagnoses. 

“It’s a lot of just dealing with biases and stereotypes,” said Gallegos, “especially in the medical industry. To be fair, it is very difficult to diagnose autism because it is a spectrum.”