Neurotransmitters Flow in this Autism Mind

Cherry Picking

4+ lbs of ripe juicy cherries to eat over next few days

Cherry picking this morning with buddy Siddhu.

Autism and Empathy

As I was doing the Literature Review for my Haas Scholars Research, I came upon this research paper from Oxford University.

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1362361319883506

I'm being quoted in this paper. OMG. totally Unexpected and too cool.

Hand at the Wheel

A hand at the wheel during an afternoon boat trip on the beautiful Lake Tahoe

A Day in the Life

Interview for the Geek Club Books

Interview by Jenny Bristol

Illustration by Rebecca Burgess

https://geekclubbooks.com/a-day-in-the-life-of-hari-srinivasan-promoter-of-connection-understanding-and-belonging/

Quotes from the Article

What advice would you give to a young or teenage autistic person to help them live their best life, or what advice would you give an autistic adult to help them feel supported in their continuing journey?

No one is an expert on you. No one knows enough about autism to be an expert. Even the “experts” are still learning. So no one gets to have final say on what your limitations, capabilities, & needs are.

What advice would you give parents of autistic kids about the best ways to support their kids in becoming their best selves? What advice from the so-called “experts” do you think parents should ignore? How can parents best support their non-speaking or minimally-speaking children?

Communication must extend beyond just basic wants. Basic wants are just survival. The next step up are needs around school/vocational/skills/interests which are necessary for building self-confidence and getting ahead. But real quality of life is the ability to express thoughts and opinions. So aim for that in communication—irrespective of the communication methodology used and whether it’s via speaking or via AAC.

On the “experts” part, I would repeat the advice to autistics above.

What are some aspects of advocacy work that you find especially fulfilling?

It is the opportunity, that dream, to make a contribution, even if it’s a pebble, that will lend to that huge ripple of change.

How can readers learn more about the experiences of non-speaking or minimally-speaking autistic people? Are there resources you’d like to point people to, or people online that you recommend following?

Just reading or following what a few of us are writing is not enough. Thought has to translate into action on the ground. Start by interacting with nonspeakers. There will be many in your neighborhood who are getting absolutely ignored or out of sight, tucked away in special education class or day programs. How will you learn unless you interact and start to include? Ask to start buddy programs at school if you are of school age. If a nonspeaker lives on your street, include them in your circle of friends and do things with them. There are many small things you can do at the grassroots level which together will make a huge difference and normalize the presence of every kind of human being in everyday society.

Remembering George Floyd

Excerpts from Campus Mail.

Eight minutes and 46 seconds are etched in our minds forever. That is how long former and convicted police officer Derek Chauvin pushed his knee into George Floyd’s neck, suffocating and murdering him in public one year ago today. His death also symbolically represents the centuries of dehumanization of Black bodies across our nation beginning with the trans-Atlantic slave trade in 1619. The list of names of all the Black individuals who have lost their lives at the hands of police violence, transphobia, and belief systems that reinforce false notions of white supremacy are too many to name.

Black Lives Statistics
Did you know:

Black people are three times more likely than white people to be killed during a police encounter (Harvard School of Public Health June 2020);
Black drivers are more likely to be stopped by the police and three times more likely to be searched in comparison to white drivers;
Black people are four times more likely to experience the use of force during encounters with the police;
Once convicted of a crime, Black individuals receive longer and harsher sentences for the same offenses compared to white individuals.

Haas Scholar Orientation

Day 1: Introduction & Icebreakers / Interdisciplinary Exchanges

Day 1: Virtual Escape Room Activity

Day 2: Interdisiplinary Brainstorming

Session with Bob Haas

Mentions

Got a mention in the comments in an article around Elon Musk.......

https://www.independent.co.uk/voices/elon-musk-autism-aspergers-b1847069.html

Daily Cal is hiring for Summer 2021

Raghavan Thatha online

Came across a pic of my Raghavan Thatha (grandpa) online, in his heyday working for the UN in the pacific. There are more links of stuff he's done. Too cool.

SpectrumAtCal Spring 2021 Towards Belonging

These have to be the coolest T-Shirts

withe the very important message of "You Belong"

The nifty intertwining butterflies design is by Tory Benson, who is the current board member and incoming VP for Spectrum 21-22

Belonging Week

#WhyIAdvocate

Our Annual 5K Fundraiser

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April 9th - Cross Cultural Panel

Spectrum is hosting a

Cross-Cultural Panel

as a part of this Spring's Autism Acceptance & Belonging Week!

How is autism represented in different cultures?

What are some highlights and barriers of autism advocacy in different countries?

What could we do to support?
....

We are amazingly honored to welcome panelists who are coming from different cultural backgrounds and doing autism advocacy works at different places of the world! Even more, many of them are actually on the autism spectrum themselves, or parents of autistics.

Igor Pereira (on the spectrum): lawyer organizing autism movement in Brazil
Irma Aguilar-Deflin (on the spectrum): advocate from Mexico City
Dr. Shari D Rosen (parent): founder of the first special education center in Shanghai

Event Time: April 9th (Friday), 6-7:30 Pacific Time

Fireside Chats

FiresideChat#1

FiresideChat#2

FiresideChat#3 - Autism in the Media

Dont Cant Wont - Masking Camouflaging

Don't Can't Won't - Masking Camouflaging

Autistics engage in Masking
Autistics engage in Camouflaging
Attempts at passing muster, appear more "normal", make eye contact
........Effortful
........All verily exhausting
........ Very very exhausting
Contributors to Autistic Burnout.
Meltdowns and Autistic Burnout
Burnout, Burnout.

BUT, NonSpeaking Autistics
... Don't possibly Mask
... Can't possibly Camouflage
Why it is quite certain that Nonspeakers
....Won't experience Burnout.
ONLY Meltdowns, but NOT Burnout!
They don't, they can't, they won't

Déjà vu
...Don't
...Can't
...Won't
...Not Possible, No agency!!
Sorrowful words oft heard before
Ableist terminology. Disappointing!!

Reality!!
We struggle as all autistics do
Attempts at masking and camouflaging
Sometimes it works, we pass muster

Other times, its a Partial No-Go

maybe even a Total "Oh-No!!"

Masking and Camouflaging

Walk without stares in society

No one likes to be gawked at
Fly under the radar is often the goal.

Basic self-safety oft at stake

Sprinkle on apraxia and comorbidities
the result
....variable & unreliable steering controls.
The body, a car with a loose steering wheel
unpredictable in the way it will go.
Effort required multiplied, magnified.
Autistic Burnout
Burnout Burnout Burnout
Burnout Burnout
Burnout