I wrote this video to teach people that nonspeaking autistics deserve to be heard. Please watch and learn about us.
Trigger warning: sexual assault
Tag: Advocacy
Fearless (song)
I wrote this poem to give hope and to inform people about nonspeaking autistics. My love for people goes to help others. Laura Hastings put my poem to music and sings beautifully.
Voices of Inclusion – My Story
Here is a video that I made with my team from the Friendship Revolution. Please watch, so you may think differently about nonspeaking people. Here is a link to the full video of Voices of Inclusion. https://youtu.be/0_BdYhKEM4o
Hear me think out loud
Waiting, amid the jealousy.
Loads of watery tears!
Wanting and yearning for normalcy.
Keeping a wound for years.
Maladaptive truancy, lapses as time goes by,
And losing patience wavers me and calms my angry sigh.
I understand sadness as it permeates my soul!
Taking away my potency and never leaving me whole.
Masking my feelings of worthlessness leaves me alone, full of regret,
Feeding my insecurities, taking time to forget.
‘Twas the ignorance of well-meaning people who started this charade!
That speaking words equals intelligence and fear led their parade.
Autistics who don’t talk have plenty of words to say.
I know as I am nonspeaking and wrote this here today.
Longing to say to hurtful looks, that I am not a freak!
Painful to many of us; forward and bleak.
Look at us, as love leaves lasting memories.
Love creates presence in awesome trajectories.
May people who don’t speak, learn to pursue answers, leaving the toll behind.
Making the leap into kindness, promoting inclusion for humankind.
That includes all of us, you and me.
Making the trip on this loving journey worry free.
The reward is already here, taking fearlessness into our hands.
Preparing for a life worth living; being proud and taking a stand!
Good times are ahead and the world is ready to see,
That nonspeaking autistics, speak their minds differently.
Teaching non-speaking students has got to change!
Please hear my plea. Question everything you know about teaching autistics. Accountability is near and the trying times must vanish from all schools. I was a person who didn’t matter, because I couldn’t speak. Mastering movement and speech is difficult, but never having a chance to learn is heart wrenching!
Much can be said about how I spent my time back at my old school. Activities were motivated by keeping all the autistics occupied. People said loosely that I made meek attempts at reading, but my aides never gave me a chance. Many students I saw were treated like nuisances because they couldn’t slow down their mind like some of the kids. People looked at me like I didn’t matter, yet I don’t pale in comparison to them. Teachers need autistics to bring talk to another level of thinking. Treating all their students with the same respect is taking “talking about inclusion” from the theory, to the practical.
When teachers look at us like losers, because the “rule makers” often do, it makes us give up on trying. Many times, lessons wore me out because they were too easy. More math calculations need learners to be engaged, and not bored, because we are intelligent and deserve better. My right as a human is to have an education and to be lauded with challenging and interesting learning opportunities. Look at us as thinking, sentient learners and not mute!
Panic stricken teachers often have no idea how to teach non-speaking students. Fear is high with teachers who used to only teach neurotypical kids. Try to face the fear of failure and teach anyways. Looks may be deceiving. Laughing can mean leering, especially when meaningful teachers, particularly in elementary school, think that the child is cute. They assume lots of things that aren’t true. Teaching a teenager, the autistic bible of task oriented, passive learning does little to stimulate the mind. You best teach him the same as you would anyone who wants to learn. Think of this sadly misunderstood fact: lack of speech does not equal lack of intelligence.
Lastly, I feel that there is a higher power at work and that he’s looking straight at you. Do you want to be passive or part of the solution?
Invisible to seen 