Sharing: Autism Awareness Month Post Seven: Autism Speaks Replies To My Letter

A much-appreciated and extremely informative post from my awesome friend Devereaux (isn’t that the coolest name??) Frazier.  He had written an extremely logical and reasonable letter to Autism Speaks ($peaks / A$), which I thought was an excellent and brave strategy.

The disappointing (and fairly predictable) part was that although A$ did respond, they basically gave him the public relations (PR)-speak, saying how three-quarters of their budget goes to research, yada yada.  Well no shit, Sherlocks; that’s (probably more than) half the problem!  It’s not going toward efforts that would actually help autistic people!  And then, of course, they give him lip service about the flimsy-ish “resources” on their website for autistic adults and whatnot.

I wonder if anyone has been able to put any of these “resources” to the test to prove whether or not they’re actually anything productive and relevant to us, but I’m guessing most of us either wouldn’t waste our time with them, or getting any real help would probably be like pulling teeth.

Regardless, though, this post is a great read, and a valiant effort made my Devereaux.  Way to go, dear friend!  They’re just dorks; you, on the other hand, did a mighty fine job 🙂 ❤

Recovering My Mind: Poetry and Rock Music

Three days ago, I sent a letter to Autism Speaks in regards to their 2014 financial statements, along with their co-founder’s statements about autism (https://marylandpoetblog.wordpress.com/2017/04/06/autism-awareness-month-post-three-an-open-letter-to-autism-speaks/). Thursday night, they responded with this:

Hi there,

Thanks for reaching out to Autism Speaks and sharing this feedback. I am happy to share some information to help address these concerns that you have. More than 75 percent of every dollar spent has funded programs and services in science, family services, awareness and advocacy, exceeding Better Business Bureau guidelines each year. The majority of this funding goes toward science, followed by our family services, awareness and advocacy efforts. As we continue to implement our new strategic plan, we are working toward increasing funding in every mission area so that a significant impact is made for everyone affected by autism. You can find all our financial information in our most recent annual report, which is available on…

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