WEBVTT - 062224 Denise Resnik on the Intersection of Autism and Blackness (Part 1) 0:00:00.320 --> 0:00:02.880 Broadcasting from the Hip Hop Weekly Studios. I'd like to 0:00:02.880 --> 0:00:05.440 welcome you to another episode of Civic Cipher, where our 0:00:05.440 --> 0:00:09.400 mission is to foster allyship, empathy and understanding. I'm your host, 0:00:09.480 --> 0:00:10.240 Ramses job. 0:00:10.360 --> 0:00:13.200 He is Ramsy's job. I am qboard and you are 0:00:13.240 --> 0:00:15.160 tuned into Civic Scipher. 0:00:14.600 --> 0:00:17.200 And we have a very special guest in the studio 0:00:17.239 --> 0:00:19.280 with us today. She goes by the name of Denise 0:00:19.360 --> 0:00:22.040 d Resnik. She is the founder and president slash CEO 0:00:22.160 --> 0:00:25.480 of First Place a Z, co founder of the Southwest 0:00:25.520 --> 0:00:28.800 Autism Research and Resource Center, and founder and CEO of 0:00:28.880 --> 0:00:33.400 DRA Collective, a marketing slash communications firm that serves clients 0:00:33.400 --> 0:00:37.159 in a variety of fields including real estate, economic development, healthcare, education, 0:00:37.280 --> 0:00:41.080 and hospitality. Today, we are using her decades of experience 0:00:41.080 --> 0:00:47.879 with autism to discuss neurodivergence in bipop communities and what 0:00:48.080 --> 0:00:51.040 happens at that intersection. So welcome to the show. 0:00:51.920 --> 0:00:53.479 Well, thank you and thank you for allowing me to 0:00:53.520 --> 0:00:55.800 be here. And actually the most important part of my 0:00:56.400 --> 0:00:59.480 title is being a mom. I'm the mother of two 0:00:59.600 --> 0:01:03.360 amazing children. Our thirty three year old son has autism, 0:01:03.400 --> 0:01:06.680 profound autism, and that's what brings me to this work. 0:01:07.040 --> 0:01:10.039 Okay, fantastic. Well, we are going to be having a 0:01:10.080 --> 0:01:15.440 conversation about, you know, what happens again at that intersection 0:01:15.800 --> 0:01:22.520 of neurodivergence and being a person of color, and you know, 0:01:22.600 --> 0:01:29.120 maybe some of the cracks in society that neurodivergent people 0:01:29.560 --> 0:01:33.479 might fall into, and how that could be even more 0:01:33.520 --> 0:01:37.319 problematic for people of color, you know, and we're talking 0:01:37.360 --> 0:01:44.760 about how individuals might get in trouble at school or 0:01:44.800 --> 0:01:47.880 have to interact with police, or you know, have problems 0:01:48.400 --> 0:01:52.640 you know, getting housing and things like this, and again 0:01:52.960 --> 0:01:55.200 how much more problematic that is if you're a person 0:01:55.200 --> 0:01:57.680 of color versus if you're a white person. So that 0:01:57.760 --> 0:01:59.760 and so much more. But before we get there, we 0:01:59.800 --> 0:02:02.840 are going to, as always, start things off with some Ebony. 0:02:02.520 --> 0:02:03.680 Excellence, shall we? 0:02:03.880 --> 0:02:04.760 I think we shall. 0:02:04.840 --> 0:02:07.440 This week's Ebny excellence brought to you by Actively Black, 0:02:07.760 --> 0:02:11.040 which I am actually wearing today. There is greatness in 0:02:11.080 --> 0:02:14.680 our DNA. Visit actively black dot com. This story is 0:02:14.680 --> 0:02:19.000 from Black Information Network. Maryland Governor Wes Moore is pardoning 0:02:19.400 --> 0:02:23.840 one hundred and seventy five thousand low level marijuana convictions. 0:02:23.960 --> 0:02:27.080 In an interview with The Washington Posts, Moore announced that 0:02:27.120 --> 0:02:30.079 he was making the mass pardon on Monday, June seventeenth, 0:02:30.120 --> 0:02:34.280 ahead of Juneteenth. The pardons will affect, I'm sorry, roughly 0:02:34.320 --> 0:02:38.080 one hundred thousand people charged with the low level marijuana possession. 0:02:39.040 --> 0:02:42.000 More described the mass pardon as and a quote far 0:02:42.080 --> 0:02:45.640 reaching and aggressive end quote executive action amid the growing 0:02:45.720 --> 0:02:49.360 legalization of marijuana. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:52.360 black Americans are three times more likely to be arrested 0:02:52.400 --> 0:02:56.160 on marijuana charges than their white counterparts. More said criminal 0:02:56.200 --> 0:02:59.680 records from marijuana charges have been used to deny housing, employment, 0:03:00.080 --> 0:03:04.320 and education to people even after their sentences have been served. 0:03:04.639 --> 0:03:04.919 Quote. 0:03:04.960 --> 0:03:07.720 I'm aesthetic that we have a real opportunity with what 0:03:07.840 --> 0:03:11.080 I'm signing to write a lot of historical wrongs. More said, 0:03:11.919 --> 0:03:15.040 if you want to be able to create inclusive economic growth, 0:03:15.120 --> 0:03:18.040 it means you have to start removing these barriers that 0:03:18.120 --> 0:03:21.960 continue to disproportionately sit on communities of color and quote. 0:03:22.200 --> 0:03:24.840 Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown said in the statement that 0:03:24.919 --> 0:03:28.799 pardons were and I quote certainly long overdue as a 0:03:28.880 --> 0:03:34.280 nation and a racial equity issue. It's pretty powerful, man, 0:03:34.280 --> 0:03:37.520 and probably long overdue in a lot of other places, 0:03:37.560 --> 0:03:38.960 not just in Maryland. 0:03:38.640 --> 0:03:42.280 And Wesmore really shows kind of the importance of voting 0:03:42.280 --> 0:03:47.680 in local elections. It shows the importance of letting, you know, 0:03:47.760 --> 0:03:53.720 the people closest to the problem, you know, explain the solutions, 0:03:53.840 --> 0:03:55.600 because you know, as they say, the people closest the 0:03:55.600 --> 0:03:59.320 problem are often closest to the solutions. And you know, 0:03:59.360 --> 0:04:01.720 to see what he's doing with his leadership role is amazing. 0:04:01.800 --> 0:04:10.000 So all right, so first things first, I need to 0:04:10.760 --> 0:04:15.680 paint a little bit of a picture here. I have 0:04:15.760 --> 0:04:22.320 a cousin. My cousin's name is Asher, and Asher was 0:04:22.960 --> 0:04:27.400 this bright little baby boy. I'm a lot older than Asher, 0:04:30.480 --> 0:04:32.400 and you know, he was so much fun when he 0:04:32.440 --> 0:04:36.479 was little. And you know, Asher, it ended up we 0:04:36.560 --> 0:04:42.360 ended up finding out later that he had autism. And 0:04:43.279 --> 0:04:48.080 you know, my uncle and my aunt they fortunately they 0:04:48.120 --> 0:04:53.479 had some resources they were able to to deal with that. 0:04:53.800 --> 0:04:55.960 They were able to take the time and to invest 0:04:56.040 --> 0:05:01.200 and to get you know, early involvement from professionals and 0:05:01.480 --> 0:05:08.200 so forth and so on. And we realized that that story, 0:05:08.400 --> 0:05:11.560 for especially for a black family, a family of color, 0:05:13.440 --> 0:05:18.920 is more the exception than the rule. And you know, 0:05:19.000 --> 0:05:22.520 one of the things that sort of brought me to you, Denise, 0:05:22.960 --> 0:05:28.280 is how involved his parents were and indeed how involved 0:05:28.600 --> 0:05:31.159 our family is with kind of taking care of each other, 0:05:34.120 --> 0:05:36.600 we learned. So let me back up a bit. My 0:05:36.640 --> 0:05:39.679 grandmother she ended up having a stroke before she passed away, 0:05:40.200 --> 0:05:47.320 and she was committed to a place where I think 0:05:47.360 --> 0:05:51.400 where they just commit people that have they're like recovering 0:05:51.440 --> 0:05:56.880 from these like really traumatic whatever. In her case, it 0:05:56.920 --> 0:05:59.200 was a stroke, and so there was a lot of 0:05:59.200 --> 0:06:01.000 older people in the place, and it just kind of 0:06:01.040 --> 0:06:03.960 looked like an old folks home. And I know that 0:06:04.000 --> 0:06:06.919 it wasn't that, but that's how it looked. Now, my 0:06:07.000 --> 0:06:10.520 grandmother had six kids and all, and there were five 0:06:10.600 --> 0:06:16.040 girls and one boy, and all those kids had kids, 0:06:16.120 --> 0:06:18.039 So my grandmother had a lot of grandkids, and she 0:06:18.160 --> 0:06:21.839 changed everybody's diapers, right, So when the time came for 0:06:24.000 --> 0:06:28.240 her to need to be changed, far be it from 0:06:28.279 --> 0:06:32.840 us to just simply ship her off to a place 0:06:32.960 --> 0:06:35.520 and let some strangers deal with it. Especially because she 0:06:35.560 --> 0:06:39.080 had that stroke, she could no longer speak. There was 0:06:39.120 --> 0:06:41.520 an air bubble on the language centers of her brain. 0:06:42.640 --> 0:06:47.040 So we decided, you know what, she changed all of us, 0:06:47.080 --> 0:06:49.400 we can change her, right, and we and to be fair, 0:06:49.440 --> 0:06:52.120 We let the professionals do what they did, but my grandmother. 0:06:52.160 --> 0:06:54.200 The point is, my grandmother was never left in that 0:06:54.240 --> 0:07:02.360 facility alone by herself, and as a result, we were 0:07:02.360 --> 0:07:04.320 on a schedule to make sure that she was cared 0:07:04.320 --> 0:07:07.440 for and whatever family members were always there twenty four 0:07:07.440 --> 0:07:11.440 to seven, and that was just to keep a watchful 0:07:11.440 --> 0:07:14.240 eye over her. But what I found when I visited 0:07:14.280 --> 0:07:18.680 First Place was that a lot of the pressure was off. 0:07:18.720 --> 0:07:20.360 It seemed like a great place. So talk to us 0:07:20.360 --> 0:07:21.360 a little bit about First. 0:07:21.200 --> 0:07:23.840 Place, sure, And I think I'll start, if it's okay, 0:07:23.920 --> 0:07:26.840 with talking a little bit more about autism, because there 0:07:26.880 --> 0:07:29.480 may be some listeners who may be questioning some of 0:07:29.480 --> 0:07:33.800 the behaviors of their children, and awareness is very important. 0:07:34.240 --> 0:07:37.040 When our son was diagnosed thirty one years ago, the 0:07:37.120 --> 0:07:41.400 instance of autism was one in twenty five hundred. Today 0:07:41.920 --> 0:07:45.440 one and thirty six children across the country are being 0:07:45.480 --> 0:07:48.720 diagnosed with autism. Well, and we know that our white 0:07:48.720 --> 0:07:53.520 families are often getting diagnosed before they enter school. We 0:07:53.600 --> 0:07:56.880 know that our families and individuals of color are too 0:07:56.920 --> 0:08:00.880 often getting diagnosed at school where they see the behaviors. 0:08:00.880 --> 0:08:04.400 And so it's really important that we have greater awareness 0:08:04.440 --> 0:08:09.720 about what is autism. Autism is a neuro biological disorder 0:08:10.800 --> 0:08:14.360 in our son's case, is making him making it very 0:08:14.360 --> 0:08:18.800 difficult for him to communicate, both expressively as well as receptively. 0:08:19.880 --> 0:08:23.200 Early on, we saw the eye contact, but then he 0:08:23.240 --> 0:08:25.840 lost that eye contact and we didn't understand why. We 0:08:25.920 --> 0:08:30.080 thought perhaps he was going deaf, and he had a 0:08:30.120 --> 0:08:33.040 lot of gi issues and sensitivity issues where he would 0:08:33.200 --> 0:08:37.200 put his little hands over his ears because the music 0:08:37.320 --> 0:08:39.640 was too loud even though we were playing it softly, 0:08:40.080 --> 0:08:43.520 or different pitches were bothersome to him. He continues to 0:08:43.520 --> 0:08:46.920 wear those headphones because he is hyper sensitive, or some 0:08:47.080 --> 0:08:50.520 individuals could be hypo sensitive, so not as sensitive to 0:08:50.600 --> 0:08:55.079 pain or to sensory issues. And so it's really important 0:08:55.080 --> 0:08:58.080 to understand those signs. And we've done a really good 0:08:58.160 --> 0:09:02.960 job the past few decades of helping those pediatricians get 0:09:02.960 --> 0:09:06.200 it right, helping them understand those early warning signs along 0:09:06.200 --> 0:09:09.120 with our school teachers to make sure that kids can 0:09:09.200 --> 0:09:12.800 be diagnosed early. And what is happening now is there's 0:09:12.840 --> 0:09:17.480 an unprecedented rate of children with autism transitioning to adulthood, 0:09:17.960 --> 0:09:21.600 some who had early intervention, some who did not, some 0:09:21.800 --> 0:09:24.360 who have been you know, we've been investing in in 0:09:24.440 --> 0:09:27.880 their schools or families. You know, this early intervention, this 0:09:28.040 --> 0:09:31.959 insurance that covers some of the early intervention too. And 0:09:32.440 --> 0:09:37.760 once the school bus stops coming, there's a cliff, and 0:09:37.840 --> 0:09:41.120 these kids slide backwards at a far greater rate than 0:09:41.200 --> 0:09:44.839 other disability groups. And if someone's not making you, requiring 0:09:44.880 --> 0:09:47.320 you to talk in full sentences, or you don't have 0:09:47.360 --> 0:09:49.960 the same structure of a day, you might see more 0:09:50.000 --> 0:09:54.160 behavioral issues. And we can't forget puberty. Puberty also is 0:09:54.200 --> 0:09:57.640 at play here and often misunderstood in terms of how 0:09:57.800 --> 0:10:02.880 autism and a diagnosis of autism might mask other things 0:10:02.920 --> 0:10:06.400 going on. So a physician or somebody a professional might 0:10:06.440 --> 0:10:10.119 see the autism but not recognize that maybe it's diabetes, 0:10:10.400 --> 0:10:13.560 maybe it's you know, puberty, maybe it's these other things. 0:10:14.120 --> 0:10:16.600 And as a white woman, I can only imagine what 0:10:16.679 --> 0:10:19.080 it might be like for a person of color to 0:10:19.200 --> 0:10:22.040 experience that in the greater community, because I know for 0:10:22.120 --> 0:10:28.040 our family that experiences are really important. Practicing is really important, 0:10:28.240 --> 0:10:30.640 and we don't always get it right. As a matter 0:10:30.679 --> 0:10:35.360 of fact, communities inclusive communities are perfectly imperfect. We get 0:10:35.360 --> 0:10:38.360 it wrong, but it's what we do after we get 0:10:38.360 --> 0:10:41.120 it wrong. That matters that practicing, So believe me, I 0:10:41.160 --> 0:10:43.480 got plenty of stink guys in the shopping you know, 0:10:43.679 --> 0:10:45.640 in the grocery store just down the street here as 0:10:45.640 --> 0:10:47.840 a matter of fact, of people looking at my kid 0:10:47.880 --> 0:10:51.000 and thinking that he was misbehaving, not understanding that it 0:10:51.040 --> 0:10:54.800 was autism. So I wanted to make sure that for 0:10:54.960 --> 0:10:57.800 all of your listeners that at one in thirty six 0:10:57.960 --> 0:11:01.600 they likely know or will meet some a child or 0:11:01.600 --> 0:11:04.720 an adult or somebody in their life that is on 0:11:04.800 --> 0:11:10.280 the autism spectrum disorder. And how we approach that with understanding, 0:11:10.320 --> 0:11:14.200 with grace, with inclusivity is really important, and we need 0:11:14.240 --> 0:11:17.520 that in all different spectrums, in all different spheres. So 0:11:17.559 --> 0:11:20.640 I really appreciate this chance to be able to join 0:11:20.720 --> 0:11:23.640 you and learn from you, and to be able to 0:11:23.640 --> 0:11:27.560 live my authentic self because my background is community and 0:11:27.600 --> 0:11:32.360 real estate development. And when I was receiving that diagnosis 0:11:32.360 --> 0:11:35.520 of autism and told in nineteen ninety three that I 0:11:35.559 --> 0:11:39.280 should love, accept and plan to institutionalize my child, I 0:11:39.320 --> 0:11:42.319 went to institutions and homes not far from where we're 0:11:42.320 --> 0:11:44.360 sitting right now, and I have to tell you I 0:11:44.480 --> 0:11:47.280 freaked out there was no way that I was going 0:11:47.320 --> 0:11:49.560 to place my son in one of those places. So 0:11:49.640 --> 0:11:53.760 I have been committed for decades to finding a better way, 0:11:54.160 --> 0:11:57.400 and as a charitable nonprofit, which is First Place, we 0:11:57.440 --> 0:12:00.280 can't do it alone. We need all the sectors working 0:12:00.320 --> 0:12:03.880 with us. So we work with public sector, with private sector, 0:12:03.920 --> 0:12:07.080 with charitable nonprofit sector. And so for your listeners and 0:12:07.120 --> 0:12:11.120 their community, taking what they have, and you have your talent, 0:12:11.200 --> 0:12:13.640 you have your voice, you have your platform. I have 0:12:13.720 --> 0:12:17.360 some different expertise. Taking what we have to make sure 0:12:17.400 --> 0:12:19.640 that we can do the best job possible in our 0:12:19.679 --> 0:12:23.080 local communities where our families, our loved ones live and 0:12:23.240 --> 0:12:25.640 practice it and make sure that we get it right. 0:12:27.000 --> 0:12:31.320 Okay, So I was fortunate enough to go on a 0:12:31.400 --> 0:12:36.880 tour of First Place, and I had a chance to 0:12:36.920 --> 0:12:39.720 meet a lot of the people that work there and 0:12:39.800 --> 0:12:44.880 to really do a deep dive into the nature of 0:12:44.960 --> 0:12:48.640 the work and really why a place like this is 0:12:49.240 --> 0:12:53.400 really important. And I'll share a bit about what I learned, 0:12:53.679 --> 0:12:55.640 because the truth of the matter is that this was 0:12:55.679 --> 0:12:59.520 a big blind spot for me as well. Despite having 0:13:00.320 --> 0:13:06.480 a cousin who was autistic, you know, there was so 0:13:06.600 --> 0:13:09.320 much that I just didn't really think about in terms 0:13:09.360 --> 0:13:14.079 of the ways that affects the condition affects individuals themselves, 0:13:14.840 --> 0:13:17.480 the ways that it affects people around them, the ways 0:13:17.480 --> 0:13:21.360 that it could create frustrations for all parties involved. And 0:13:21.400 --> 0:13:23.640 then there's a whole other facet of it too, which is, 0:13:24.480 --> 0:13:26.720 you know, how do these people make a life for 0:13:26.800 --> 0:13:34.560 themselves outside of you know, when you think of autism. 0:13:34.760 --> 0:13:36.480 You know, at least for me, when I think of autism, 0:13:36.559 --> 0:13:42.080 I think of something that is, you know, that kids 0:13:42.080 --> 0:13:48.720 deal with, and so to reconceive of the concept of 0:13:48.760 --> 0:13:53.520 autism around an adult and what comes with adulthood, everything 0:13:53.600 --> 0:13:57.599 that comes with adulthood, not just you know, jobs and 0:13:57.600 --> 0:14:00.679 and you know, responsibilities and routine and all that sort 0:14:00.720 --> 0:14:04.600 of stuff, but you know, paying bills and commuting and 0:14:04.679 --> 0:14:06.840 all these other things that are just part and parcel 0:14:06.880 --> 0:14:10.480 to that experience. You know, first Place kind of steps 0:14:10.480 --> 0:14:13.640 in and fills in those gaps. So I know that 0:14:13.880 --> 0:14:15.600 we can't call it a facility. 0:14:15.200 --> 0:14:18.640 Right for me, it's the f word if it's not 0:14:18.760 --> 0:14:23.000 used for first or forever, because it's not a facility, 0:14:23.680 --> 0:14:26.200 and we never wanted to create a facility. 0:14:26.200 --> 0:14:28.760 We live in homes, and you know, people don't live 0:14:28.800 --> 0:14:30.960 in four walls. They live in their community. So it's 0:14:31.080 --> 0:14:33.840 not just where you sleep at night or make your meal, 0:14:34.120 --> 0:14:35.920 it's what do you do all day. It's about that 0:14:36.000 --> 0:14:40.920 purposeful living. And no matter where your cousin is and 0:14:41.000 --> 0:14:46.240 where our sun is, people deserve those opportunities to learn, 0:14:46.360 --> 0:14:49.600 to grow, to volunteer, to contribute to their communities in 0:14:49.680 --> 0:14:53.480 some way and in many ways. They can bring out 0:14:53.520 --> 0:14:57.040 kindness in our community. That we have someone who's a 0:14:57.040 --> 0:15:00.640 bit more vulnerable among us, how we protect ourselves protect them. 0:15:01.000 --> 0:15:03.880 And I love this definition of community about the people 0:15:03.880 --> 0:15:07.360 in our lives. We don't pay to care about us. 0:15:07.640 --> 0:15:09.560 And you think about your grandmother and the people who 0:15:10.080 --> 0:15:12.120 no doubt we're checking on her, who aren't related to 0:15:12.160 --> 0:15:16.080 her either, but who cared about her. And so community 0:15:16.160 --> 0:15:19.400 is a really important part. And at first place, we 0:15:19.480 --> 0:15:24.080 have positioned that property, that building, that apartment community in 0:15:24.160 --> 0:15:26.800 what is known as the most autism friendly city in 0:15:26.840 --> 0:15:31.360 the world, and that's according to PBS News Hour. And 0:15:31.400 --> 0:15:35.600 that series was produced back in twenty sixteen at the 0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:36.760 time of our groundbreaking. 0:15:36.960 --> 0:15:39.960 And you could say the name of this film. 0:15:40.080 --> 0:15:42.760 It's the series called A Place in the World, and 0:15:42.840 --> 0:15:47.160 it was produced by PBS News Hour and it's twenty sixteen, 0:15:47.320 --> 0:15:52.840 and basically we had given then the journalists who produced 0:15:52.880 --> 0:15:56.320 that series a tour on the light rail here, showing 0:15:56.400 --> 0:15:59.360 them all the different places, all the doors that we've 0:15:59.400 --> 0:16:07.040 opened for healthcare, for employment, for volunteerism, for helping these organizations, 0:16:07.160 --> 0:16:12.480 these for prophecies, nonprofitcies, recreational spaces, to learn how to 0:16:12.520 --> 0:16:14.920 work with people with autism, how to accept them, how 0:16:14.920 --> 0:16:18.920 to include them, and building an inclusive community takes a 0:16:18.920 --> 0:16:22.080 lot of practice. And I love diverse communities. I'm a 0:16:22.240 --> 0:16:27.360 woman who's Jewish and bringing our brothers and sisters and 0:16:27.640 --> 0:16:30.280 people of all faiths in what it does to enrich 0:16:30.320 --> 0:16:33.520 our lives and enrich our communities. So First Place is 0:16:33.520 --> 0:16:37.240 an eighty one thousand square foot property designed not just 0:16:37.280 --> 0:16:41.480 for people with autism, but for people who need supportive housing. 0:16:41.880 --> 0:16:44.320 And it's for people who might present with autism or 0:16:44.360 --> 0:16:48.160 down syndrome, or intellectual and developmental disabilities. Because my sitting 0:16:48.200 --> 0:16:50.160 here and being a senior doesn't tell either of you 0:16:50.240 --> 0:16:52.880 what I need or want in my housing. Need to 0:16:52.960 --> 0:16:56.800 somebody's diagnosis. And that's work that we're doing not only 0:16:56.840 --> 0:16:59.920 here in Greater Phoenix, but across the country. Helping them, 0:17:00.040 --> 0:17:04.600 those local leaders, those local stakeholders, understand how to use 0:17:04.640 --> 0:17:08.760 the same language and expressing need and actually producing housing 0:17:08.880 --> 0:17:12.679 market data so that they can go to their policy officials. 0:17:12.960 --> 0:17:15.280 Because we have a housing crisis. We know that that's 0:17:15.320 --> 0:17:18.160 no secret. It's important for us to make sure we're 0:17:18.160 --> 0:17:20.640 not only at the table with our hearts, but at 0:17:20.680 --> 0:17:23.840 the table with data demonstrating what we want and need 0:17:23.880 --> 0:17:25.760 and making sure that that's part of the equation. 0:17:26.480 --> 0:17:28.800 You know, you need to be in front of a 0:17:28.840 --> 0:17:31.119 microphone far more often than you are. I don't know 0:17:31.160 --> 0:17:32.800 how often you are now, but you need to do 0:17:32.840 --> 0:17:35.920 it more well because I'm sitting here listening to you, 0:17:36.280 --> 0:17:38.800 and I'm not just being educated, but just the way 0:17:38.840 --> 0:17:41.760 that you speak, Because anybody could deliver the information, the 0:17:41.800 --> 0:17:44.359 way that you deliver the information makes it very easy 0:17:44.359 --> 0:17:47.360 to receive. It's very clear for someone who's not as 0:17:47.359 --> 0:17:51.320 familiar with spectrum or autism or the raising of children 0:17:51.320 --> 0:17:54.240 and loved ones and even strangers in that space. So 0:17:54.400 --> 0:17:57.000 please find more opportunities you have. You can come here 0:17:57.040 --> 0:18:00.440 whenever you want, as often as you want, but need 0:18:00.440 --> 0:18:02.480 to not just hear this information, but hear it from 0:18:02.560 --> 0:18:05.560 you because the way that you deliver. It is really incredible. 0:18:05.560 --> 0:18:09.879 It's really welcoming. It's not just informative, but it's I 0:18:09.920 --> 0:18:12.520 don't even know the right word, like, I'm listening to 0:18:12.560 --> 0:18:15.040 it and I care about it. I'm not just learning. 0:18:15.560 --> 0:18:18.120 It's now something that means something to me. And we've 0:18:18.119 --> 0:18:20.240 only been here for a few minutes. So as many 0:18:20.280 --> 0:18:23.360 opportunities as you have to have a microphone in front 0:18:23.359 --> 0:18:26.320 of you having this conversation, please do it more because 0:18:26.359 --> 0:18:31.399 it's necessary. You spoke before about the likelihood of diagnosis, 0:18:32.000 --> 0:18:34.880 especially with regard to the difference in those who grow 0:18:34.960 --> 0:18:38.240 up in white communities and those that are people of color. 0:18:39.320 --> 0:18:45.520 We know that the information, the awareness is important not 0:18:45.680 --> 0:18:47.879 just with the people who care about us, but with 0:18:48.000 --> 0:18:50.879 society at large. The way that law enforcement responds to us, 0:18:50.920 --> 0:18:53.919 the way that educators respond to us when they know 0:18:55.320 --> 0:18:58.160 that there's someone on the spectrum that's in their presence. 0:18:59.040 --> 0:19:01.600 How do people in gree or I guess a better 0:19:01.640 --> 0:19:04.600 way to put it is, how are people more likely 0:19:04.640 --> 0:19:08.080 to be diagnosed or have access to being diagnosed so 0:19:08.119 --> 0:19:11.879 that their journey growing up and experiencing the world is 0:19:11.920 --> 0:19:15.720 better than if not? Because we've seen how when those 0:19:15.760 --> 0:19:18.160 behaviors are mistaken, like you said, at the grocery store, 0:19:18.359 --> 0:19:20.960 and people think, oh, your son is just misbehaving, having 0:19:21.000 --> 0:19:25.040 no idea how to interpret what they see. How do 0:19:25.119 --> 0:19:26.959 we increase the likelihood of that? 0:19:27.240 --> 0:19:28.560 Yeah, and I want to add to that just a 0:19:28.600 --> 0:19:34.560 little bit. So a while back, we had a woman 0:19:34.680 --> 0:19:39.400 up on this show. Her name is Janelle Wood, and 0:19:39.520 --> 0:19:41.919 she came and spoke to us about what's called the 0:19:41.960 --> 0:19:48.679 school to prison pipeline. Basically, there was the criminalization of 0:19:49.600 --> 0:19:55.080 juvenile delinquency or whatever that really shaped outcomes for children 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:58.080 of color. You know, they're more likely to be disciplined 0:19:58.119 --> 0:20:01.640 and arrested at every single gra level, regardless of the infraction. 0:20:03.280 --> 0:20:07.320 There was a criminal element associated with these children. And 0:20:07.840 --> 0:20:10.680 you know, you mentioned that white families often get access 0:20:10.720 --> 0:20:14.120 to diagnoses and that oftentimes black and brown families don't 0:20:14.119 --> 0:20:17.240 have access to these same diagnoses. So do SI favor 0:20:17.320 --> 0:20:19.239 and kind of speak on that a little bit and 0:20:19.320 --> 0:20:21.240 how that might shape outcomes. 0:20:21.960 --> 0:20:24.639 There are a number of sources that people can turn to. 0:20:25.160 --> 0:20:29.480 There's certainly the Autism Society of America Autism Speaks and 0:20:29.600 --> 0:20:32.199 here at the organization that I co founded called the 0:20:32.280 --> 0:20:36.840 Southwest Autism Research and resource center. They're able to diagnose 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:41.000 children remotely to cut the waiting list, to cut the cost. 0:20:41.520 --> 0:20:46.959 And it is called NODA Natural Observation Diagnostic Assessment, and 0:20:47.000 --> 0:20:51.440 it prescribes for that family member different video to upload 0:20:51.840 --> 0:20:55.080 so that the professionals can view that and can also 0:20:55.160 --> 0:20:59.000 render a diagnosis. The earlier that somebody can get diagnosed, 0:20:59.240 --> 0:21:02.760 the earlier the benefits can start, specifically insurance, whether that's 0:21:02.800 --> 0:21:06.120 public or private insurance. And that early intervention is key, 0:21:06.560 --> 0:21:08.920 but it's not the only time people can learn. People 0:21:09.000 --> 0:21:14.320 can learn throughout their lifetimes. And so I appreciate what 0:21:14.359 --> 0:21:17.400 you were saying to you in terms of the passion 0:21:17.480 --> 0:21:22.120 that I have for this. It is complex, It is complicated. 0:21:22.200 --> 0:21:24.800 You want to get to kids early, you want to 0:21:24.800 --> 0:21:28.800 make sure that the ecosystem, the community is also prepared, 0:21:29.240 --> 0:21:32.520 and that does take time. And so most recently I 0:21:32.600 --> 0:21:37.280 was with former Sheriff Great Markopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone, 0:21:37.520 --> 0:21:40.399 and he has recognized that there are people in his 0:21:40.520 --> 0:21:43.800 prison system who don't belong there, but they are there 0:21:43.920 --> 0:21:48.119 because of their autism or an intellectual and developmental disability, 0:21:48.160 --> 0:21:50.840 and they need to be treated differently than those other 0:21:51.800 --> 0:21:55.440 people in prison. And so recognizing what it is and 0:21:55.480 --> 0:21:59.640 how we can also train law enforcement to better understand 0:21:59.640 --> 0:22:03.240 the sign so that they are they don't escalate a situation. 0:22:03.920 --> 0:22:07.480 And so we were just at an international training conference 0:22:07.520 --> 0:22:12.480 for law enforcement officers, and there are training programs across 0:22:12.560 --> 0:22:16.560 the country that local communities can access. One of them 0:22:16.680 --> 0:22:20.119 is called be Safe. We also offer something here at 0:22:20.119 --> 0:22:22.280 the Southwest Autism Research and Resource Center. 0:22:22.760 --> 0:22:25.480 Do me a favorite. Let's let's send folks to a 0:22:25.520 --> 0:22:28.199 website and then take a break, but sure shop a 0:22:28.200 --> 0:22:29.600 website where folks can get at least some of. 0:22:29.560 --> 0:22:33.080 Those emport first place and spell out first first place, 0:22:33.119 --> 0:22:34.720 global dot org. 0:22:34.920 --> 0:22:37.800 First place, global dot org. All right, so when we 0:22:37.840 --> 0:22:42.240 come back, I want to have a conversation about exactly 0:22:42.320 --> 0:22:46.200 what happens or could happen at the intersection of autism 0:22:46.240 --> 0:22:50.160 and the criminal justice system, because you know, we obviously 0:22:50.200 --> 0:22:51.760 talk about a lot of that sort of stuff here 0:22:51.800 --> 0:22:54.960 on this show, and I want to spend some time 0:22:55.040 --> 0:22:58.240 also talking about sort of the economic opportunities that exist 0:22:58.240 --> 0:22:59.240 for folks with autism.