Today is World Autism Acceptance Day which is when we celebrate our amazing community. Today is a day where we educate the world about what it means to be autistic and how we can be better supported in our communities. Thanks to everyone’s efforts, this year we can once again walk the streets, participate in events and be proud to be part of this world wide community.
In 2007 the United Nations designated April 2nd as World Autism Awareness Day, a day that highlights the need to improve the quality of life of those of us on the autism spectrum. Today I feel this idea has evolved into a day where we celebrate what Autism brings to this world. It is no longer about raising awareness, but about promoting acceptance and inclusion, and most importantly about allowing our hidden disability be visible to our friends and colleagues even if it is just for one day.
Today I would like to encourage everyone to celebrate in their own way, whether that means spending time with friends, attending an event either online or in person, or just by writing a social media post like this one.
In 2020 we weren’t able to celebrate World Autism Acceptance Day the way we usually do due to covid 19, today however as restrictions begin to ease and life begins to get back to normal we can now celebrate this day and be proud to be part of the autism community.
Throughout 2020 our community went through a lot, and I know these experiences have brought us closer. I also feel that due to what happened in 2020 that today is even more important as we begin to interact with the outside world again we need acceptance and inclusion more than ever. We also need to educate the world about how lockdowns negatively affect autistics and highlight supports that we need both during a global pandemic and now during the aftermath. We also need to share our stories to raise awareness, and to ensure these experiences are never lost to history. Today the world is listening to us, so let’s take advantage of this and flood the internet, the media and the streets with our stories so that we can create a more accepting and inclusive world for the next generation of autistics.
Happy World Autism Acceptance Day
Bryce Pace
Autism Advocate, Blogger, Speaker
