Sophia Blanchard was a pioneer in air traffic as an engineering balloonist. She also was scared of loud noises and went periods of time without speaking.
Before hitting the walls of systemic biases that exclude neurominorities, before blatant gender discrimination and xenophobic hate, there was a time when diversity was a source of joy. But it’s hard to focus on fun or remember joy and success when you are treated like nothing. When going through adversity, the one thing we often search for is meaning.
It is ironic that the “women’s equality emphasis” could contribute to “hitting the wall” – but not surprising. Single-focus, limited-time “diversity drives” might be well-intentioned, but are often problematic.
What do the Ugly Duckling, the Princess on the Pea, and the Little Child who announced that the Emperor has no clothes have in common? Not only are they all characters in Hans Christian Andersen tales, but it’s also been suggested that through his characters the author projected different facets of his own and others’ autistic experiences.
Dr. Praslova provides brilliant insight into how to craft the job you have into the job you want as an autistic employee.
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