Identity: Being denied access to my diagnosis has taken its toll
GenesizC
February 17, 2023
Courtlon "Champ" Turner
Courtlon "Champ" Turner
Father · Barber · Volunteer · Wrongfully Convicted
Champ is a loving father and a Black barber who was a staple and integral member of his community. He is known by everyone as gentle, selfless, humble, wise, and intuitive.
Champ served as the best man at his friend’s wedding. They were extremely close, but one day his best friend was experiencing extreme paranoia. Champ tried to support his friend through this mental health crisis, but when he took a call from his girlfriend, his friend believed that Champ was on the phone with the FBI to “snitch” on him for selling knock-off purses and shoes. He attacked Champ with a butcher knife, they struggled for several minutes, Champ finally was able to break away, then he dialed 911.
When police arrived, they arrested Champ instead of the white man who attacked him. Champ was charged with aggravated malicious wounding, a class 2 felony equivalent to first degree murder. He’s serving ten years for being attacked by a white man.
Champ has congestive heart failure and is an undiagnosed autistic man with undiagnosed PTSD in a prison. His case has striking parallels to Matthew Rushin’s: they are Black autistic men from Virginia Beach who were criminalized by the Commonwealth Attorney and Virginia Beach Police for having a disability.
We are calling on Governor Ralph Northam for a pardon for Champ Turner. Self defense is not a crime. Being disabled is not a crime. Being autistic is not a crime.
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Emmanuel Abua remarks on the growing number of businesses hiring autistic people. He makes the case that this is not the victory we need.
Relationship Rubik’s Cube
asiatucoach
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Because of the intersecting parts of my identity, being Black, AFAB (assigned female at birth), queer, trans, atheist/antitheist, and autistic, I describe myself to be a relationship Rubik’s cube.
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Lauren Melissa Ellzey
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Lauren Melissa reviews Hiki app, the dating and friendship app specifically for autistic people to find and make connections with other autistics.
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Schereeya
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asiatucoach
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Asiatu Lawoyin, at age 42, experienced their first PTSD flashback from childhood sexual abuse. Asiatu unpacks the space between the trauma and the flashback through the lens of being Black and autistic.
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Kwame R. Brobbey
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Ashleigh J Mills
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Schereeya
June 26, 2021
Schereéya Reed interviews three authors and provides tips for writing intersectional identities. “Representation doesn’t just happen. You have to actively choose it. Sometimes you have to demand it.”
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asiatucoach
June 11, 2021
I have endured marginalization from my earliest memory. I have to fight to be heard every moment of every day. I have never experienced a second that I wasn’t aware of my intersectionality.
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Cheyenne Thornton
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Cheyenne Thornton reviews Kiss and Repeat, a YA novel with a neurodivergent protagonist with Tourette’s. Read how Cheyenne felt about this debut novel by autistic author Heather Truett.
(the) Truth will Set Us Free: California schools tell mother Blackness prevents access to a free and appropriate education
Schereeya
May 8, 2021
A California school told a mom that in order for her Black autistic son to get the services and accommodations he needs, she would have to say that he’s not Black.
Dear Caribbean Autistic Teen,
Marlyn Suárez
February 15, 2022
“Our desire to stim? We use Soca, Bachata, Dancehall, and Salsa as a cover, allowing the rhythm to put out the fire we have in our brains. And thanks to our Caribbean cousins and siblings, we learn how to be style icons.”
On the Impossibility of Getting Medical and Mental Health Care as an Autistic, Deaf, Black Woman with Chronic Illness
GenesizC
February 1, 2022
Genesiz has been diagnosed and reevaluated for autism several times since age three— every time she comes across a provider who doesn’t believe her.
Disney’s Encanto: They Don’t talk about Bruno, but We Autistics DO
AFeralWolfChild
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Wolfheart Sanchez explores the character Bruno from Disney’s Encanto as being relatable to autistic people for many reasons.
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Lauren Melissa Ellzey
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Lauren Melissa Ellzey is multiracial and autistic. She always felt that the world divided her into what was Black or white, autistic or not. She encourages mixed race autistic teens to see and embrace their whole authentic selves.
I might be Autistic: Exploring and accepting my autism
Monetta
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Mo has had a lifetime of experiences that are unique and familiar to autistic people, and now she is committed to healing, accepting her true self, and finding her community.
A Letter to Black and Indigenous Autistic Teens
AFeralWolfChild
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Wolfheart Sanchez is Black and Native American, and he writes a letter to Autistic teens about how the lack of representation is harmful, but they can build the community they need to feel less alone.