Spread the word!

There are tons of autism organizations around, but not all are good. Not all actually help autistic people and their families. It can be really difficult to dig in to research and find information on autism organizations, so I’ve done the research for you! I won’t tell you that this is an unbiased post, because I’m absolutely biased against autism speaks, but I will give an overview of a few national organizations that you should know about.

This is a post in the Autism A-Z Series for Autism Acceptance Month. I’ll be posting a new autism post every day but Sundays, and you can check out the rest of the posts in the series here. I’m also hosting a Fundanoodle Fundraiser for the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, and you can place your orders here.

Autism Organizations, a Breakdown

Autism Speaks – A Horrible Autism Organization

I’ve talked plenty about why Autism Speaks is a downright terrible autism organization. Hardly any of their budget goes towards helping autistic people and their families, while their officials make gross amounts of money. The large majority of their budget goes towards research for a cure or prenatal test for autism, as their goal is to end autism. Plus they use truly disgusting marketing that attempts to make people afraid of autism and autistic people in order to drive more donations for their cause. Bottom line? Autism Speaks is terrible. You can read more about why I do not support Autism Speaks here.

Autistic Self Advocacy Network

The Autistic Self Advocacy Network is an organization created by autistic people, for autistic people. Their slogan is “nothing about us, without us” and they mean it. Any major decisions made about the lives and futures of autistic people should be made by them, or at the very least with their input considered. With autistic board members, including one non-speaking self-advocate, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network truly gives a voice to autistic people from all over the spectrum. They are also the organization behind Autism Acceptance Month. This is the organization that I personally support, and I would love if you would support my fundraiser for the Autistic Self Advocacy Network here.

National Autism Association

The National Autism Association is an organization that supports primarily parents of autistic children. They consider autism an “epidemic”. While they do support families with therapy and safety concerns, they don’t do it in the best way for autistic individuals. They focus a lot on preventing and responding to wandering, which is support that is desperately needed. The one part of this organization I am behind is their “Big Red Safety Box” program. It includes ID tags, door alarms, and other items that help in preventing and responding to wandering. Again, this organization isn’t the best, but there are parts that truly help autistic people’s safety.

This is by no means an exhaustive list of autism organizations, but I am asked constantly by friends and family what organizations are truly about. Don’t forget to check out the rest of the posts in the Autism A-Z series for Autism Acceptance Month here and place your orders for the Fundanoodle Fundraiser for the Autistic Self Advocacy Network here.

If you loved this post, you might also enjoy..

About Kaylene

Kaylene George is an autistic self-advocate, author, and mother of five, including one autistic child. She realized her own autism as an adult shortly after her son received his initial diagnosis. Suddenly the parts of her that seemed so “weird” to society had an answer. Since then, Kaylene has passionately shared about her experiences with autism from both sides of the great divide between parents and autistic self-advocates on AutisticMama.com.