Understanding
Due to the complexity of the autistic spectrum, it is difficult to understand the spectrum. For that reason, it is easier to look at how autism affects individuals as everyone is different. Think of it as once you have met an autistic person you have met one autistic person with that form of autism.
Acceptance
Autistic people would like to be accepted for who they are. There are many things we can learn from autistic people. Things like being more organised, better time keeping, using routines, and planning our days, so we can lead a less stressful life. Being accepted into the community can be very beneficial for autistic people. It can build confidence and better self-esteem. Prevent loneliness and help reduce mental health problems.
Education
Autism is not a learning disability. There are autistic people who also have a learning disability; however, you can also get autistic people who do not have a learning disability. To make for a better school experience a starting point would be educating teachers and students about autism. Also creating quiet areas, other than the library. Schools should have disability friendly toilets.
Employment
For those autistic people who can work the opportunities should be there for them to do so. Employers would need to be educated on the world of autism to be able to see what adjustments they might need to make to be able to employ autistic people. Where employees work in teams to make sure the teams work together the best, they could use a personality test.
Community
One way to bring people together is through social groups, especially when the groups are made up of people with common interests. Autistic people have hobbies and interests just like non autistic people. This seems like a good place to start when trying to include autistic people into the community.
We very often talk about what autistic people can’t do. It’s now time to ask the question, why can’t they do it? How can we change ‘they can’t do’ into ‘they can do’? We also need to look more at what they can do and utilise the abilities they have. Let’s make our world a more inclusive one.
