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Tag: intellectual disability

A White House Visit and Event for Care Workers, Caregivers, and Advocates

A little description of our trip to Washington, D.C., for an event held by President Biden at the White House honoring professional care workers, family caregivers, and advocates for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

care workers, caregivers, caregiving, developmental disability, DSPs, executive order, IDD, intellectual disability, juggler, juggling, juggling video, President Biden, White House

Autism and IDD: Caregiving, Advocacy, Community, and Love

We need to step up our support, recognition, and advocacy both for autistic and intellectually disabled people and for the caregivers—both support workers and caregivers—who love and care for them.

autism, autism acceptance, autism acceptance month, DSPs, IDD, intellectual disability, support workers

A Letter about IDD Advocacy in North Carolina

What we lack most centrally in intellectual and developmental disability work and advocacy in North Carolina is the fierce urgency of now, to use and insist upon the meaning of the famous and essential phrase by Dr. King.

autism, developmental disability, equity, IDD, intellectual disability, representation

Community Inclusion and IDD: Prioritizing and Empowering Choice for the Disabled

Should policy-directed “best outcomes” from government officials and advocacy groups reduce, rather than enhance, choice for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD)—and sometimes trap them in unsafe, hostile environments?

autism, developmental disability, disability, disability rights, disabled, featured, IDD, inclusion, integration, intellectual disability

The Value of Disabled Lives and Organs

Why might an autistic, intellectually disabled Black boy with Down syndrome be so much more valuable in death than in life? Because his parents made him an organ donor.

autism, autism acceptance, disability, disability rights, down syndrome, intellectual disability

Intellectually Disabled Adults and COVID Vaccine Prioritization

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities are at greater risk—three times greater than the general population—of COVID-19 complications and/or death. … More

COVID, intellectual disability, vaccination

Are Autistic and Intellectually Disabled People Worthwhile Community Members—or Aren’t They?

I have been reading the proposed changes to North Carolina’s Innovations waiver services and supports, which are designed for individuals … More

autism, community, disability, inclusion, intellectual disability
Nicholas Hemachandra looking out at Raven Cliff Falls in South Carolina, May 2020

No “Because” but Love—Intellectual Disability, Identity, Representation, and Value

Autism and disability pride movements assert unique cultures and identities. Can intellectually disabled people be more openly and equitably represented … More

autism, autism acceptance, autism adulthood, IDD, intellectual disability

Autism Adulthood: Caring for the Future and the Present Moment

Part of this piece was written for a recent conference talk—that actually instead turned into pure Q&A—so the beginning, at … More

autism, autism acceptance, autism adulthood, autism advocacy, autism parenting, IDD, intellectual disability

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The @ashevilletourists sponsor the Tourists Therapeutic Recreation Baseball League each year through Asheville Parks & Recreation. My son Nicholas, now 22, has participated since 2008. Today all the teams of adults *and* children gathered at McCormick Field and played the season’s final game with the support of Tourists players. (The Tourists are a High-A affiliate of the Houston Astros.) It was a beautiful day in every way, and immense gratitude to the Tourists and their GM, Larry Hawkins, for two decades of community support, outreach, and inclusion.
Silly-face pic to highlight a more serious messaging from my son Nicholas, who is autistic and intellectually disabled, in his shirt from The Arc of the United States @thearc_us : “Disability rights are human rights.”
@dobrateanc in downtown Asheville NC for a couple of hours today with my friend (and long-ago neighbor) Kimmy Hunter, with far-ranging conversation largely rooted in a robust, broad, and true vision for love and inclusion—for *everyone* and everywhere, in family, schools, workplaces, community, and society—as the foundation of the work we do and the lives we live. #love #inclusion #acceptance #vision #society #family #schools #community #change
Liz Flowers is a member of my son Nicholas’ community circle, which we call Team Nicholas. Today Ms Liz took Nicholas out and about in Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina today, including here in front of Looking Glass Falls.
Satsuki Azalea busting out @thencarboretum
Lunch at @buxtonhallbbq on Memorial Day weekend with my son Nicholas: pulled pork, catfish, chocolate torte, banana pudding pie.
I hadn’t seen my former Lark Books colleague Dana Irwin in at least a decade, so I was excited to drive up to an art show and fundraiser in Weaverville, NC where I’d read she was showing work. Dana was an Art Director (for 23 years!) at Lark Books during years I was a Senior Editor (for 3 of my 6 Lark years)—it was immense creative fun working with her then! As you see, she is looking fantastic and, a longtime painter with watercolors, newly working with acrylic paints and exploring the impact on her artistic style. She’d already sold two of the four pieces she was showing before I arrived!
Vignettes from therapeutic-recreation baseball from Asheville Parks & Rec on Saturday, supported by the TC Roberson High School baseball team that next weekend is playing in the state (NC) baseball championship finals.
@thencarboretum Set 1
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