An In-Depth Review of "Sesame Street's" Autism Initiative

If you're at all involved with the autism community, you probably know by now that Sesame Street launched their autism initiative earlier this week (and hopefully you aren't too tired of hearing about it to read one more post). While most of the media focus is on their new autistic muppet, Julia, they put up some other resources as well. After taking a few days to read others' reactions, I wanted to chime in with a more in-depth review.

After watching the videos and reading through the storybook, I believe this initiative has three main goals, with a heavy focus on the first:

1. Help neurotypical children understand what autism is, and how to include autistic kids.
2. Give autistic children a character (Julia) to relate to as a representation of themselves.
3. Offer resources for parents of autistic kids.

Overall, I think this focus in and of itself isn't bad. It would have been nice to see more resources specifically geared to autistic people, but Sesame Street has always been about teaching kids to respect differences so it can nip bullying and discrimination in the bud. That has its place, too.

As for the videos and resources themselves...here's my review of what was good, and what could have been improved. (You can click on the titles to access the original material.)

The "Amazing" Song

While there isn't much information here, it's a good introduction for kids who might not know anything about how autistic people look and act. The inclusion of visibly disabled children is nice, and there's lots of stimming shown, as well as some alternative communication methods - all positively. By itself, it's not all that helpful, but it works great when combined with other resources.

Benny's Story

I like that this cartoon story was made by autistic adults, at a vocational school called Exceptional Minds. It's one that has an autistic child talking about himself, rather than having other people describe him.

This video describes the point of view of one autistic child without being an overload of information. It talks about being different - both due to autism traits and just because everyone is unique - but doesn't focus on the "can'ts." In that respect, it's very good.

Thomas's Story

Most of this video is really well done. Thomas has some challenges, and we're made aware of them, but he's not presented as being worse off or suffering. Instead, there's a lot of positive focus on using a tablet to communicate, having a service dog to keep him safe, and noticing things other people overlook.

There's a scene at the end of this video that isn't so good, which I'd be inclined to skip if I were showing it to a child. It involves Thomas meeting Abby the muppet, and he's clearly excited, bouncing up and down and reaching out to touch her hair. Throughout this bit, his mother is grabbing his hands to get him to stop, and his father keeps yanking him back by a leash connected to his waist. They don't appear to even be attempting to give him verbal reminders (to ask permission to touch, for example), but jump straight to restraints. I'm not sure if a child viewer would notice this - not that it excuses the behavior if they don't - but to an adult the actions are clear and rather upsetting. If not for this scene, the video would have been great.

A Sibling Story

I really want to like this video. This is another one that shows a nonverbal child, Yesenia, and the way she communicates - in her case, sign language. It portrays her stimming positively, and shows how the whole family loves and includes one another.

But - and this is a big but - there's a scene in the beginning of this video where Yesenia's sisters are helping to restrain her so their parents can brush her teeth and hair. It shows Yesenia struggling and trying to get away as her sisters grab her and hold her still; meanwhile, one of them states in a voiceover, "I feel happy I can help her." So if a disabled person is clearly upset and not doing what you want, it's a good idea to force them and call it "helping"? Not the kind of message we should be sending to kids. (The hair-brushing in particular could be much more bearable for her if it were simply cut short.) A shame, the rest of it was really promising.

Being a Supportive Parent

Yuck. Just...yuck. This is the kind of video that shouldn't have been put up. It basically features Yesenia's father complaining about how stressful having an autistic child is. At one point he starts crying when describing how Yesenia wouldn't blow out her birthday candle until the year she turned six. The clip playing alongside this shows her clearly overwhelmed, with her fingers in her ears to try and calm herself, until she blows out the candle unhappily. This is what he deems worth celebrating? We can only hope she doesn't find this video herself one day...

Nasaiah's Day

I have to say, this is one of the best videos they made. It explains some of Nasaiah's autistic traits and the reasons behind them (that part is even more important) while still showing how his day isn't all that different from a neurotypical child's. Not much to say here, but in a good way.

Meeting Unique Needs

Another video about Nasaiah, this time from his mother's perspective. While it isn't the most positive video out there, and mainly focuses on how raising an autistic child can be hard, it's miles ahead of the one from Yesenia's father. Nasaiah's mother talks about how she and her husband support each other, and some of the strategies they use when things get hard - and manage to be pretty respectful of their son. Not the best video, but definitely not the worst either.

Family Friends

This is similar to "A Sibling Story" in that most of the video is fantastic. It's about two mothers whose children (one of whom is autistic) have grown up together, and there are some really good messages in here. My only complaint is that yet again, a clip of a parent physically restraining their autistic child is shown. It's difficult to tell whether this situation warranted it, but either way, I question why Sesame Street felt the need to include this in multiple videos.

Still, I rate this among the best they did. The mother speaks very respectfully about her son, and about his diagnosis. It's clear she really cares about him. And as far as the restraint goes, I'm not sure it would bother me if I hadn't already seen it in several other video. It wasn't handled nearly as badly here.

A Parent's Role

Not a terrible video, but definitely not a good one. It's full of mixed messages and the complaints definitely overshadow the positives. I don't like this one.

Family Time With Grover

(I was initially expecting this to be another video aimed at kids due to the inclusion of Grover, but it looks like it's geared more towards parents. Not sure why the muppet-with-kids and parents-discussing clips are mixed this way, it's a bit confusing to me.)

While maybe not as informational as some of the others, this video is interesting because the parents are discussing autistic twin boys whose symptoms both present differently. One of the boys is nonverbal and uses a tablet to communicate, and the parents discuss how he got started communicating this way. No big issues here.

Daily Routine Cards

These are like social stories, made for the purpose of helping autistic kids know what to expect. I'm not putting too much weight on the importance of these, because it's fairly easy to find social stories - or programs that let you make your own - through a quick Google search. Not much to say about these, really. I think they could be good reminders for autistic and neurotypical children both.

Storybook

Last but not least, this is where Julia the muppet comes in. The story centers around a playdate between Elmo, Julia, and Abby, during which Abby learns a little about Julia's autism and how to be her friend. It's definitely aimed at neurotypical children, and with the intention of nipping bullying in the bud.

I enjoy the storybook for a lot of reasons. I like that when it starts off, Elmo and Julia are already friends, rather than showing her as an outcast who doesn't know anyone at first. It's respectful of Julia's interests, her stimming, her sensitivity to noise, and the way she sometimes needs help processing.

{Image description: A page from the storybook explains that Julia flaps her hands when she's excited.}

It's especially noteworthy that Sesame Street chose a girl as their autistic muppet, since it's not particularly easy to find representations of autistic females unless you're specifically looking for them. That was the reason behind their decision, in fact - "to make it clear that girls can be on the spectrum, too." I can't praise this decision highly enough. Not only will it show neurotypical kids that girls can be autistic, too, but it will give those girls much-needed representation (which is especially important for children, to see themselves in a character).

Some people have criticized that Julia only exists online for the moment and hasn't been made part of the show. I'll be quite disappointed if it stays that way, but somehow I don't think it will. Julia, and this initiative as a whole, is helping to fill a gap that desperately needs it.

As far as I'm concerned, the good outweighs the bad. Kudos to you, Sesame Street, for working to provide resources and representation. I'm putting my faith in the idea that this initiative will keep moving forward and improving.

Please Don't Call Yourself an "Autism Mom"

"Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow?

... 'No,' says the man in Moscow, 'it belongs to everyone.'

I rejected [that answer]. Instead, I chose something different."

~Andrew Ryan, BioShock

There was an article that ran today in the Huffington Post. It's titled, "Why I Call Myself an 'Autism Mom.'"

A few paragraphs in I was already cringing. This mother starts off admitting she was told that the term "autism mom" is really offensive (and it is - I'll get to the reasons behind that in a minute). She acknowledged the problems...and then went on to argue that she should be able to use the term anyway because of what she thinks it means.

That's issue one. If you're trying to show support for a person or a group of people, and that group comes to you saying, "Please don't do that, it's harmful to us because [insert reasons here]"...the appropriate response is to apologize and not do it again. By persisting in calling herself an "autism mom," she's hurting the very group she's trying to support.

Issue two: She tries to compare it with calling oneself a "soccer mom." The problem here is that "soccer mom" refers to a mother whose children play soccer, and she tries to support their passion. It's not in any way equivalent to saying that "autism mom" means, as this mother argues, that she is "not afraid of the word 'autism'" and tries to support her autistic child.

Soccer is not a disability, and it's not lifelong. If your ten-year-old plays soccer, within a few years one of two things is going to happen. Either he will be able to pursue soccer without needing as much support from you (in the form of driving him to games, making sure he has time to practice, and so on), or he will simply get tired of soccer and move on to something else. Regardless of which it is, you will not be a "soccer mom" forever. Parents of autistic children aren't in that position.

The third issue is this little quote: "I never want anyone to assume that I somehow think my son's autism is about me." But, see, that's exactly what calling yourself an "autism mom" implies.

The community dislikes the term "autism mom" for two reasons. The first is that, plain and simple, you are not parenting a developmental disorder. You're parenting an autistic child who has complex needs, desires, thoughts, and feelings.

(What I especially don't understand is when you insist on referring to your child - as this author does - as a "person with autism," but then turn around and call yourself an "autism mom." Isn't that a bit contradictory?)

That leads into the second reason the community doesn't like this term. By calling yourself an "autism mom," you're claiming a term that isn't yours.

I have autism. I'm always going to be autistic. That means that when I walk into a room, my autism comes with me. I can't ask a babysitter or respite program to watch it for a weekend, a night, or even a few hours. When it was time for school, I didn't get to send my autism by itself and be away from it for 6-8 hours, five days a week, thirteen years in a row. And my autism will never leave for college, move out, or be placed in a group home one day. I will have it until the day I die.

I'm not denying this mother loves and supports her child. I don't know her. But I do know that there was a time in her life when autism didn't apply to her.

She argues that "neurotypical parents of children with autism need to be able to identify other parents in the same circumstances." I quite agree. You're absolutely, one hundred percent welcome to identify yourselves as just that - parents of autistic children.

But it's just not possible to respect your autistic children without respecting autistic adults. Autistic adults approached this mother to tell her that the term "autism mom" is disrespectful and hurts all of us - and she spit in their faces. She wrote this article to tell those autistic adults, in essence, that her opinion was more important than theirs.

So, to the author of this article, let me ask you something. Is that the way you want neurotypical people to treat your son when he's ready to advocate for himself? Is that the kind of response you hope he'll get?

If not, how would you like them to answer him?