April is Autism Awareness Month and April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day. Most of the people who celebrate Autism Awareness Day or Month are not autistic. Instead they are just parents, organizers and others who care for or about autism. The Origins of Autism Awareness: Autism, as a diagnosis has changed radically in the past few decades. Back before the 1990’s Autism was not considered to be a spectrum disorder. Thus anyone with an autism diagnosis had relatively severe symptoms. The movie “ Rain Man”, with Dustin Hoffman and Tom Cruise did provide us a deep insight about autism on those days. The Autism Society began its first nationwide Program in 1970s and the iconic Autism Awareness ribbon was designed in 1999. Moving from autism awareness to acceptance: A child is like a butterfly in the wind. Some can fly higher than others, but each one flies the best it can. Each one is special, beautiful and different from each other. Autism is not a choice, however acceptance is. It is the greatest gift that you can give someone with autism. Therefore it is something to be understood and felt , not cured as it is not an illness. It is really something to take pride in to see these families support their kids and fight with them and for them on a daily basis. We salute those kids, their families and their friends who constantly help them in this process. Light it up Blue: As part of the organization, Autism Speaks Light It up Blue Campaign, people wear Blue on April 2nd to show their support during the Autism Awareness Day. Also keep an eye out for local and global landmarks showing their support by changing their lighted colors to blue. In the last few years over 11,000 buildings have joined the campaign, including the Empire State Building in New York, the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, and the Sydney Opera House in Australia. Yes, together we can spread Autism awareness and support people fighting for this cause in some way!
Author Ms. Rinki Sarker Creative Writer BIO:
Mom and Wife, Finance & Compliance Professional, Strongly believes in never giving up her passion for creative writing, performing arts, planning events and cooking. An ardent reader!
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