Thursday, 7 April 2022

World Autism Awareness Day

Ms SHING (Eastern Victoria) (11:02): My contribution today is about World Autism Awareness Day, which took place on Saturday, 2 April. I want to use the time that I have available today to talk about autism and talk about the extensive myths and misconceptions that exist around this developmental condition. Autism is something which is incredibly prevalent, and yet far too little attention and visibility is given to this really specific set of challenges but abilities that autistic people live with and share in the communities and the lives and professions of which they are a part. I want to give a huge shout-out to autism support groups and to autistic people who live with and often mask and often endure—at great personal cost to their energy levels and their capacity to fit in—the challenges of a world which is fundamentally different to the way in which developmental and brain activity works, the way in which socialisation happens and the way in which there is respect for difference. So I would urge support for all autism support organisations and for the narrative of visibility following World Autism Awareness Day. I would also encourage funding and resourcing for this really important part of developmental conditions and presentations, which deserves more attention and deserves to be recognised as part of a rich and diverse contribution that all people can make to everyday life.