What is Autism Speaks? Is it a Good Charity?

Autism Speaks is a national autism advocacy organization in the United States. It is dedicated to increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders and to providing support and resources for individuals with autism and their families. But what exactly does Autism Speaks do? And is it a good charity?

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What is Autism Speaks?

Autism Speaks is an autism advocacy organization in the United States that sponsors autism research and conducts awareness and outreach activities aimed at families, governments, and the public. It was founded in February 2005 by Bob Wright, the vice chairman of General Electric, and his wife Suzanne, a month after their grandson Christian was diagnosed with autism. Its current president and CEO is Angela Geiger.

In 2006, Autism Speaks merged with the Autism Coalition for Research and Education (ACRE), and combined forces with Cure Autism Now (CAN), a scientific research organization founded in 1995 by parents of children with autism.

The organization’s annual Walk Now for Autism Speaks fundraising campaigns take place in more than 80 cities across the United States. In May 2015, Autism Speaks launched an innovative toolkit to assist first responders when interacting with an individual with autism during an emergency situation.

What does Autism Speaks do?

Autism Speaks is dedicated to promoting solutions, across the spectrum and throughout the life span, for the needs of individuals with autism and their families.

We do this through advocacy and support; increasing understanding, acceptance and inclusion of people with autism; and advancing research into causes and better interventions for autism spectrum disorder and related conditions.

Autism Speaks was founded in February 2005 by Bob Wright, vice chairman of General Electric, and his wife Suzanne, a longtime advocacy leader for children with special needs.

How does Autism Speaks help people with autism?

Autism Speaks is the world’s leading autism science and advocacy organization. It is dedicated to funding research into the causes, prevention, treatments and a cure for autism; increasing awareness of autism spectrum disorders and advocating for the needs of individuals with autism and their families.

Autism Speaks was founded in February 2005 by Bob and Suzanne Wright, grandparents of a child with autism. Since its inception, Autism Speaks has committed more than $580 million to research and developing innovative resources for individuals with autism and their families.

What are some of the criticisms of Autism Speaks?

Autism Speaks has been criticized by the autistic community for a number of reasons. One of the most common criticisms is that they focus too much on curing autism, rather than supporting and acceptance.

They have also been accused of being too focused on fundraising, rather than actually helping autistic people or their families. Additionally, some people believe that Autism Speaks is not doing enough to support research into causes and effective treatments for autism.

Some people also take issue with the way that Autism Speaks represents autism. They believe that the charity uses fear-mongering tactics and relies too heavily on stereotypes, which can be harmful to autistic people.

Is Autism Speaks a good charity?

Autism Speaks is an autism advocacy organization in the United States that sponsors autism research and conducts awareness and outreach activities aimed at families, governments, and the public. It was founded in February 2005 by Bob Wright, the former vice chairman of General Electric, and his wife Suzanne, who served as its first president.

Since its inception, Autism Speaks has committed over $560 million to research through 2018. In 2017, it launched the Autism Clinical Trials Network to expand clinical trials focused on treatments for autism. Autism Speaks also funds the Autism Genome Project, a genome-wide search for autism risk genes.

The organization’s advocacy efforts include raising awareness of autism and encouraging early intervention. It also supports legislation at the state and federal level that requires insurance companies to provide coverage for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) treatment. Autism Speaks has been criticized by some autistic people and their families for its focus on a cure for autism, rather than support for autistic people’s wellbeing; its opposition to inclusive educational practices; and tacit support of parents who choose to medically transition their young children with gender identity disorder (GID).