A Statement from the ASP Board of Trustees.
Autism is a neurological condition affecting millions of Filipinos. Individuals with autism have a unique way of processing things they see, hear, feel, taste and smell. "Autistic" is not a joke or an insult synonymous to being unintelligent or indifferent.
 |
| Kindness and Compassion poster |
The use of the word "autistic" in
Archbishop Soc Villegas' speech is unfortunate -- especially since many in our membership are among those who draw passion and strength to advocate for our children with autism, from personal relationships with God. We trust Archbishop Villegas will take this opportunity to reflect on his actions. We are writing a letter to Fr. Soc to assess how, moving forward, he can help champion the needs of the Catholic subset of our membership from within the Church.
The Autism Society Philippines takes this incident as yet another glaring reason why our sector should strive harder for public autism awareness, education and acceptance.
Our organization advocates to create a society where our children can grow up happy, productive and accepted. We labour so that more Filipinos can look at autism, not with outdated perceptions, but with kind, compassionate eyes.
We need no apologies, no speeches, no rhetorics.
We need our church, school, business and government leaders to educate themselves on autism issues and to create long-term "inclusive" programs that will benefit individuals on the spectrum.
We need public figures who are silent about autism in their families, in fear of the social stigma, to speak up and join our campaign to stop the commonplace indignities and make life better for Filipino individuals and families who live with autism.
To the passionate ASP members and the caring multitudes who have reached out to us in support of this vision, maraming salamat po!
Posted in: 
0 comments:
Post a Comment