This page contains resources, announcements, guest blogs, essays, videos, and other stuff. Come back often!
Guardianships and conservatorships are legal tools that are frequently used in the name of protecting people who rely on augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) instead of speech to be heard and understood. Britney Spears’ recent advocacy to end her conservatorship has brought to the public’s attention the downsides of…
Read More
Silence can impact all of us: our relationships, learning, and employment. Yet being placed in a setting of forced silence or being denied access to communication has the harshest consequences for those of us unable to speak in a way that is intelligible to others. That is why it’s…
Read More
“Why are you using a male voice?” I’m sitting in the car next to a professor who is giving me a ride back to campus. I’m not sure what to type. The first question is, why am I using any voice? I normally prefer to have people read what…
Read More
It was 3:30 in the afternoon when I entered a SuperCuts near my university in Washington, DC, for what the second time in as many weeks. I would always go to the hair salon before an interview, and at the height of my search for a summer internship after…
Read More
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a resolution that applies to all MedStar Health Inc. (“MedStar Health”) care locations in Washington, D.C., Maryland, and Virginia, MedStar Health has agreed to end its discriminatory treatment of patients with disabilities, including William King, a 73-year old man with communication-related disabilities, and to modify its policies to ensure patients with disabilities can access the in-person supports needed to communicate and have equal access to medical care during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Read More
WASHINGTON, D.C. – CommunicationFIRST, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), and the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint (AASR) today condemned the Golden Globe-nominated movie MUSIC, directed by singer-songwriter Sia Furler. The film, released widely via video on-demand services today, contains a number of deeply disturbing and potentially harmful scenes.
Read More
WASHINGTON, D.C. – CommunicationFIRST, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, and the Alliance Against Seclusion and Restraint today expressed grave concern about the soon-to-be-released, Golden Globe-nominated movie MUSIC, directed by singer-songwriter Sia.
Read More
Every day, your child is growing up, and there is a world out there for them. You want that for them – you want everything for them – and yet, the world can be a scary place.
Read More