This past week, the producers of "Sesame Street" announced a new character, Julia. Julia has bright orange hair and a great sense of style, and she also has autism. Autism has been growing in the public consciousness for the last decade, and this new opportunity takes autism awareness and education to a whole new level.
According to the CDC, one in 68 children are diagnosed with autism every year. That's a lot when you think about it. These children are also often the most vulnerable to bullying as well, given that they are somewhat inherently different from other children. Children with autism are more likely to have social problems, such as maintaining eye contact, starting conversations, and having a disregard for social cues. Some children who are affected with autism can have physical developmental delays, as well as speech problems, and even some behaviors, like rocking or waving hands. These are all common traits of autism, and I have seen all of them in my little sister, Gabby, who has been diagnosed as on the spectrum.
When I read that "Sesame Street" was creating an autistic character, I just kind of said, "Well finally!," I mean look at the TV show, "Parenthood," which had a character with Asperger's (now called autism) from the first season until the end. Autism slowly has been making its way into the spotlight, but "Sesame Street" targets a whole new group. Adults don't need to hear more about autism, they most likely have heard about it, but if you tell a five-year-old that their friend has autism, they will have no clue what it means. So, "Sesame Street" decided to make Julia, and create an online picture book and resources for families affected by autism, and for the general public to learn more about how amazing Julia is, regardless of her ability to make eye contact. The program was influenced by autistic children and families so that the topics covered were real and true, and so people could approach autism in a new, more interactive way.
This is why "Sesame Street" is doing something groundbreaking. They are educating the next generation of children on how to interact with their autistic friends and how they might talk differently, but they still love to play and be kids just like them. The goal is to have a generation where children with autism no longer face the ostracism that is so common in schools now. During elementary school and even through high school, I know that many of the "special needs" children were labeled as "lesser" or somehow "wrong," but with "Sesame Street," they want to show how every child is amazing in his/her own way, hence Julia. The autistic character might not be able to communicate well but she loves going on the swings, and like my sister, she is not always able to express how she feels all the time, but she has the amazing ability to put a smile on everyone's face.
While I think that "Sesame Street" could have tackled autism much sooner than they did, I realize that it is better late then never, and that if the campaign works out, autism will no longer be a word with a negative connotation, and will become insignificant in describing just how amazing these children all are.
