National Council on Severe Autism

A 1950s illustration of an idealized white American family of four, with the mother at the center looking up at the sky with her hands thrown wide.

Grievance Parents Are Autism’s MAGA Movement

November 16, 2022 • By Shannon Des Roches Rosa

If you’re the parent of autistic child or adult, and you are also horrified by the blatant misinformation being peddled and swallowed by MAGA truthers, you should be just as concerned about grievance-based autism parents and organizations.

Photo of the author's teen son squeezing her cheeks so she will make a raspberry sound with her mouth. Both are wearing hats, outdoors

My Autistic Son Needs Extensive Supports. And Yet, I Oppose Labels Like “Severe Autism.”

January 27, 2019 • By Shannon Des Roches Rosa

Recently my teen autistic son and I walked around a fancy shopping center, while his sibling was at a nearby appointment (public strolls are not always something he can do, but that day he was up for it). We ambled past the coin collector’s shop and the jodhpurs boutique, then popped into the housewares store—just