1

Hi everyone,

The Autism Spectrum category has grown a lot in the past year, and is focusing more and more on being autistic-friendly, respectful, and accepting. A lot of autistic and ally editors have helped it get that way.

I thought it might be nice to pull together an official Autism Project for autistic and ally editors. It could help us get things organized, plus we could have a pretty page with rainbows and stuff.

Would anyone be interested in joining such a project? (Being autistic is nice, but definitely not required!) Is anyone experienced in running projects? And do the wiser and more experienced people have any advice?

I’m super excited! I really hope this could turn into something special!

(also feel free to move this if it is miscategorized)

2

Sure! As someone who’s got autism, I’d be happy to join!:smiley:

3

Sure! While I’m not autistic, I know someone who is:) I’ll help as much as I can!

4

Hey,
I would love to be in this project and do whatever I could do well.:slight_smile:

5

I’m so pleased that you’re expressing interest! This is exciting.

I tried my hand at making a project page . (My HTML skills are super rusty, but hopefully it works!) Feel free to add your names to the members list.

What are your thoughts on the page? Is there anything we should add, rearrange, or take away? How can we make this as awesome as possible?

I also made space for a mission statement. Perhaps we could start brainstorming what we’d like it to say.

6

I would love to participate in this project! I’ll put my name on the list.:slight_smile:

7

(Okay, wow, that’s enormous.)

Anyhow, we have a neurodiversity symbol that matches the page now! Maybe it could go in a User Information Box or other stuff like that?

I saw you added yourself, DaniFree! I’m really happy.

8

^Beautiful.:slight_smile:

I just saw the project page and I want to say it is the most beautiful project page here.:slight_smile:Lovely colors. I loved the colorful band on which you wrote, Autism Project.:slight_smile:

9

Thanks Vish!:slight_smile:It was a little tricky figuring out how to incorporate a cheerful rainbow theme, but I think it worked. Eden, I’m really glad you’re involved.

I sort of tried my hand at making a User Info Box , which also shows up on the project page . But I can’t vertically center the image! Are there any more experienced people who could help?

The image has a v1 (square), v2 (tall rectangle), and v3 (slightly-less-tall rectangle) available, if that makes a difference. Gah, user info boxes are tricky stuff!

10

Hey, let’s not let this project die! I would love to hear about your ideas for it, and what you want it to do. (And non-project-members, advice would be fantastic.)

Let’s talk mission statement!

11

I have a loose list of things that can start off our discussion:

  • Providing helpful and compassionate resources for autistic people and our loved ones
  • Promoting acceptance and respect
  • Using autism-friendly language
  • Upholding the wishes and dignity of the Autistic community

Additions? Ideas? Modifications? I want to hear your thoughts.

12

Had a go at the article listed on the project page, http://www.wikihow.com/Socialize-as-an-Autistic-Teen , not sure if I helped much…If you guys are ok with my contribution, I will put my name on the project page.

13

Can I join? The sounds wonderful!

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@Sarah_the_gymnast Of course! Welcome aboard.

@HumanBeing Great expansion! Those are good tips. And of course you can join!

I’m going to find some articles to add to the project page, and other people should feel free to do so as well.

15

I removed the stub tag and less-than-helpful images and have asked Wikivisual for new images. 

16

Hey there Luna, I think this is a great project idea! I just wanted to let you know that I optimized and updated some of the HTML on the page, as you can see in this diff . If you need any HTML, CSS, or wikiText help in the future, feel free to contact me!:wink:

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I added this article to the list of articles that need attention: http://www.wikihow.com/Handle-an-Autistic-Person

Expansion is needed on it and it’s had a stub tag on it since August 27th of last year (2015). I was wondering if someone could jump in and add their advice to it.

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I’m kind of new to wikiHow, but I’d love to help as much as I can!

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I put a tentative mission statement on the project page and updated the article section.

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@Skyllful Wow! You are great with HTML! I learned some new stuff from looking at the diff; thanks for improving it (and teaching me things in the process)! I really appreciate it.

@Alabaster , that’s definitely OK. Thanks! And good eye, @McDonalds1 ; that article could definitely use some work.

I have a question about the mission statement: should it define what autism-friendly language means? This stuff is par for the course in the Autistic community, but people who are new or unfamiliar with it might not know, so perhaps it would be good to define for them. It basically means

  • Identity-first language as the norm (“autistic person,” not “person with autism” unless referring to an individual who prefers otherwise)
  • Not defining people using labels like “high-functioning,” “low-functioning,” or “severe”
  • No negative or othering language (disaster, tragedy, abnormal, epidemic, suffers from, fails to, destroys parents’ lives, etc.)

Do other people know this? It’s part of the article “How to Write About Disability,” but I recognize that it could be a pain to look up, and people might miss it. Should our mission statement define autism-friendly language?

@Clara1276 Your help is welcome. If you have personal experience regarding autism (you or a loved one being autistic, and/or research on the subject), then you probably have quite a bit of insight! If not, we could always use help copy editing, spotting problems, and making general useful edits. And welcome to wikiHow!

You all are the best. I’m happy stimming because it’s so delightful to hear your thoughts!