It will be perfectly acceptable to look a little different at work or school on Friday.
Students across Newfoundland and Labrador and people in workplaces are being encouraged to turn their shirts inside out in support of Autism Society of Newfoundland and Labrador’s (ASNL) second annual Inside Out for Autism initiative.
Funds raised for every shirt turned inside out supports awareness, understanding and acceptance. Anyone participating in the school portion of the initiative can bring a donation on Friday and combine it with classmates’ contributions toward the fundraiser.
Other partners in the Inside Out for Autism include the Newfoundland and Labrador Eastern School District and the Newfoundland and Labrador Teachers’ Association.
The goal is to help change people’s view of autism by using the inside out shirt as a way of understanding the barriers people on the autism spectrum face.
Those barriers include education, community involvement and job opportunities.
Schools and businesses can form teams in their respective locations to participate in the fundraiser. Those who form teams can solicit funds from throughout their personal communities or ask that each participant make a donation.
“The idea for this event came from a mom in Prince Edward Island who thought it would be great to do something for kids who live with this disorder,” Tess Hemeon, manager of community engagement for the Autism Society NL, said Monday.
“Many children with autism suffer from a sensory sensitivity. Something as simple as a tag on a shirt that itches is problematic for them. The mom turned his shirt inside out so it didn’t bother him, and the idea for Inside Out for Autism came from there.”
Hemeon said this was useful in drawing attention to the issues associated with autism, aspects the public has no idea exist for those with autism, and the impact sensory issues such as light, sound and smells have on them.
People with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) can be oversensitive or under-sensitive to noise, light, clothing or temperature. Their senses — sight, hearing, touch, smell and taste — take in either too much or too little information from the environment around them. These sensory differences can affect behaviour and can have a profound effect on a person’s life.
Officially, April 2 is World Autism Awareness Day, when those who wish to lend a helping hand to autism organizations globally are asked to wear a blue shirt.
The Inside Out for Autism initiative is a bit different, as it can be any shirt worn inside out.
“We had a participant at one of our business say he was happy to turn his blazer inside out, so people could see the nice lining it had, something nobody ever gets to see,” Hemeon said.
“We are very flexible with the clothing choice.”
Hemeon said there are more than 40 schools involved in the fundraiser that she is aware of, and there could be more. Business participation is generally unknown until the day of the event, when ASNL is notified by a group involved, but she says it is the goal of the organization to reach every “nook and cranny” of the province.
Everyone is encouraged to set some fundraising goals, and those who wish to pledge money can do so by donating online or sending it to one of the four regional offices:
Avalon: 70 Clinch Crescent, St. John’s, NL A1B 4G8.
Eastern: 105 Manitoba Dr., Clarenville, NL A5A 1K2.
South-Central: 7 High St., Grand Falls-Windsor, NL A2A 1C3.
Western/Labrador: 40 Main St., Corner Brook, NL A2H 1C3.
More information about Inside Out for Autism is available online at www.insideoutforautism.ca.
ASD Facts
• Autism is mainly characterized by unique social interactions, non-standard ways of learning, challenges related to communication and non-typical ways of processing sensory information such as sounds, sights, smells and touch.
• Autism is a life-long diagnosis and described as a “spectrum” because no two diagnoses are the same; each individual experiences the characteristics of autism differently.
• Currently, the Centres for Disease Control confirms the incidence rate as one in 68.
Source: Autism Society of Newfoundland and Labrador
