By Gretchen McIntire Last month I promised myself that I would focus on what it means to be a better version of myself. I want to be a better person, a better family member, and a better American.  This last month has tested me thoroughly. I haven’t slept well. I won’t touch politics here…

By Christa Holmans, Neurodivergent Rebel It had been a long and tiring weekend. We’d had fun, but I was running on minimal sleep and hadn’t had enough to eat, so my blood sugar was a bit low. As we neared the end of the day, I thought I knew what was coming next, but suddenly and with…

Multicultural Children’s Book Day Review This review is part of Multicultural Children’s Book Day to promote diversity in children’s literature. I never wanted to change my neurodiverse son and try to make him into something that society considered “normal.” To me, he is and always will be won…

By Anita Cameron I’ve been involved in disability activism for decades, starting out in ADAPT (American Disabled for Attendant Programs Today). I love the ideals that we stood for. And it was the first place in social justice where I found a home, where I wasn’t an oddball, and where, ultim…

Matthew is a deep thinker, and an overthinker, a composer, a photographer, and a poet. He even has a poem about “overthinking about overthinking.” #FreeMatthewRushin By Matthew Rushin with His Friends & Family  In January of 2019, Matthew experienced loss of consciousness and had …

Disability Rights Aren’t Intersectional By Tiffany Hammond Dear Disability Activists: The Social Model will not save us and “Disability Rights” aren’t Intersectional We need to have a serious conversation about the Social Model so many of you cling to in your advocacy. It feels inclusive…

More Stories of Being Black and Autistic By Elizabeth Roy, Editor Zoom Issue 18 As we hope Issue 18 of Zoom Autism Magazine makes clear, the experience of being Black and autistic in the United States is fraught with violence, from the fear of being murdered by police to everyday microaggressi…

Issue 18’s Big Question What Does it Mean to Feel Safe? Introduction by Rose Sutton The definition of safety is the condition of being protected from or unlikely to cause danger, risk, or injury. In our family, safety is also a feeling of being safe and supported. For each of us to un…

Letter from the Editor Dear Readers, This issue of Zoom Autism Magazine focuses on Black autistics, and the ways in which their experience and challenges need more support from the wider autism community. Being Black and autistic comes with heightened risks of police violence (as with Stephon …

By Adriana White Representation matters. Seeing ourselves in stories is a critical part of our identity development. It’s how we learn norms – a gauge by which we measure ourselves and our life experiences. It shows us who we are and who we could be. Without genuine representation, we are left…

By Jasmine Sutton My name is Jasmine, and I am 15 almost 16 years old. I live in Virginia with my mom, dad, and my older brother. We are a military family. My mom was in the Army and my dad retired from the Marines. I have 3 siblings in all, and I am the youngest. My brother is 17 years old and a…

Conner Cummings exercises his right to vote! By Conner Cummings It’s me Conner. This issue of Zoom is very important to our lives at this time. Our stories are real people and real situations that need help. Together we need to fix the system. I cannot say that I have felt their fear or their …

By Christa Holmans, Neurodiversity Rebel I’ve always been different. There were hints of these differences throughout my life. For many years the truth behind my differences lay hidden from me, a secret buried deep within the inner workings of my mind… Autism. I’m Autistic, but I didn’t know I…

By Megan Amodeo Another year has come and gone. Let’s face it, 2020 was a weird, stressful and mind-blowing year. It seemed as if, at times, the world was ending. It was hard to hope for better days when worse days kept coming month after month. We learned new ways of interacting with those ar…