SA Library to Participate in Programs to Empower People with Aspergers

The San Antonio Public Library and the Texas Governor's Committee for People with Disabilities are producing a series of seminars and videos designed to help empower people with Aspergers and to help other understand them, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.

Called Aspergers 101, producer Jennifer Allen says the idea is to make sure people who have the high functioning form of autism know about why their brains are 'wired differently,' and how they succeed and thrive.

She says the Asperger brain, while it is capable of thinking and analyzing on just as high a level as anybody else, simply works a little differently."

They do not understand innuendos and definitely do not understand sarcasm," she said.  "They take everything very literally."

She says Asperger 101, which will be distributed statewide via streaming service, will also help others better to understand people with Asperger's and make it easier to interact with them.

She is particularly concerned about Aspies who interact with police

."If there were a police officer who said 'sir, why are you flying down the highway,' he would say 'I'm not flying, I'm driving'."

She says that could easily be interpreted by the officer as a 'bad attitude' and could lead to trouble.

At the same time, the Texas Legislature is considering a measure that would allow Aspies to have an indication on their driver's license to let officers know about their condition, so they won't be taken aback by their responses.

In the seminars, a well know team of autism experts, many of whom have built successful lives, will participate in programs that will address important related topics.

In addition, the programs will be used to help employers better understand Asperger's, to make sure they understand that people with Asperger's can be good, and in many cases outstanding, creative employees.


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