The mission of the Autism Society of Michigan (ASM) is to assure full participation and self determination in every aspect of life for each individual. We will realize this vision by opening avenues of self-advocacy and advocating on behalf of others in a way that values equity, respect, dignity and diversity in all communities.

The Vision Behind the Mission

Our mission statement says we will work to "assure full participation and self-determination in every aspect of life for each individual." People will interpret this to mean "inclusion." I think it is a mistake to be drawn into that conversation. These words mean something far more far reaching that just inclusion. Inclusion/integration is a teaching/implementation strategy; people focus on it as if it were an outcome. Our mission speaks to real outcomes for all people in a free society/in our communities. Unfortunately, today, there are segments of our society that are denied these outcomes. To talk about inclusion/integration is to miss the point.

So inclusion/integration is a teaching/implementation strategy, based on a philosophy, but it is not a philosophy itself. The philosophy is based on four beliefs:

1. All people have value and something to contribute to the community



2. All people belong by birthright alone and do not have to earn that right



3. All people have the right to participate fully in society and the right to determine, for themselves, where and with whom they will live, work and play, and



4. It is our responsibility to do everything possible, at every opportunity to help this occur. Just as we believe it ultimately should be everyone's responsibility.

The function of education is to develop philosophies, concepts and attitudes, strategies, skills and abilities to exist in and contribute to a communal society. After education, it is the responsibility of the community to provide living and working opportunities in order for its members to exercise these. In return for these opportunities, community members have a responsibility to give back to the community, in a way that continually contributes to and improves the community. Currently, the scope and breadth of what is really valued in the way of returns remains extremely narrow.

A significant measure of the integrity (acting congruently with values) and compassion of a community is the extent to which it provides opportunities for all members to participate and contribute. When individuals of a community are asked about their values, most people list among them honesty, love, respect, a sense of belonging, work, compassion and many others. Rarely, if ever, do individuals mention things like physical and emotional cruelty, egotism, serving my needs at the expense of others, eroding others' self esteem, forcing my will on others, making fun of people different from me, etc. The conflict comes because the statements we make about our values are not at all congruent with the way we behave.

As believers in all the platitudes which this country stands for, we speak loudly on behalf of full participation and self-determination. There is, however, much behavioral evidence in contradiction to these concepts. Full participation and self-determination exist only for those who qualify or who exhibit a readiness for them. We require people to prove they deserve (are ready for) it. If that doesn't seem to ring true, think of all the "segments" (pieces of the whole) of society that have struggled (are still struggling) to achieve full participation and self-determination.

The main reason these "segments" of society exist is due to shared characteristics among a given "segment", that have caused them to experience imposed alienation and separation , and in most cases it's done for "their own good." Some examples of those shared characteristics are, perceived ability level, skin color, other physical appearance factors, religious beliefs, ethnicity, cultural background, etc. We have become very adept at saying "we are all created equal" and then behaving in ways that are very different.

By individually, collectively and systematically denying full participation and self-determination to everyone, we are denying ourselves both individual growth and community building opportunities, thereby contributing to our communities' own demise. There is demise in walking past a homeless person, feeling and doing nothing about it. There is demise is denying access based on some artificial barrier and feeling it is ok, or feeling nothing. There is demise in separating people based on level of ability and feeling nothing or that it is for their own good. There is demise in systematically sanctioned segregation of any kind. Segregation may be the most aversive form of behavior and attitude management. Segregation of people with disabilities was first done for containment, then for care and now for administrative convenience.

What we created as the mission for ASM is much more far reaching than just inclusion/integration. Implicit in what the mission says is the removal of any and all barriers to full participation and self-determination in school, work, living and leisure for everyone. This is the template for operation. Everything we should do should be held up to the template for "fit." If there is not a fit then we should not be doing it.