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by JENN WOOD
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My 13-year-old son, Henry, was diagnosed with autism when he was four years old. His diagnosis wasn’t shocking — we’d been in early intervention programs since he was a baby, juggling speech, occupational and behavioral therapy like it was our full-time job. We knew the signs. We lived them.
What hit me the hardest that day wasn’t the label — it was the weight of what it meant. The fight ahead. The systems we’d have to navigate. The ignorance we’d have to confront, over and over again.
That ignorance was on full display earlier this month when Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the newly appointed Secretary of Health and Human Services, took the stage and delivered a speech that wasn’t just misinformed — it was dangerous. It wasn’t policy. It was propaganda dressed up as science. And for families like mine, it felt like a gut punch.
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Kennedy repeatedly described autism as an “epidemic” — a preventable disease caused by unnamed environmental toxins that he claims are “destroying our greatest resource: our children.” He painted a bleak and deeply inaccurate portrait of autistic life, suggesting most children with autism will never speak, never use the toilet, never write a poem or go on a date — that they are, essentially, lost.
Let me be clear: that is not my son’s story. And it’s not the story of countless autistic children and adults across this country who live rich, meaningful, and productive lives.
That language isn’t just inaccurate — it’s abusive. And it’s not just parents like me who feel the impact of those words. What’s breaking families apart isn’t autism. It’s the stigma. It’s the policies built on fear instead of facts. It’s the loud, ill-informed voices in positions of power treating autistic people as broken burdens instead of full human beings. It’s the first thing that crossed my mind the day Henry was diagnosed.
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Autism Is Not a “Crisis” — It’s a Call for Understanding
Kennedy insists that the rising autism rate is proof of a public health emergency — that better awareness and expanded diagnostic criteria are a “myth.” But studies tell a different story. The numbers have risen not because autism is spreading like a virus, but because our ability to recognize, understand, and support neurodivergent individuals has finally begun to catch up to reality.
That’s not a crisis. That’s progress.
And no amount of fear mongering can erase the science: autism is primarily genetic, complex and not caused by toxins in food, water or vaccines. Yes, environmental factors may play a role in how those genes express, but no reputable scientific body considers autism a toxin-induced illness. And to suggest otherwise is not just misleading — it’s cruel. It fuels conspiracy theories and diverts resources from the services autistic people actually need.
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Kennedy mocks what he calls “epidemic denial,” saying it’s absurd to believe rising autism rates are the result of better diagnostic tools and greater awareness. But the facts say otherwise.
In the past, only the most severely affected children — usually white, usually male — were diagnosed. Girls, black and Latino children, and kids with less obvious symptoms were often misdiagnosed or ignored. Expanding the definition of autism didn’t create more autistic people — it finally gave them names, services, and support.
If RFK Jr. truly wants to help families, he should celebrate that progress — not weaponize it.
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My Son Deserves Better Than Pity
What struck me most about Kennedy’s remarks wasn’t just the bad science. It was the pity — the way he framed autistic people as tragedies, incapable of joy or dignity or success.
That’s not who my son is.
Henry is smart, funny, kind, full of joy and endlessly curious. He may see and experience the world differently, but that’s exactly what makes him remarkable. What he needs isn’t a cure. What he needs is acceptance, opportunity and support from a society that sees his value — not his diagnosis.
We don’t need more government-backed fear-mongering about autism. We don’t need “studies” chasing mythical toxins. We don’t need our humanity debated at press conferences.
What we do need is:
- Better access to early intervention and education
- Expanded services for autistic adults
- Training for medical professionals
- Job programs that value neurodiverse thinking
- Public officials who speak with compassion, not contempt
Autism is not an epidemic. It is not a tragedy. It is not a punishment or a mistake. It is a different way of being — one that deserves understanding, not erasure.
When RFK Jr. talks about autistic people as if they’re lost, broken, or burdens on society, what he’s really revealing is his own ignorance. But out of that ignorance, as Kayla said, may come something good: more advocates. More voices. More people ready to fight for a world that honors every kind of mind.
And that’s a movement I’ll proudly be part of — for my son, and for all the families who are done being spoken for, or spoken over.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR ...
Jenn Wood is FITSNews' incomparable research director. She's also the producer of the FITSFiles and Cheer Incorporated podcasts and leading expert on all things Murdaugh/ South Carolina justice. A former private investigator with a criminal justice degree, evildoers beware, Jenn Wood is far from your average journalist! A deep dive researcher with a passion for truth and a heart for victims, this mom of two is pretty much a superhero in FITSNews country. Did we mention she's married to a rocket scientist? (Lucky guy!) Got a story idea or a tip for Jenn? Email her at jenn@fitsnews.com.
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3 comments
Sorry Jenn, by any standard, the clear rise in the number of diagnosed autism cases is in fact a crisis. In fact, since the “hockey stick” is both real and only partly related to better diagnosis the term crisis is applicable. Clearly, the earlier diagnosing of the condition is related to “… our ability to recognize, understand, and support …” however, that only accounts for some of the dramatic rise in the number of diagnosed cases.
Many diagnosed people will become “… lost, broken, or burdens on society …”, not because of themselves, but because there is no on willing to “… understand, and support …” a child with the condition.
While we don’t understand the mechanism that causes the Autism Spectrum Disorders, we do know that these environmental causes of autism exist:
– Advanced parental age at time of conception
– Prenatal exposure to air pollution or certain pesticides
– Maternal obesity, diabetes, or immune system disorders
– Extreme prematurity or very low birth weight
– Any birth difficulty leading to periods of oxygen deprivation to the baby’s brain
We know that these factors contribute:
– Children of mothers living near a freeway, and traffic-related pollution, during the third trimester of pregnancy were twice as likely to develop ASD.
– Children with a mutation in a gene called MET, combined with high levels of exposure to air pollution, may have increased risk
– Mothers whose immune system shows certain metabolic conditions, or inflammation during pregnancy are linked with higher rates of autism diagnosis for her children.
– Some mothers of autistic children have antibodies, or proteins in the body that fight infection, that may interfere with their children’s brain development, possibly leading to autism (we once didn’t understand the effects Rh factors had second pregnancies – we only figured it out after addressing the crisis)
– Maternal diabetes or obesity is linked to increased likelihood of having a child with autism and other developmental disability (this is becoming a far clearer link in recent studies)
– Fever during pregnancy is associated with increased autism in offspring
You may not like the language but you should be rallying to the cause – even if the guy waving the banner is a goofy old former democrat who sounds like he’s smoked 28 packs of cigarettes while on a three day bender.
Thanks for sharing this deeply personal story. I sadly suspect you are going to see a lot of comments like the one above, so I just wanted to tell you how much I appreciate you sharing your child’s journey with us (and yours as his parent, of course). This was a very thoughtful and well-written article.
I thought The Colonel’s response was well worded, sensitive, logical, and accurate.