Archive for month: April, 2017
This video clip from April 2017 was filmed by The Oregonian newspaper and tells the story of Niko Boskovic being denied the award of a trip to New York City he won in an essay contest. (He was later allowed to attend.) In the video, Niko communicates by pointing to letters on a letterboard.
Seventeen year-old Niko Boskovic wins United Nations Educational Pilgrimage for Youth essay contest sponsored by the Odd Fellows Lodge. Odd Fellows withdraws the award after learning he has autism. Niko communicates by pointing to letters on a laminated letterboard.
“Niko’s reliance on the letterboard is no different than a person who is deaf relying on a sign language interpreter on a tour, or a person who is blind needing a seeing eye dog,” said Gordon C. Magella, an attorney with Disability Rights Oregon.
Link to video (2:31) (open captions): https://youtu.be/zU6TSntkhew
Portland, Oregon Fox-TV-affiliate story about 17-year-old Niko Boskovic winning United Nations Educational Pilgrimage for Youth essay contest sponsored by the Odd Fellows Lodge but then being denied the ‘prize’ of a trip to the UN. Other Oregon-based Odd Fellows Lodges voice support for Niko, some voting to boycott future contests until anti-discrimination policies are in place.
“They said that both in the written [portion] and the interview, which he did using the letter board, that he was a clear winner out of everyone,” said David Scheer, the secretary at the Peninsula Odd Fellows Lodge in north Portland.
Link to story and video (2:33): https://bit.ly/2pxFyLl
On March 25, 2017, a group of 9 nonspeaking autistics from Northern Virginia (a.k.a. “The Tribe”) and 20 University of Virginia undergraduates gathered in Charlottesville to discuss, among other things, motor differences in autism with Dr. Jana Iverson of the University of Pittsburgh. The two groups of students are participants in a year-long seminar called “The Science & Lived Experience of Autism.” This video captures highlights from their fourth in-person meeting.
To see videos from previous meetings, visit vimeo.com/191409936 and youtu.be/eXRWT0PC7Pw.
For more information about the collaboration, visit: news.virginia.edu/content/new-course-connects-students-autistic-tribe and wvtf.org/post/uva-students-learn-first-hand-how-people-autism-feel.