SEE ANSWERS TO OUR FREQUENTLY-ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT THE PROJECT, DONATIONS, AND THE ANTHOLOGY HERE!

A visual transcript of the video can be found on youtube.

Our Story:

The Loud Hands Project is a transmedia publishing and creative effort by the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, spearheaded by Julia Bascom. Currently, we are raising money towards the creation of our first and foundational anthology (Loud Hands: Autistic People, Speaking) and accompanying website.

Loud Hands: Autistic People, Speaking features submissions by Autistic authors speaking about neurodiversity, Autistic pride and culture, disability rights and resistance, and resilience (known collectively by the community as having loud hands). Submissions guidelines can be found here. The anthology is the first of a projected series featuring contributions from Autistic writers stressing the preservation and celebration of Autistic culture and resilience. The website will host shorter and multi-media submissions along the same lines, along with additional materials and videos, and serve as a focal point for the project and community. Future anticipated facets of The Loud Hands Project include

*community- and youth-organizing components

*an archive of our community’s foundational documents

*the development of materials for newly-diagnosed people of all ages and abilities explaining their diagnosis and welcoming them into the community

*specific responses campaigns to instances of bullying and abuse

*additional and longer videos

*community-generated texts in answer to questions such as what does autism mean to you; why does Autistic culture matter; what do you wish you had known growing up Autistic; and how can the Autistic community cultivate resilience?

With an overarching commitment to undoing the cultural processes and ghettoization that make autistic people strangers to ourselves and spectators in our own stories. Put another way, The Loud Hands Project consists of multiple prongs organized around the theme of what the Autistic community refers to as "having loud hands"--autism acceptance, neurodiversity, Autistic pride, community, and culture, disability rights and resistance, and resilience.  We focus on cultivating resilience among autistic young people and empowering the Autistic community writ large in building communities and cultures of ability, resistance, and worth. To quote Laura Hershey: “you weren’t the one who made you ashamed, but you are the one who can make you proud.”

Our Impact:

The Loud Hands Project is about survival, resilience, and pride. The Loud Hands Project is necessary because autistic youth face systematic oppression, abuse, and bullying every day. It does not “get better” for us--typically, upon graduation, it actually gets worse. This must change.

What We Need:

We need to raise ten thousand dollars ($10,000) to help cover the initial costs of putting together and distributing our first anthology and launching our website. Please consider making a donation--every little bit helps!

Other Ways You Can Help:

Spread the word! Check out the share tools on our page, and please use them! You can visit our Facebook page, tumblr, and twitter too, and tweet about the project using the hashtag #loudhandsproject. We have profile badges available here, and scripts for telling people you know about us here.