April is Autism Awareness month. With this month coming to a close, I wanted to write about Sesame Street’s newest character: Julia.
The preschool education program, first aired in 1969, has been famous for educating children (without them even knowing it). The show also changed ideas about developmental psychology and early childhood development.
Earlier this month, Sesame Street introduced Julia, a friend of Elmo’s with firey red hair. Julia has autism. She’s described by characters in the show as doing things “like Julia.” Not as a child with autism. Not as different or odd. She’s Julia, and I think that is the most amazing thing.
The avid anti-vaxxers will hate me for saying this, but it’s about time peopple became aware about autism. And Julia does that. She is able to teach children about more than just autism. She teaches children about uniqueness and the fact that everyone has something that makes them unique.
Sherrie Westin form the Sesame Workshop said, “Today, 1 in 68 children is on the autism spectrum. We thought it was something we needed to address. The spectrum is an important thing that most people don’t understand. Julia is in the middle of the spectrum. She has difficulty communicating and making friends, but is fiercely devoted to the friends she does make.”
Judith Miller of Children’s Hospital Center for Autism Research is all for Julia’s debut. She says Julia’s character presents the opportunity to understand autism’s challenges and strengths, which is something all of us could benefit from understanding a bit more.
If you haven’t seen her yet, take a look at Julia’s introduction to Sesame Street and let me know what you think about her. Do you think “normalizing” autism is a good thing?