Project 2019

Rhizome Emerging – Project 2019 – Destination Freedom

What is ‘Rhizome Emerging – Project 2019 – Destination Freedom’? 
It is about Rhizome – the Autistic Rhizome that had grown and has begun to emerge. It culminates with Freedom – freedom that we must secure for autistic people emerging towards light. Project 2019 signifies our Commitment to this Challenge in the year 2019.

2020 Assessment of Project 2019

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Project 2019 is about dehumanized  “autism solution” of our modern day – a solution that began early in the past century – first by forceful sterilization and incarceration of so called “mentally retarded” throughout the Western world – then culminating in a genocide of “retarded” populations in most of Europe, and after WWII continuing with the all-inclusive care-taking of the ever increasing populations of ASD and I/DD – the two qualifications that replaced the “mental retardation” jargon. The care-taking includes sterilizations and captivity of the past era, as well as eugenics, but also adds a great variety of other “benefits” – nourishing a wide field of thriving autism industry operating within the loophole limits of Constitutional Law.

It’s been over 100 years since our Freedom and Rights were taken away by the xenophobia of 20th century – But the World has evolved, Humanity has entered a new Era – it is an era of Human movement towards equality. We are witnessing incredible changes and we too are seeking acceptance, inclusion, and societal arrangements which would allow us to reenter Society as free people with equal rights. We seek abolition of “autism solution” perpetuated by parasitic autism industry. We seek the emancipation of our people.  We seek to strike down the loophole Law that denigrates and excludes us. We offer Society a new Paradigm of Self-Determination, Supported Decision Making, Self-Direction, Redefined Intervention, and transition to Universal design – the solutions about us that originate with us. Solutions that transition us to freedom and return our rights, while also benefitting the world of Humanity and the World that surround us. We can and must do it together.

Our Slogan – Return our Freedom – Return our Rights!

This Project has different dimensions; one of them is Law – the law of our country that exempts us (ASD and I/DD per medical diagnosis) from the “equal protection of the law” mandated by the US Constitution.

First – let us note that the Congressional Acts for Disabled, including IDEA (Education Act) are soaked with expressly stated prejudice sited [by the authors] as an undeniable and compelling reason to expressly exclude these “dysfunctional” people from the law governing the rest of the population, resulting in the current ‘Autism Speaks to Washington’ state of autistic affairs. Let us drive to amend these Acts and let us drive to amend the Civil Rights Act to include “disabled and divergent” as a protected group, just as race, gender, and alienage; and not omitting the “disabled by age”.

Second – we have Supreme Court Judgments that stand in a way of protecting our people, by abrogating their responsibility to enforce the protection of the law by declaring that their [ASD and I/DD] causes had already been adequately protected. One can go no further than your state, which is where you are being denied. We must overturn cases like Cleburne vs. Cleburne Inc. and elevate our protection as a long discriminated group, and to extend these protection classification to all the disabled and divergent populations.

Third – we should challenge the Law of Guardianship – this relic of the Roman Law that powers our system of forceful institutionalization, redistribution of wealth, and loss of personal freedom for the rest of one’s life. The Guardianship law, just like Slavery law is irreparable and should be abolished. We should drive this message to the public and offer our solution of “Supported Decision Making” as defined by ASAN expertly Resource. And in the meantime we should create a drive to challenge the guardianship of our people in courts in all the States. TASH, our leading Disability organization is converging with us – Down with Guardianship!

Our Slogan – Return our Freedom – Return our Rights!

The current state of autistic affairs is another dimension of this project, and is expressed by Autistic Grievance.   Autistic Grievance is an Expose that addresses all the areas of modern “autism solution” – eugenics, cure, intervention, human experimentation, segregation, denial of human rights, and lifelong captivity.

But Autistic Grievance is also a Movement. It is envisioned as a disability movement culminating with a Petition to the Government of United States, a petition requiring 100,000 signatures in order to be considered, but it would need millions to advance. Autistic Rhizome must become a Disability movement for our Grievance to succeed. This is our challenge and it will test ourselves and our allies, and all the humanity. We live in the fast changing time, and we have come to the time of challenge.

Autistic Grievance is addressed to the Government of United States – to all three branches. The content of the grievance ties the inhumane autism policies and practices to the US Law exposing the hidden detail.  

It is also addressed to the public as an instrument of good will bringing the plight of our people to people’s judgement – but Autistic Grievance also includes solutions which benefit from ‘us as a free population’, and presents a transition approach as society embarks on a path of change.

We invoke the 1st Amendment to petition the Government of United States for a redress of grievances on behalf of Autistic people for whom the justice hasn’t been served and the blessings of liberty had been withheld.

Our Slogan – Return our Freedom – Return our Rights!

The third important dimension is Education – it is an area where changes are needed most and most urgently – the current Special Ed. system of segregated behavioral facilities is a shameful instrument of dehumanization, and a new paradigm is required. We have fought for inclusion and for the change of paradigm for autistic education and we have found others on the same path.

NOTABLE:  Mon. 12/17/18 – The Divergent Labs board voted to actively support the Alliance for Self-Directed Education (ASDE) by becoming the Organizational Member (OM) of the Alliance. It is an important symbolic step for our organization as Divergent Labs are becoming the First Autistic Organization to join Self-Directed Educational movement and the vision for All Inclusive Self-Directed Education Paradigm represented by ASDE.

A few days prior ASDE leadership acted on their pledge for all inclusive education by removing “normal” qualification from their web site. This is a symbolic in good faith move and a right beginning for All Inclusive policy. ASDE –The Alliance for Self-Directed Education is an international organization with a few thousand members all over the world representing the microcosm of democratic schools, learning centers, learning collectives, homeschoolers, and unschoolers.

We have also initiated a discussion with ASAN Leadership  in regard to  Autistic Segregation in general and specifically the segregation in Education, and regarding Rhizome Program initiative to challenge the prejudiced law which exempts ‘autistic people’ from the Equal protection clause granted to all people by the 14th Amendment of our Constitution.  We agreed to discuss all these in detail in a near term.

A part of Project 2019 is a fight for Self-Determination and Supported Decision Making  – the projects that ASAN had been leading.  We need each other and the entire community to make things to happen.  ASAN – Autistic Self Advocacy Network is an international organization with thousands of  members and with alliances to many progressive disability organizations and the following in the autistic community. We’ll be seeking their support. We need ASAN to join and lead this fight!

But even more importantly we need to appeal to autistic families and gain their support – we see it possiblespecifically in areas of Education and Transition. 

Autistic concepts of supported self-determination and independent living – coincide with the principles of supported self-directed education and the independence of children championed by ASDE alliance.  These are the two most important transitions for people on the spectrum and their families.  Families need alternatives. Our [ASD, ASDE] ideals coincide like letters of our acronyms. Together we can reach the  Tipping Point!  

“Rhizome Emerging” needs to garner support of  Community!

Our Slogan – Return our Freedom – Return our Rights!

Grievance begins here