Autism Representation – Daniel Tiger to Introduce New Character

I can vividly remember taking my autistic son, Johnny to the park when he was four years old. As I pushed the double stroller with him and his baby sister through the park entrance my heart sank as our usually pretty empty park was full of children and parents. 

Johnny was excited, and there was no turning back. I had to let him play for at least a little while. As he darted off to play I quickly strapped the baby to me and followed him like a shadow. Sometimes close and other times at distance. 

To the parents and other children at the park my son looked like just a regular four year old boy, but I know it’s coming; the looks, the whispers and the judgements.

Immediately, Johnny approaches a little girl and gets really close to her. I have to intervene and remind him to give her space.

A group of kids a little older than him, who clearly arrived together, play a game like tag. Johnny gets close to them and just starts running, screaming and laughing.

They all stop and stare and some laugh.

I wish he could ask them if he could join in or even if I could for him, but he wouldn’t have understood the rules or would even stay around long enough. 

So once again I redirect.

A little while later Johnny tries to take off toward the parking lot and street. I have to leave everything behind to chase him and guide him back to the stroller.

This is when the parents give their looks. I know what they’re thinking “look at that helicopter mom”, “she should teach her kid manners”.

We leave.

When people ask me what the hardest part about having an autistic child is, I always answer “other people.”

My six year old son Johnny has always been autistic.  We just did not know for sure until about two years ago. 

Yes, there are a lot of hard trials we have gone through the last six years. Lack of communication, self harm, meltdowns and many emotions are some of them, but at the end of the day, navigating the world and other people is the hardest part. 

People fear the unknown.

With that fear often comes prejudice, exclusion and assumptions. The more we learn about something or someone, the more room we make for acceptance and understanding. 

Many people do not really know what autism is. Often autistic people are judged as strange, uncomfortable and awkward, when in reality the differences can be quite beautiful. The more people see and know autism the more that beauty can be seen.

The children’s show Daniel Tiger recently announced they will be introducing an autistic character in April. Teacher Harriet’s autistic nephew, Max, will be joining the class. Even more amazing is Max will be voiced by an autistic 13 year old boy, Israel Thomas-Bruce. 

The supervising producer at Fred Rogers Productions, Chris Loggins, told People Magazine “We’re so excited to introduce Max to the Neighborhood of Make-Believe and help even more kids feel represented and included on TV.” 

With the announcement, a clip was released of Daniel’s interaction with Max. My heart and tears filled watching it. Knowing children, and hopefully parents, were going to watch Teacher Harriet explain how Max plays differently.  Then as Daniel tries his best to interact with Max is everything I could hope for.

Education and representation is key to acceptance.

Of course, Max will only represent his kind of autism. The spectrum is full and varying. He may be like my son in some ways but not others.  That’s okay, it still matters.  Autistic characters are appearing more and more in the media. We can only hope they can represent the many facets of the spectrum. 

I’m so excited for my son to feel more represented in the media. I can’t wait for my daughter to see someone like her brother in one of her favorite shows, and I can’t wait for more children to learn more about autism so they can be more accepting of autism. 

The more this kind of representation happens, the more I hope autistic individuals and their families will feel less isolated, and that others will learn to be less judgmental.  That others may offer a kind word, or helpful hand. Maybe next time they will let that next mom at the park know that it’s okay, and that they understand that she’s doing her best and that’s enough. 

Thank you to Fred Rogers Production’s for including Max and Israel in their show. It means everything to so many of us.  

Written by, Jaime Ramos

Jaime Ramos, is a wife and mom from Colorado. She’s married to her best friend, Isaac, and they have two kids, Amelie and Jesse. Jesse, her Johnny, is six and on the autism spectrum. Jaime enjoys capturing pictures and writing pieces about the beauty of her family and their autism journey. Sometimes that is the good and amazing wins, and other times the hard. You can follow their journey on Facebook, Instagram and her blog jaimeramoswrites,com

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