MICAH: Hi, my name is Micah Peace



and I'm from Louisville, Kentucky.



I'm autistic and multiply disabled and



the topic that I would like to address



in a Rooted in Rights video is the trauma



that a delayed or misdiagnosis
can cause autistic people.



This is a disability rights issue because



an entire generation of autistic adults



that seems missing, having
been alienated from themselves,



and their community through misdiagnosis,



psychiatric abuse, forced
institutionalization and



the silencing of their voices.



This problem disproportionately
affects autistic women,



people of color and low income
and gender expansive folks.



And I can share this story
because I have lived it too.



And I believe that a lot of the trauma



that I experienced as the
result of my misdiagnosis,



from forced medication
and institutionalization,



to self harm and not knowing
myself until my twenties,



could have been avoided if
only those who are around me



trying to help me in childhood



had listened as I tried
to advocate for myself.



The audience that I hope
will benefit from this video



mainly includes autistic adults



who have had this
experience for themselves



and professionals who may not realize



how traumatizing their
current practices can be.



The call to action that I hope to inspire



is for autistic people
to reclaim the narrative



surrounding the autistic experience



and for those who love,
service and support



autistic people to listen to our voices.



So that fewer autistic
people can be missed



or suffer abuse at the hands
of the psychiatric system.