Joshua Bennett

Autism Light #253 is Joshua Bennett.

Today on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day we want to honor a fantastic up and coming young poet of our day who like the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. is using his peaceful words to speak out for both social justice and autism justice. Joshua Bennett is a poet from Yonkers, New York who has three disabled siblings. His younger brother Levi has Autism, his older sister is deaf, and his other brother has schizophrenia. Joshua Bennett wrote a poem called "Levi" in order to honor his brother and to draw attention to the plight of all those who are living with autism in our society.  Joshua Bennett is an Autism Light because of the autism awareness his poem "Levi" brings to the collection of the world's greatest social poetry. 
The following is the graduation speech that Joshua Bennett gave in 2010 for the College of Arts at the University of Pennsylvania. In the speech Joshua Bennett shares the simple piece of wisdom his mother shared with him that, "People learn how to treat you based on what you accept from them."  

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Education: Joshua Barnett's website lists his extensive education this way. "An alumnus of the University of Pennsylvania, Joshua graduated with the distinctions of Phi Beta Kappa and magna cum laude, after double majoring in English and Africana Studies. In addition to receiving a Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship, Joshua was also awarded a Marshall Scholarship and earned his Masters of Arts in Theatre and Performance Studies from the University of Warwick in the UK. He is currently pursuing a PhD in English from Princeton University. Joshua thanks God for his gift, and is grateful for, and humbled by, the opportunity to inspire others (Source)."
The following is the Joshua Bennett presenting the poem "Levi" that he wrote for his brother who has autism.  
Bennett concludes the poem "Levi" with these piercing words: "Tell them Levi is just shorthand for levitate. That your calling is is to the clouds and you would pay them a lot more attention but you are simply too busy having a conversation with God right now. Then smile for them. Smile big. Smile pretty. Teach their wounded souls how to fly because you were made that way. A genius with jellyfish for words. A divine poem destined for the sky (Joshua Bennett)." 
Poetry Experience: The Strivers Row lists the varied venues where Joshua Bennett has presented at:

He was a featured poet on the HBO series Russell Simmons presents Brave New Voices. He has recited his original works at events and venues such as The Sundance Film Festival, The NAACP Image Awards, The Kennedy Center, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Poetry Africa and President Obama's Evening of Poetry and Music at the White House. He has also performed on BBC Radio Oxford, alongside former U.S. Poet Laureates Billy Collins and Rita Dove, at the Du Bois Institute Panel as a guest of Henry Louis Gates, and opened for Dr. Cornel West (Source).

Opened for Dr. Cornel West: Joshua Bennett performance when he opened at Martin Luther King event with Dr. Cornel West at the Rochester Institute of Technology is available on YouTube at this link. Website: You can read more from Joshua Bennett at his Tumblr Blog. 
Booking: Joshua Bennett is represented by The Strivers Row artists management who specialize in spoken word artists. For booking email info@thestriversrow.com.
Social Media: You can follow Joshua Bennett on the following social media areas.

• Facebook
• Twitter @SirJoshBennett
• YouTube - Strivers Row

Joshua Bennett is a prolific user of Twitter. This is one of his recent Tweets where he shares and inspires.

Small things. At this moment of my life, it's about a clean house and a clean heart. Double emphasis on both.
— Joshua Bennett (@SirJoshBennett) January 15, 2013

Special thanks to Joshua Bennett for using his amazing talent to be an Autism Light. We look forward to hearing more poems from him in the future as he speaks out for social justice and autism justice.

If you enjoyed this post you may wish to read about the other Autism Lights with the label Siblings. These people share the special perspective in their story of having a sibling with autism. Also, if you are interested in additional information on autism and Martin Luther King, Jr. day please read our Martin Luther King, Jr. day feature in 2012 on King Richard. 

Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism.

The photo of Martin Luther King, Jr. in this post is in the Creative Commons of Wikipedia and is from the National Archives and Records Administration.

Lydia Wayman

Autism Light #88 is Lydia Wayman.

Lydia Wayman with her cat Elsie

Lydia Wayman is from Richland, Pennsylvania.  Lydia is a writer and cat lover. She also has autism. Lydia Wayman is an Autism Light because she is writing about her experiences of living as an independent adult with autism through her blog and in self-published books in order to spread awareness and understanding of autism.

Blog: Lydia Wayman's blog is called Autistic Speaks.  She is a prolific blogger and much can be learned about autism first hand through her writing. Visit her blog at http://autisticspeaks.wordpress.com/.  Her content on the blog includes but is not limited to updates on what is happening in her life, a window into the life and thoughts of a young adult with autism, and some original poetry. Lydia provides a priceless look at the thoughts of someone with autism and in doing so breaks down several stereotypes people normally have about individuals with autism. Her most recent posts have included a discussion of her physical health (unrelated to autism) and her Christian religious faith. The theme of her blog is:

Not despite autism but because of it.

Author: Lydia Wayman has written two self-published books that are available for purchase on LuLu, which will help people understand autism from someone with autism.

1. Living in Technicolor: An Autistics Thoughts on-Raising a Child with Autism
2. Interview With Autism

The proceeds from the sale of these books is being used to bring Lydia's service dog home.

Social Media: You can follow Lydia Wayman (Autistic Speaks) at the following social media areas.

• Facebook
• Twitter

Heart of Autism: On July 18, 2013, Lydia Wayman was featured in the Heart of Autism series by Autism Speaks. 

You can find a listing of different press articles written about this remarkable Autism Light at http://autisticspeaks.wordpress.com/press/.  Lydia has also acquired the URL of http://www.autisticspeaks.com/ and eventually one will be able to find her information there.

Special thanks to Lydia Wayman for sharing her joys and sorrows; victories and setbacks; and feelings and knowledge with the world. Lydia is truly an amazing individual who can teach the world a lot about autism, if we will only listen.

Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism.

Photo: The Photo in this post is used with the permission of Lydia Wayman.

Melinda Smith

---

Autism Light Classic
Updated on April 13, 2012.

---

Autism Light #37 is Melinda Smith.

Melinda Smith lives in Canberra, Australia. She is a mother of two sons and one of them has autism. She is also a poet. As a parent of a son with autism she writes for those experiencing autism from one experiencing autism. Melinda Smith is an Autism Light for how her poetry brings awareness to autism.

Melinda describes her diverse life this way on her website, "I have been at various times a Ph.D. student in Japanese History, a teacher of English as a Second Language, a lawyer, a tea maiden, a tour guide, a barmaid, a software salesperson, a legal editor and a law teacher (Source)."

Melinda Smith's poem, 'autistic child with acute auditory processing disorder' won a National Competition in 2010 sponsored by the Australian Poetry Centre.  Melinda Smith has received a local grant of support from artsACT to write autism related poems for Autism Awareness Month in April, 2012.

Autism Light asked Melinda Smith about her favorite autism related poem from her site, and she directed us to the one called "First...Then...". In a prelude to this poem Melinda Smith writes:

"If you have people in your family or circle of friends who still don't get why you've been acting so weird since your child with difficulties was born, make them read this."

It wouldn't do it justice to quote a line from the poem here, because one needs to read the full poem to understand its deep meaning, so I encourage you to read it at her CircleQuirk Website. She is truly an inspirational poet.

Melinda Smith published her book of autism poems with Ginninderra Press in April, 2012. The actual book launch is taking place at events during the week of April 9, 2012. The book is a short collection of 24 of Melinda's autism poems and is named after her favorite poem First...Then... The poems reflect on people with all types of different relationships to autism such as parents or siblings, and also notes the perspective of both non-verbal and verbal individuals with autism. You may find information for purchasing her book at a section of her website dedicated to this book. Autism Light congratulates Melinda Smith on the release of this book of autism poems.


Melinda Smith's poem "Autistic Acrostic" was featured on Dr.Tony Attwood's Website. The poem reflects on a parents experience of facing a meltdown from their child. The first letter of each line spells an acrostic of a very important word. The poem goes like this. 

Autistic Acrostic

Any day now, it will lift.

Under your mask of howls, I see

Two knowing eyes reproaching me,

Incensed that I should try to shift

Some blame, for this, our hell, to you.

Mummy feels like howling too.  (Melinda Smith)

For more information on Melinda Smith's poetry and work you may check out the following Websites.

• WordPress Blog for her general poetry

• CircleQuirk blog for her poetry about autism

• Aspie in the Family
 Blog (Guest Post)

• Scottish Autism
 Blog (Guest Post)

Social Media: You can follow Melinda Smith's autism tweets on Twitter @FirstThenASD.

Special thanks to Melinda Smith for being a poet that touches on themes that relate to the autism community.  Your poetry is a light that is bringing autism awareness through poetry.

Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism. 

---

Photo: Photo in this post used with permission of Melinda Smith.

Russell Lehmann

Autism Light #9 is Russell Lehmann.

Russell Lehmann

Russell Lehmann is giving to the world through his special gift of poetry. He resides in Nevada and has autism. Russell Lehmann is an Autism Light because of the way his poetry touches people and provides a window into the poetic gifts of some people with autism.

Inside Out Book Published:  Russell Lehmann's first book on poetry called Inside Out was published in October, 2011. The title for his book seems to come from a quotation Russell Lehmann said, "One way I like to define myself living with autism is that I'm closed on the outside, and open on the inside. I may come across as not listening or paying attention, but trust me, I am."  Dr. Temple Grandin, another Autism Light herself, has called his work "Beautiful". 


Here is a video of a news story on Russell Lehmann's poetry talent.

Website: You can learn more about Russell Lehmann on his website at https://www.russell-lehmann.com/.

Thanks for being an Autism Light, Russell.

Autism Light honors diverse heroes to the world of autism. 


Photo: Photo in this post used with permission of Russell Lehmann.

Note: This post was updated on October 18, 2011 to reflect the publication of Russell Lehmann's book.