A big tent
by Jim Williams
Since we launched this blog a few days ago, I’ve had many phone calls and emails from Easter Seals board members, staff and affiliates asking me about Easter Seals’ position on topics like chelation therapy and other things mentioned in various comments.
Fundamentally, Easter Seals doesn’t take a position on these kinds of issues. Our goal is to provide an online community where people with all kinds of views, theories, and concerns can express themselves, can share information, and can interact with one another. It’s a big tent that has room for everyone. Ideas and opinions that are controversial are likely to be expressed, and that’s fine. Our position is that we want people to communicate and share.
Easter Seals’ focus is on providing personalized services –- today — for children and adults with autism and their families to help them accomplish their goals in communities across the country. That has always been our focus and will continue to be. And that’s the focus of this blog.
When new treatment modalities and therapies are validated, they will be incorporated into what we do at centers around the country. When new science is verified, that will be incorporated also. We will adapt and change, as our organization has been doing since 1919.
In the meantime, I want to personally invite everyone to join Easter Seals in our big tent community. I am thrilled by the richness of the dialogue so far, and encourage you to tell others about this community.
I’ve found the past few days to be educational, sometimes confrontational, and very often inspirational.
Let’s keep talking.