This was a presentation I gave on Friday April 11th, 2014 for a few middle school classes about my experience as an autistic individual, discussing passionate questions and self-advocacy.

1. Self-Advocacy, Autism,
and Linux: Finding My
Own Path
Spencer Hunley

2. - Growing up without
autism
My Story

3. My Story
- Growing up WITH
autism

4. Passionate Questions
- Who am I?
- What is my Autism?
Is it a part of me, am I
a part of it, or
something else?
- How do I define
Autism?
- What is my purpose?

5. Self-Advocacy
- The Forum
- Apprehension, stereotypes and prejudices
- Learning and un-learning
- What happened after the Forum

7. Self-Advocacy
- Advocating for myself
- Workplace
- Friends and family
- Struggles and victories

8. Self-Advocacy
- ASAN
- How small victories
can combine to
change what seems
unchangeable

9. Passionate Questions
- How my own search for
personal definition led to a
passion that’s turning into a
career
- Linux/FOSS-based
assistive/accessible technology

11. - Linux Community, Universal Tux and
Accessibility
Self-Advocacy

12. “...And the sooner you stand up and [graduate from
high school], head into the dawn and get the hell outta
town, find and build your own world and really be
your own person, blunder into fellow mutants who
see the same things you do, and know there's
something better somewhere out there when you
make the effort to create it...the smaller, more
laughable, and totally unimportant those golden
teenage memories and rose-colored scars become.”
- Jello Biafra