Lennoxville Library to celebrate Autism Awareness Month with workshops, activities, and book displays

This April the Lennoxville Library will offer a number of activities to celebrate Autism awareness month, including workshops in French and English on the depiction of autism in books and stories; a storytime and craft activity for kids that celebrates autistic ways of experiencing the world; and thematic displays of books that feature diverse Autistic characters.

Library Board member Marjorie Désormeaux-moreau is a Doctor of Psychology and professor in the University of Sherbrooke’s Occupational Therapy Program. An Autistic person herself, she has immersed herself in hundreds of works of all types. “Reading has been a source of nourishment and joy since I was a child. The rare times that I came across Autistic characters, they were mostly depicted in a limited and reductive way. Autistic readers– especially young people who are developing their sense of identity and self-worth– need to recognize themselves in stories,” she says, “And they deserve to be depicted as more than a “diagnosis”, a burden, or as “weirdos.”

Ms. Désormeaux-moreau is also President and Director of Autisme Soutien, a Sherbrooke based organisation led by Autistics whose mission is to offer online social support by and for Autistic people, as well as neuro-affirming educational activities. She affirms that books have an important educational potential and that all readers– including allistic (i.e., nonautistic) people– benefit from stories that give pride of place to Autistic characters as they engage in all the elements that make up a rich, three dimensional human experience, as opposed to works that only focus on challenges presumed to be associated with autism. “We need to read books where Autistic people have fantastic adventures, discover who they are and celebrate their culture; fall in love, and perhaps become parents; experience retirement and grief– in short, anything that is part of the human experience, whether real or imaginary.”

Ms.désormeaux-moreau emphasizes the injustice whereby voices of Autistic people were often silenced: “Autistic people have historically been the objects – rather than the authors of stories. Working from their experiential knowledge, more and more Autistic authors are writing books that feature authentic and vivid characters, as well as autistic ways of being, thinking and acting. Such books allow Autistic readers to see themselves fully and accurately represented, increasing their sense of self-worth, acceptance, and belonging. They also serve to sensitize parents, siblings, teachers, employers, colleagues, and neighbours of Autistic people to the reality of those they may see every day without ever really knowing them.”

Expressing his enthusiasm about the project, Library coordinator Christian Collins describes how the Library regularly uses book displays to raise awareness, celebrate, and amplify the work of authors with historically marginalized lived experiences. “At its best a public library is a place where a community can come together to better understand the lived experiences of others, to increase their empathy and understanding. We are excited to collaborate with Marjorie Désormeaux-moreau and Autisme Soutien to offer these programs.”

Lennoxville Library’s Commitment Towards Autism Awareness Upcoming Events.

All through the month of April, the Lennoxville Library, in collaboration with Autisme Soutien, a 100% autistic lead Sherbrooke’s nonprofit, will promote autism awareness by the means of:

- A display of books featuring Autistics characters (all month, at the Library)

- An informal and interactive workshop for adults on depictions of autism in literature (April 6 at 7 PM for English; and April 13 at 7 PM for French, at the Library)

- A Storytime and craft activity celebrating autistic ways of experiencing the world (April 15 at 10h30 AM – bilingual, at the Library).