“I’ve heard many parents say ‘Everybody has suggestions, but not a way or example on how to do this or that!’ Well, I may not have all the solutions to every problem, but what I have to give you in this book is hope, hope for autism . . . .” (Johnson-Evans). With these words, Tanelia Johnson-Evans creates a new space of hope for people on the autism spectrum and their caregivers. In There is Hope for Autism and the Special Needs Community: The Untold Stories of a Caregiver and Educator of Special Needs Children, Teens, and Adults, Johnson-Evans brings her unique perspective as an educator, minister, and parent to offer a heartfelt manifesto for working with people on the autism spectrum.
The title says it all: There Is Hope for Autism and for the Special Needs Population: The Untold Stories of a Caregiver and Educator of Special Needs Children, Teens, and Adults; and Johnson-Evans inspires this hope through pages wrought with a poignant reflection on lived experiences working with people on the autism spectrum. Johnson-Evans shares, “I received a concussion from a student with Autism in an ABA classroom” (There Is Hope). She uses this experiential knowledge to help others handle similar microaggressions that may emerge.
Johnson-Evans uses these lived experiences as the foundation for the specific prayers she encourages caregivers to incorporate into her daily routine. “Pray for your child, anoint them with oil daily, pray for their caregivers and those who will serve them,” Johnson urges; and she offers prayers for specific challenges your child or you may face. These prayers reflect the joys and challenges she has experienced as a single parent and paraprofessional in the already underpaid field of education.
There Is Hope enters into conversation on a topic that remains relatively void of African American voices. The majority of books about autism by African American authors include fictional works like My Brother Charlie (2010, Scholastic) by Holly Robinson Peete and Ryan Elizabeth Peete; Khahari Discovers the Meaning of Autism (Amazon, 2017), by Evan J. Roberts and Janice Pernell; Reece Wants Cereal (2017, Amazon), by Jasmine Poole; Picture This Picture That (2019, Amazon), by Thomasina Lee and Tahir Lee Come Meet Drayden (2020, Amazon), by Dana Young-Askew; and Brailynn the Ballerina (2020, Amazon) by Brilynn Casmille. There is Hope, however, enters the discourse among other African American authors of non-fiction books about autism, like Elizabeth Drame and Anand Prahlad. Drame’s The Resistance, Persistence and Resilience of Black Families Raising Children with Autism (Amazon, 2020) examines the intersectional influence of race, class, gender, and disability on Black families raising children with Autism, while Prahlad’s The Secret Life of a Black Aspie (Amazon, 2017) reveals the author’s personal journey with autism. Johnnson-Evans’s book, however, is far more reflective and conversational than it is instructive or sermonic. The result is a compassionate voice that reminds caregivers that, indeed, There is Hope for Autism and for the Special Needs Population.
Credits:
Johnson-Evans, Tanelia. There is Hope for Autism and for the Special Needs Population: The Untold Stories of a Caregiver and Educator of Special Needs Children, Teens and Adults. Amazon KDP. Print. April 2022.
*This article was previously published in NOIREONLINE.ORG.