Ms Amanda McGuinness:

I am an autistic self-advocate but I am also a parent to four children, three of whom are autistic. I was really moved listening to Adam and to the accounts the other witnesses, Mark, Naomhán, Darragh and Deasún, gave about growing up. I can identify with much of what was said because I have three autistic sons. I was identified later in life as an autistic person so I went through various traumas because I was a "different" child growing up. Now as an adult, I am raising four incredible human beings, three of whom are autistic. I think of circumstances where they have been treated differently, marginalised or treated poorly because they are different.

Then I think of Ger Kenny, Rosaleen Cullivan and all the other incredible parents here who are doing their utmost to raise incredible human beings who happen to be autistic. As Adam Harris said, we need to support the parents also, and the groups on the ground, such as SparkAbility, from my colleague, Ms Zarah Doyle, that are doing so much in our communities as well, to support children who are different, who are going into schools, who are being treated sometimes unfairly and who are being treated, maybe by their peers, as different. I can give a few examples from my own children. My son Conor, is non-speaking. He is now almost 13. He attends a special school in Castlebar - St. Bríd's. When he was a child - much younger - growing up, we would have had circumstances, unfortunately, in our own town, where, because he is not speaking, he would communicate through a speech device. Sometimes, for various reasons, he might decide not to use that when we are out and about in public, and he would make noises to communicate and as his parent I would know what those sounds would mean. Unfortunately, members of the public, at different times in his life, would have imitated him in a very negative way. I recall one time I had my daughter Hayley with me and I just took her by the hand. Conor was in the trolley at the time. We were so proud that day because that was Conor's first big moment that he could cope going into a big shopping centre. We were just very excited for him. I remember I rushed them back to the car and I was tucking them in and doing the seat belts and all the things. I was sitting back into the car and Hayley said, "Mum, why did we have to rush away there?" I just said, "It is just I thought it was going to rain." It was the summertime and there was no rain. She said, "Was it because those boys were making those sounds like Conor, trying to laugh at Conor? Why were they laughing at Conor?" I know Zarah Doyle beside me would agree that as a parent you are doing so much all the time to protect your children but it is so difficult all the time. It is not just when you are going our socially. I have to say in my own experience I have been very lucky with the schools my children go to but I know that it is not the experience of parents and autistic people across the communities in Ireland.

As an adult, I was identified later in life, at 39, as autistic. I have to thank Adam Harris for that, and our deputy CEO, Fiona Ferris. I finally felt the courage to go for an assessment. As Mr. Darragh Cullivan mentioned about the pandemic, I just felt so calm and relaxed at home and it was the thought of having to go back to that busy life again out in the community and being judged for being different. I often - I am probably doing it now and I apologise - speak very fast because my mind is very visual. It is what is called "hyperphantasia". I think quickly in pictures and try to translate pictures to words. For me, going out into the community and going back into that world again was going to be frightening in the sense that I finally had found my calm. At different times in my life, I was going to go forward for an assessment but each time I thought, "No, I will not." Unfortunately, I might have said to other people, "I think I am autistic" and their responses were - we think of what everyone else has mentioned here today - about judgments, attitudes, negatives and stigmatisation around being autistic. I eventually went forward. It was because of watching Adam speak so much through Zoom with which we all got familiar and, in particular, our deputy CEO, Ms Ferris. Suddenly, I felt that if these incredible authentic moving autistic individuals are so able to be themselves, why could not I do this one thing for myself and find out who I am finally. I did that, and it has changed my world. I was formerly a board member of AsIAm and I am now lucky to be a training officer within the organisation.

What I am finding with going out to schools and talking to parent groups and to autistic individuals is that stigma remains. Those negative experiences of being judged because you are different remains. I have such a fear for my own children because of what I am seeing, either on social media because I work in social media but also from talking to autistic people all the time. In particular, I was moved by Naomhán Mhaonaigh's story because I can see elements of that, in my own life but also from my son, Jack, in particular. Naomhán reminds me a little of Jack. I just thought what an incredible human being Naomhán is to have spoken with an open heart, but so bravely. I would hate to think that in another ten or 20 years that we would be back here hoping for change. I thank the Cathaoirleach, all the members of the committee and everybody here for doing the work that they are doing. Now is the right time. We are in the right space to make a real impact and we are in the right building to say that autistic rights are human rights. I thank the committee for all that it does.