A group of around 200 people, including many kids, joined together for a walk in Norwood to promote autism acceptance, unity, and inclusion on Friday, June 16. The event was organized by the group Puzzle Life in conjunction with Norwood’s P.S. 168 and the 52^nd Precinct.

 

Kyle McClean and his wife, Liza, who live in Soundview, launched Puzzle Life, a group which aims to promote acceptance of people living with autism. Kyle told Norwood News, “Well, my wife and I, we have a beautiful princess on the spectrum and it’s the third year in a row we wanted to do things in our community for autism acceptance, not awareness, acceptance,” he said.

 

He added, “That’s what we fight for. So, this would be the first year that we did it with the 52nd Precinct. We [previously] did it with the 43^rd but with the 52nd Precinct, we were just overwhelmed with love and joy here, and we want to continue to do it in this neighborhood. Big shout out to my daughter, Courtney, and big shout out to anybody that represents @puzzlelife.voicepg2, helping us knock the stigma out of autism.”

 

Autism, or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech, and nonverbal communication, according to the website Autism Speaks. Meanwhile, according to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), autism affects an estimated 1 in 36 children in the United States.

 

Deputy Inspector Jeremy Scheublin, commanding officer of the 52nd Precinct, addressed the crowd outside the stationhouse ahead of the walk, thanking those who helped organize it. “Martha, Ana, Tiwana and Pritima, thanks for your support and partnership here today,” he said. “The 52nd Precinct Explorers are here today, our auxiliaries are here today, Inspector Dave Wong, can’t say enough.”

 

He continued, “Our youth coordination officers, our Community Affairs Officers Echevarria and Capo, Sgt. Jaramillo, and Sgt. Adams, Lt. Lawyerr, my executive officer, [Captain] Asif Iqbal , the Police Benevolent Association for the food, NYPD Hispanic Society for your partnership, our DJ Officer Martin, Bronx Parks Commissioner Aponte, the 52nd Clergy Coalition, Sandra and Jeremy from Hunts Point, love you guys, always love to see you, and last but not least, Kyle and Liza and their beautiful family from Puzzle Life.”

 

Scheublin added, “We’re here today with them and our message is to the children and families of this community. If you have a family member or a child with autism or any family member with special needs, know that you are blessed. The message from the men and women in blue in the 52^nd Precinct is that we love you, we support you, and we’ll walk with you today and let his community know that. Thank you all for coming and God bless you.”

 

Kyle also addressed those gathered before the walk, saying, “Let’s give a round of applause to all the warriors that’s here today. It’s you we’re out here walking for today so give yourselves a round of applause. My wife and I started this movement for our beautiful princess, Kourtney, and all those [who] live this journey every day.”

 

Kyle said the couple purposefully organized the walks in June because after April, Autism Awareness Month, people tended to forget that people continue to live with autism every day. “That’s why we turn the lights right back on and all y’all play a big part in this,” he said.

 

He continued, “I reached out to the inspector, to the 52^nd Precinct and when I say, they welcomed us with open arms… What we’re doing today is we’re walking for inclusion, we’re walking for acceptance, and what I want everybody to understand is don’t get stuck on the word ‘disability’.”

 

Kyle added, “Let’s be encouraged by the word ‘capability’. Clap for capability please! Our children have so much capability! Before we start walking, I want everybody to just follow me. We got this thing called, ‘Walk in a place for Autism.’ I want everybody to just do this [walks on the spot]. Take steps, just walk with me.”

 

He encouraged everyone to complete the exercise once a day. “Use your hands, and let all those know that they’re not alone,” he said. “You guys are awesome! You guys are superstars every day! Let’s walk for inclusion, let’s walk for acceptance, let’s do this!”

 

The walk route took the group from the precinct down Webster Avenue, around Botanical Square, and back again to the precinct for some festivities. Many wore blue or carried blue balloons while others carried signs denoting autism acceptance.

 

During the walk which Kyle livestreamed on Instagram, he gave a shout out to all those who live with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of Autism Spectrum Disorder and developmental disorder. Young people with Asperger’s Syndrome have a difficult time relating to others socially and their behavior and thinking patterns can be rigid and repetitive according to the Nationwide Children’s Hospital.

 

Meanwhile, according to the CDC, Down syndrome is a condition in which a person has an extra chromosome. This changes how a baby’s body and brain develop, which can cause both mental and physical challenges for the baby.

 

Along the route, we spoke to teacher Alyssa Harris from P.S. 168, located at 3050 Webster Avenue next to the precinct in Norwood. Asked if the event was an annual one, Harris said, “This is our first time participating as a school.” Asked if there were other schools also participating, she said she believed P.S. 168 was the only one. Asked how the collaboration came about, she said, “I believe the precinct reached out to us and asked if we would participate, and then we decided to come.”

 

We asked what, if any, were the challenges in teaching students on the autism spectrum. “I would say one of the most rewarding things is understanding each student as an individual and working with their strengths,” she said. “One of the things the speaker [Kyle] said was instead of focusing on the word ‘disability,’ focus on the word ‘capability,’ and that’s something we focus on, is the abilities.”

 

In summary, Harris added of the event, “It’s great that we’re doing this and I’m glad that we’re able to participate and work with the 52nd precinct.”

 

Back at the stationhouse, there was food, games, and some of children got to interact with the precinct’s “K9.” We spoke to one woman who was attending with her niece, Sydney, and asked for her thoughts on the day. “It’s long overdue for something like this to take place,” she said. “We live this every day. We just need to get everybody else to understand that people with disabilities exist and they’re out there, and we need to be sure that we acknowledge them.”

 

Also present on the day was Karla Cabrera Carrera, district manager of Bronx Community Board 7, and Chad Royer, chair of the veterans committee. Cabrera Carrera said the board were very happy to attend and participate. “We were very impressed by seeing all the kids and the big turnout and all the collaboration that happened to make this event a successful event,” she said. “We look forward to participating next year and making it even a bigger and better event.”

 

Royer agreed it was a great day. “As a father of a child with a disability, finding out that there was going to be an autism walk, I just had to be there,” he said. “Things like this bring families together, brings constituents together so that the message can be heard. I, for one, can tell you that it hits different… where autism awareness is there in April, but what about May 1st? I still have to deal with the issues of being a dad, of a father with a child with a disability.”

 

He added, “Not everyone understands, not everyone is aware. Even when I have services in place, it’s not always the easiest path to take. Sometimes, appointments get missed, services get cut. I can go on and on, but I just hope this opens the door for these conversations on a bigger platform where we can even advocate for our folks with a disability to have a voice.

 

Of Kyle, Royer said, “He and I walk similar paths: father, child with a disability, live in the Bronx, 62 of 62 [The Bronx ranks 62 out of 62 New York counties on a health index.], the list goes on. We hope, and I’ve been asking if we can do it again next year. I hope that’s a yes across the board.” Asked if he wanted to share his child’s name, Royer said he would say “Angel” for social media purposes as he didn’t want to share his real name.

 

We later asked the McCleans if there was one policy change or effort that could be made to help those with autism, what would it be. Kyle replied, “Inclusion, inclusion, like to invite our kids, you know?” Liza added, “Make them feel welcome, you know? Like they’re part of us.”

 

A few short videos of the event can be seen here, here, and here.