Meet Julia, Sesame Street's First Autistic Puppet Jenny Anderson - Quartz
go to original March 21, 2017

Julia is Sesame Street's newest muppet with autism (Hindustan Times)

On April 10, Sesame Street will introduce Julia, a puppet with autism, to its viewers around the world.

While Julia was introduced online in 2016 and has appeared in books, she will now join the cast of the wildly popular educational puppet show, along with Elmo, Big Bird and Grover, in an effort to show kids and their parents what autism looks like and how to support autistic people.

Autism awareness and advocacy groups are cheering Julia’s addition. “We think it’s a terrific next step for Sesame Street,” said Lisa Goring, chief program and marketing officer at Autism Speaks, a US advocacy organization.

One in 68 children in the US has autism, according to the US Centers for Disease Control, up 30% from 2012 estimates. Since it is a spectrum disorder, Goring says, no two cases of autism look exactly the same. The disorder can affect communication and social interactions, and can be characterized by repetitive behaviors or intense interests.

Julia showcases some of these tendencies. When she meets Big Bird, she ignores him. Elmo helpfully explains that since Julia has autism, “sometimes it takes her a little longer to do things.” When the groups plays a game of tag, Julia flaps her arms. Rather than make fun of her or be scared by her unusual reaction, the kids make it part of the game.

Sesame Street worked with 250 autism organizations and experts, including Autism Speaks, as well as its own regular child psychologists to develop Julia. The character made her debut on a clip on 60 Minutes, a news magazine show on CBS News.

Julia’s puppeteer, Stacey Gordon, has an autistic son, and explained how important it is for kids with the disorder to see themselves reflected in popular culture - and for their peers to see it.

Read the rest at Quartz

We invite you to add your charity or supporting organizations' news stories and coming events to PVAngels so we can share them with the world. Do it now!