Autism Delaware

Recently it has come to our attention that the Delaware State Fair has promoted their carnival on Tuesday, July 23, 2024 as being sensory friendly and in partnership with Autism Delaware. These statements were made public by the Fair without advance consultation with, or approval from, Autism Delaware. Further, the Fair has included Autism Delaware as a resource on their FAQ page, offering for families to contact us with questions, something we were never asked to do nor have we agreed to assist with. Upon learning of this, our staff visited the fairgrounds in a good-faith effort to assist them in providing Delaware families with a safe, inclusive environment. After our visit, it is clear to us that the Fair is not properly equipped to provide a safe experience for those with autism. The only sensory friendly space offered by the Fair is on the opposite end of the fairgrounds from the carnival. Families attending the carnival will need to leave the area and walk 10 minutes through the rest of the fair, including needing to pass a soundstage that will be in operation during the sensory friendly hours, but with sound at normal levels. Upon reaching the ADA-compliant bathroom building, families are being offered two rooms designed for nursing mothers, each with only one chair inside. We feel strongly that this is space is both wholly inadequate and also too far from the carnival to offer any relief to a family in crisis. As the leading nonprofit in Delaware serving families affected by autism, we feel strongly that it is our duty to provide honest advice to the community. With that in mind, we would like it to be clear that we are not in support of the Fair’s claim to be sensory friendly and do not recommend our families, or any others whose members have autism, attend until significant improvements are made. While we always welcome and encourage members of the public to contact us in advance when planning events so that we may offer our assistance as we strive to make our state a more inclusive place, we find it highly discouraging that, in this case, our name was used without our permission in more than one instance. More importantly, though, we are saddened knowing that families needing additional supports may attend this event because of misleading information and may not find what they expected or need. As always, our number one priority is the families in this state. If anyone has questions or concerns, please contact a member of our staff. https://lnkd.in/edX-7sUY #DelawareStateFair #NetDE #AutismDelaware #PressRelease

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