Autism Speaks Inc

You organization openly ignores behavior that displays trauma and funds a facility that shocks us. I hope you're tried in the Hague.

You organization openly ignores behavior that displays trauma and funds a facility that shocks us. I hope you're tried in the Hague.

There is so much contrasting information out there and I never know what to believe. I love how Autism Speaks provides documentation and sources their information. It gives me comfort knowing that the information I am getting is well-vetted. It makes me feel better about my decisions. Being a caregiver can be difficult enough when trying to make sure you make the right choices - I feel far more confident now.

I’m always impressed by the high quality resources Autism Speaks offers & how they are funding and advocating for more research in to autism & the community’s needs. I have no qualms about donating to them.

Working at Autism Speaks is incredibly fulfilling because we truly live our commitment to inclusion by employing autistic people, parents, other caregivers, and allies. Just like in any other workplace, we talk with our colleagues about everyday things—vacations, graduations, aspirations, dating. But here, I also get to hear firsthand what those experiences are like for my autistic colleagues, for those raising non-verbal autistic children, and for colleagues who are still navigating how to talk about their autism openly. I’m inspired by those who have courageously shared their diagnosis despite facing bullying. This close connection to the diverse experiences within our community makes my work feel real and deeply meaningful. It’s what makes Autism Speaks a place I’m truly proud to be part of.

Autism Speaks does great work in the autistic community. Its Autism Response Team is a fabulous resource to answer questions and connect people with local services and resources. The organization's work is also expanding to support older autistic adults, which is wonderful to see. There are so many unmet needs in this community, and Autism Speaks is doing its best to meet those needs.

I've worked for some amazing companies, but I'm genuinely proud of the work I get to do as a member of the Autism Speaks team. Our mission to create a more inclusive world is exemplified by the resources we offer to support autistic individuals at every stage of life, the workplace programs we've developed to prioritize diversity, and the passion of the truly kind human beings I work with on a daily basis!

What I see is an organization that cares about the entire autistic and autism community. The organization is filled with passionate, committed folks that are addressing real issues and consistently moving the needle for critical results. I have seen them at work on the Hill and know that their voice is respected and matters. They are able to get the attention of our legislators who are deciding where funds go and ensuring that the autistic community is not forgotten. This is huge and deserves our appreciation

I learned about Autism Speaks in college and started attending the Walks. Since then I have worked for Autism Speaks and volunteered at Walk events. I love being a part of the community and helping share resources for people in need. Such a great organization!

Amazing organization. Thank you for all you do and have done for the Autism Community.

Autism Speaks is an organization with the sole mission of advocating for families that have loved ones with autism. Their advocacy efforts have been crucial for families accessing critical services and support.

Autism Speaks advocates tirelessly, on so many levels, to keep federal funding and support for our families and caregivers. Their Autism Response Team is also the quickest way to experience what true personalized support really means. Know that this is a safe space for you no matter who you are in the community.

Autism Speaks is doing incredible work for those on the spectrum and has made enormous efforts to expand its library of resource for autistic adults and young adults, starting with its Adult Autism Diagnosis Tool Kit, written by autistic adults for autistic adults. Its Workplace Inclusion Now program is also making strides towards increasing the employment rate of those with disabilities, including autism. Employers, like them, committed to promoting diversity in hiring and creating an inclusive workplace, can enroll in training to accept and welcome those with autism and related conditions into the workplace, and open themselves up to a pool of skilled, willing and diverse workforce.

Autism Speaks is always there to support autistic people and those who love and support them.

Autism Speaks is committed to creating an inclusive world for all individuals with autism throughout their lifespan. They truly have a passion for creating a world where all people on the spectrum can reach their full potential.

The employees work tirelessly to provide crucial autism research, advocacy, services, and support to help individuals with autism thrive.

The passion and expertise of their team members are truly inspiring. Many employees have personal connections to autism, whether through their own experiences or those of loved ones. This firsthand understanding shines through in their commitment to making a difference.

Autism Speaks is the epitome of compassion and dedication.

Autism Speaks is an amazing organization that has so many free resources for the community. They have autistic employees, volunteers, and board members all working together to create a more inclusive world where everyone can reach their full potential.

Autism speaks is full of blood sacrifices. They are controlling my body. And trying to sacrifice me on the streets. They call my family for a Nastagia Breana Guice, and telling them that they are going to lock them up if they do anything for me. I feel closed in. Without the ability to control my life. I am being hacked, and I suffer from severe autism. And yevette stewart from the news, that stated they she is a serial killer, is after me, and they helping her. They are trying to kill me.

I appreciate an organization that evolves its mission to meet the needs of the community and trusts science and evidence-based, best practice to guide decisions - which is exactly what Autism Speaks has done. As someone in the policy field, I have heard firsthand how trusted the organization is for "reputable and actionable information". At their events in DC, they have some of the most passionate and authentic volunteers (including self-advocates) who join them in sharing their lived experience and advocating for change. Because of the work they've done within advocacy in particular, billions of dollars are invested every year into federal and state government programs that are essential supports for people with autism and their families. Their leadership in autism insurance reform in all 50 states is a legacy in itself ensuring access to medical care is available and affordable for families. This type of impact goes well beyond what any charity can simply fundraise and give back in grants. Its this type of long-lasting and widespread impact that I want to see in a nonprofit that I support, and I'm grateful for their leadership and partnership.

It is dismaying to see so many reviews on here that simply repeat false information about the organization. To address a couple prominent ones - I personally know and have worked with many of their autistic employees, who are employed at all levels and in different roles within the organization. The level of volunteer engagement with people across the spectrum and their increasing attention to incorporating ongoing community feedback in their planning is valued. You can review public financial reports to see that they invest their donations, well above Better Business Bureau, standards and in ways that directly impact families. They have been very transparent (specifically in recent years) about where they misstepped in the early years of the organization when it comes to ad approaches, but if you look at what they have done since then and are doing right now - you will find real autistic voices sharing their own stories of strengths and success as well as challenges and remaining hopes. They give an inclusive platform for all voices and stories to be showcased so that no one on the autism spectrum is left behind.

I always get a bad feeling with Autism Speaks people. The active parents seem to really sabotage their kids in a nice passive aggressive way. I don't have autism and I do have a special needs kids, but I really don't like the way they go about things. Just because you have a kid with autism doesn't mean that your life is over and life is terrible. All these parents come off a narcissistic victims to me. They are too obsessed over their identity of being parents of autistic kids. They seem to have plenty of free time and money to complain and support this organization- so I don't think their lives are really that ruined.

Autism $peaks is dog sh!t
Bad bad bad bad bad bad bad bad

Autism in fact does speak, and AutismSpeaks does not listen.

I am an autistic person, and I can tell you this organization is demonic and horrible. They are fear mongering eugenists, who actively ingore autistic voices and treat us like a disease.
They rarely offer any actual help and just give families a list of facilities, and for years they partnered with, and recommend a place that tortured disabled children (Judge Rottenberg Center).
Instead of teaching parents how to accommodate to the child, they try to "cure" us and make us "normal."
They are a filthy rich organization who fear monger and show autistic children at their worst in order to line their pockets all while providing very little funding to families.

Please do not donate to this charity. So many organizations use Autism as a way of acquiring personal wealth and power instead of helping actual people with autism who are in need. I am a single father of a 17 year old son who is severely autistic and non-verbal. With all of these so-called support charities for autism, my son is yet to be offered any help. The only person/organization that ever gave my son anything was Jenny McCarthy. Her organization sent some vitamins and supplements which were greatly appreciated. I'm tired of so many organizations/charities using Autism as a cause to raise money and not being accountable to where the money is actually going. Once, we were offered a communication device supposedly worth $5,000, two ladies were fighting over the commision. The device was so slow that my son, being severely autistic, didn't have patience to use it. I bought a super fast device for a $100 instead. I don't mean to be negative, but we as a community have to hold these organizations accountable.

Our son has severe autism and requires almost round the clock care. I reached out to AS hoping to have someone counsel us and at least layout a game plan for us to follow, nope, they just send me a email with a collection of links. 90% of the stuff they sent Logan doesnt even qualify for because its up to 3 years old only and even if he did, we would have to pay for it. So why are people donating to these guys? To me, Autism Speaks is one of the greatest scams from a full line of other scams taking advantage of chronic ailments to get donations/money from people with good hearts and intentions. They should be ashamed of themselves and I would advise not to ever donate money to them. Do research on other groups if you really want to help.

After reading reviews on Autism Speaks, I have decided to look elsewhere to help fund services for those who have been impacted by Autism. After doing a good amount of research, I found the Chicago Autism Project. Yes, they are focused in Chicago and work through partner organizations to fund Diagnostic Evaluations and ABA Therapy.

if i could rate this company zero stars i would. this company treats autism like a diese. and they want to find a cure so bad! please do not donate.

I selected this charity on Facebook because of my daughter who is 16 with autism and passed away June 2nd if I would have known what I know now about this organization and there lack of help they would not have seen one dime of my money you should be ashamed profiting from others how about getting a JOB

If I could give zero stars, I would! Autism Speaks is a hate group that seeks to eradicate me and people like me, instead of promoting acceptance. How would you feel if there was an organization out there that's sole purpose was to eradicate the very thing that makes you who you are? They ignore and silence the voices of the very people they claim to be all about. In their eyes, we are not people, we are a pandemic. We are not worthy of acceptance and tolerance. We do not deserve to walk among you. We are less than human. We are a disease - a filth that must be scrubbed away, lest we pollute the population. Yes, by all means, support this group. Keep sending us the message that we don't deserve to be.

Somehow my autistic son was drawn into asking people to donate to this charity in honour of his birthday - in itself a noble and admirable act. They must have got to him on Facebook which is where he spends a lot of his time. He had already raised 159 pounds before I realised what had happened. I asked him why he chose this charity and he said he didn't realise that there was more than one Autism charity. I am disgusted at their blatant exploitation of his diagnosis as he self-declared as on the spectrum in his profile. If he had known what they stand for he would never have chosen them. A big thumbs down.

We went to one of their events last month and it was not what a parent of a child with autism would expect. I get the feeling that volunteers are there to only raise money and have no clue what life is like for an individual with autism. It was loud and chaotic. So sad.

Horrified how they speak about those they are suppose to support and love. Would NEVER recommend.

Please do not give money to this organization. Consider the National Autism Society instead. Autism Speaks has a long history of using scare tactics to raise money, which stigmatizes autistic children and adults. With only 3% of their money going to help actual autistics, and C-Level management making six figure salaries, more money is spent on jet fuel than for people with autism. I am an autistic adult and I have been hurt by A$ very badly, as have almost every other autistic adult I know. They are spending lots of money on research for a "cure" which can only be found through gene "therapy" (eugenics). We have a different brain structure. We can't be "cured" any more than a person born with profound low intelligence can be cured. We need support and help to live well with our condition- to work and to have good relationships. We can't do that when the main messages we and others hear about us are negative. We don't have the confidence. A$ thinks so negatively about us that they don't even consult autistics or have us on board positions. The only one they did quit because he was so frustrated that they were not listening to him! How dare they speak for us! And don't say only the "high functioning" ones of us are complaining and not the nonverbal children considered severe that parents are raising now. Many nonverbal autistics are brilliant and have shown so through the use of augmented technology used today. Please, for the sake of our future, do not support Autism Speaks.

I hope that the negative reviews I am reading here are false!!!!.... I missed reading these before I signed up to help raise money for your non profit organization, in honor of my birthday. I am very close to ending my fundraiser a week early.... I hope my further reasearch proves these negative reviews wrong for the sake of everyone involved. I began this fundraiser for Autism Speaks to help those with Autism have a voice and spread awareness!!!
(And I'm rating 3 stars simply because the comment box mandates the reviewer to choose a rating before being able to submit a review, so I'm.trying to keep it fair until I come to a final.decision on this organization)

If I could give this "charity" zero stars I would. This organization is a hate group, plain and simple. They use dehumanizing language to describe autistic people, are inappropriate in their handling of funds, and silence autistic voices. Please consider other organizations before you donate.

Northwest Insurance Brokers is proud to team up with Mutual of Enumclaw Insurance Company and donate to the Autism Speaks Inc. I personally want to say this is close to my heart with my niece having 3 boys with some form of Autism. So Amie this is in your behalf and your family.

If I could rate AS with zero stars, I would. AS is generally hated by individuals with Autism as they ignore the voice of the very individuals they profess to speak for. The AS walks raise thousands of dollars in communities yet fail to return the funds to the very people who need it the most. Their executives make obscene salaries for a non-profit and not a single individual with Autism is on their board. Money donated will NOT benefit those with Autism nor will it benefit the families. This organization is a sham! Donate your hard earned money to ANYONE else!

This "nonprofit" spreads highly dangerous propaganda heavily prejudiced against autistic people. "Autism Speaks" is run by nigh-exclusively non-autistic people, and pushes an abusive and harmful "cure"-centric agenda, whereas the overwhelming majority of autistic people believe that a "cure" would amount to abusively removing the personalities of autistic people, or committing genocide with ableist motives. Very little money or effort is spent by these people trying to sincerely improve the lives of autistic people, and the organization still continues to spread unwarranted fear, hatred, and falsehoods of autism, and therefore, autistic people.

This group advocates for the eugenics of autistic people, tries to scare parents of autistic children through its ads, does not actually let autistic people speak as there are no autistic people on its board, and contributes very little of its donations to improving the lives of autistic children, teens, and adults.

Autism Speaks ignores autistic voices and exploits autistic people for personal gain. They do not care about the very people they claim to support and don't even have any autistic people on staff who can see them for what they really are. Autism Speaks hurts the autistic community through lies, exploitation and ultimately eugenics.

I wish I could give this "charity" zero stars! Autism Speaks is a hate group that uses almost all of its resources making money for themselves and supporting the dehumanization and torture (according to the UN) of Autistic people. People talk about the 4% statistic all the time to show that AS does not do enough for the community. I'd argue even less than that, since their idea of "support" includes supporting abusive "therapies" like ABA and organizations like the Judge Rotenburg Center that have been condemned by the UN multiple times. The recent appointment of 2 Autistic board members is one tiny step in the right direction, but it doesn't really change anything. They don't care and they don't listen (ironic, considering their slogan).
If you really want to help, please donate or volunteer for good Autism charities that fight ableism and dehumanization, such as the Autistic Self Advocacy Network or Autistic Women's Network.

This organization (it isn't really a charity) spends more time--and money!-- fearmongering than anything else. In addition, they advocate for the wiping out of an entire subset of people--those of us with autism.

I resigned from my position with Autism Speaks because of there lack of ethics. I have a brother with Autism and had high hopes of making a difference for him and other like him. I was sickened to find out that the attitude toward family members is just the opposite. Maybe because we see their greed. I remember when there were parents leading the organization but now the leaders in NY only care about the money to pay the salaries of their unqualified friends hired at the top to replace those undervalued parents. They don't want family on staff and they make that clear! Very disappointing! I would not give them a cent

I had to come here to review Autism $peaks again because the cowards disabled their rating on Facebook when Autistic people spoke out about how dissatisfied they are with this so called "organization" who calls us broken and burdens. Autism $peaks does nothing but spread lies and silence autistics. We have had enough and WON'T be silenced any longer!!

Autism Speaks does not speak for me! I have autism and can speak for myself. All Autism Speaks has done is dehumanize me and others with my condition (presenting us as burdens or as a "reverse lottery ticket"), and use its money and clout to crowd out and silence autistic charity organizations that are actually staffed by and supported by those with autism. If you really want to help those with Autism, start by boycotting Autism Speaks!

AS came into my area and raised close to 2M but only gave $36,000 back to the community. Give your money to TACA (Talk About Curing Autism). 95% of TACA's programs are FREE!

I once went to an AS rally/fundraiser. What I saw was a huge echo-filled building full of bouncing noise, including a rock band at the center. And a LOT of crying distressed autistic children. It's a social/sensory disability!!! How insensitive of the organizers. I was totally turned off by a charity that has zero consideration for the kids it serves, calls them horrible burdens (in their presence!) Not to mention they still hint, against tons of solid scientific proof, that vaccines cause autism,

Fear mongering, dehumanization, eugenics, NO autistic people in leadership positions.
They endorse treatments that are considered torture (according to the UN).
They fund bad science.

If you donate $100 to this organization, only about $3 of that will actually go towards helping Autistics and our families. I urge you to personally research ANY "nonprofit" before lending your time or your money.

This organization does not deserve its nonprofit status! It is nothing short of a hate group spreading fear and lies about autistic people. I think it says a lot about an organization focused on autism, that they do not have a single autistic person serving in a leadership position. Add to that the fact that only 4% of their budget goes to supporting autistic people and you have an organization that is not worthy of anyone's money.

AWFUL nonprofits. Autism Speaks mostly funds its own salaries, makes a big deal out of how awful autism is. The people it is supposed to "help" are rejecting it and a boycott is underway. Panera Bread, Autism Parenting Magazine, and many individuals are joining in the boycott. Autism Speaks has, since its start, refused to have Autistic people in leadership or decisionmaking positions. Its one "token" Autistic member quit this year in disgust. They also try to influence national planning about autism without consulting the people whom they say they want to "help." They make Autistic people feel bad about ourselves on a regular basis. I felt quite frightened to even let anyone know I was Autistic after I read their site when I first got a diagnosis. Here is some of what they say about us: "http://autisticadvocacy.org/2009/09/horrific-autism-speaks-i-am-autism-ad-transcript/ " I am autism.
I’m visible in your children, but if I can help it, I am invisible to you until it’s too late.
I know where you live.
And guess what? I live there too.
I hover around all of you.
I know no color barrier, no religion, no morality, no currency.
I speak your language fluently.
And with every voice I take away, I acquire yet another language.
I work very quickly.
I work faster than pediatric aids, cancer, and diabetes combined
And if you’re happily married, I will make sure that your marriage fails.
Your money will fall into my hands, and I will bankrupt you for my own self-gain.
I don’t sleep, so I make sure you don’t either.

Autism Speaks is the only organization that claims to help a group of people and yet calls them "tragedies" and "burdens". Autism Speaks says Autistics make their families' lives miserable. Autism Speaks does not have ANY Autistic in their Board of Directors. Autism Speaks lies in their website and uses only 4% of their budget in services for families - most families are DENIED services. Autism Speaks uses a lot of money trying to find ways to prevent Autistics from even being born (eugenics). Autism Speaks paired up with the Judge Rotenberg Center, an "school" that used electric shocks on its students, and this is torture.

As the parent of a child on the spectrum, I have been consistently dismayed - and increasingly outraged - by the continual fearmongering that is central to the communications strategy of Autism Speaks. This week, again, I was shocked to read statements on their website (by founder Suzanne Wright) that autistic children are "missing" children and that families with kids on the spectrum are "not living." The idea that this organizations somehow represents autistic people is built into their very name, and it is shameful that they have not recognized that they way they frame autism only perpetuates and perhaps even magnifies fear and stigma that ultimately functions to marginalize people like my son.

This organization continually ignores autistic people, despite their efforts to contact the organization and petition against it. The Autism Self Advocacy Network (ASAN), made up entirely of autistic people, is strongly against this organization.
I put below that this organization has no impact because they have no positive impact; unfortunately, their negative impact has gotten autistic people killed and murderers excused.

As an autistic person, I have been and continue to be disgusted and offended by Autism Speaks. I don't understand why people continue to support an organization that uses cruel and extreme stereotypes to generate fear and pity of autistic people. If they were a worthwhile charity to donate to, they wouldn't need to resort to such awful tactics to get people to donate to them. They stigmatize and harm the very people they claim to be helping, and they refuse to listen to what autistic people have to say. The way they portray autism, you would think that we are not people, but are monsters, and that is unacceptable. There are decent autism charities out there (ASAN, for example), but Autism Speaks is not one of them.

I know many people with Autism and I donated for support of those with Autism. They do many wonderful things like a walk to raise awareness.

When my grandchildren were first dxed, I walked and donated. The more I learned about the organization, the more disillusioned I became. I no longer donate to this organization since most of its funds are used for research that does not help families at all. Most of the money donated goes to exorbitant administrative salaries and to research on causes that will generally not HELP children at all. Only about 5% of their money helps actual people in the communities where the money is raised. Note that they denied an accommodation to a mom of a special needs child who was hired and then asked if she could work at home one day per week. When they said no, she made other arrangements for her son, but then Autism Speaks withdrew their job offer. It seems to me that working one day a week from home is quite reasonable and not a big hardship on any corporation. Aside from that she made other arrangements and she had already turned down another job. Imo, these people do not listen to anyone as they are arrogant and think they know it all. They don't. I had high hopes that when they appointed Jon Elder Robison to their board, things would change, but they have gotten worse, not better.

As a former volunteer for AS I was extensively involved in their fundraising efforts for 3-4 years. I also left their organization when I saw the salaries paid. In the 2010 fiscal year 16 executives were paid BASE salaries ranging from $122,473 to $387,712! YIKES! It is hard for me to justify supporting such an organization who have deep and extensive ties with BIG PHARMACY. if you research their executives, board members, and research projects there are MANY ties to pharmaceutical companies.

I am the parent of a young adult with Autism. Over the years, we have donated and participated in fundraising and the walks. It saddens me that all that time, effort and money raised are being wasted trying to find a 'culprit' for Autism. How does that benefit that countless number of children and adults with this condition, not to mention their families? I read that an executive in 2009 left the company because of their mission statement. What about supporting and assisting the thousands of individuals in leading the most productive life possible? Statistics prove that individuals with Autism are the least likely of any special disability to achieve employment with less than 30% of the population working. And once your child turns 21, FORGET IT! Services stop and you are left hanging. This organization needs to re-focus its efforts on helping families and individuals in the spectrum and needs new leadership, starting from the chairman and working its way down.

I wish I could give it 0 stars. Horrible, HORRIBLE organization that seeks to erase autism and autistics from the gene pool. That's call EUGENICS. I thought it would be a support group for me and other autistics, but attending one meeting saw myself being treated like an un-person, told I was inferior, that I couldn't eve belong unless I was "fixed", etc. If you are a parent of an autistic, DO NOT GO TO THIS ORGANIZATION. EVER. There are plenty of pro-autistic and pro-neurodiversity organizations that won't treat your child like a burden or a "thing" to be fixed.

An international association that is aligned with our mission to help every individual and family member impacted by autism, with support through resources and information. We are an exhibitor at some of their walks and we have employees who volunteer to walk, in order to help with fund raising. They are also vendors at some of our conferences.

I am personally involved with this organization. I volunteer with other educators and loved ones of those struggling with ASD. Autism Speaks offers free services to newly diagnosed families as well as reaches out to the community to advocate. I personally have handed out the materials and educated several doctor offices, therapists and schools on the free services Autism Speaks offers.

I donated money to Autism Speaks and then read more about their "mission." They claim to seek a cure for autism. I have worked in this field for 15 years + . There is not a possible "cure" for people who already have autism. Their brain parts are different shapes and sizes for starters, and they have too many nerve cells in important areas. There's no cure for that. Therefore, with the millions and millions of $ taken by this organization, it has to be very poorly run if they don't even understand the basics.

They use the cruelly false hope for a cure to get money from families in crisis.

Autism Speaks professes to help people with autism, but in fact it pushes the perception of autistics as helpless upon the public. Very little of the money donated to them actually helps autistic people in any way; instead it is used for research into "curing" autism, which many autistics disapprove of! I have high functioning autism, and I was treated like a child by their representatives, as well as being treated like my "disease" was life-threatening or devastating. It impacts my life, but I would not change my autism if I could. AS simply does not speak for autistics, it speaks for its own agenda.

I am a professional with expertise in the area of autism and a person with autism. • Unlike most disability advocacy groups, Autism Speaks does not include those that they claim to represent at the decision-making level in their national organization or local chapters. • Autism Speaks initiated a national Town Hall Meeting to prioritize the needs of autistic adults.7 The cost to attend this meeting was $100. Despite a few available scholarships, the majority of those who will be affected by these decisions were unable to have a voice. • Autism Speaks spent 28% of the money raised in 20081 on a public awareness campaign on autism that was so negative it caused 60 disability organizations to rise up in protest against it.6 The United Kingdom Autism Speaks organization recently disassociated from the American organization over these videos which Autism Speaks has yet to pull off of YouTube.3 • Note that grants for early intervention programs are not one of Autism Speaks’ priorities, despite research from other organizations that shows how effective it is in changing the course of development in many children with autism • Autism Speaks’ 2009 Annual Report only breaks expenditures down into 68% for Programs & Services, which includes research awareness, family services and government advocacy (shown as 100% in 2008), and 32% for Fundraising & Administration & Surplus (even more than the 21% identified in their tax figures for 2008)]. The top 2 executive salaries in Autism Speaks total over $1 million.1 • The Autistic Self-Advocacy Network has tried to seek a dialogue with Autism Speaks for years! Their response… ”Let’s just agree to disagree.” That is NOT the attitude we need to bring our advocacy groups together to resolve this conflict For more information on the conflict between Autism Speaks and the adult autistic community, please see http://www.meetup.com/ASAN-AZ/files/

The reviewer who gave one star has a right to her opinion but has an agenda and distorts facts. The officer mentioned makes a little over 300K and is the chief science officer. The 990 form clearly states there was a relocation package that year. Autism Speaks' primary mission is to fund research and they do that very well. They also focus on lobbying Government for more research dollars and an act they were behind resulted in hundreds of millions of dollars in autism research. There were maybe 5 studies on autism going on in any year when Autism Speaks' predecessor organizations started and now there are hundreds. There are now over 20 states with insurance laws covering autism when there were none. Due in no small part to Autism Speaks. I am a father of a child with autism too. I could use money for therapy and things like that as all parents could. Autism Speaks is not there to give money to parents for immediate needs. Their primary purpose is funding basic research that will hopefully one day result in therapies. There are other organizations that focus more on families immediate needs.

Worst nonprofit ever. Ridiculously high salaries and very top heavy. Top officer makes almost $700,000. They don't help children with autism -- they only fund research. And only research dealing with genetic components. None of the monies that they collect actually go toward helping families. Of the nearly $66 million they brought in last year, only $26 million went to research. The rest went for salaries and operations expenses. Percent of revenue allocated to salary and expense: 26.98% salaries and 39.01% on operations expense. THESE PEOPLE ARE NOT HELPING AUTISM AT ALL.