Autism, Power, and the Women Who Were Never Heard, with Jennifer David

I’m deep in my own origin story right now, so this conversation with Jennifer David landed hard. Jennifer is a board-certified behavior analyst, an autistic woman, and an advocate who understands—intimately—the cost of being the one who speaks up. We talk genealogy, identity, and the uncomfortable truth that autism didn’t suddenly appear in the modern era. It’s always been here. We just didn’t have language for it—and we especially didn’t listen to women.Jennifer shares a powerful family history that stretches from the Mayflower to the Mohawk Nation to the expansion of Mormonism, tracing how matriarchal strength, silence, adoption, and survival shaped generations of neurodivergent lives. What happens when women are expected to endure quietly? When caregiving becomes identity? When emotional labor is inherited instead of chosen?We get blunt about politics. Autistic people are constantly talked about, studied, and debated—but rarely represented. How do we keep having national conversations about autism without autistic voices in the room? Jennifer breaks down why running for office, or even remaining in advocacy spaces, can be physically and emotionally draining for neurodivergent people—and why advice like “just open your heart” can be actively dangerous.We also speak about a missing autistic child during this episode, Robert "RJ" Williams Jr. Since recording, we’ve learned that he was tragically found deceased. My heart is heavy for his family and for every family that knows this fear too well. I want to be clear that this conversation was recorded before those developments, and I share this with deep care and sorrow.If anything, this loss makes the conversation even more urgent. Water safety education, early intervention, and effective emergency response protocols are not optional—they save lives. And this isn’t only an autism issue. Children in disadvantaged and marginalized communities face disproportionate risk when systems fail, resources are limited, and responses are delayed. Awareness, education, and community-based safety efforts matter—for all our kids.So I’ll ask it plainly: who gets to speak for us, and why do we keep accepting anything less than our own voices?Find more info on Jennifer David here:Outward Bound Support ServicesTo read the official statement from Capt. William Carter about Robert "RJ" Williams Jr., click hereContact Tabitha:[email protected]