Merry Christmas!
It is that time of year again where I share and reflect on the events of the past year and provide some hints as to what the new year may bring for Bryce Pace – Autism Advocate.
2022 was the beginning of a new era for so many. The world began to open up as we learnt how to live with the ongoing Covid 19 pandemic, Australia elected a new government and Elon Musk bought Twitter. This, however is only a handful of the many significant events that we experienced this year.
This year also marked the beginning of a new era for the UK and the Commonwealth, as Queen Elizabeth passed away just two months after she celebrated her Platinum Jubilee. Queen Elizabeth II was the longest reigning British Monarch in history, however for many around the world she was simply known as ‘The Queen’. I believe the queen will be remembered for her dedication to her work and maybe also for her subtle humour she showed at times. The James Bond skit she performed in has become iconic however I think my favourite moment was her tea party with Paddington Bear. With her passing we now see the closing of the New Elizabethan Age and the beginning of the New Carolean Era as her son King Charles III attempts to fill her formable shoes.
In 2022 we also saw on our screens for the first time a new character by the name of Quinni in the reboot of Heartbreak High. For many this is the first time they have ever seen someone like themselves on television. Quinni is an autistic student at Hartley High who unfortunately finds herself along with a group of her peers in a sex education class after an incident at school. As the story progresses we begin to see why Quinni is such an important character for the autism community. Not only is Quinni one of the very few female autistic characters portrayed on tv she also happens to have a girlfriend. This makes Quinni the second openly autistic LGBTQIA+ character I have personally ever seen on television as most shows choose to avoid the topic of autism and sexuality leading to many misconceptions. Quinni is also an important character as she was played by Chloe Hayden who is proudly autistic herself and her own experiences have helped to mould how Quinni is portrayed as a proud young autistic. For this portrayal Chloe recently won an AACTA award which recognised the significance of her work. For many years autism has been portrayed on our screens as something to feel sorry about or as an inspirational story, where the character struggles with everyday life and never gets the girl/guy. Characters like Quinni dispel this myth as they show the reality of autism. They show people on the spectrum that it is ok to be autistic and that they are not alone. Quinni I hope is the beginning of a new era of television. An era where autism is portrayed accurately and in consultation with the community.
2022 also marked the beginning of a new era for Bryce Pace – Autism Advocate as we began to reconnect with the community after a difficult couple of years. I had the opportunity to be part of a variety of projects around accessible employment, accessible healthcare, accessible tourism and neurodiversity, however I believe the most significant part of this year ended up being much more personal and closer to home. I think I will always remember 2022 as being the year I publicly came out as bisexual. In October I published a blog post on autism and sexuality which talked about my journey to discovering and accepting my sexual orientation. Since accepting my bisexuality earlier in the year I wanted to tell my story in the hope it would be seen by others on a similar journey. I wanted it to be a source of reassurance that they are not alone in this experience and that this journey isn’t always an easy one. This blog post was a result of many months of work and I have been touched by the overwhelmingly positive responses I have received. This was a big moment for myself and also for Bryce Pace – Autism Advocate as it marked the beginning of our work in the neurodivergent LGBTQIA+ space. Since publishing this post we now offer a LGBTQIA+ section on the resources page of our website which features a variety of supports in addition to two of our own resources. One of these resources explains what the LGBTQIA+ acronym stands for and the other talks about attraction, what it is and how it can help us understand our sexuality. These resources are designed to be used as a guide for autistics who find themselves questioning their own sexuality and/or gender identity and I look forward to seeing the impact these resources have. I also look forward to sharing with you all where our work in this area leads us in the coming years.
As another year draws to a close it is time to reflect and look forward to what the year ahead may bring. Just like the last few Christmases we here at Bryce Pace – Autism Advocate would like you all to think of those who are finding this time of year tough. There are those who have lost their jobs or loved ones. If you know a neighbour, friend or co-worker who for the first time finds themselves spending Christmas alone, or if you know of a family who is struggling to budget in gifts or even Christmas lunch we encourage you to let them know you are thinking of them and to maybe assist in whatever manner you are able to so that everyone is remembered this festive season. It is also important to spend time with your family whether that be in person, by phone or video chat; to have fun and don’t forget to tell some bad Christmas cracker jokes.
Let’s reflect on the year we have had and look forward to what 2023 may bring.
With that in mind from those of us here at Bryce Pace – Autism Advocate, we would like to wish you all a merry Christmas and a happy and safe new year.
Bryce Pace
Autism Advocate, Consultant, Speaker
