Zoom Autism Magazine Issue 3 Spring 2015 | Page 38
ZOOM: On your road to acceptance, what have
you learned about yourself and autism?
JENNIFER: I did a TED style talk last September
at a conference all about ruby red slippers, as in
Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. Basically, what
I say is that what you might think is your most
not, but all will be wearing some sort of ruby red
shoe. A red glittery sandal or a converse sneaker
… doesn’t matter. The girls will be “role models”
not runway models! Isn’t that clever?
Amy Serrano Peterson, an awesome producer/
director who is so HUGE she even has a day in
CLICK THE IMAGE TO VIEW JENNIFER’S RUBY SLIPPERS TALK
troublesome flaw is your greatest strength. It’s
a great speech, if I do say so myself, which I just
did. Like Dorothy, I like to wear red shoes, my
ruby red slippers, to remind me that I don’t need
a wizard to steer me home.
ZOOM: What new and exciting things are on the
horizon for you and Asperkids?
JENNIFER: There are so many exciting things.
Sisterhood of the Spectrum, of course, is being
released April 21. Nordstrom in Raleigh, North
Carolina, my home state, is doing a wonderful
event to celebrate it on April 25. All About the
Shoes is a fashion show for girls ages 12-25. Some
of the models are on the spectrum, and some are
38
Zoom Autism Through Many Lenses
Miami named after her (seriously, it’s October
27!), is making a film on ME! Little ole me! I will
never, ever stop being fandazzled in the amazingness of the brave, brilliant women (and guys)
that the world is bringing into my life. It is all
unbelievable, and I am very grateful.
I’m also working on another book. This one will
not be part of the Asperkids series but instead
will be a memoir-type piece. More to come on
that soon.
Speaking of Asperkids, which I guess I wasn’t
really, but I am now, lots of amazing things are
going on over on our website. One of the things
I am so proud of is that we now are doing what I
call Awesome Kits. Instead of just receiving a di-