The Special Olympics World Games opened with a star-filled extravaganza at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Saturday, but beyond the A-list musical performances, inspiring speeches from the likes of Michelle Obama and glittering fireworks display are countless stories of struggle against the odds.

Over 7,000 athletes with intellectual disabilities from 165 countries compete in 25 events. Read more.

                                                     Team USA!

Figures from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggest that autism prevalence has increased from 1 in 5,000 in 1975 to 1 in 150 in 2002 to 1 in 68 in 2012. These increases have previously been attributed to there being a greater awareness of autism these days, combined with a broadening of diagnostic criteria.

However, the new study finds that much of the increase in prevalence may be due individuals with related neurological disorders being reclassified, rather than an increase in the rate of new autism cases. Read more.

With California’s fire season coming in early this year and fires close at hand in Lake County, we are reminded again that being prepared is critical. Many resources are available, including how to prepare a ‘go-kit’ and what to do and who to contact if you are threatened. Collaborating Agencies Responding to Disasters (CARD) is a local non-profit that has tools and resources available, and don’t forget DDS’ Consumer Corner for emergency preparedness materials and information.

Change.org has received a petition from a family whose daughter Jocelynn that has Autism is being kicked out of her accelerated math program in the Freehold Township School District in New Jersey. Yes, it is true that children with Autism are a bit different to teach, but that, in no uncertain terms, means that they cannot handle an accelerated program. Sometimes these children are much too intelligent for their own good. Read more.

Most people have the luxury of not having to think about the complex motor skills required to put on and tie their shoes in the morning. But for people with disabilities that impair their hands, including those with cerebral palsy or who have suffered strokes, that task can pose major challenges. Read more.

Welcoming Special Olympics athletes to a special ceremony Monday at the state Capitol, Gov. Jerry Brown called the competition “one of the ways that people of profound differences can find their common humanity.”
We know how Brown, a former Jesuit seminarian, can give substance to that soaring rhetoric about common humanity: He can grant the immediate 10 percent funding hike for developmental services for which the Lanterman Coalition, a bipartisan majority of members of the state Legislature, and this editorial board have been arguing these past several months. Read more.

A group of employees at the Fairview Developmental Center in Costa Mesa has sued, claiming the state-run facility enforces a discriminatory policy that bars workers from speaking Spanish at any time during the workday.

 Six plaintiffs, who are food service and custodial workers, allege they risk being disciplined or fired if they speak their native language even if they’re only talking to other employees.  “The policy prohibits all use of Spanish during working hours, including meal periods and rest periods,” according to the lawsuit filed in Orange County Superior Court on June 18. Read more.