Multicultural Initiatives

In the past three years, the Autism Society of Minnesota (AuSM) has been awarded three simultaneous grants on behalf of the state Department of Human Services to create and expand resources and community building amongst Minnesota’s many culturally specific communities. The success of this work is predicated on first, AuSM’s increasing wealth of strong and meaningful partnerships, and second, that the work itself is responsive to specific community drive, context, real relationships and stories.

All cultural groups in Minnesota are a part of our statewide autism identity, and expanding our partnerships and programs in 2024 has afforded AuSM the continued opportunity to better learn and integrate the needs of specific cultural perspectives along with every other facet of uniqueness held by our community members. Each of the following partners have contributed to exciting expansion of programs in 2024, and continue to inform AuSM’s advocacy for a culturally responsive service landscape in Minnesota.

AuSM is excited to share new resources created as part of our Family to Family Grant. These resources are designed to meet the diverse needs of families in our community, providing culturally relevant, multilingual support for those navigating an autism diagnosis.

As part of this initiative, we’ve developed a growing collection of one-pagers and guides to empower families with practical knowledge and tools. These resources are particularly helpful for those who are:

• New to an autism diagnosis.
• Looking for guidance on navigating services and providers.
• Facing persistent barriers to accessing support.

Here are some of the resources currently available:

• What Is Autism
• Autism Myths and Facts
• What Is Neurodiversity?
• What is a Disability?
• Medical Diagnosis vs. Educational Identification
• Autism Providers and What They Do
• Finding the Right Provider for You
• Autism and Elopement
• Autistic Children Are Different Not Less: Managing Stigma as a Parent of an Autistic Child

Building a Community of Support

In addition to these written resources, we’re working with our partners to create videos and informational guides in multiple languages. These tools will address key topics to help families feel confident and informed as they support their autistic loved ones.

We invite you to explore these resources and check back regularly for updates as we make translations and create short videos to support all communities.

📖 Visit AuSM’s Family to Family Grant Resources Page to learn more and download the materials.

The mission of the Autism Society of Minnesota (AuSM) is to enhance the lives of individuals and families affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder. AuSM serves Minnesotans, throughout their lives, with a fundamental commitment to advocacy, education, support, collaboration, and community building.

New to partnership with AuSM in 2024, we have learned that Centro already provides a multitude of wrap around resources for Latine and Spanish-speaking families in Minnesota. Centro is working to build autism awareness and community connectivity into their existing program themes, including early education, maternal and child heath, wise elders, and teen programs. Centro is one of two new groups focused on Latine identity, with another to be announced in 2025.

Centro is developing a support group for Latine parents of autistic children. Please contact them if you or your family are interested and would like to be notified of upcoming sessions.

Email: infocenter@centromn.org. Phone: 612.874.1412.

Coined in support of the Somali community’s emerging translation for “autism”, Maangaar rounds out AuSM’s work in Somali-focused partnerships in 2024. Maangaar provides parent education and connection for families of all ages, with a pronounced focus on acceptance and compassion for multiply marginalized families. Maangaar has hosted a number of community conversations, some accessible and intimate, and others large and integrated with many of Minnesota’s mainstream stakeholders, who continue to reach out to our collaborative for feedback and leadership. Maangaar Global is hosting a support group for Somali parents that will provide a space to build community and an opportunity to connect with other parents of autistic children, which meets Tuesday and Thursday evenings. If you are interested, please contact us and we will add you to the groupchat for parents where we post the link for the meeting and any announcements.

Email: a.musa@maangaarglobal.org. Phone: 469.995.4424.

MAAN diligently focuses on direct service navigation amongst many cultural communities, with a pronounced affinity for service to immigrants factions, such as Somali, Oromo, and other African and Caribbean American communities. In addition to hosting our second annual Multicultural Family Camp with Camp Knutson this year, MAAN and AuSM continue to partner on legislative, educational, health and social service initiatives, with special attention to mutual inclusion of parent and autistic voices in the development and delivery of program.

SEWA, translated as “to serve” in Hindi, is a Minnesota organization focused on support for the unmet needs of the Indian diaspora and South Asian immigrant and refugee communities. SEWA has a long recognized stance on neurodiversity affirmation, and has been generating new community building opportunities alongside its many other programs that promote Total Family Wellness. SEWA and AuSM are working on building resources to be released in Hindi, Urdu, and Gujarati languages, addressing autism identity and support strategies that also address community stigma. SEWA is hosting a support group for South Asian parents of autistic children. This group meets every third Saturday of the month from 3-5 p.m. at 6645 James Ave N, Brooklyn Center, MN 55430. If you have questions, please contact SEWA.

Email: Ratna@sewa-aifw.org. Phone: 763.205.9873.

In addition to service navigation for Somali families, SPAN is well known for leveraging their broader Somali community connections to leverage anti-stigma work across multiple venues. With ties to popular community mosques, businesses, and immigrant advocacy groups, SPAN adds multiple dimensions of mission advancement, as well as Greater Minnesota reach in other growing Somali locales around the state: Rochester, Wilmar, and St. Cloud to name a few. SPAN provides a virtual support group for Somali Parents and caretakers of children with autism. For additional information, contact SPAN and request to be added to their Whatsapp page.

Phone: 763.657.0049.

Upcoming Support Group Dates:

01/10/25: 7-8:30 pm CDT

02/14/25: 7-8:30 pm CDT

03/14/25: 7-8:30 pm CDT

04/11/25: 7-8:30 pm CDT

05/09/25: 7-8:30 pm CDT

06/13/25: 7-8:30 pm CDT

07/11/25: 7-8:30 pm CDT

Click here to join the Zoom meeting for support groups.