Aspies For Freedom

http://www.autisticadvocacy.org/modules/...?itemid=24

Washington, DC - 2/18/08 – The autistic community mourned the loss of Genevieve Edmonds, a UK-based advocate and author on the autism spectrum who committed suicide this past week. Genevieve was a leader in advocating for increased visibility and support for adults on the autism spectrum. She authored four books: The Asperger Social Guide: How to Relate to Anyone in any Social Situation as an Adult with Asperger's Syndrome, The Asperger Personal Guide: Raising Self-Esteem and Making the Most of Yourself as a Adult with Asperger's Syndrome, Asperger Syndrome And Employment: Adults Speak Out About Asperger Syndrome and A Self-Determined Future with Asperger Syndrome. Her work with the ASPECT group at Sheffield Hallam University resulted in numerous strides forward in autistic representation and a comprehensive study on the needs of adults with Asperger's Syndrome in the United Kingdom.

Genevieve will be remembered for her contributions to our community and commitment to improving the lives of individuals on the autism spectrum. Her death is a tragedy and we mourn the loss of one of our own. Those wishing to express their condolensces to the Edmonds family can direct their thoughts to http://www.blackpooltiggers.co.uk/contact.pl

Ari Ne'eman
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network
http://www.autisticadvocacy.org

Alex Plank
Wrong Planet
http://www.wrongplanet.net/

Sorry to hear that ((((((

That's quite depressing. I wonder why she killed herself...

If there's no point in anything, there's no point in killing oneself.

I say that rather than throwing crap like "committing suicide is selfish".

I hope she's happier now wherever she is - she must have been in some pain to make that choice

How very sad.

It's very sad!

A tragedy and very sad.

Even writing all those books didn't seem to help her much in the end...I wonder did she feel she had too much to live up to? Being held up as some kind of paragon of achievement does have this rebound effect for some people. It is a very mixed blessing. Perhaps us "ordinary" people don't face quite as many internal and external pressures to continually achieve great things.

And here is a beautiful video, titled "Genevieve Edmonds' Death Mourned by the Autistic Community":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LVyZD5ClKwM

I must admit that I don't know much about who Genevieve is, but from the video it seems like she was subject to alot of harrasment from cure-aggressive organisations.

Just to add my comments as someone who was very close to Genevieve. Thanks for the kind words. I shan't post another full tribute, since I've already written and spoken a lot with her other friends and family in real life.

Genevieve was a very private person despite having published 6 books and a report under her real name and given lots of workshops across the UK, as well as a few elsewhere in Europe. Consequently, there isn't much written about her on the internet other than reviews of her books and therefore, inevitably, conclusions will be drawn about the circumstances surrounding her death.

All I would ask is please don't take everything you read or videos you watch as being factually accurate - I briefly caught that YouTube video before it was removed and, whilst any sympathy expressed about her death is welcome, the information given was only someone's interpretation of a woman they didn't even know, probably based on Googling for information. I can certainly say that she was never harassed by so-called 'cure-aggressive organisations', which sounds a very American concept anyway - I'm not aware of such things in the UK, given that our health service is state run and I'm not comfortable with her name being used as a martyr in the autism world. There's no proof that she took her life due to her AS.

It is a bit unfortunate that there was no British press release by people who knew her in real life. Just for clarification, I thought I'd provide a full list of her publications:

I believe the publication of the latest two may have been delayed though they're listed as out now.

Asperger Syndrome and Social Relationships - Adults Speak Out about Asperger Syndrome (Edmonds & Beardon - JKP - 2008)

Asperger Syndrome and Employment - Adults Speak Out about Asperger Syndrome (Edmonds & Beardon - JKP - 2008)

A Self-Determined Future with Asperger Syndrome - Solution Focused Approaches (Edmonds & Bliss - JKP - 2007)

The ASPECT Consultancy Report - A National Report on the Needs of Adults with Asperger Syndrome (Edmonds & Beardon - http://www.aspectaction.org.uk) - NB: ASPECT was a steering group comprised of 7 volunteers (including Genevieve, Luke Beardon and myself), which ran a conference in Manchester in April 2006 for adults with AS and led to a report being written up by Genevieve and Luke Beardon, who happens to be a Senior Lecturer in Autism at Sheffield Hallam University. It is not a group based at SHU, as suggested. I don't know as yet what the next stage in the ASPECT project will be.

The Asperger Personal Guide: Raising Self-Esteem and Making the Most of Yourself as a Adult with Asperger's Syndrome (Edmonds & Worton - Lucky Duck - 2006)

The Asperger Social Guide: How to Relate to Anyone in any Social Situation as an Adult with Asperger's Syndrome (Edmonds & Worton - Lucky Duck - 2006)

The Asperger Love Guide: A Practical Guide for Adults with Asperger's Syndrome to Seeking, Establishing and Maintaining Successful Relationships (Edmonds & Worton - Lucky Duck - 2006)

Yeah. I've been there. I don't blame her. Wish she hadn't; know it's wrong to do... but I really can't blame her.

Very sad to hear this

We need all the professional advocates that we can get, and, although I did not know her, it sounds like she achieved a great deal.

Like Callista, I have also had the dark thoughts, and, although I don't know what caused her suicide, I know how things may have driven her to it.

Condolences to all her family and close friends and colleagues.