TBT | 21. Rethinking Unemployment and Sex Education, with Michael John Carley

*THROWBACK EPISODE*

This conversation with Michael John Carley was originally released on August 6, 2020. We're re-releasing it today to highlight some of Michael’s recent accomplishments.

His latest publication, The Book Of Happy, Positive, And Confident Sex For Adults On The Autism Spectrum And Beyond! was released in 2021 and has since been globally celebrated. This is a book that gives autistic people permission to seek pleasure without shame. 

Discover what’s possible when education is informed by science. 

Michael John Carley is an autism self-advocate, author, and consultant. This pioneer in the world of autism advocacy was one of two people on the spectrum to address the US Congress in their first-ever hearings on autism. The truth is I could spend the rest of this episode listing Michael’s accolades, but I really want you to listen to our conversation, so here’s my best effort to sum up his career highlights. 

Michael was the Founder of GRASP — the largest organization in the world comprised of adults on the autism spectrum — and the Founding Executive Director of ASTEP, now called Integrate, whose mission is to help organizations identify, recruit, and retain professionals on the autism spectrum. He has presented at almost 150 conferences, hospitals, universities, health care organizations, school districts, and Fortune 1000 companies. 

Michael has appeared in a wide variety of media outlets such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, BBC News, and NPR, to name a few. He has participated in a TED Talk and was featured in the documentaries On the Spectrum and Off the Rails. His articles and columns have been published in magazines such as Autism Spectrum News, the Huffington Post, and Sinkhole. He has also published two books and is currently waiting to publish a third. His first book is titled Asperger’s from the Inside Out, and the second, Unemployed on the Autism Spectrum: How to Cope Productively with the Effects of Unemployment and Jobhunt with Confidence. 

Before his career in autism advocacy, Michael was a playwright in New York, as well as the United Nations Representative of Veterans for Peace, having spent time in Cuba, Bosnia, and Iraq. 

In this conversation, we discuss:

• Michael’s journey of discovering his diagnosis, which came shortly after his son’s
• How autism impacts his daily life
• What Michael thinks is the only detriment for people on the spectrum
• The importance of support groups being led by autistic people
• How to process unemployment in a healthy way
• The need for a comprehensive sexual education curriculum for young people with autism

For more information about Michael John Carley and his work, please visit michaeljohncarley.com. 

Resources: 

Autism Without Fear: Schools Need to Bring Back Skilled Trades—A Conversation with Temple Grandin, Ph.D. 

The Ethical Slut 

Savage Lovecast 

We appreciate your time. If you enjoy this podcast and you’d like to support our mission, please take just a few seconds to share it with one person who you think will find value in it too.

Follow us on Instagram: @autismpodcast

Join our community on Mighty Networks: Global Autism Community

Subscribe to our YouTube channel: Global Autism Project

We would love to hear your feedback about the show. Please fill out this short survey to let us know your thoughts: Listener Survey