AMIA serves as the fiscal sponsor of the Autistic Voices Oral History Project.

The Autistic Voices Oral History Project records, collects, preserves, and makes publicly accessible the personal stories and lived experiences of Autistic people spanning a broad range of experiences, intersectional identities and perspectives. The project records interviews (video, audio or written testimonies) for long-term preservation with a trusted archival repository partner and makes interviews available online to the extent permitted by interviewees. Eventually, the project will also aggregate, curate and preserve other existing interviews and audiovisual materials (videos, podcasts, etc.) with Autistic people for preservation and access through the central repository. The project will facilitate the use of the collection by the Autistic community for advocacy and education, as well as by scholars, educators and the public, for the purposes of research, teaching, learning, and increasing public awareness and understanding about the Autistic experience. 

• Visit the Autistic Voices website
• Contact the Autistic Voices Project

Help Us Sustain the Autistic Voices Oral History Project

In 2024, the Autistic Voices Oral History Project (tAVOHP) received a federal grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to support our groundbreaking work documenting the history of Autistic advocacy and the lived experiences of Autistic people. With this funding, we launched a national paid fellowship program, selected 24 fellows (22 of whom are Autistic) and began co-creating a public oral history archive that honors Autistic life, community, culture, and advocacy.

In 2025, the federal agency that funded our project was abruptly shuttered by DOGE and the Trump administration, cutting off our grant funding midstream.

Now, we need your help to fill this gap and raise $81,400 to ensure we can continue this essential work. These funds will directly support:

• $36,000 for remaining fellow stipends, ensuring fellows can complete and publish their oral history interviews
• $14,400 in stipends for the Autistic narrators (interviewees) sharing their stories
• $26,000 in staffing support for tAVOHP and AMIA team members
• $5,000 for the Association for Autism and Neurodiversity (AANE), our community engagement partner

This project was designed by and for Autistic people. Your contribution helps ensure that our stories are amplified and that this archive remains a powerful, accessible resource for today and generations to come.

All contributions are tax-deductible and go directly toward sustaining this community-led archive in the absence of federal support. Thank you for standing with us.