For years, I’ve been fighting for my 8-year-old son, who is neurodiverse, to be included — in classrooms, playgrounds, birthday parties and beyond. That’s why the appearance and inclusion of Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz’s neurodiverse son in last week’s Democratic National Convention struck me as a watershed moment in disability culture in America. To be clear, my son does not have the same diagnoses as .
The Walz family reports that . My son, John, has , ADHD, and is nonverbal. affects an individual’s spatial-visual processing, not their ability to speak or read.
Individuals with NVLD may struggle with motor coordination and social skills. is a condition that, in my son’s case, means he can only verbalize a handful of words. It also means that he struggles with other forms of communication including using his — an electronic tablet with a library of words that he can use to write sentences.
We spend hours every week trying to add words to his vocabulary. It is painstaking, but we can’t give up. My son’s condition also means that he struggles to understand social norms, socialize with his peers, and look out for his own safety.
John could not have done what Gus Walz did at the DNC. It is beyond his capabilities to tolerate hours of speeches in an arena of thousands of cheering people and then stand up to call out “That’s my dad!” with joyful pride. I don’t know if John will ever be able to develop capabilities to navigate life with.