The Autism Society of America (ASA) was founded in 1965[5] by Bernard Rimland[1] together with Ruth C. Sullivan and a small group of other parents of children with autism. Its original name was the National Society for Autistic Children;[4] the name was changed to emphasize that autistic children grow up. The ASA's stated goal is to increase public awareness about autism and the day-to-day issues faced by autistic people as well as their families and the professionals with whom they interact.[6] Although the group has promoted the pseudoscientific belief that vaccines cause autism in the past, it now affirms that there is no link between vaccination and autism.[7] In 2021, the ASA launched a new brand including a logo consisting of multicolor lines forming a fabric with a new slogan, "The Connection Is You".[8]
Bernard Rimland (November 15, 1928 – November 21, 2006) was an American research psychologist, writer, lecturer, and influential person in the field of developmental disorders who is known for promoting autism-related pseudoscience. In 1964, Dr. Bernard Rimland wrote a book, Infantile Autism, that convinced others working in the field that autism is a physiological disorder, not a mental or emotional problem.[9] Rimland was a founder of the Autism Society of America in 1965, but left to create the Autism Research Institute in 1967.[10] He later promoted several theories, which have since been disproven, about the causes and treatment of autism, including vaccine denial, facilitated communication, chelation therapy, and false claims of a link between secretin and autism.
