Consider This from NPR - Why this writer says her son deserves a champion like Tim Walz

Episode Date: August 27, 2024

When Tim Walz accepted the Democratic nomination for vice president, his son stole the show.In a viral moment, the cameras panned to 17-year-old Gus Walz, who, with tears in his eyes, stood up, clapped loudly, pointed to the stage and appeared to repeatedly yell out: "That's my dad!"Some cheered the new visibility of neurodivergent people.But what do advocates and parents of neurodiverse children actually want from government officials, like Tim Walz, in terms of policy? For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.Email us at [e-mail] more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

It's the honor of my life to accept your nomination for Vice President of the United States. When Minnesota Governor Tim Walz accepted the Democratic nomination for Vice President, his family was front and center. And it was at this moment that his 17-year-old son, Gus Walz, stole the show. Hope, Gus, and Gwen, you are my entire world, and I love you. As the applause rang out, the cameras panned to Gus, who, with tears in his eyes, stood up, clapped loudly, and pointed to the stage and appeared to repeatedly yell out,

That's my dad. It was a scene celebrated by some, like CNN's Dana Bash. There was a moment that I will never forget, and probably none of America or the world will ever forget. I mean, every time I see that, I get, I know, that's my dad. Though it was also mocked by a handful of far-right commentators. Shortly before the Democratic National Convention, Gus's parents had shared that he has a nonverbal learning disorder,

ADHD, and an anxiety disorder. The Walls family calls it his secret power, which makes him brilliant and hyper-aware. Consider this. A key moment at the DNC sparked a conversation about neurodivergent people. But what do advocates and parents of neurodiverse children actually want from government officials like Tim Walz in terms of policy? From NPR, I'm Juana Summers. It's Consider This from NPR.

Tina Brown is probably best known as a journalist. She founded the Daily Beast and before that was editor-in-chief of The New Yorker and Vanity Fair. But her latest essay, published in The New York Times, was personal. It's headlined, My son and Gus Walls deserve a champion like Tim Walls. I asked her what she was thinking when she saw Gus Walls leap to his feet and celebrate his dad. Well, my eyes went directly to Gus because as the mother of Georgie, who's a 38-year-old on the spectrum son who still lives with me, I've just recognized immediately that he was one of what I call ours. The community of people who have, you know, who are on the spectrum or special needs or whatever you want to call it, whose emotions are sometimes

a little bit sort of overexpressed. And there was something so sweet about it. It just reminded me of my son, Georgie. And it sort of prompted me to write about that, about how for people like us to see Gus and see the love of his family towards him. It was very, very moving and I felt important. Tina, tell us a little bit about Georgie. What's he like? Well, what is Georgie's great superpower is because he's on the spectrum, I mean, he just, he can only tell the truth. So he has no ability to have any of the social lies that sort of make the world go around. For instance, one evening we were at dinner, a sort of fancy dinner in the Hamptons, and Georgie at the end of the evening said to the host,

thank you so much for that evening. I enjoyed it. It was fine. But unfortunately, nobody spoke to me really, so it was pretty boring. The food was okay, and I doubt that I'll ever come again. And at the end of it, my husband sort of shouted in the car, you know, I've never been more proud of you in my life, Georgie. Because, you know, how many of us have said these things after dinner?

You say, oh, what a wonderful time. I had a fabulous time. And it is kind of the opposite, right? But Georgie actually cannot make it up. So there are all of these things that he does that are just very, very entertaining to his parents anyway. But of course, you know, sometimes cause him issues when he's like on a job or with people who have no idea why this person is blurting these things out and saying these things

makes it hard to get hired. It's a very, very painful thing. And we've all been as parents, you know, as I'm of someone like Georgie to aware of kind of like the eye rolling at the next table and the sense that, you know, other people are not accepting. And, you know, this can be very heartbreaking indeed. Now, Gus Walls was attacked by some on the far right for crying in public, which that is a separate conversation in itself, but he was also celebrated by others in a way that left at least one mother of a neurodivergent child writing an opinion essay in Bloomberg called, Gus Walls is not your inspiration porn. Those were her words. Tina, I want to ask you, do you think that there is a danger of objectifying people like Gus Walls in the rush to celebrate him? A bit. I mean, I think that what we all want

to do is simply treat Gus Walls as if he's just a sweet, charming guy like anybody else. I mean, that's what they want. That's what my son wants. He just wants to be normal and considered normal, and he feels that he's a person who should be treated as if he's normal. And no, they don't want any kind of special behavior going on towards them. They just simply want someone to pay attention to them and talk to them, take time with them. For instance, the kids in this community are very loyal employees because the jobs are very often something they love so much because it's the only place they have where they feel community. So they don't quit. They love whatever small job they've been given and are happy to turn up on time and, you know,

don't sort of feel it's boring or beneath them. And they're delighted to do it, you know. So it's also a big waste for employers not to realize that this is a very golden group that they can hire if they're willing to be patient and kind and assign a manager who understands. At the end of the essay that you wrote, you say that there's a chance that soon parents of people who struggle with being different could have a powerful advocate in the White House. And setting aside the particulars of the Harris-Walls ticket for a moment, I just want to hear from you. What do families like yours, what do people like Georgie, in your opinion, need from powerful people in this country who are in a position to shape policy? Well, first of all, I think jobs and a real sense, a real push for people to hire people with special needs in jobs that they can do and which they absolutely are qualified to do.

For instance, you know, many people now are advertising, yes, they would be interested in hiring someone neurodiverse, right? Well, when my son goes for interviews like that, one of the things that he loves to do is he always likes to wear a bandana and have his nails painted, okay? So, that's just one of his quirks, right? I mean, he's, you know, he's not like other people. So, you know, he starts talking about how I'd like to wear a bandana, I'd like to have my nails painted, and they go, oh, that wouldn't be appropriate. If you're going to hire someone who has these issues, you have to understand they're going to be different from the other employees. And if you don't want to take that on board,

you're not serious about it. And secondly, really a movement towards assisted living, because many of these people, they're perfectly able to live alone. And in fact, they want to. But what they really need is an assisted living community so that in that building with them, perhaps there are others like them, and perhaps there are a den mother and father who are in the building too, who could be there to help connect them, to help give them things to do, you know, in the evening, social connections, perhaps, you know, do some meals a couple of times a week. They need a special assistance in living, and that is completely not there. I mean, this kind of thing I'm talking about is something I think that should be a big movement in this country, because I think it would have many, many, many people who would be thrilled to have their kid in a place like that. Magazine editor and author Tina Brown, her essay about Gus Walls and her own son appears in the New York Times. This episode was produced by Karen Zamora and Brianna Scott. It was edited by Patrick Jarawat-Nanen and Courtney Dorning. Our executive producer

is Sammy Yannigan. And one more thing before we go. You can now enjoy the Consider This newsletter. We still help you break down a major story of the day, but you'll also get to know our producers and hosts and some moments of joy from the All Things Considered team. You can sign up at npr.org slash consider this newsletter. It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Juana Summers.