THE
CHANGING
FACE OF
AUTISM
Kicking off Autism Awareness Month, Lowri Llewelyn caught up with one of North Wales’s most prolific influencers. To date, The Aspie World has amassed over 78,000
the school had no real special education unit. “There was
subscribers. The YouTube channel of Daniel M. Jones, in 2017
a special ed table where me and a guy with schizophrenia
it won the YouTube Next Up award and has since been voted
used to sit, which was a bad combination. And then we had
one of the world’s leading autism channels. Exploring a wide
the same one-to-one teacher than the “normal” kids had, so it
range of topics ranging from the effect autism has on family
wasn’t the best experience.”
life, to the lesser recognised traits of autism in girls, Dan’s video blogs aim to educate the masses from the perspective of
Autism meant that activities other kids took for granted –
an adult navigating life on the spectrum.
swimming lessons, playing outside – could cause intense stress and anxiety, which served to single Dan out from his
Of his huge following, Dan estimates 50% to be parents of
peers. “Kids could be really nasty – I definitely felt left out,”
children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Others,
he admits. He did, however, have one ally. “We were both
meanwhile, are those seeking a face that represents them
dyslexic so we got on; he was my only friend.”
amid the thousands of mainstream influencers. Though there was nobody who identified as autistic he On meeting Dan, of Holyhead, it’s not immediately obvious he’s
could look up to, he found inspiration in the world’s greatest
any different to you or me. Confident and funny, he’s far from
thinkers. “Growing up I was obsessed with space and
the stereotype most of us have in our minds. He seems so
robotics: Tesla, Einstein, Professor Hawkins. I suppose the
relaxed, in fact, that he happily offers photos of his baby son
closest role models I had would have been on the spectrum if
for me to admire. Then I begin to notice the way he can’t make
they were assessed today.”
eye contact. Like his heroes, many of those on the spectrum are able to He cites school as the place he realised he was different.
excel in areas in which they have a special interest – and
“That’s the first time you’re presented with people who are
Dan is no exception. From releasing a successful pop punk
of a standard,” he explains.
album, to publishing a bestselling book about Star Wars, to establishing his own religion and church – which amassed a
A hallmark of autism is difficulty navigating social
whopping half a million followers – it’s fair to say he doesn’t
interactions, and Dan was no exception. But despite his needs,
do things by halves.
NWM 2019 Page 23