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Letter to Barack Obama, President of the United States - Blue Lights on the White House in Honor of World Autism Awareness Day

Letter

Date: March 23, 2012
Issues: Minors and Children Health and Health Care

Today, Congressman Chris Murphy (CT-5) sent a letter to President Obama, asking him to light the White House in blue lights in honor of World Autism Awareness Day. In his letter to the President, Murphy acknowledged the prevalence of autism in our society, and expressed concern about the increasing rates of autism among children. A copy of Murphy's letter to President Obama is reprinted below.

March 23, 2012

The Honorable Barack Obama

President of the United States

The White House

1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W

Washington, D.C 20500

Dear Mr. President:

I write to respectfully ask that you help bring awareness to Autism by participating in the Light It Up Blue Campaign. By flooding the White House in blue lights on the night of April 2nd you would be sending an overwhelming message of support to the parents of autistic children around the country and the world that your administration is a strong supporter of their cause.

Nearly 1.5 million people in the United States are affected by autism, more than 500,000 of whom are under the age of 21, and many millions more around the world. Statistics show that 1 in 110 children will be affected by autism, up from 1 in 10,000 just 20 years ago. A child is diagnosed every 20 minutes with autism. Autism is a disability that is afflicting more children every year and now affects more children than childhood cancer, juvenile diabetes and Pediatric AIDS combined. The lifetime cost to an American family of caring for an Autistic child reaches in to the millions of dollars and costs the nation nearly $90 billion every year.

In light of the tremendous financial and emotional costs faced by families and society in dealing with this disorder, I ask that you join me in supporting World Autism Awareness Day by flooding the White House in blue lights. By doing so, you would be joining American landmarks like the Empire State Building, Rockefeller Center, and Niagara Falls that participated in the campaign last year in raising awareness for this debilitating disorder. Thank you in advance for your consideration of this request,

Sincerely,

CHRISTOPHER S. MURPHY

Member of Congress


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