April is Autism Awareness Month, and we’ve found the perfect movement that combines raising awareness and one of our favorite beauty products — nail polish — called Paint ’em Blue for Autism.
Two years ago, 46-year-old dad Brian Batey was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome. After a friend painted her nails blue in honor of Batey’s son (who also has Asperger’s), Batey was touched and started a movement that encourages people to follow suit. He launched Paint ’em Blue in 2013, and in its second year, he received over 300 photos. This year, he hopes supporters will share 1,000 photos by the end of April.
Batey hopes the movement will help people like him, and his son Nathan, feel more at place and accepted. He tells “Today“: “The nails represent a growing level of acceptance of people like me and people like my son — that we have a growing place in the world of neurotypicals.” By increasing awareness and support of austism, Batey sees the world being a better place for not only his son, but future generations of children on the autism spectrum.
Paint ’em Blue is not asking for donations; rather, the goal is simply to acknowledge autism and show support and love for those with the condition. Hopefully, Batey says, it will start conversations and provoke thought. That awareness and understanding is what he sees can make the world a better place.
