Alpha Chi Rho hosted their annual Autism dinner on Friday in Butcher Suite in order to raise awareness for Autism Awareness month and to bring attention to the horrendous torture that people with Autism have faced throughout history.

When students entered Butcher Suite, they were asked to get food and take a seat. Many students were not expecting such an intense and graphic presentation on Autism because of the calm atmosphere and the music that was played.

The presentation was opened by Damian Nguyen and David Mulcahy, brothers of Alpha Chi Rho and the organizers of the Autism dinner.

After a couple of slides on the common symptoms of Autism, the presentation was handed over to

Lee Allen, Alpha Chi Rho alumni who came to support his fraternity brothers and the Autism dinner.

Allen’s stimulating presentation resonated with students because of his transition between using personal experience as examples and his use of the documentary Willbrook: The Last Disgrace.

“People with a disability were a form of entertainment and would be locked in a cage for the rest of their lives,” said Allen.

The faces around the room dropped and students were extremely silent because they were shocked by the lack of humanity that people had for people with disabilities.

“Events like this don’t just raise awareness, but it reminds us to speak up for people that can’t speak for themselves,” said Felicia Robcke, student at Pace.

Allen continued with his presentation and pushed the importance of having patience by providing his personal experiences and interactions and informed the audience of the several different techniques that are used in order to help treat Autism.

“You are all college students and you have a great ability to advocate for yourself, you can express your needs and your wants,” said Allen. “Do your best to advocate for people that can’t and that’s one of the most important things you can do in your life.”

Although students were shocked by the graphic video, many students clapped and cheered as loud as they could after the presentation was over, showing their appreciation and support for the cause.

Students at the event were asked to share their pictures with hashtags in order to help raise awareness and to show support.

“You don’t have to create a giant foundation with millions of dollars to help people,” said Mulcahy. “Anything from just sharing a hashtag can help this effort.”