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Illustration by Mark Harris / Source: Tempest McDonald
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When autistic kids grow up, Chapter 1: Those people
What leads an autism researcher to publish an intentionally inflammatory paper accusing the NIH of discrimination?
By
Brady Huggett
4 June 2026 | 1 min read
“When autistic kids grow up” is a five-part podcast that explores how Tempest McDonald’s lived experience fueled her research and explains how she stumbled onto a problem that has been hiding in plain sight. In Chapter 1, McDonald’s turbulent childhood begins to provide some answers to the question, What leads an autism researcher to publish an intentionally inflammatory paper accusing the U.S. National Institutes of Health of discrimination?
Read the transcript. Listen to Chapters 2 and 3.
Chin up: Tempest McDonald was a precocious reader but struggled socially in grade school.
All images courtesy of Tempest McDonald
Close call: When a tree fell on a car that baby Tempest McDonald was sleeping in, the story became family legend.
Roll on: Terry McDonald (on bicycle) grew up in Reynoldstown, a mostly poor neighborhood in Atlanta.
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