Why You Should Take a Moment to Meet Sesame Street’s Newest Character

The creative team behind “Sesame Street’s” newest addition worked with autism organizations to decide which characteristics Julia should have and how best to normalize autism for all children. The creators of the beloved children’s TV show have announced they are introducing a new character to the Street, as if Big Bird, the Cookie Monster and Bert and Ernie weren’t enough to keep kids tuning in for another half a century.

“We wanted to promote a better understanding and reduce the stigma often found around these children. How do we talk about autism?,'” one of the show’s writers, Christine Ferraro, told “60 Minutes” correspondent Lesley Stahl.

‘There is an expression that goes, “If you’ve met one person with Autism, you’ve met one person with Autism,”‘ Ferraro told Stahl. The muppet was named Unicef’s Champion for Children in November 2003. Some of the other characters are initially confused by Julia’s behavior, but they soon come to understand and embrace her differences.

“Commenting on the introduction of the new character, Mandy Williams, CEO of Child Autism UK, told The Huffington Post UK: “‘Sesame Street’ is an iconic mainstream programme, so this has to be a very positive move.

The goal of Julia’s character will be to combat stigmas associated with the autism spectrum, as diagnoses have continually grown. “That’s just Julia being Julia”, said Abby.

Betancourt, in a press release, said families affected by autism have appealed to “Sesame Street” for years to address the condition.

Designers use 2 sets of arms for Julia, who uses them to express emotions.

“Maybe she doesn’t like me”, Big Bird says.

The character will be featured on two episodes of the latest season and become main character by April.

Julia, a little girl with bright orange hair, green eyes and a toy rabbit, will appear for the first time on the much-loved children’s TV show next month.

Her name is Julia – a lovable, red-haired muppet who, just like 1 in 68 American children, happens to be on the autism spectrum. He tries to befriend Julia, but she doesn’t speak, a reaction that makes Big Bird think she’s rude or doesn’t want to play with him.

“She’s one of the kids, she’s one of the gang”, said Rose Jochum, director of internal initiatives at the Autism Society of America, which helped Sesame Street develop the new muppet, on NPR.