Farah Delcid is not someone who gives up easily. She is a woman who fights for her ideals, her desire to make the world a better place through community work—and a very personal fight: her advocacy for the autistic community and their families.
Farah was a bit introverted as a child, but she excelled academically. She grew up in a healthy environment with very humble values.
“My dad used to tell me I had to fight for my dreams,” and without a doubt, that’s what she’s done her entire life. She went to school and studied business and accounting.
She didn’t migrate by choice—it just happened. In Honduras, she didn’t have wealth, but they lacked nothing. Her husband’s family had a business in Los Angeles, and they moved to work in the company, Medina Xpress.
Two events left a deep mark on her: one was arriving in a foreign country at age 23, not knowing why she was there. She kept questioning things, though she knew she was ready to pursue other goals. She adapted, telling herself, “God has a purpose for me.”
She always noticed something different about Juan. Long periods of silence. “I used to tell my husband, ‘Something’s going on with Juan,’ and he’d say, ‘He’s fine, he’s just introverted.’”
She took him for an evaluation, and that’s when the diagnosis came:
“Your son has autism.”
“I felt overwhelmed—I didn’t know anything about it. I started learning; I needed to understand what was behind all this,” she says.
“Juan was already suffering from bullying at school. His classmates would call him all sorts of names. I couldn’t tolerate it—I had to do something,” she adds.
The family decided to face it together. Her daughters read books to educate themselves, and the parents would talk and analyze everything they were going through.
“We’ve seen Juan grow into someone different—so full of love, surrounded by the support of his sisters and parents.”
“Now Juan is a successful student. He’s grown so much, and I thought: why not take this experience to the next level?”
That’s when she created Unique Minds Collections, a clothing line inspired by autism.
“My son collaborates with me. We come up with design ideas, and someone executes them. We sell the clothing online and donate ten percent to different organizations. Unique Minds isn’t just a clothing brand—it’s a mission,” she says.
She’s received a lot of support and built a valuable base of supporters.
She often organizes events at 21 Coffee in Huntington Park, where the owners have embraced the cause and welcome individuals or families with various conditions. There, they offer support groups, talks, presentations—anything to raise awareness in the community.
“We want autism to be seen more normally.
Having autism means being different, not having a disability. We have such a great relationship with him now. He’s in 11th grade and has a photographic memory,” she adds.
In recent weeks, alongside Farah’s rebellious voice, dozens of organizations have spoken out against Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Parents of children with autism are pushing back against recent comments made by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., saying his remarks about autism and vaccines reinforce harmful stereotypes and ignore the diversity and potential of people on the autism spectrum.
“He’s spreading fear and misinformation,” said Beth Hoffman.
This backlash came after a new CDC report showing that autism diagnoses are on the rise, affecting 1 in 31 eight-year-olds in the U.S. in 2022. Following the report, Kennedy announced a directive to the NIH to investigate what he called “environmental exposures” that he claims may be causing the increase.
Medical experts say the rise in diagnoses is mostly due to better awareness, improved diagnostics, and broader definitions that now include a wider range of people on the spectrum.
Kennedy, however, rejected the idea that the rise is due to these factors, calling that explanation “indefensible.”
“Autism destroys families, and more importantly, it destroys our greatest resource, which is our children,” he said during an HHS press conference in Washington, D.C.
But Kennedy is up against mothers and organizations as determined as Farah.
“The key design in our Unique Minds clothing is the puzzle piece. Juan loves those games—maybe that’s how his mind works. If we close ourselves off, we won’t be able to connect with them. It’s clear that we need to rethink this: they’re not ‘weird’ people. They’re unique and very intelligent. We’ll continue working with the community, through events and organizing people.
We haven’t received support from foundations. What we do comes from us—and from our hearts,” Farah says.
“And we do it with all our heart.”
