Some categories to try first (in Consumer Magazines) would Child Care & Parental Guidance, Disabilities, General Interest, Health & Fitness, Regional, and maybe even Women's.

Kathy, I would recommend targeting publications that accept personal essays so that you can query with your full manuscript, given that you don't have clips to submit. As long as the tone and message fit the publication you might have some luck! Otherwise, it's very tough to sell pieces you've already written because most publications like to tweak the angle or customize it for their readers. Indicate that you've done some work and some initial interviews, but don't tell editors that you've already written an entire piece (unless it's a personal essay). Hope this helps!

Kathy,If your article could be angled for use to teachers, perhaps you could head off the staring issues by suggesting things to be taught to preschool, elementary, & secondary school children themselves, via Teaching Tolerance. Their contact information is on page 592 of the American Directory of Writer's Guidelines, 6th Edition, & on pages 819 & 820 of the 2009 Writer's Market.  By teaching the next generations about tolerance toward various disabilities, it could make a huge difference in the future of families with disabled children.  Also, if you could express your suggestions in the article for people in the presence of disabled children, perhaps it might even make an impact on how able bodied children perceive & treat disabled kids?  Keep in mind that while having prior writing credits is most helpful in querying another publication with your submission, you have an advantage over the other writers; your subject matter means something deep to your soul & potentially to the world ... plus, most importantly, you have first hand experience & knowledge of dealing with a child who happens to have a disability, & the reactions of others concerning the autism.  Have you looked through the classifieds of magazines like Editor & Writer, The Writer, or Writer's Digest for nonfiction "contests & awards" contact information?  It could help.I am a 36 year old disabled woman.  I unfortunately understand your predicament with the starring issues, from my own experiences.  From ages 6 through 12 my first step father abused me, causing lifelong disabillities.  I've dealt with the stares most of my life.  If there's ANYTHING I can do to help in your journey toward getting this article off the ground, contact me anytime.  If you would like to have some fun taking a poll, seeing some cool photos, & learning about service animals, check out my blog.  Pardon that it's a work in progress, my very first blog, ever.  Feel free to leave me a comment on the site.  I answer all.  Good luck in your writing adventures.  Keep finding & making reasons to smile.

There are national organizations that provide forums for conditions such as autism.  (Autism Society of America, etc.)  These organizations usually have large campaigns toward public awareness and education, as well as newsletters and online support for members.  Try these kinds of organizations and see if they have publishing guidelines or at least contact information.Personal-account stories can be highly desirable, so even if you don't have a writing history, they may still be genuinely interested in the story.  (May even have a proofreader/editor to doctor it up.)  If you want to build up a history, try an article at local newspapers or community magazines that will have less restrictive entry criteria.  Even a published letter-to-editor at a larger newspaper (Times, etc.) carries some weight, and this is definitely a good public topic.

Wow, so many great suggestions in the other's posts above!  This forum is a nice place to get to know a lot of creative, interesting folks with a plethora of wise suggestions.  What an uplifting, positive environment!

In the magazine Poets & Writers, Nov./Dec. 2008 issue, these places might be interesting to check out for your article (page numbers of the magazine where their ads appear are below with thier web site listings);

(Page 173) ARS Medica; A Journal Of Medicine, the Arts, & Humanities
www.ars-medica.ca


(Page 175) The Evening Street Review
www.eveningstreetpress.com

(Page 176) J Journal: New Writing On Justice
www.jjournal.org


I hope these help in your market search for the article, Kathy.  I really hope that you do not stop your pursuit of having your article published.  It is definitely worth your time, dear.  Keep your head up.  If I come across any other ads for publications you might be interested in for your article, I'll let you know.  I read all kinds of different contact listings & such.  If you have the Nov./Dec. issue of Poets & Writers, you can use the page numbers I listed above to find their original ads.  For easier research, I added their respective web addresses.  Keep finding & making reasons to smile.