Published on 12, July, 2020
How do y'all feel about an autistic person identifying as an "aut*st" or calling their autistic friends they have close relationships with the same word? My autistic friend prefers it because he says it is "taking the word back", but only autistic people can use it. He likens it to the n-word or h*llbilly.
Personally, I agree with him. In fact, I designed a shirt that says "All my friends are aut*sts" (but actually spelled out without the astrix). It's from a running personal joke where I was completely unaware I was autistic and just thought I liked autistic people, which is why I would say, "All my friends are autistic." Using the word "aut*sts" in the shirt would be an indirect way of disclosing my autism flavor since only autistic people can use it. Would this shirt be offensive?
Actually the worst slur you can throw at an autistic person is creepy. It's a very hard accusation to fight. Because what's creepy? It's not a crime, not a specific activity. It's a perception that someone is different, in a threatening way, that they are not right. And we are different.
Built into the word 'creepy' is the assumption that peoples gut feelings and perceptions trump facts and circumstances. You can be good to your fellow man, painfully honest and ethical, and yet if people label you as creepy that's no help because its not a rational assessment.
Ooooh, yeah! This is a good point.