Published on 12, July, 2020
(from a discussion I joined in Reddit)
I have been noticing a trend of people who claim that autism is not an disability, I think there were even some people who were asking to remove it from the classification. Do these people not realise the harm they are making to other autistic people, and themselves, just because they have a prejudice against the "disability" designation?
Last year I got my ASD diagnosis, after my social life was ruined by burnouts and horrible blunders.
It is taking all that is in me to admit to myself that I can not do certain things, it is taking all that it is in my self to cope that can not fight my social awkwardness and that this is the only way I can keep socialising with the people. In the best case scenario I end up looking like the "weird one" or the "clown friend" again, it is taking all in me to accept that I have this disability and that I need some accessibility for things.
And yet people keep working to feed this prejudice that many of us have to work against in ourselves.
Every time that I feel I can not express the way I feel or think, it honestly feels like my body is a trap sometimes.
I cannot read body language and vocal cues. Dogs can. I am less functional than a goddamn dog. That's not the fault of society for not being accommodating enough.
I cannot drive at night, bright lights give me an headache and trigger a meltdown. That's not the fault of society for not being accommodating enough.
I cannot stand loud TV or radio. Everybody else can. That's not the fault of society for not being accommodating enough.
I cannot read a map or find my way around an unfamiliar place. That's not the fault of society for not being accommodating enough.
I have poor fine motor control skills. That's not the fault of society for not being accommodating enough.
Something *is* wrong with my brain. I *am* disabled. I need accommodations to function comfortably, and that's okay. It's nothing to be ashamed of because it's not my fault. I did no wrong; I just have a brain that didn't develop correctly. We need to get rid of "AuTiSM Iz MaGiKaL SupErPoWeR". It is not. It's an horrible disability, and my only hope is that someday there will be a way to prevent it.
To be honest, I think that those people saying that ASD is not a disability are either subscribing to the social theory of disability (total lunacy), deluded, or they have such a mild form of ASD that ASD is not a disability for them. I call them the "TikTok autistics"!
I agree with it being a disability.
My life would have been very different I reckon if I weren't autistic.
There are also people who wouldn't be classed as 'high functioning' and those people are pretty disabled by the autism.
There was a trend years ago to use the term 'differently abled' (no idea if it's still in use) and this is taking a positive stance.
I'm happy myself for this to be an individual thing but the trouble is that with the internet, if people actually follow social media, it does have a huge influence and these stances could be quite triggering for those who feel very negatively affected by their autism.
In the end, I think the most important thing is to recognise our autism and how it affects us and make the best life we can for ourselves with it.
If we got rid of the 'disability' classification, accommodations and financial benefits would disappear with it, as would general (including people we are close to) recognition of how it does 'detrimentally' affect us.
I, for one, feel like it is still early days. we are in a dynamic of new situation. people being ND as a way of just being, without needing to be brought to heel, is still a new way of seeing things for many, and can be a scary thing for NTs to wrap their heads around: They are often still stuck in a Rain Man sort of modal understanding. But I also see things getting so much better than they were in my youth when there was no support or understanding at all and a much more strident paradigm of sameness=safety, different=danger or contemptible. I and many of us were either institutionalized, shunned as strange, denied work, taken advantage of by more mercantile minds for whatever gifts we might have, or left to shuffle the streets and sleep rough in crushing loneliness.
Things are so vastly better now. I feel valued, seen, heard, appreciated and advocated for.
Over the years, having made such good friends with myself and my uniqueness, I have come to cherish that which allows me to experience the all encompassing joys of deep absorption that many NT do not experience. I often feel a sense of sadness for some people I know who have never had that experience.
Yes, I like that there is a wide range of people on here e.g. in ages and experiences.
Uhane said: I and many of us were either institutionalized, shunned as strange, denied work, taken advantage of by more mercantile minds for whatever gifts we might have, or left to shuffle the streets and sleep rough in crushing loneliness. Things are so vastly better now. I feel valued, seen, heard, appreciated and advocated for.
I and many of us were either institutionalized, shunned as strange, denied work, taken advantage of by more mercantile minds for whatever gifts we might have, or left to shuffle the streets and sleep rough in crushing loneliness.
That's a wonderful piece of writing + understanding.