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"!
Hmmmmm....I sort of agree with both sides of the argument with this one, and I think the only thing we should be "evangelising" is the right of the individual to decide what their autism means to them. But we cannot either, silence the "social" model of disability, because both the social and the medical models are relevant in different ways and at different times.
I understand that many autistic people feel their lives would be so much better if they weren't autistic. There's no denying that some autistic people will never live fulfilled lives living alone. But it is also true that some autistic people (and I'm one of them) actually enjoy being autistic.
It isn't for me to impose my view of my autism onto anyone else and I wouldn't dream of it. Other people have different profiles, different feelings about those profiles and experience different challenges. But neither would I want anyone else to shove me in a "disabled" box, particularly a medical disabled box I don't feel I belong in. I worry as much that I may be dismissed and my potential overlooked by such a view as I would worry that someone who faces disabling challenges in daily life may have their needs overlooked if we were to dismiss them with a "you're just different, so get on with it" attitude.
So am I "disabled" and if so am I medically or socially disabled? Well, I've got a disabled person's bus pass because my viso-spatial awareness and Irlen's preclude me doing that safely. No amount of reasonable adjustment on the part of society can allow me to get behind a wheel without someone dying! To that extent, I am disabled and that much is maybe medical. But, I want to get out and about and enjoy life as much as anyone else does. This is hindered for me because there aren't buses to take at times that will allow me to get to church on Sunday or the cinema late on Monday night. Hmmm... problem for me and every other person who cannot drive due to a "disability". The disability problem of not getting out, I'd suggest is very much social. Provide buses and I am no more disadvantaged than the next would be cinema goer! To take an example with more serious consequences, my sensory system is what it is and facing medical treatment would always be a major deal for me (medical), however greater understanding on the part of medics and more consideration of my need in those environments (social) could significantly lessen the "disabling" impact.
We can't just hush up the social argument because it is also relevant. But I do agree we need to be careful that we don't use it to dismiss the very real practical problems social organisation cannot fix.
And while autistic 'superpowers' are a rarity, there are ways in which many of us feel that we have an advantage in some domains. I wouldn't swap some (note I say some) of my autistic traits for the world. I understand that some people wish they weren't autistic and struggle to see any positives. Perhaps for them there aren't any. Not, as I said, for me to judge, but nevertheless celebrating autistic ability and identity is very empowering and enabling for others. It helps them accept themselves as they are and motivates them to do stuff in life - even if they do it differently from others. We wouldn't want to take that away from them.
The key, I think is in treating people as individuals with a right to define themselves and chart their own path.