Published on 12, July, 2020
And what do you wish they would stop doing/saying?
I wish they knew that we aren’t all like Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory. I wish they would stop saying things like “everyone is a little bit autistic” as it effectively (if not intentionally) downplays the struggles we face on a daily basis.
Great discussion!
There are some points I wish to make on this topic:
Much of this has parallels with the LGBT community and even within the gay community where being gay and a traditional Catholic becomes an issue - or being part of the Irish truth and patriot movement, living abroad as part of the Irish diaspora, being a traditional Catholic and being LGBT (or being gay and not being LGBT) - yet all of these things are not mutually exclusive to each other, according to any standards
IrishInManchesterUK said:Much of this has parallels with the LGBT community
Absolutely! I completely agree! We face prejudice in a similar way to the LGBTQIA+ community too.
Absolutely! There is obviously lots of overlap between both communities too!
As someone who is both, I have noticed similarities too.
Amerantin (former member) said:I think we're much less visible so we're not overtly discriminated against as a group in the way LGBTQIA+ people are.
To some extent yes, however if we were not that visible then why would so many members of our community have experienced bullying and other traumatic experiences? I don’t expect you to answer this, it is just a thought!
For example, many people who could be autistic are described as outcasts etc so people know we are different, they are just not accepting of differences.
Amerantin (former member) said: We face individual microaggressions because of how we present rather than who we are, if that makes sense.
Absolutely! It’s the every day invalidation and gaslighting we experience that has a cumulative effect on our community.
Amerantin (former member) said:If there was more of an autistic or neurodivergent community things could be so much better for us.
Ditto! Community is so important for wellbeing!