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What would human society be like if the majority were Autistic?

Lotus

Recently  started this thread: A different view of "disability"  which got me thinking.

So, what if autism was actually the predominant neurotype? Would we still call it Autism, or would we be called neurotypical? What would the minority who have what we now call neurotypical traits be called? Atypical? Collectivism?

What would our society look like if it had been tailored to our needs? Here are some ideas:

Communication and socialising: Instead of shaking hands we might bow, like Japanese people. Small talk wouldn't be acceptable, only discussion of things needing to be done or special interests. Mobile phones might not have the facility to speak to someone, just the facility to text or email.

Socialising: might only be via special interest groups, such as chess or art clubs, or "silent" discos. No music would be allowed in pubs, only pub quizzes. I'm not sure if we would have restaurants? Maybe just takeaways? Cinemas would provide individual headsets to listen to the movie soundtrack, or you could take your own.

Travel & shopping: Noisy engines would not be allowed, and by now we would probably have only electric vehicles. On public transport, seats would be spaced out to prevent people sitting too near each other. Music not allowed to be played on public transport or in shops. People would be required to stand at least 3 feet apart in queues.

Homes: Would all be soundproofed, with tall fences around gardens for privacy. Barbeques, bonfires and indoor open fires would be banned to prevent the smell of smoke causing distress. Making noise in a garden would be an arrestable offence.

Emergency services: emergency vehicle sirens would be quieter. Police would use drones to patrol their areas. Hospitals might have all single rooms, not shared wards, with internet access available to all patients. 

What do you think a society shaped by autistic people would be like?

Parents

  • I think we would have the same problem we have now just the other way round, in that the majority rules.

    There would still be conflict, the non autistics would replace us as the minority maybe getting mentally unwell because they don’t fit in, they think and process differently to the majority, confused with the autistic world they are living in, can’t bare the silence, experiencing it as a form of torture. would we have compassion for non autistics or would they annoy us. We would still have bad apples to deal with in our autistic cart.

    where would you place a non autistic in an autistic world, what could they bring to the autistic table?

    I have thought that anything that lives, is driven to survive by searching for the fundamentals to achieve that. It makes more sense for humans to have differing ways or brain systems to approach this problem. It’s not necessarily survival of the fittest as we are led to believe maybe it’s survival of the entire group.

    It’s impossible for autistics to be non autistic and vice versa. Don’t we stand a better chance with both? If you look there is evidence of us all over the place, throughout history. We have always been there.

    The problem for me is the idea that we are a minority, deficient somehow. Are we? I think we are more likely to be of equal measure or there abouts.  Like day and night, hot and cold two opposite sides of the same coin. Can’t have one without the other. 

    Christ I’ve gone off a bit on this one.

Reply

  • I think we would have the same problem we have now just the other way round, in that the majority rules.

    There would still be conflict, the non autistics would replace us as the minority maybe getting mentally unwell because they don’t fit in, they think and process differently to the majority, confused with the autistic world they are living in, can’t bare the silence, experiencing it as a form of torture. would we have compassion for non autistics or would they annoy us. We would still have bad apples to deal with in our autistic cart.

    where would you place a non autistic in an autistic world, what could they bring to the autistic table?

    I have thought that anything that lives, is driven to survive by searching for the fundamentals to achieve that. It makes more sense for humans to have differing ways or brain systems to approach this problem. It’s not necessarily survival of the fittest as we are led to believe maybe it’s survival of the entire group.

    It’s impossible for autistics to be non autistic and vice versa. Don’t we stand a better chance with both? If you look there is evidence of us all over the place, throughout history. We have always been there.

    The problem for me is the idea that we are a minority, deficient somehow. Are we? I think we are more likely to be of equal measure or there abouts.  Like day and night, hot and cold two opposite sides of the same coin. Can’t have one without the other. 

    Christ I’ve gone off a bit on this one.

Children
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