I just came across some interesting / disturbing research about how major autism charities regard autistic people. The research paper itself is on PLOS One and you can find a more journalistic discussion of it on The Conversation.
The researchers analysed the annual reports and accounts of 11 large autism charities, and the abstract of their paper reads in part:
Representation within these reports emphasises adversities associated with Autism, and the language chosen to portray Autistic people largely describes Autism as an impairment. In contrast, charities represent themselves as the solution to the ‘problem’ of Autistic people, and thus deserving of increased resources and funding. Government is largely depicted as ineffective and deficient. We argue that these Autism charities are thereby upholding – rather than challenging – the disabling barriers in society experienced by Autistic people. For Autistic charities to better represent Autistic people and improve wider societal understanding of Autism, there is a need for more positive portrayals that challenge the ‘charity saviour’ trope in charity communications.
I’d be interested to know what you think about this.
