u/comradeautie

Society gaslights autistic people into believing they’re the problem. The system is set up so that autistic people always fail. It then blames and gaslights you into thinking that it’s your fault.

If autistic people can’t get or maintain jobs it’s not a personal failure. It’s a failure of the system. There are so many arbitrary rules and barriers that prevent autistic people from just doing an actual job. Autistic could probably a job better than neurotypical people a lot of the time. It makes no sense why they wouldn’t just make it more accessible for autistic people to get jobs.

It’s so fucking unfair how bad society makes you feel for failing when it’s completely built against you.

Some of you might have seen a viral story about two influencers openly admitting to having an abortion just because the fetus tested positive for down syndrome (mind you, a test that isn't even totally reliable). I'm pro-choice, but discrimination and eugenics are wrong and if you aren't 'ready' to have a disabled kid you aren't ready to have kids.

Many of us are aware of projects like MSSNG that are attempts to locate 'genes' and prevent Autistic people. We must resist this by any means necessary. No action is 'too far'. Because NTs can no longer use overt genocide like Aktion T4, or institutionalization to remove us, and social murder (exclusion/rejection/isolation) is taking too long to kill us, they put resources into "cure" research.

We CANNOT let this stand.

We need to fight back.

Every day, I see more painful, heartbreaking posts from my fellow Autistics. Posts about our loneliness and isolation. Posts about being bullied, discriminated against, hurt, and more. Having almost no power to defend yourself or deter harm.

I have felt similarly all my life. Hated being Autistic and hit out of shame for most of my childhood and adolescence. As I met more people like me, I started to realize I wasn't alone, and that led me down the path of neurodiversity and Autistic rights. I haven't looked back yet.

What I really want to say is: we aren't angry enough. Many of us feel despair, pain, shame, and other emotions: but what we really need is more rage. Because we are told that being Autistic is the problem, we internalize the way we're treated. We think it's our fault, for we are the broken ones, that our treatment is either deserved or inevitable. But that's bullshit.

Is being Autistic a cakewalk? No. But the way we are treated in daily life is beyond unfair. And we often don't see it because of how desensitized we are. At one point I believed, hoped that being openly Autistic would soften people's perceptions of me and have them treat me a bit more kindly - but that was a pipe dream, a delusion. A year of law school later, taking the same disrespect, social exclusion, and straight up bullying - and I've HAD IT.

We need to start standing up and fighting back more. There are some Autistics who manage to feel okay in life, maybe carve out a small peaceful existence they're happy with - or there are some who are happy with their lot in life, being lolcows for other people's amusement to use and discard, as long as they tow the line - but I want more than table scraps. We DESERVE more than table scraps. We don't deserve to be treated like we're disposable, like we're barely human, like we don't exist, like people can mistreat us however they want.

What exactly should we do? I can't say that with certainty. In part, because every person and situation is different and your response needs to be tailored to your needs. There's also that pesky element of reddit community standard's and this community's rules. (My inbox is always open to vent/chat.)

I will outline a few important things though:

1. Be smart. Anger is justified, but being impulsive might get you in more trouble. Sometimes it's worth it, sometimes it's not - but either way, whatever you want to do - bide your time; dish it out cold. Strategy is everything. Tactics are important, and Autistic minds can be tactical.
2. Document EVERYTHING - keep records, even word documents of any interactions you might find noteworthy.
3. Organize, organize, ORGANIZE. Find your fellow Autistics and organize. Online, there's often infighting and debates about everything autism - and there's a place for that - but offline, our priority must be helping each other, because no one else will. At school, work, in your city, there will be other Autistic people - find them, create an organization, and start collaboration. Help one another, organize demonstrations or other events, carry out missions/assignments, do things to help one another when you're going through a hard time - this can include helping one another stand up to bullies.
4. Be litigious. I cannot stress this enough. I don't just mean using the actual legal system, but whenever you're being treated unfairly, use the hell out of whatever institutional reporting system you have. This is part of documenting everything - if people see that you took 'due diligence' to handle things the so-called "right" way, it might lend you some much-needed credibility. It also means that people might think twice before disrespecting, bullying, or harming you - because doing so might cost them. Even if your reports or legal action fails, at least you put up a fight, and bullies don't like it when their victims fight back. (I am aware that many of us cannot afford actual litigation. It's part of the reason I'm in law school, so that I can eventually help Autistics in my part of the world fight back against injustice.)

It's time that people who mistreat us face consequences of some kind. Enough is enough.

AUTISTIC PRIDE! AUTISTIC POWER!

https://preview.redd.it/b0h20aqz5mzg1.png?width=1234&format=png&auto=webp&s=25e716afd9e2258ef62ebe51c82a515dc3d1b5cd

This shit keeps on showing up at times. Sometimes it's within routes I usually play, but there are certain DLC and content I have where this message ALWAYS pops up, and it's super annoying - can't try the Rush Hour Boston DLC that came with it, and the one time I tried the German route it showed that too. It now and then shows up for the London Bakerloo Metro, but at least that's usually playable. It generally never shows up for the two freight routes I play, Oakville and Sand Patch. Has anyone else gotten this before, and how did you address it? It's super annoying. Not only does it stop the game, but it essentially 'freezes' my computer such that I have to press ctrl+esc to actually access anything else, and can't access my desktop menu without restarting the PC.

It was once common knowledge among Autistic activists and neurodiversity-based advocates that functioning labels are bad, even when rebranded as "levels", and yet I see a lot of apologia nowadays. One of the common things is that "it helps people determine what supports they get".

This is flawed for many reasons, one of them being that you end up talking about the specific needs anyway, which renders the 'level' aspect moot. The other, more important thing, is that services and supports should not be gatekept based on someone's perceived 'level'. Not only does that let society off the hook for not accommodating us and incorporating neurodiversity into its design (universal design), but it also creates an artificial barrier for people who need resources, making them expensive. (It's also the reason prescription drugs are costly; it's often about the additional gatekeeping.)

Essentially it means that Autistics regardless of support 'levels' should have accessibility options available to them if they choose. That includes sensory aids, service animals, communication devices, and more. It's not that there's a shortage. These things exist and more can be made if there isn't artificial gatekeeping, which in this case feeds into artificial scarcity.

Only through uniting can we advocate for all our needs. And it's yet another reason for Autistics to have enhanced sociolegal status so that people respect us enough to accommodate us.

Autistic Pride! AUTISTIC POWER!

I wanted to clarify based on my previous post that got misunderstood and flamed by some people: when I say we aren't angry enough, I'm talking about anger at how Autistic people in general are treated in society: the social exclusion, bullying, lack of accommodations, and denial of basic humanity.

It doesn't imply that we should necessarily act out of that anger, but we should definitely feel indignant about the way we are treated. I see many Autistics here and in other places internalize the way we are treated and blame ourselves, and that's tragic. We deserve better from this world.

Obligatory statement: not from the US. I am a Canadian law student and the answer for here is pretty much f*ck no, lol. But that's in large part due to the federalist nature of our constitution.