Why does autism have such a stigma to it?

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What's a stigma?

It's a shameful label, sort of. Stigmatising something means to make it shameful, untouchable, bad.

I think it's because many portrayals of autism, including the Autism Speaks vids shows autists in meltdowns, even though autists in general also usually stirr out of the window, whisper to themselves, headbang, make animal noises and rock back and forth, the primary factors of autism.

Because so many of the "groups" that have been subjected to discrimination do have a physical characteristic in common (skin color, eye shape, etc.). This allows the majority to (1) identify the "different ones" more easily and (2) have a tangible "difference" to hate (whatever the physical feature of asd's might be).

Discrimination is rampant, perhaps unavoidable, and people with asd's often encounter discrimination already without looking different - or at least, without having a physical feature that only people with asd's share.

When people hear the word, autism, they think, "Rain Man". That character can't even take care of himself.

I wonder why society is so focused on autism?

'cause people are social creatures and asocial people go against the grain. Back in the day, you'd be killed or something, now you're just given a different box with its own label and people try to figure out why you are the way you are (who are from different and more crowded boxes).

I can't look after myself in regards to social functioning (like Rain Man), but I can shoot, clean and eat a wild animal; make sense of that and you'll make sense of why autism is a big deal to many.

But why can't they be focused on other mental condtions? Why not medical conditions too?

Yeah, last I checked it's things such as cancer and HIV that actualy kill people. Mental illnesses such as skitsofrenia and Multiple Personality Disorder causes more distress and agnoy than AS and autism do and actualy interfere with the life of the person who has it and not just those around who find it annoying. I know autism has some sensory problems assoicated with it, they should look into those too but just to help the person with them so they can cope, not so the parents can dress them up in frilly outfits and take them to stupid parties.

Hmmm, no way to have nature give us pointy ears... Perhaps if enough of us got plastic surgery......

Actually, if enough of us did go the plastic surgery route with our ears, perhaps we'd get less questions...

Those people have nothing better to think about, so they think about our differences. I think it's very stupid, myself.

I agree with this hypothesis, and it matches my own observation.