My Rant on Facebook based on an Article....Opinions?

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"Prepare yourselfs..... It is rant time!!

What I protest with parents of those with the more classic forms of autism is how do they know their child does not understand their own civil rights? Just because one does not communicate in a way YOU do not understand does not mean that they don't understand everything that you and everyone around you is saying!! I have been an advocate for many years, I have met people all over the disability landscape. And people with learning disabilities are some of the most aware advocates you can come across!!

Parents can not speak for us, because they are not US!! Just because you see the struggles, and deal with your own that are related to raising an autistic child, does not mean you understand our struggles and that you should be our voice. You have NO RIGHT to take away the voice of your child just because YOU don't understand how they are speaking!! As to the other prejudices, they have been going on for YEARS!!

For the love of God, how the hell is it still a debate that this is a Spectrum disorder, and the fact that I can READ and ADVOCATE for myself does not mean I do not have Autism!! Seriously, do you have any idea how hard it is for someone like me to get a job, simply disclosing the fact of my disorder! Or even better, how many times I have had to change jobs when I do get them due to the anxiety that comes with my Autism? How about how much fun it is to put on my nuero-typical mask when I have to People for any amount of time?

Or what I call my rage issues, stress issues, sensory issues so strong they can cause hives or severe stomach issues. Yet people like I on the Spectrum don't count because we can sit on a committee? Really? I dare you to come to the MO Council on Disabilities and voice that opinion. Go ahead. I'll wait.

Whether you like it or not Parents, WE DO understand your child, and what they are going through, how to communicate with them, and what they would like because in some shape or form, WE'VE BEEN THERE AND WE LIVED IT!! ! So instead of being mad at us, try something new, TRY LISTENING!!"

Link to the article that fueled the rant: http://nosmag.org/parents-and-autistic- ... committee/

It doesn't help that "experts" are still publishing books with the non-verbal=low IQ myth.

And of course the parents believe those books and think it is true. The Medical Model has done so much damage to all of us its insane!

We do not really understand what it is to be severly autistic. But for a non autistic to claim they understand it better then us is ridiculous.

Autism is Autism. Our “severity” might be much less but we have the same issues. For every condition there is severity differences. The pain from a sprained wrist is not remotly like the pain from shattering every bone. But most people do not go around saying the person with the sprained wrist is not in pain and there are very few cancer advocates demanding that peaple with Stage 0 cancer be diagnosed under a different label because they do not have “real cancer” or they should stop complaining about fear of recurrence or radiation because the low dose is not “real radiation”.

Many of the “self advocates” were severly autistic as children.

We here complain about Aspie Supremecists. They are wrong and should-be critized but the people who deny people who have the ability to post on Wrong Planet are autistic are more numorous and powerful.

I should restate some of what I said. For example, I do understand those with more severe cases to a point. I also at my age have an issue with Aspie Supremists. A long time ago, I use to be one. However as I age and get older, I look at the issues like those I listed in my rant, the difficulties I have. They are real, they come from having Autism, and not calling our diagnoses what it is, a disability, does a large disservice not only to the community, but oneself. I do not glory in my diagnoses, only seek to understand and work towards supports that will help us to work on those issues that pop up so that we can lead the lives that we wish.

And thank you. I have heard for so many years that I don't have Autism, and that I don't need help when it is such a struggle to get along, due to the difficulties mentioned. It is such a difficult fight for those like me to get services and get the help we need in order to lead independent lives, and we DO NEED THE HELP!! So thank you for saying that.