Mum outraged autism being referred to as an acquired taste
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ASPartOfMe
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Joined: 25 Aug 2013
Age: 66
Gender: Male
Posts: 34,419
Location: Long Island, New York
Quote:
Author and self-described comedian, Kathy Lette wrote an opinion piece on Thursday in which she shared that her son, Julius, 29 and her friend, Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, both have autism.
“Autistic people are the garlic in life’s salad, and therefore not to everyone’s taste. But how dull life would be without them – a case of the bland leading the bland,” she writes.
As a mother of an autistic person, (my son, Teddy, who is 7) I understand what Lette was trying to express.
My son has made my life infinitely richer and deeper because he is in it. I too, am delighted by him and grateful he’s not “bland”.
But to compare autistic people as a whole to “garlic” is offensive. Here’s why.
Autistic people do not exist to add flavour to society any more than people who use wheelchairs add spice.
Such language is othering, and seems to suggest that people on the spectrum can be fun additions, like Rainman (Dustin Hoffman) in his cute grey suit counting cards at Las Vegas.
My autistic son is not flavoursome - he's human
“Autistic people are the garlic in life’s salad, and therefore not to everyone’s taste. But how dull life would be without them – a case of the bland leading the bland,” she writes.
As a mother of an autistic person, (my son, Teddy, who is 7) I understand what Lette was trying to express.
My son has made my life infinitely richer and deeper because he is in it. I too, am delighted by him and grateful he’s not “bland”.
But to compare autistic people as a whole to “garlic” is offensive. Here’s why.
Autistic people do not exist to add flavour to society any more than people who use wheelchairs add spice.
Such language is othering, and seems to suggest that people on the spectrum can be fun additions, like Rainman (Dustin Hoffman) in his cute grey suit counting cards at Las Vegas.
My autistic son is not flavoursome - he's human
I am not offended by the garlic analogy to diversity. It is not saying we are not human it is not saying we are aliens on the wrong planet. It is saying we are a variation of human. It is saying some humans do not like autistic traits in other humans. This is fact and is true for all sorts of human traits.
If anything is problematic about the letter it is the implication that Assange actions should be judged because he is autistic. Fortunately that is not the case, Assange is being judged as a hero or traitor based on theft and publication of classified information.
_________________
Professionally Identified and joined WP August 26, 2013
DSM 5: Autism Spectrum Disorder, DSM IV: Aspergers Moderate Severity
It is Autism Acceptance Month
“My autism is not a superpower. It also isn’t some kind of god-forsaken, endless fountain of suffering inflicted on my family. It’s just part of who I am as a person”. - Sara Luterman
Last edited by ASPartOfMe on 15 Oct 2020, 7:44 am, edited 1 time in total.
I would be very suspicious of Julian Assange diagnosis.
Nothing against the man but he had no issues before, suddenly when he’s facing 100 years in prison he claims he’s autistic and vulnerable.
I don’t think it would be all that difficult for him to fake symptoms to a psychiatrist.
_________________
"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends upon the unreasonable man."
- George Bernie Shaw
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