Well I DO
identify as autistic, AND with those ‘low-functioning’, I refuse to be
separated from them, and so I've decided I’m just going to say how I feel, in
an attempt to make clear my reasons why.
Reason One - Defeating the ‘Divide and Conquer’
thing. Many
autism ‘experts’, parents, etc, and their organisations, take the stance that
“It’s all right for you high-functioning types, but ‘these people’ have ‘real’
problems, which can only be addressed by this drastic treatment/long hours of
therapy/punitive suppression/etc/etc/etc”. What this effectively says is “We’ll
leave you alone as long as you can pass for ‘normal’, and as long as you don’t
protest what we’re doing to ‘those people’.” It’s an unspoken but nonetheless
potent threat – but also a nonsense, because –
Reason Two - There is no clear dividing line
between low and high functioning. Many autistics are able to communicate via
the internet, write articles and books that get published, or advocate on
behalf of their fellow autistics, but cannot communicate verbally, hold down a
regular job, or live independently. Others can, but only with a great deal of
support from family or social services. Even those who, like me, are fully
‘independent’, function best with help from those around them. We all have
problems, are prone to break down, overload, melt down, etc, etc. None of us
are ‘high-functioning’ in all areas of our lives. NONE.
Reason Three - All autistics are entitled to
respect, no matter what their functioning level. Many are labelled ‘low-functioning’ because
of their lack of verbal speech, but if/when they finally find a way to
communicate, a perfectly functional intelligence is revealed. But even
if this is not the case – if they are intellectually disabled, for
instance – they are still entitled to be treated well, to have all the
rights that I list in my recent ‘Bill of Rights for Autistics’, as well as any
other rights that, for instance, the intellectually or physically disabled have
or are campaigning for.
Reason Four - I feel more in common with them
than with NTs. NTs
see me ‘looking normal’, and think I ‘must’ like that, must want to be identified with them, that
it’s a compliment if they tell me how ‘normal’ I seem. When actually, it’s an
elaborate front I've evolved to cope with life, and frequently a strain to keep
up. I often feel like a fake doing it, and long to reveal more of my true self.
I do not identify with NTs in general, or want to. Underneath, I know I am far
more like that kid rocking and flapping in the corner than any of them suspect.
Underneath, I understand why he rocks and flaps – and even do it myself, when
no-one’s looking. Because -
Reason Five - There is only one autism. I’ve said this before, and I’m
saying it again – at the core, we are all equally autistic. The big difference
between high and low functioning is not ‘how much autism we have’, but ‘how
well we can pass for normal’, ie how many social, communicative and life skills
we are able to learn. If scientists, doctors, etc, really want to help
autistics, they should be researching why some autistics can learn these
skills, learn to talk, etc, and others can’t, what part of our brains determines
this.
For my
part, I can only say this.
I will not
be separated.
I will not
be disempowered.
I will not
be silenced.
I will not
have my true, underlying nature denied.
I will not
stop being autistic, and championing the right of EVERY autistic to BE
autistic, to be free, and to be given the human rights they so desperately
need.
I stand in
solidarity, and I invite all autistics, low or high functioning, to stand with
me.
