[TW for ableism, abuse and murder]
Hear ye, hear ye:
When I say #LetAutisticPeopleLive, I don’t just mean “allow us to go on living,” although that is a big part of it. I also mean, let #ActuallyAutistic people HAVE lives. Meaningful ones. Allow us the same opportunities you would happily allot to any neurotypical.
I mean, give autistic people some accommodation. Give us a chance to show our talent. I mean, modify education programs so autistic people can receive “strength training” in the academic sense and learn what they’re most capable of, based on their special interests and sensory abilities (those that haven’t been rattled by excessive input at least). I mean, give autistic people important positions in academia AND the workplace.
And when #ActuallyAutistic people show signs of stress or burnout, don’t just stand there making it worse by increasing demand for the response you want, as in that substack of ABA tritely known as “exposure therapy.” Give them a break, let them calm themselves so they can regain focus on what needs to be done. In short, don’t overload them.
But I do mean, more than any of the above, let #ActuallyAutistic people remain alive, continue to exist. Don’t kill them before they’ve even had a chance to experience a calmer, gentler world than the one NTs force them to navigate.
And when it comes to the way #ActuallyAutistic people react to the world NTs force them to navigate… Don’t hurt or kill them.
Please? I’m serious. Being autistic is not justification for murder. Or filicide, or police brutality.
Leave us alone. Just #LetAutisticPeopleLive.
The Autyssey 