Autistic Hedgehog

[Autism. Related tags: actuallyautistic, night of too many stars, katy perry

Please just GTFO]

Seriously, I’ve had enough of this. The tags listed as relating to autism should have something, somehow, to do with autism, even if its a different but similar diagnosis. Katy Perry doesn’t have jack all to do with autism and I do not give half a flying rat’s ass that she sang with that autistic girl. 

You know what’s happening here? A bunch of allistic people are flooding the autism tag with this video, and many of them are accompanying it with insulting remarks, talking about how if you don’t cry over it you don’t have a soul. I haven’t watched Night of Too Many Stars, but what I do know is this: It’s apparently not teaching anyone that just because autistic people don’t always express their emotions the way allistic people do, it doesn’t mean we don’t have them.

So these people are posting this video alongside remarks that are directly insulting and even triggering to actually autistic people. And then they’re patting themselves on the back like they’re so damn great for watching it. 

So yeah, NoTMS people, GTFO of the autism tag. This is not the kind of “awareness” autism needs. 

[“Katy Perry sang with an autistic girl? She has such a beautiful soul!”

Yes, how arduous, singing with an autistic girl who knows how to sing. She puts Jesus to shame. Quick, guys, let’s canonize her.]

Whoa, hey, look at that, allistic people, sarcasm! Real live, dripping-scorn-like-a-hot-cinnamon-roll-drips-icing sarcasm. Gosh, it’s almost like autistics are real people who deserve better than to be showcased on a TV show like those animals the ASPCA puts on display whenever they’re trying to find homes for them! It’s–it’s almost like we’re individuals or something! Like, you know, some of us are good at certain things and some of us aren’t, kind of like every other freakin’ person on the planet.

———

Okay, we’re now below the sarcasm line. Everything below this line is straight talk.

So I’m sure by now a number of you have seen this whole Night of Too Many Allistics Stars thing and I know from looking at the tags that some of you have watched it. So send me your NoTMS related hedgehogs! Please?

pretty please?

No, seriously, I am straight up getting a little desperate here, trying to think up all these hedgehogs on my own. And anyway, I’m on the wrong side of the planet to even be able to watch NoTMS, so I need some help on this one. So really, please, if you have a bit of time, send me a hedgehog or two.

[Ill-informed allistic who loves Autism $peaks?

There’s an app for that!]

Yes, I am totally serious. 

I even went on iTunes to see for myself, and sure enough, it’s there. What would you even do with such an app? Track how much money Autism $peaks is wasting?

Get the latest updates on Jenny McCarthy’s bullshit “cures”?

Maybe they have something that keeps track of how many autistic people are on their staff. I mean, with a number that low, you wouldn’t hardly have to use any resources at all! 

(On iTunes there was also a reggae song entitled Autism Speaks. I have no idea if it’s associated with the organization–it does use their colors–but I listen to the preview and uh…I’m just going to try to pretend that never happened.)

[T-shirts to raise money for Autism Speaks?

I’d rather be naked]

I know, I know, I should probably stay out of the autism tag. It’s rife with idiot college kids doing shit like making T-shirts to raise money for A$. But on the bright (?) side, it’s pretty good fodder for memes.

P.S. Start sending me your ideas for anti-Autism Speaks t-shirts. I have a plan to take over the world.

When I was coming out of physical therapy today, I accidentally made eye contact with one of those clipboard wielding activists (probably from Amnesty International; my husband has to tell them about a dozen or so times a year that he’s already a member). I quickly looked away, but she pursued me and I had to duck my head and run for it.

It sucks having to come off like a jerk because I’m too tired to deal with some stranger all up in my space. But this is what I don’t get about the conclusions autism researchers come to. Supposedly autistics are the ones who can’t relate to others or understand other minds, yet allistics seem incapable of realizing that not everyone wants or likes to be accosted by strangers. And not just autistic people; plenty of other people have myriad reasons they might not want to be approached on the sidewalk by someone they don’t know.

Worse, when I made it clear with my body language (and you can’t get more clear than looking away and hunching over) that I wasn’t in the mood, she still came at me. She had no idea what was up with me and was apparently incapable of conceiving of the idea that I might genuinely want to be left alone.

And now I’d better stop before I fly into a full-fledged rant about how body language illiterate allistics really are and how much that warps society and the awful cycle it’s produced, etc. etc.