One thing that always strikes me in modern conversations about autism is the misconception that there are more people with autism now than there used to be. This is a classic fallacy, because only through a focus on diagnosis and early screening have we seen these rates begin to rise. An increased rate of diagnosis does not equate to increased incidence. People with autism and neurodivergent people have always been here; we just didn’t have the means to identify them, and offer our support. Many people have suffered in silence as round pegs crammed into square holes, expected to fit into a neurotypical world with specific societal expectations.

But many people with autism, diagnosed or not, have found ways to build a life. There is nothing inherently negative about autism—it is just another way a brain can work, another way of seeing the world. Humans are infinitely diverse, and so are our brains. Often, mental health diagnoses are used to group traits or symptoms into a category that we can understand.

 

Contrast this to the way the current head of Health and Human Services, RFK Jr., seems to understand autism. Aside from his complete mangling of statistics and his claims that vaccines are a contributing factor to autism (the theory has long been debunked, and its originator’s medical license revoked), RFK Jr. states that people with autism “…will never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job, they’ll never play baseball, they’ll never write a poem, they’ll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted.”

My first thought is, this is patently untrue. I personally know many people with autism, and they pay taxes, work, write, and live full lives. But my second thought is, “would that be so bad?” I also know plenty of people who can’t work, who can’t write, who can’t use a toilet unassisted. What they can do is think and feel, they communicate in words or in other ways, they smile when they enjoy things, and they cry just like all humans. This concept that we have to “contribute to society” in a specific, capitalistic way through work is nothing more than a Christian-centric idea floated by the influential 1500s theologian John Calvin, who believed that work was how one showed gratitude to God. Calvinism, which represents 75 million people globally, has permeated our society in many ways.

Just because a man in the 1500s decided that work was the way to godliness does not mean that work today, in our modern, secular society is the only path to redemption. And just because some folks with disabilities cannot work, they should not be forced into poverty or denigrated. Nor should their personal health information be invaded, nor put on a “registry” to attempt to “eliminate” the way their brains function. The very idea of a registry of people with autism reeks of eugenic thinking, and most people with disabilities find it offensive. Why “cure” us when we’re fine the way we are? We just need the support society can provide.

Humans are not meant to be solitary creatures, we are meant to help and accept each other. We’re not meant to be stigmatized, medicalized, and distanced from people who are different than we are. My brain works differently than your brain, and both of our brains work differently than RFK Jr.’s. Our unique humanity fosters countless worlds in our heads, with immeasurable distinctions. The difference between you and a person with autism is not quite as large as you might think.

 

- Rachael Cowan is a Systems Change Advocate at Stavros Center for Independent Living. She holds a BA in Medical Ethics and Disability Justice from Hampshire College and has worked in the disability field for over 10 years.