Diagnoses of autism have become more frequent since the 1980s,which has led to various controversies about both the cause of autism and the nature of the diagnoses themselves. Whether autism has mainly a genetic or developmental cause,and the degree of coincidence between autism and intellectual disability,are all matters of current scientific controversy as well as inquiry. There is also more sociopolitical debate as to whether autism should be considered a disability on its own.
The neurodiversity paradigm is a framework for understanding human brain function that recognizes the diversity within sensory processing,motor abilities,social comfort,cognition,and focus as neurobiological differences. This diversity falls on a spectrum of neurocognitive differences. The neurodiversity paradigm argues that diversity in human cognition is normal and that some conditions generally classified as disorders,such as autism,are differences and disabilities that are not necessarily pathological. Neurotypical individuals are those who fall within the average range of functioning and thinking.
The autism rights movement,also known as the autistic acceptance movement,is a social movement allied with the disability rights movement. It emphasizes the neurodiversity paradigm,viewing autism as a set of naturally occurring variations in human cognition,a disability with both strengths and weaknesses,rather than as a disease to be cured or a disorder to be treated,diverging from the medical model of disability.
Autistic Pride Day is a pride celebration for autistic people held on 18 June each year. Autistic pride recognises the importance of pride for autistic people and its role in bringing about positive changes in the broader society.
Autism Network International (ANI) is an advocacy organization run by and for autistic people. ANI's principles involve the anti-cure perspective,the perspective that there should not be a goal to "cure" people of autism.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to autism:
Self-advocacy is the act of speaking up for oneself and one's interests. It is used as a name for civil rights movements and mutual aid networks for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The term arose in the broader civil rights movements of the 1960s and 1970s,and is part of the disability rights movement. Today there are self-advocacy organizations across the world.
People-first language (PFL),also called person-first language,is a type of linguistic prescription which puts a person before a diagnosis,describing what condition a person "has" rather than asserting what a person "is". It is intended to avoid marginalization or dehumanization when discussing people with a chronic illness or disability. It can be seen as a type of disability etiquette but person-first language can also be more generally applied to any group that would otherwise be defined or mentally categorized by a condition or trait.
Mel Baggs,was an American non-binary blogger who predominantly wrote on the subject of autism and disability. At times,Baggs used a communication device to speak and referred to themself as a low-functioning autistic. Revelations about Baggs's past created some uncertainty about their diagnosis.
Societal and cultural aspects of autism or sociology of autism come into play with recognition of autism,approaches to its support services and therapies,and how autism affects the definition of personhood. The autistic community is divided primarily into two camps;the autism rights movement and the pathology paradigm. The pathology paradigm advocates for supporting research into therapies,treatments,and/or a cure to help minimize or remove autistic traits,seeing treatment as vital to help individuals with autism,while the neurodiversity movement believes autism should be seen as a different way of being and advocates against a cure and interventions that focus on normalization,seeing it as trying to exterminate autistic people and their individuality. Both are controversial in autism communities and advocacy which has led to significant infighting between these two camps. While the dominant paradigm is the pathology paradigm and is followed largely by autism research and scientific communities,the neurodiversity movement is highly popular among most autistic people,within autism advocacy,autism rights organizations,and related neurodiversity approaches have been rapidly growing and applied in the autism research field in the last few years.
The Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit advocacy organization run by and for individuals on the autism spectrum. ASAN advocates for the inclusion of autistic people in decisions that affect them,including:legislation,depiction in the media,and disability services.
Ari Daniel Ne'eman is an American disability rights activist and researcher who co-founded the Autistic Self Advocacy Network in 2006. On December 16,2009,President Barack Obama announced that Ne'eman would be appointed to the National Council on Disability. After an anonymous hold was lifted,Ne'eman was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate to serve on the Council on June 22,2010. He chaired the council's Policy &Program Evaluation Committee making him the first autistic person to serve on the council. In 2015,Ne'eman left the National Council on Disability at the end of his second term. He currently serves as a consultant to the American Civil Liberties Union. He is currently an Assistant Professor at the Department of Health Policy and Management of Harvard University.
Denise C. Garlick is an American state legislator representing the 13th Norfolk District in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.
Lydia X. Z. Brown is an American autistic disability rights activist,writer,attorney,and public speaker who was honored by the White House in 2013. They are the chairperson of the American Bar Association Civil Rights &Social Justice Disability Rights Committee. They are also Policy Counsel for Privacy &Data at the Center for Democracy &Technology,and Director of Policy,Advocacy,&External Affairs at the Autistic Women &Nonbinary Network. In 2022,they unsuccessfully ran for the Maryland House of Delegates in District 7A,losing to state delegate Kathy Szeliga and delegate-elect Ryan Nawrocki.
Julia Bascom is an American autism rights activist. She is a former executive director of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network (ASAN) and replaced Ari Ne'eman as president of ASAN in early 2017 before stepping down at the end of 2023.
Shain A. Mahaffey Neumeier is an American autistic and nonbinary transgender attorney. Neumeier advocates against coercive and forced treatment,including advocacy to close the Judge Rotenberg Center,an institution for people with developmental disabilities. They are also an activist for autism rights,disability rights,and other associated causes.
Morénike Giwa Onaiwu is an American educator,author,and autism and HIV advocate. Alongside E. Ashkenazy and Lydia Brown,Onaiwu is an editor of All the Weight of Our Dreams, an anthology of art and writing entirely by autistic people of color published by the Autism Women's Network in June 2017.
Current research indicates that autistic people have higher rates of LGBTQ identities and feelings than the general population. A variety of explanations for this have been proposed,such as prenatal hormonal exposure,which has been linked with sexual orientation,gender dysphoria and autism. Alternatively,autistic people may be less reliant on social norms and thus are more open about their orientation or gender identity. A narrative review published in 2016 stated that while various hypotheses have been proposed for an association between autism and gender dysphoria,they lack strong evidence.
Jennifer White-Johnson is an artist and activist living in Baltimore,Maryland,US. As a disabled Afro-Latina artist with ADHD and Graves' Disease she uses graphic design and photography as a means to discuss the intersection of disability rights and anti-racism,and to give visibility to misrepresented voices. After completing her Masters degree,she taught as professor of Visual Communication Design at Bowie State University. Some of her more famous works include the Black Disabled Lives Matter symbol,and a Black Autistic Joy advocacy zine called Knox Roxs.
