Open Society

Findings suggest that, contrary to typically developing individuals, several forms of atypical communication among youth with autism spectrum disorder are associated with more positive first impressions by others with autism spectrum disorder. This suggests that interventions designed to increase friendships among youth with autism spectrum disorder may benefit from reframing their approach to addressing atypical social communication.

We found that differences in social communication (particularly, eye contact and facial expressions) led to better first impressions as rated by peers with autism spectrum disorder. These results suggest that differences in social communication may not simply be a deficit for youth; rather they may actually help build friendships among peers with autism spectrum disorder. This is important because current social skills interventions generally aim to reduce social communication differences, which may have negative consequences for friendships between peers with autism spectrum disorder.

Of course, guidelines for how and where one can protest often serve to restrict protests that would disrupt “business as usual.” This willfully disregards the purpose of protest – to garner attention, to disrupt, to make it difficult or impossible to ignore ongoing struggles and demands. As many have articulated, a protest with permission is a parade. Disorder is the point.

“There’s a whole critical disability studies dissertation to be written on ‘disorder’ as pejorative for disrupting the political status quo.”

Throughout history, dissent and disruption has been attributed to disability in a derogatory manner ; there are countless instances of pathologization across politically disenfranchised communities rising up for justice. Black Americans have been pathologized for escaping or attempting to escape enslavement, for resisting Jim Crow discrimination, for protesting police brutality, and so on (read more in Dr. Sami Schalk’s Black Disability Politics). Queer and trans identities are pathologized, and gender-affirming care is still distributed or withheld by gatekeepers within the medical-industrial complex. Even the history of hysteria as a diagnosis inflicted upon women who rejected patriarchal standards points to disability and illness as an explanation for unexpected, unacceptable, and dissenting behavior and an excuse to cast aside the people who behave as such. Deeply rooted ableism makes all pathologized subjects disposable and as Talila “TL” Lewis explains, “You do not have to be disabled to experience ableism.” It becomes clear, then, that our liberation is bound up in one another’s. If ableism is and can be weaponized against one community, we are all in danger of being labeled “disordered” and facing disposal.

To be politically disabled is to simultaneously uphold and subvert ableist ideas about dissent. Yet, as my dear friend Cavar explains, to embrace our crip/Mad existence is always and already political.

The world demands participation in heinous systems – late capitalism, white supremacy, oppression, violence – and insists that we dispose of the people who refuse or are unable to comply.

Mainstream disability organizations play along with bland requests for “niceness” towards disabled people, rather than advocating for systemic change or challenging the violence enacted upon pathologized subjects

Subverting, resisting, or failing to adhere to these demands is only a transgression in so much as we are socialized to comply. Our failure to comply is an affirmation of our fragile and precious humanity, just as the noncompliance of our bodyminds is a reminder of the beautiful messiness of life. Our disabled lives are perceived as disorder, perceived as dissent, by those in power. I don’t see any reason, then, to continue participating in the status quo. The order is oppressive; let’s dis it.