NOTE: Eugenics, physical abuse, and depression will be discussed.
Public knowledge of autism is...let's call it a mixed bag. There are people who see autism as a blow to a human development and a burden to those around them that needs "curing". There are people who see autism as a unique gift that gives them a different perspective of the world they can share and shouldn't be "cured". There are people who argue that autism is far more complicated than either of those binaries. I don't want to litigate what perspective is "correct" but needless to say it's a thorny issue. And I personally find the conversation so toxic that I just choose not to talk about it lest I subject myself to people yelling at me at how "wrong" I am. Besides, I've always stated from the outset that this blog is just my own opinion and I don't expect others to be the same but just to respect it.
Then I read about a big initiative that scared me so thoroughly that I need to weigh in.
A collaborative initiative between the University of Cambridge, the Autism Research Center, and University of Los Angeles called Spectrum 10K launched as the biggest autism research project to examine environmental and biological factors impacting autistic people's well-being. Its stated goals is to look at and address physical and mental health issues autistic people can have to better address their needs and "alleviate unwanted symptoms and co-occurring conditions". It seems like the bulk of the research will be reliant on participants filling out online questionnaires and providing health records and DNA samples via salvia swabs. About 10,000 autistic people were set to participate in this project. The proponents of Spectrum 10K claim that this study will help improve the lives of autistic people and thus further the cause of neurodiversity (a celebration of brain diversity I talked about way long ago).
Why do I feel like this isn't so much championing for bettering the lives of autistic people but a sneaky way to "cure" people like me?
