Ollie dokie, deep dive into "you can't be autistic because..." An unfortunately far too common statement which it seems far too many autistic individuals get thrown at them. Now obviously this is just my personal experience as an #ActuallyAutistic individual. 1/
"You can't be autistic because...you can communicate". I don't just communicate, my whole career is based on being able to communicate. Not to sound arrogant, but I'm actually pretty good at it. Here's the kicker, for me, I'm good at it because I am autistic. Not despite it. 2/
I was diagnosed when I was 27, so spent my formative years not understanding why I was "different" and trying to find any way I could to avoid getting bullied for being "weird". Unfortunately all my ideas on this inevitably meant I got more bullied. 3/
The thing is though, it helped me think about what I say and what the knock on effect may be. Communication for me is like a game of chess, I plan it out ahead of time and work through every possible response. Fortunately I can do that quite quickly now. 4/
"You can't be autistic because...you have a family". My instinct is to say "luck" for this one, because I am very lucky. That's not an overly helpful explanation though. Pointing out that autistic individuals are just as varied as non-autistic people is a good start. 5/
I love my wife with every fibre of my being, and I am bloody lucky that she puts up with me, but, just like any relationship, we work together because of who we are, shared interests etc, also still claiming luck on my part. 6/
"You can't be autistic because...you made a joke". I actually struggle quite a bit when people are being sarcastic towards me. I tend to take things quite literally. That said, I acknowledge I have a very dark and sarcastic sense of humour myself. 7/
Not to overthink this, well okay I am overthinking but I do that with everything so hey ho, but my sense of humour has developed as a pretty effective defence mechanism due to having to live in a world where I don't always understand what people are doing. 8/
"You can't be autistic because...you can maintain eye contact, talk in public, attend events". I'm linking these three because yes I can do these, and yes the effect of doing so, while varying in intensity, is pretty much the same, I crash later. 9/
It's called acting darling. Actually it's called "masking" and, whether we realize it or not, it's something which many autistic individuals have to do to exist in the world, and it is knackering. You see the nice "normal" front. You don't see the toll it takes later. 10/
"You can't be autistic because...you don't sound/act/look like my child/parent/friend/person I saw on TV/made up character in my head etc". Yes, sorry about that and not fitting whatever stereotype you have in your head. You see the thing is WE ARE ALL DIFFERENT. 11/
Look, I know this will come as a shock to some people, but there isn't a nice little box which you can easily put all #ActuallyAutistic individuals in. When you hear that term "spectrum" think of more a scatter graph than a straight line. 12/
You don't have the right, no not even if you "know someone who is autistic", "have an autistic child", "saw an autistic individual on TV" etc to tell someone else that they aren't autistic, particularly if you are doing it online and don't know them. 13/
Earlier on I said I was formally diagnosed when I was 27. Now that's true, but it isn't the whole story. I found out last year that I was originally diagnosed when I was six and it was decided not to tell me. So I am double diagnosed. I do like to make certain on things. 14/
Here's the next biggie though, it wouldn't matter if I wasn't formally diagnosed and had self-diagnosed instead. I'm lucky, and not just because I am married to the love of my life, because I was able to get diagnosed. For many people it just isn't possible. 15/
Self-diagnosis is perfectly valid. I have done loads of online tests, mainly in a hope that the formal diagnosis was wrong, yeah not always been this comfortable talking about being autistic, and still have days when I hate myself for being it, and they're not bad. 16/
What isn't valid is telling someone "you can't be autistic because..." Yes they can. Trust me, most people aren't saying they are autistic because they want to spend their lives dealing with being patronised and abused by people who say "you can't be autistic because..." 17/

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More from @stand_for_all

17 Oct
Good thread on flaws with the regular "remove anonymity from social media" argument. We absolutely need better safeguards on social media, however removing anonymity isn't just impractical, it also risks quite a number of very dangerous negative effects. 1/
We tend to look at the debate from our own positionality, which means we forget the impact on such calls in countries far more illiberal than in the UK, and have no mistake if we remove anonymity others will follow. 2/
That risks human rights activists, the LGBTQ+ community, victims of domestic violence, and so on and so on. It's also unlikely to make a drastic impact on abuse, just look at how many people who aren't anonymous engage in it. 3/
Read 7 tweets
17 Oct
Language use is important. When discussing asylum seekers and refugees it becomes even more so. It doesn't matter if you have good intentions, the wrong choice of language can have disastrous repercussions, and this piece is littered with wrong choices. 1/
theguardian.com/commentisfree/…
The EU and UK take proportionally a small number of refugees compared to the rest of the world, 86% of refugees are hosted in developing nations. Language like "uncontrolled migration" "untold numbers", "surge" etc give a false impression of scale. 2/ ImageImageImage
It's particularly important that you are also clear about what you are saying. The overall number of asylum applications in the UK is actually slightly down on previous years at present. Yes, there have been more channel crossings, but not "record numbers trying to enter...". 3/ Image
Read 8 tweets
13 Oct
"Pushbacks" are illegal under international law. Any deaths caused by Border Force while carrying them out would violate international law, and, as much as this government repeatedly ignores this fact, international law trumps domestic. 1/ amp.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/o…
The very fact Patel is looking to try and get immunity from prosecution demonstrates a clear knowledge that the #bordersbill will inevitably lead to deaths at sea, and have no mistake that will include children. It is an abhorrent piece of legislation which will kill people. 2/
Not only those attempting to enter the UK though. What is frequently overlooked is that it will give cover, perceived if not practical, for other states to conduct operations which kill refugees. 3/
Read 10 tweets
11 Oct
THREAD: With both Labour and the Conservatives yet again trotting out the idea that the only way to tackle trafficking is to make it harder for people to come to the UK it's worth looking at the whole issue of "safe routes". 1/
I use "safe routes" a lot, but even I will admit it is a hazy, fluffy term which needs fleshing out. As it stands it sounds like we are advocating for more "resettlement routes", and yes we do need more, but they still only account for a tiny fraction of asylum seekers. 2/
This is not a simple issue with a simple solution though, and boiling it down to two words probably doesn't help the majority of people understand that. First off you need to look at a bit of background. 3/
Read 18 tweets
10 Oct
There is a discussion in the replies to this tweet which I think it is worth exploring in more depth, can the Home Office be changed from within, and as such should we be nicer about some of the people who work there, or not. I fall on the "not" side of the argument. 1/
Nothing in life is as simple as saying "if you don't like your job just quit". People have responsibilities, needs etc etc. Just quitting isn't practical for a lot of people. There are times though when it is necessary, otherwise you become complicit in some hideous things. 2/
It's not on the scale of Home Office abuses, but I've been there myself and had to leave a position because I knew what was happening at the place of business was fundamentally wrong and I couldn't be part of it. 3/
Read 9 tweets
9 Oct
"A facilitator of illegal immigration". Look, this isn't complex #r4today. Yes, they are both run by gangs, but there is a difference between "trafficking" and "smuggling", which might not be important to some, but damn sure is to those affected. 1/
Smugglers tend to take an upfront fee and facilitate entry. Traffickers often exploit people after they have transported them. The changes of trafficked victims not knowing where they are heading is also far higher. 2/
In no way defending either, both prey on vulnerable asylum seekers, but conflating the two confuses an already layered and complex issue. It also won't be tackled by closing routes, penalising victims or picking up individuals. 3/
Read 6 tweets

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