Curebies and anti-curebies
I was talking to my sister about "person-first" language and how I really don't care about being "autistic" versus a "person with autism." Somehow that turned into "I THINK AUTISM SHOULD BE CURED!!!!!!!!" from her.
She said "I know autistic kids who are blind from gouging their eyes out! I know autistic kids who paint their feces on the walls!" (I've heard of neurotypical people who paint their feces on walls for shits and giggles, actually -- no pun intended.) She said "They need to be cured so that they'll stop doing that!"
What do you say to that? I can say all I like that I don't want to be cured, but then I get faced with the "You're high-functioning, and that's different" argument.
She said "I know autistic kids who are blind from gouging their eyes out! I know autistic kids who paint their feces on the walls!" (I've heard of neurotypical people who paint their feces on walls for shits and giggles, actually -- no pun intended.) She said "They need to be cured so that they'll stop doing that!"
What do you say to that? I can say all I like that I don't want to be cured, but then I get faced with the "You're high-functioning, and that's different" argument.