{"id":1483,"date":"2019-04-30T17:51:46","date_gmt":"2019-04-30T17:51:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/?p=1483"},"modified":"2019-04-30T18:08:09","modified_gmt":"2019-04-30T18:08:09","slug":"autism-the-concept-of-being-normal-and-breaking-down-stereotypes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/take-home-final-examinations\/autism-the-concept-of-being-normal-and-breaking-down-stereotypes\/","title":{"rendered":"Autism the Concept of Being Normal and Breaking down Stereotypes"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
Jasmine Williams disability literature exam<\/a>Download<\/a><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Jasmine Williams <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Foss <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disability Literature 304 Section 02 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Final Exam <\/p>\n\n\n\n

April 30, 2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autism\nthe Concept of Being Normal and Breaking down Stereotypes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autism\nhas been a topic in which society tends to view differently. People who are non-autistic\nsometimes do not understand how to interact with an autistic person. Not\nknowing how to interact with a person with autism comes with the stereotypes of\nautism. Some view autistic people as not worth listening to, awkward and, not\nbeing able to fit into society. The term normal is used often in both society\nand disability studies to define the way people interact or carry themselves.\nNormal is something that society want one another to reflect in order to fit\nin. Autism comes with stereotypes put in place by society but, over the years\nadvocacy groups and people who are autistic help put down stereotypes place on\nthe autistic community. People who part of the autism community are speaking\nabout their differences, how society reacts to their differences and the\nquestions that non \u2013 autistic people ask. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Normal\nis a term that comes up in disability studies and how society define the term\nof being normal. Normal is a term that is tricky because it is a term that is\nhard to define. Normal can be used in many ways and, according to Sinclair\nnormal is used by parents as a source of not relating to the autistic child\n(Sinclair). New parents want the best for their children and provide for them\nin the way that society views as a better life for a child (Sinclair). However,\nwhen a child is autistic some parents stop viewing their child as normal and\ninstead view the child with autism as a tragedy (Sinclair). Also, the different\nways in which autistic people navigate society is seen by some as awkward and\none might ask why? That is because \u201cNon- autistic people see autism as a great\ntragedy\u201d (Sinclair). How non- autistic people view autism makes some ask do non\n\u2013 autistic people really know what autism is?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autism is defined as a neurological condition, that affects the way information is processed in the brain, autism is a spectrum condition and ranges from a person being non- verbal or highly talkative (Murray 1).\u00a0 Knowing the scientific definition of autism still impacts the controversy on how one could inherit the disorder. \u00a0One controversy was the Anti \u2013 Vax Movement and how parents believed that vaccines were the main cause of autism (Murray 83). Vaccines use to contain mercury and some people believed the toxin in the vaccines was a link to autism in children (Murray83). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nvaccination movement shows how people get nervous about the concept of autism.\nPeople who are non- autistic not only get nervous on the concept of the\ncondition but, they also tend to mourn people who have autism. Mourning about\nautism happens because non- autistic people view people with autism as being\nlost (Sinclair).\u00a0 Lost meaning not being\nable to be the best according to society standards and society not accepting\nautism (Sinclair). Autism does not equal to mourning and instead, should be\nexplored (Sinclair). Meaning that just because someone is autistic does not\nmean you lose them (Sinclair). For example, Sinclair points out the meaning of mourning\nfor parents that have children with autism, \u201cYou did not lose a child to autism\u201d\n\u2026 \u201cYou just waited for a child that never existed\u201d (Sinclair). Listening to an\nautistic person point of view would help non \u2013 autistic people learn about the\nautism community and people close to them who is autistic. Listening would also\nhelp with autistic people trying to navigate society and provide autistic\npeople with a sense of being welcomed in society. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

DJ\nSavarese did an interview with CNN Dr. Sanjay Gupta in which Savarese express\nhow communication was the key for people trying to understand him and others\nwho have autism (Savarese). With autism having the stereotype of being socially\nawkward often communication gets ignored. People with autism want to be able to\nexpress their concerns but, they are rarely valued. During the interview, DJ\nSavarese explained his autism and how his communication was different and\nrequired an aide to help him interact with people (Savarese).\u00a0 One of the questions that were asked during\nthe interview was \u201cwhat can free people do to help a person with autism\u201d (Savarese).\nSavarese explained that for him communication was key, typing out the question\nwork for him, looking at him instead of the facilitators and ignoring his\nvoluntary movements (Savarese). Savarese response was important because it\nshowed an example of how listening to a person with a disability is beneficial than\njust assuming. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autism\naffects people in different ways and, serves as another minority background to\nsome people. According to Morenike Giwa Onaiwu Preface: Autistics of Color: We\nExist \u2026 We Matter, Onaiwu reflects on people of color and how autism reflects\nthem and how sometimes people of color are not seen in the autism community.\nOnaiwu explains how she personally feels \u201clike a minority within a minority group,\u201d\nbecause she is both a person of color and autistic (Onaiwu xiv). Autism for\nOnaiwu is overlooked because she does not represent the stereotypes of an\nautistic person (Onaiwu xv). The stereotypes of autism were noted by Onaiwu in\nthe following way: \u201cAutism = (white male presenting) toddler wearing Thomas the\nTrain shirt, Autism = (white male presenting) geeky computer programmer\u201d (Onaiwa\nxv). As a woman of color Onaiwu felt that there was no space in the autism\ncommunity for people like her and the autism community only reflected on the\nwhite male perspective of autism (Onaiwu xv). Preface: Autistics of Color: We\nExist \u2026 We Matter provided the voices of people of color with autism with the\nuse of poetry.\u00a0 One of the poems COBRA\nConfessions of a Black Aspie went over how autism impacted how people viewed\nthem. The poem reflected this by saying \u201cI\u2019m different from other blacks\nbecause I\u2019m autistic\u2026. I\u2019m different from other autistics because I\u2019m black (Onaiwu\nxviii).\u201d Another piece in Onaiwu work reflected the ableism in the autism\ncommunity and how one \u201ccannot recognize ableism without recognizing how it is\naffected by racism.\u201d Onaiwu also, reflected on Dee Phair Unpacking the\nDiagnostic TARDIS when she reflects on being a mother, a person of color and,\nautistic. In Phair\u2019s piece, she emphasizes how she is not alone when it comes\nto autism, being a person of color and a mother and that there is someone in\nsociety who goes through the same situations that she goes through (Onaiwu xvi).\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autism\nis a condition that affects a person in many ways and over the years we have\nseen people with autism pave the way. For example, Temple Grandin, Donna\nWilliams, and Dawn Prince \u2013 Hughes made it possible for audiences to understand\nautistic lives (Murray 32). Having autistic influences help show society that\npeople with autism can achieve their dreams. Having autistic influences also,\nhelp answer some question that non- autistic people have about the disorder and\nthe autism community. In disability studies class we reflected on autism\nstudies and how society tends to take different views on the concept of autism.\nIn class, we went over the advocacy and how autism was treated in the past\nuntil today. While studying autism I have personally learned how people\ninterpreted autism differently. Some people only tended to talk about autism\nmedically and some wanting to see autism explained and reflected in the autism\ncommunity itself. The study of autism has come a long way with the term of a normal\nperson or a normal child. In today\u2019s society advocates encourage people to\nlearn about autism and learn about the people close to them with autism. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As\na society, we tend to dream of being normal to be accepted by society and, tend\nto not explore a person\u2019s unique qualities.\u00a0\nAutism affects each person differently and people should learn and\nlisten to the autism community. Murray, Savarese, Sinclair, and Onaiwu explains\nhow autism affects people differently by their own personal accounts. One\nautistic person might face a challenge that another autistic may not have to\nface. Autism does not discriminate and there is no one way of autism. During\nthe end of the day, we can come together and understand autism and how autism\nitself impacts disability studies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Word Count: 1357<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI hereby declare upon my word of honor that I have neither given nor received unauthorized help on this work\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jasmine Williams <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Work\nCited<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Murray,\nStuart. Autism<\/em>,New York: Routledge Taylor and Francis Group, 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Onaiwu,\nMorenike Giwa. Preface: Autistics of\nColor: We Exist We\u2026 Matter<\/em>, http:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/giwa-onaiwu.pdf<\/a>.\nAccess 24, April. 2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Savarese,\nDJ. \u201cCultural Commentary: Communicate with Me\u201d. Disability Studies Quarterly, <\/em>vol. 30, no. 1, 2010. http:\/\/www.dsq-sds.org\/article\/view\/1051\/1237<\/a>.\nAccessed 29 April 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sinclair,\nJim. \u201cDon\u2019t Mourn For Us.\u201d ANI Fashion\nWebsite<\/em>, http:\/\/www.autreat.com\/dont_mourn.html<\/a>.\nAccessed 29 April. 2019.
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jasmine Williams Dr. Foss Disability Literature 304 Section 02 Final Exam April 30, 2019 Autism the Concept of Being Normal and Breaking down Stereotypes Autism has been a topic in which society tends to view differently. People who are non-autistic sometimes do not understand how to interact with an autistic person. Not knowing how to … Continue reading “Autism the Concept of Being Normal and Breaking down Stereotypes”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1483","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-take-home-final-examinations"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/papJgd-nV","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1483","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1483"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1483\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1488,"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1483\/revisions\/1488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1483"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1483"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/courses.chris-foss.net\/dislit19\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1483"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}