Society
Pride is a peculiar thing. Christianity taught us that it is a sin. Secular society tried desperately to tell us it's redundant. The truth is that it's neither of these things. Those are lies told by a society that desperately wants us to stay quiet. I&
Autistic Rights
Being Autistic is not inherently good or bad, it just is. That's not to say that I am not proud of who I am, and I am most certainly not denying the obstacles I have had to over come. While being Autistic is an inseparable part of my
Autism
Recently I have been reading Authoring Autism by Remi Yergeau. It has really been opening my eyes to the use of rhetoric in the construction of narratives surrounding Autistic people, and has very much inspired me to write this. I am an Autistic person. And yet the world treats me
Neurodiversity
Recently I started talking about a concept I call neuroculture, by discussing the risk of harm to society if the prevailing neuroculture becomes homogenous (find that discussion here). In this discussion, I would like to explore our individual contributions to said neuroculture, and how we can effect change in a
Society
Today I decided to learn about monocultures. A monoculture is an environment in which a single crop is cultivated. The problem with monocultures is that a small change can destabilise the entire thing. This got me thinking about something I call neurocultures. A neuroculture can be considered the culture created
Autistic Rights
Functioning labels have long been hated in the Autistic community. Not only are they wildly inaccurate, but they do not take the dynamic nature of our disability into account. Despite this, many professionals and laypeople continue to use them, or variations on them. Arguments about the inaccuracy of functioning labels
disability
Life is full of ups and downs. My passion in life is helping people climb back from the "downs" into "ups" that often seem impossible at the time. In order to do this, I had to go through a personal hell and walk out the other
disability
This article was co-authored by David Gray-Hammond and Katie Munday Trigger warnings: This article discusses gaslighting, trauma, criminal exploitation (on various topics including sexual exploitation), substance use, mental health, cuckooing, county lines. Due to the extensive trauma that we experience as Autistics in our formative years, many of us find
Mental Health Treatment Rights
This article was co-authored by David Gray-Hammond and Tanya Adkin Trigger Warning: This article contains strong language and discussions of fabricated or induced illness, ableism, discrimination, bigotry, child abuse, medical abuse, systemic abuse, institutionalised bullying. Fabricated or Induced Illness (FII) is defined by a set of "alerting signs"
Autism
My years of active addiction account for a lot of the suffering that myself, my friends, and my family experienced. The very fact that I am alive right now is some sort of miracle, yet to be explained by science. I remember trying to picture what recovery would look like,
Society
At Aucademy we often talk of a perfect Autistic homeland, affectionately dubbed Autopia. Conceptualised as a place in which all Autistics can lead peaceful and comfortable lives, it sounds like a dream come true; but what are the realities of such a place? Is such a place even possible? This
Addiction
During my years of active addiction, I had no concept of who I was beyond being a drug and alcohol user. For this reason, I felt trapped into my substance use, unable to escape the horror that I was habitually inflicting upon myself. I finally found sobriety, but was clinging