Autism rights movement

The autism rights movement is a sociopolitical campaign seeking greater social acceptance of individuals on the autism spectrum. It is also known by several other names, including the autistic liberation movement and the autism self-advocacy movement. The movement’s defining feature is a rejection of legacy approaches to managing and treating autism-spectrum conditions in favor of what advocates call “neurodiversity.” Those who support neurodiverse viewpoints generally believe that individual differences in brain function, perception, and behavior—including those associated with the autism spectrum—should be accepted and regarded as normal rather than classified as disorders or disabilities requiring treatment. By contrast, the associated term “neurotypical” describes individuals whose cognitive functions are not impacted by autism or other atypical neurological characteristics.

Most histories of the autism rights movement trace its origins to the 1990s and place it within the wider context of the generalized disability rights movement that began gaining momentum around that time. It gained wider notoriety in the mid-2000s and now broadly seeks to end the marginalization of autistic individuals and normalize autism as an atypical but natural condition.

Background

The Autism Society defines Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as “a complex, lifelong developmental disability that typically appears during early childhood and can impact a person’s social skills, communication, relationships, and self-regulation.” The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition(DSM-V), a standard compendium used in the diagnosis and evaluation of mental conditions in the United States, cites two definitive features of autism. First, it manifests through “persistent differences in communication, interpersonal relationships, and social interaction across different environments.” This can include orientation toward nonverbal communication, difficulty maintaining a typical conversation, nonconforming speech and verbal communication patterns, and difficulty noticing and interpreting nonverbal social cues. Second, it includes “restricted and repetitive behavior, patterns, activities, and interests.” Autistic individuals may repeat phrases or sounds over and over, struggle with disruptions to their normal routines, develop obsessive interest in a highly specialized or narrow set of activities, or display atypically intensified or reduced responses to sensorial or environmental stimuli.

Prior to the 1960s, clinicians grouped autism with schizophrenia, a chronic mental disorder defined by disorganized speech, trouble distinguishing imagination and fantasy from reality, and significant challenges to ordered, logical thinking. The medical community first recognized autism as a distinct condition in the 1960s, at which time it began to be treated using methods including electroconvulsive therapy and behavioral modification strategies centered on punishing undesirable behavior. These methods remained standard until the 1980s, when the mental health community embraced a paradigm shift toward building communication skills in autistic individuals, placing them in structured learning environments, and using positive rather than negative forms of behavioral reinforcement.

Autism was first described as a “spectrum condition” in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th Edition (DSM-IV), which was published in 1994. This classification means that individual instances affect individuals to greater or lesser degrees and do not present with a consistent set of symptoms in all cases.

Overview

In some regards, the autism rights movement can be viewed as a backlash against the punitive methods used in autism treatment that were widely used from the 1960s until the 1980s. The movement rejects the idea that the autistic condition can or should be altered, muted, or otherwise managed through direct intervention. Instead, it challenges society to be more accepting of individuals on the autism spectrum. Its viewpoint likens neurodiversity to racial, ethnic, and cultural diversity within pluralistic societies.

Multiple catalysts helped launch and expand the visibility of the autism rights movement. The paradigmatic shifts in autism treatment that began in the 1980s and gained momentum in the 1990s generated greater compassion and understanding for people with autism, while the American Psychiatric Association’s 1994 endorsement of autism as a spectrum condition in the DSM-IV problematized and challenged conventional understandings of the condition. Events that took place in New York City in 2007 are also credited with bringing the concerns of the autism rights movement to a broader cross-section of the public. That year, a series of messages known as the “ransom notes billboards” appeared across the city. The messages likened autism to kidnapping; one stated, “We have your son. We will make sure he will not be able to care for himself or interact socially as long as he lives. This is only the beginning.” It was signed, “Autism.” Advocates and activists on the autism spectrum responded with an impassioned letter-writing protest campaign decrying the messages as being complicit in reinforcing harmful stereotypes about the autism spectrum. The protest campaign succeeded in having the billboards removed while simultaneously generating major increases in public awareness for the autism rights movement.

In broad terms, the autism rights movement seeks to make progress toward three main objectives. Its primary goal is to challenge the hegemony of neurotypical function as a default standard, increase acceptance of neurodiversity, and achieve the full social and economic inclusion of neurodiverse individuals. A related goal relates to treatment and management. The movement rejects approaches that encourage people on the autism spectrum to adopt the behaviors and standards of the neurotypical majority. Instead, it advocates improving the quality of life for people on the autism spectrum. Finally, the movement seeks to have people on the autism spectrum formally recognized as a distinct minority group or protected class within society.

The autism rights movement has succeeded in some regards. In 2024, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) noted an autism spectrum prevalence rate of 1 in 36, marking a sharp increase from the CDC’s 2004 prevalence rate of 1 in 125 (0.8 percent). Experts attribute the rise to greater understanding of the autism spectrum and reductions in the stigma surrounding an autism diagnosis. Such knowledge was further strengthened through the rise of the use of social media, such as YouTube and TikTok, to raise awareness about ASD and provide a more dynamic view of the range of people with autism. However, not all members of the autistic community support or agree with the movement’s viewpoints and objectives. For instance, some parents of children who have been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders reject the positivity surrounding neurodiversity and instead advocate for a return to management and treatment philosophies that embrace neurotypical conformity. According to this viewpoint, neurodiversity advocates concentrate mainly or exclusively on high-functioning autistic individuals and do not consider the differing and more intensive needs of people on the autism spectrum with lower levels of social function.

Bibliography

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