Unaware of Our Reality: The Failure of Autism Awareness and the Need for Change

A Call for Authenticity: An Autistic Person's Plea for Empowerment over Tokenization

It's April. 

April is "Autism Month" (also known as Awareness Month, Acceptance Month, or Appreciation Month, depending on who you ask).

---

---

An image with glitter gold corners has the words Autistic Acceptance We are golden, April is Autistic Month, in Gold and Red Text, surrounding a gold infinity. On the Right side, it says Lyric Rivera - NeuroDivergent Rebel in Red.

As an Autistic Person who belongs to multiple communities that are seen as lesser by the social hierarchies our society enforces, I'm tired of awareness days and months. 

I am tired due to the multitude of them, and of the expectations that come with them and the misinformation that happens when people outside my communities try to speak on issues they don't understand. 

I am tired of the negative attention these days, weeks, and months bring, the spread of harmful and stigmatizing information, and the hate that comes from angry bigots, upset they don't have pride months for being non-autistic, neurotypical, cis, or straight.

I am tired of non-autistics speaking over Autistic People and watching news pieces and write-ups interviewing people who aren't even Autistic for educational pieces about Autism - especially when there are MANY Autistic people out there who would have been happy to share their thoughts. 

I am tired of being told I am "too sensitive," "combative," or "argumentative" when I try to gently inform someone the way they've described me (or members of my community) is harmful, ableist, stigmatizing, or perpetuates stereotypes.

I am tired of being told I need to keep softening myself to make myself more gentle to those who are harming me and others like me.

I am tired of being paraded around for awareness days and organizations that don't care about the issues that impact me and those like me year-round.

Paid subscribers have access to more of this post. Thanks to every one of you for supporting my work.