NCSA Position Statement on Language, Images and Depictions Concerning Severe Autism

Over the past several years, some vocal activists and autism self-advocates have sought to substitute fact-based language in favor of propagandistic, euphemistic words and phrases that tend to trivialize or romanticize autism. For example, they have demanded that autism cannot be called a “disorder,” but rather a mere “condition”; that no one can be said to “suffer” autism, but instead merely “experience” it; and that those with autism be called “Autistics” based on the idea that autism is an identity, not a brain-based disorder. In addition, they have also attempted to curtail the inclusion of images of severe autism in the media and the arts, or have demanded that if severe autism is to be portrayed, it must be portrayed only on their terms and conditions.

Severe autism presents a major and rapidly growing public health and social services crisis and its manifestations deserve to be seen and understood in all of their complexity, which often include pathology of early brain development, striking dysfunction, intellectual disability, minimal language, aggression, self-injury, pica (ingestion of inedible objects), vocalizations and/or property damage. No reasonable person can deny that severe forms of autism are among the most alarming and serious of all disorders in the entire field of psychiatry.

NCSA opposes campaigns using Orwellian language, airbrushing reality and aiming to control both real-life and artistic narratives around autism. Instead, no matter how disturbing some words and images may be to some people, we strongly support the uninhibited dissemination of ideas, stories, images and depictions of severe autism in public discourse, research, media, social media, books, film and theater. However, we oppose any language used with the intention of degrading, mocking, or shaming any person due to their disability. 

We also strongly condemn the bullying and ritualized harassment of writers, authors, filmmakers and artists who strive to address severe autism in their works. Campaigns targeting the allegedly offending creator are typically conducted via Twitter or other social media platforms, sometimes accompanied by online petitions, and/or mass direct emailing. Outrage is reserved only for images of severe autism, as stories about high-functioning autistic athletes, artists, musicians, and tech workers and the like proliferate in both news and art without serious condemnation.

With respect to depictions of real individuals with autism (for example, in books, YouTube, blogs, or the news), we stress there is no shame in outward behaviors caused by impairments in underlying neurobiology, and no “violating of privacy” when the behaviors of an individual are not personal secrets but rather unyielding, intractable features of a neurobiological disorder that occur across settings. We cannot tolerate the insidious effort to create a media landscape where only autistic children with the capacity to consent can be written about or where only positive stories can be told. Furthermore, when an author deems it necessary, a depiction can use pixelation, pseudonyms or other means for keeping the identity of a particular individual private, while still conveying the key messages of the underlying story.

With respect to depictions of fictional characters (for example, in film or theater), it is imperative that artists be free to tell stories involving severe autism without fear of an insta-crusade that could jeopardize their investment of effort and resources. A small sector of the autism community should not be handed the power to serve as de facto casting directors for all roles involving severe autism, nor should any artist fall victim to the fiction that characters with severe autism must be portrayed by an actor with autism. These shakedowns exert an unacceptable chilling effect on the free expression of narratives and imagery concerning severe autism.

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, and this is especially true for individuals with severe autism who cannot speak for themselves. But those of us who have the privilege of intact cognitive capacity can — and should — convey their realities to the broader public and policymakers. Without clear and honest words and stories we cannot have meaningful conversations about societal issues, research, treatments, criminal justice, services or accommodations, nor carve a space for this population in the political landscape.

Adopted by the NCSA Board of Directors February 1, 2022

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