Nostalgia Critic's Apology: Nice effort, but....

Trigger Warning for Disablist Language

The Nostalgia Critic, one of the most popular, if not the most popular, incarnations of That Guy With The Glasses, a famous internet personality who does what most of us have been dreaming about since the age of 11 (Well, at least I have): Having a massive fan-base and millions of hits for the virtue of recording videos pointing out just how asinine/impractical/condescending some movies can be.

I admit it, in spite of the times that they gaffe with disablist language and other fails, I'm a huge fan of the Nostalgia Critic, and other personalities on the site, like Film Brain, The Nostalgia Chick, and especially Linkara, who won my heart with his feminist criticism of comic books.

The Nostalgia Critic angered me greatly though, when during his Earnest Saves Christmas video, he made a cheap joke at the expense of autism. Mercifully though, he was called out on this by autistic and neurotypical fans alike, and removed that segment from his review of Earnest Saves Christmas, and apologized in this video pointing out his "fuck ups": http://thatguywiththeglasses.com/videolinks/thatguywiththeglasses/nostalgia-critic/27822-the-next-top-11-nostalgia-critic-fuck-ups

It's the #1 mistake, and the fact that he apologized gladdened my heart.

However....

His apology had some major mistakes, and I think it is only fair that I address them honestly, as an autistic person and a fan of his.

I am glad that he apologized at all. Most people who insult autistics and autism never apologize, they just moan about political correctness gone mad. But it is not okay to have your apology framed around the idea that there are "high functioning" autistics, as well as "low functioning" autistics (For more on why the terms high functioning and low functioning are not appropriate, check the post I did at Womanist Musings: http://www.womanist-musings.com/2010/07/fully-funtional.html)

To suggest that "Oh, there are autistics who are smart, act their age, and can talk and aren't amused by puppet shows, therefore I shouldn't have made this joke" devalues people who do not "pass" as neurotypicals as easily as people with Asperger Syndrome do. It draws a false value upon intelligence and verbal ability, suggesting that only those who act just enough like neurotypicals are worthy of being treated with respect, dignity, and kindness. Maybe that's not what he meant, but that was the impression I got when he mentioned that. It felt really jarring and wrong, like "Sorry that you auties who were smart enough to figure out I was insulting you were hurt, from now on, I won't do that. But I still don't think too highly of the value of people like you who can't talk or live independently.

And then there's his mention of "I know autistic people". Without playing oppression Olympics, it's been debunked enough times when someone says "Oh I have gay friends, so it's okay if I espouse homophobia" or "I have black friends, I can't be racist." It's just as inexcusable here.

Once again, I could be wrong. He could be pointing out that he knows people with autism who are not amused by children's puppet shows, but once again, this is drawing that false value upon people with autism who can talk and "pass" as neurotypical, suggesting again that people who may be amused by puppet shows are in fact worthy of such mockery.

I'm sure he learned his lesson and will never make an autism joke again. But I am hoping that the next step will be respect for all people who are non neurotypical.

A small (re)introduction

Welcome, everyone! This is my new blog, named because I love wordplay, and because my attitude towards life is, through the eyes of many, overly idealistic. I feel it's just coloured by the radically romantic ideal that I, as an autistic woman, am deserving of my own voice to speak with. My language, mannerisms, and ideals are filled with flourishes of dreams and thoughts.

Before I get started, I want to make my reasons for starting this project clear.

Ask yourself this: If you are neurotypical, think back to all the stories on autism you have seen in the media actually featured an autistic person or interviewed someone who was autistic? How often did stories on autism portray it as a tragedy, a nuisance, or a horrible epidemic? Or, on the other hand, how many portrayals of autism display autistic people as savants (Savant syndrome differs from autism, though in some individuals, like Daniel Tammet, they overlap) with near inhuman abilities?

I do not have superhuman abilities. I cannot count cards like Rain Man. I am not an object of pity or sickened by vaccines.

Other autistic people will note similar experiences of seeing an extreme dearth of representation and accurate portrayal in the mainstream media. We're almost never asked about our own opinions on our conditions and life, the opinions of our doctors and our parents are sought, while we are pushed out of the way and only pulled into the limelight again when the story calls for us to be seen but not heard.

Well, this blog is my way of being heard, even if it only reaches an audience in the single digits. I have lived for nearly a quarter of a century as an autistic person. In this lifetime, I have come across some horrifying and unacceptable experiences and statistics that are the norm in how people like me are treated. To add insult to injury, many autistic people are denied the chance to explain their experiences, either because we are assumed incapable of doing so, or because our truth is uncomfortable for neurotypicals to hear. It shatters their back-patting self-assurance that disabled people now live comfortable privileged lives, and forces them to confront their own prejudice. We need to keep chipping away at that façade until it's blown away like so many motes of dust.

My blog is my chance to fight against that forced ignorance and silencing. My weapons are ten knobby fingers and a keyboard. I'm going up against a mighty enemy of forced ignorance. I hope you enjoy it.