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I am autistic.

I do not need or want to be cured.

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I’m all for fighting for marriage equality in the LGBT community. But we’re so focused on that no one knows about this problem.

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Quotes from “To “I Wish I didn’t have Asperger’s”” by E at The Third Glance

(cn: abuse, bullying)

“To the person who typed “I wish I didn’t have Asperger’s” into a search engine, and to all of those who have felt this way at one point or another,

When I see the words “I wish I didn’t have Asperger’s/Autism”, I would love to be able to say “I can only imagine what you’re feeling”… but the truth is, I probably know exactly how you’re feeling. (*gasp* an Autistic person with empathy?!) 

We live different lives, have different hobbies, interests, families, friends (or lack thereof), and issues. But I, too, have typed similar things into google. At times, I felt lost, dejected, outcast, lonely, and broken. Like no one will ever like me or appreciate me. As if I’m from another planet, and the world is just too confusing for me to follow. I’m surrounded by people who just don’t “get” me, and it can be incredibly isolating. 

I bet you’ve felt most of these things before, and maybe the event that triggered your googling “I wish I didn’t have Asperger’s” caused you to feel all of that and more. I’m writing this today, to tell you that you’re not alone. There’s lots of us out there, going through the same thing, all looking for come comfort and understanding.

Having Asperger’s or Autism can be hard. It can be painful. It can be downright depressing. When I was growing up, I didn’t know I was autistic. I just thought there was something wrong with me. That I wasn’t trying hard enough, and that if I just could do better and work harder, the other kids would like me and be nice to me. I thought that my parents would stop abusing me. I wished that I could be just like everybody else, and wished that things would be better. I wished that I could just be like everyone else. I internalized all those negative feelings about myself, and was very unhappy. 

I didn’t have the word “Asperger’s” in my vocabulary back then, but I’m sure that if I did, I would have used that sentence exactly. Well I’m still Autistic, but things are definitely better.”

[aulone]

If “person-first language” was applied to neurotypicals: Happy people: “People who feel happiness.” Blonde people: “People with hair that is the color blonde.” Left-handed people: “People with a preference for using their left hands.” Married people: “People afflicted with marriage.” Gay people: “People affected by same-sex attraction.” White people: “People with a Caucasian ethnic background.” Young people: “People who are lacking in age.” Old people: “People who are affected by excessive age.” Children: “People who are under the age of eighteen years.” Parents: “People who have in their care people who are under the age of eighteen years.” Allistics: “People who suffer from lack of autism.”

[aulone]

3D calligraphy by Turkish designer, Tolga Girgin.

[aulone]

An even number of (at least 8) regular tetrahedra can be connected along their edges to form a ring in a way that allows them to be continuously rotated “inside-out” without disconnecting. Such configurations are commonly referred to as kaleidocycles. Shown above are kaleidocycles with 8, 10, and 12 tetrahedra exhibiting 4, 5, and 6-fold rotational symmetry, respectively. There has to be at least 8 regular tetrahedra, because any less would result in the tetrahedra colliding into each other at certain instances of the rotation. You can even make your own paper model using this guide.

Mathematica code:

v1[t_] := {Cos[t], 0, Sin[t]} v2[t_, a_] := 1/Sqrt[1 + Sin[t]^2 Tan[a]^2] {-Sin[t], -Sin[t] Tan[a], Cos[t]} v3[t_, a_] := 1/Sqrt[1 + Sin[t]^2 Tan[a]^2] {-Sin[t]^2 Tan[a], 1, Cos[t] Sin[t] Tan[a]} P[t_, a_] := {v3[t, a][[2]]/Tan[a] - v3[t, a][[1]], 0, -v3[t, a][[3]]/2} Q[t_, a_] := {v3[t, a][[2]]/Tan[a], v3[t, a][[2]], v3[t, a][[3]]/2} vertices[t_, a_] := {P[t, a] - Sqrt[2]/2 v1[t], P[t, a] + Sqrt[2]/2 v1[t], Q[t, a] - Sqrt[2]/2 v2[t, a], Q[t, a] + Sqrt[2]/2 v2[t, a]} Tetrahedron[T_, t_, a_, o_] := Table[ {FaceForm[White], Opacity[o], EdgeForm[Thick], Polygon[ Table[ T[vertices[t, a][[1 + Mod[i + j, 4]]]], {i, 1, 3, 1}]]}, {j, 0, 3, 1}] Kaleidocycle[pr_, t_, n_, o_, A_] := Graphics3D[ Rotate[ Table[ Rotate[ Table[ Tetrahedron[T, t, 2 Pi/n, o], {T, {TransformationFunction[IdentityMatrix[4]], ReflectionTransform[{-Sin[2 Pi/n], Cos[2 Pi/n], 0}]}}], r*4 Pi/n, {0, 0, 1}], {r, 0, n - 1, 1}], A*Sin[t], {0, 1, 0}], PlotRange -> pr, ImageSize -> 500, Axes -> False, Boxed -> False, Lighting -> "Neutral", ViewPoint -> {0, 0, 2}, Background -> White ] Manipulate[ Kaleidocycle[pr, t, n, o, A], {pr, 1.5, 50}, {t, 0, 2 Pi}, {n, 8, 16, 1},{o, 1, 0}, {{A, 0}, 0, 2 Pi}]

[aulone]

You know the whole “when people flirt i think they’re just being friendly” thing everyone seems to relate to?

I have a similar issue, one step removed––when people are friendly I think they’re just tolerating me.

My best friend literally told me I make her heart sing when she’s around me and yet I feel like she’s ambivalent to my presence.

[aulone]

It might be nice to post more about kaleidocycles so here's a link that's great

[aulone]

Simply by turning itself inside-out, this flying semi-balloon-semi-kite generates its own thrust so it can self-propel through the air. Mathematician Paul Schatz designed the flying object’s six prisms to hold helium while connecting to motors that aid the inversion-driven propulsion. Turns out cutting edge technology can also be graceful.

[aulone]

Steps that need to be taken to fix the job situation for disabled people in America:

Pay us fucking minimum wage holy shit

Make the “are you disabled” question actually voluntary ie you can choose to just not fill it out if you don’t want to and/or

Make the disability question (along with the race/gender/etc questions) completely unattached from applications and unable to be accessed by interviewers/hiring managers/etc. Report these answers to the government as statistics and nothing more and/or

Supplement or replace the disability question with a question saying “do you need accommodation for a disability,” possibly a follow up question asking “can you perform the responsibilities required for this position with reasonable accommodation.” Provided that the applicant answers yes to the second question, these questions will not be accessible by the company until after an applicant is hired. If someone answers yes to needing accommodation then they get that accommodation, and an applicant cannot be rejected for needing reasonable accommodation if they can still perform the job with it

Report disability status of applicants to the government (along with race/gender/etc) and if a company is found to reject disabled, minority, or female applicants at a higher rate than abled people/white people/men then the company will be subject to legal investigation

Companies who are found to discriminate against disabled people, minorities, or women face heavy fines and are placed on a watch list that is accessible by the public. Companies who are repeat offenders can be shut down

[aulone]

VELVET

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Quick reminder that autism is not a disease and can’t be cured or removed. Autism is deeply entwined with my personality and who I am. No part of me is allistic. I am not a person with autism, I am an autistic person. And I deserve acceptance rather than awareness.

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a quick thing for Autism Acceptance Day/Month!!

how to support autistic people this month:

don’t support Autism Speaks – it’s an awful “charity” that harms autistic people more than it helps them

do support organisations run by and for autistic people, such as the Autistic Self-Advocacy Network ( @autisticadvocacy​ ) and the Autism Women’s Network ( @autisticwomen​ )

don’t “light it up blue” for “autism awareness” – these things are heavily associated with Autism Speaks, and with the dangerous misconceptions it spreads about autism

do use the hashtag #RedInstead to fight back against #LightItUpBlue

do promote and celebrate autism acceptance (not just awareness!)

and, most importantly:

do listen to what actual autistic people have to say – we know better than our family members, “autism experts”, or any non-autistic person!!

[aulone]

april is coming up, if you support autism speaks youre contributing to an organization that does nothing but hurt autistic people and treat them as burdens to their families and society. dont support them or their “light it up blue” movement.

please support the following instead:

the autistic self advocacy network (asan)

autism women’s network

local networks and organizations that have autistic founding/board members and whos goal is to help autistic kids and/or adults

the #redinstead movement

call it autism ACCEPTANCE month not autism awareness month

learn about neurodiversity

[aulone]

Questioning whether or not someone on disability benefits actually deserves them is literally always ableist, because you are assuming your limited knowledge of someone else’s situation is more important than what they, their doctors and government officials know about their health.

You are not helping disabled people when you talk about ‘fakers abusing the system.’ You are contributing to a culture of doubt, and you are keeping us from being able to live life without shame.

[aulone]

Take a look at the way Gallaudet’s architecture creates Deaf Space.

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Autism is not a tragedy.

Autism is not a tragedy.

Autism is not a tragedy.

Autism is not a tragedy.