Do We Have a Culture?

Post Reply New Topic

^True. Anything which further defines us separates us.

I don't see there as being an autism culture...I mean the main thing most of us have in common is that we have autism. But outside of that there is not nearly enough common interests, opinions or goals really, I don't think.

I mean I can sort of get the deaf culture because they have their own language and way to express things which is going to create more of a bond and some commonality...from what I understand even with non-verbal autistics they don't all learn the same alternate way to communicate, like deaf people.

there is not one culture per se, but i can see commonalities that we bring to each subculture where we are present in significant numbers.

for instance, while many other kinds of people strive for excellence or superiority, i doubt it is anyone but those on the spectrum who try to know that subject with such thoroughness or depth, the result of years of unflagging concentration & specialization.

this brings rewards in the world only when the subject is considered "important"--but it is the same focus regardless.

No. We are only now evolving a vague class consciousness, and are still far from being a "culture" (like either "deaf culture", or even "gay culture"). Even the thing we have in common, autism, varies in both degree and in type of manifestation from individual to individual so much that it fails to be much of bond.

Have toyed with that as a fantasy: the gays have cool places like Province Town, and Key West. So why cant we pounce on some cool sea side, or mountain, towns and make them our centers of culture (have permanent sci fi cons, and animie conventions). But I dunno if that would really work.

Yes we have a culture, but it is in its formative stages
http://www.autismacceptancemonth.com/resources/101-3/autism-acceptance/autistic-culture/

Autistic Art

I wouldn't call it a culture. I mean, there's certain jargon we use like 'stimming' and 'aspie', but that's just to facilitate communication.

You might argue we have a small developing culture because there's some degree of shared understanding, but I don't see it becoming as big as deaf peeps and LGBT peeps.

That would be lovely if there were more places intended specifically for autistic folks, though. I would love to meet some other peeps on the spectrum.

Especially if there was an autism pride event. That would be awesome.

I must be a very cultured individual.

That definition is quite good, because it highlights that the commonalities are limited to "ways of speaking, thinking, and acting that come naturally to autistic people" and do not include much in terms of social institutions or groups of representatives that define the "acceptable ways of speaking, thinking, and acting".

The referenced "ways of acting" developed by institutions such as Autreat and ASAN can be seen as a kind of minimal viable culture that enables communication and collaboration. Other cultures and sub-cultures tend to develop a much more elaborate behavioural code of conduct.

My working hypothesis is that the difference between someone who identifies as autistic and someone who primarily identifies with any other culture boils down to a difference in exactly one fundamental assumption for interacting with others:

* The autistic assumes by default that all others are significantly different creatures, with individually unique cognitive lenses, preferred behaviours, and personal value systems. If an autistic person meets another autistic person, both parties expect behavioural differences, and any shared interests and behaviours will be interpreted as a coincidence.

* Any non-autistic assumes by default that all others are creatures primarily defined by a specific culture, which shapes their cognitive lenses, preferred behaviours, and value systems. If a non-autistic person meets another non-autistic person from the same (sub)culture, both parties expect conformance with an elaborate cultural code of conduct, which often has been handed down by cultural institutions, and non-conformance will be interpreted as "weird".

As a result I feel "at home" and relaxed when interacting with autistics, even if there are only very few commonalities. Interacting with non-autistics drains my social batteries much faster, as there is always the extra effort to stay within acceptable values of the "weird" factor.

Autistic culture can teach other cultures a lot about mutual tolerance of diversity and about bridging cultural differences.

The autistic insistence on sameness refers entirely to the individual context. In the same way, non-autistic cultures could be seen as a disorder of insisting on sameness defined by a particular social context.

no, there is no autistic culture because there is no autistic community

the only thing we have for most people and places is online

deaf people have their whole entire own thing going on

I completely understand! It's kind of like the label issue - some people hate labels because it defines you as different. Others, like me, appreciate labels because it tells me why I am like I am. Anyway, to me art is a big part of culture, and there are so many gifted artists on the spectrum. And the writers! People such as Temple Grandin and John Elder Robison are public faces of the spectrum culture, and I am delighted to have such wonderful people to look up to!

The definition of culture is a way of life. That being said, I can point out a few routines which differ from a neurotypical, though some neurotypicals may have selective mutism/sensory overload. The former may not be the counterargument because many little people (people with dwarfism), suffer/get treated for other medical conditions that an average-sized person will have, and they may 'stick together' like any average-sized group likely would. Yet, that doesn't stop anyone from saying 'LP culture'.

LPs don't have their own languages besides a few not-so-mainstream slang terms. Queer (including asexual) cultures do not have their own languages, besides some jargons/catchphrases. There is no 'trans or gender dysphoric school' or anything similar to that. Same with LP culture; most of them would even fight to attend 'mainstream' classes. That being said, I read about Deaf being used as an ethnic identity. Then shouldn't Woman be an ethnic identity since they have their own medicine, have their own schools, have their own major, and traditionally have their own mannerisms (though not language)? The only ethnicities are hispanic/latino or not such where I live. Not to mention that a Deaf person can be of Hindu, Hmong, or Mandinka culture, and each culture probably has their own sign language since there is more than one sign language.

Culture boils down to the common routine that differs from that of the mainstream or differing culture. As an autist, I wear earplugs, adjust visual inputs (ie, lights lowered), write things down when I can't speak, stim, and see up to five specialists, partly because of my autism complications. My sister was possibly given ABA. This makes autistic 'culture' more similar to LP 'culture' than Deaf 'culture' if you ask me. And dwarfism is pervasive like autism. Deafness is not.

Even if you do not fit any of my narrative as an autist, there is still accommodation needed for you, thus making you a part of a way of life. I've been lately finding the sociopolitical dichotomy b/w autistic/Deaf cultures though I'm not Deaf. I should write my observation on autistic vs LP politics considering I am of short stature.

No I think our strength is probably in our diversity. I have strong anarchist leanings, and no interest in collective rituals or running with the pack. I think we're likely too individualistic to do anything of the kind.

I do not agree that there has to be a set of rules or mono thinking to have a culture. Louis Armstrong and N.W.A. are both considered part of black culture. Just yet another example of where Autistics are held to a different tougher standard then most of the rest of the world.

As the saying goes, "When you've seen one case of autism, you've seen one case of autism." (By the way, if you know who coined that I'd love to know.)

I don't think there is an ASD culture at all. Rather than deaf culture - the differences with ASDs are greater than the likenesses and I am not sure that either is really a culture - gay culture is a real culture with evidence of being a culture, and has features that ASD people lack in significant ways:

Evidence for gay culture (which does exist) was and is centred around shared values and goals - the decriminalisation of homosexuality, the right to live openly as gay people without official harassment or gate keeping to bar gays from participation in work and institutions (like the armed forces), the right to marry and so on. I know not all gays 100% share these values and goals though the great majority do, so there a great deal of political cohesion within gay populations. There is no political cohesion amongst the ASD community (witness Wrong Planet).

Gay vision and cohesion created gay bars, gay pride, gay festivals, gay media, gay magazines, gay art, gay rights and so on which further reinforced the gay culture as an independent social and cultural force. There is no similar cohesion amongst the ASD community, and the community is not united behind any core vision of future change. In the past many parents of gays wanted nothing to do with the gay community nor their sons and daughters.

ASD communities are made up of people with different kinds and different degrees of neurodiversity. Yet that factor - which could unite the community and perhaps even open the doorway of possibility to an AS political cultural force - is disputed and disempowered from within the AS community itself. In stark contrast to the emergent factors of gay culture, the many parents of ASD offspring want to set the values, decide what is important for AS people, to run the show. Another stark difference between gay community which became a culture and ASD community which has not become a culture is that there was never a significant section of the gay community made up of curebies, nor a signficant section that vociferously termed being gay as "a disease" (which would have put brakes on the development of a culture in the sense that now exists).

A community is not the same thing as a culture. AS is a community of huge diversity, theoretically it could evolve into a culture some day though I doubt it. A culture is more than numbers, it is a force with a shared focus on the most important central issues and values in a cohesive way.

ASD generally functions more as a clinical entity and a set of related "support functions" than any social, cultural or political force determined by AS people for AS people. Gays wanted equal rights but not sameness with the dominant population of heterosexuals. The positioning of the AS community vis a vis the dominant community is far less assertive and much more disempowered - both from within and without. An AS culture may emerge someday though that will not be possible until the power imbalance changes (if it ever does).

"Deaf culture" is one analogy.

You could also compare autistics to gays. And there definitely is a gay sub culture. In fact the gay subculture even has whole geographic enclaves that it rules like Key West, and Province Town, and the Castro district of San Francisco.

We need to own a city, or two, ourselves I say!

We could take over Rosewell New Mexico and turn it into a Sci Fi Mecca. And of course our capital would be Silicon Valley.

Last edited by naturalplastic on 06 Jul 2016, 5:50 am, edited 1 time in total.

We have the autistic rights movement. And certain events where autistic people gather. Within these situations, there's definitely an "autistic culture."

But I wouldn't say it's as prevalent as "deaf culture" is.