Autistic Person vs Person With Autism

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Don't care either way.

Some people think of Autism / Asperger's as a disease, but I think of it as a challenge to overcome. It can also be a gift, with a very big challenge to overcome. It depends on how you look at it.

In my view of language, I don't really see any difference in connotation. Autistic simply means "having autism", so "autistic person" and "person with autism" mean the same thing to me, both in denotation and connotation. I do wish it was called something other than "autism" since "autistic" sounds like "artistic" spoken with a British accent. What really pisses me off is when I tell people that I have Aspergers and they think I said "ass burgers", and then I have to actually spell it out for them.

I prefer to say I have autism the same way that I call myself a person with brown hair. Imagine if you were gay and made friends but they only knew you as the "gay person" instead of realising you are an indiviudal with your own story and unique personal traits that would still exist without it. If I had no autism I would still be Johnny sorta. This whole thing also makes me think of the ship of thesus paradox and questions eternalism vs nihilism. My viewpoint is that things are real due to the circumstances that create them coming together to do that. Okay my thoughts are scattered but the idea remains.

How about just "person"?

Everything concerning my mental health is on a strict need-to-know basis; to be discussed only with psychologists, educators, and other professionals. I don't feel any kind of inherent kinship with other autistic people (or people with autism, if you prefer), so it's useless to me as an identity.

I don't think it matters as long as you don't call them something derogatory or treat them badly.

There are bigger fish to fry than the order of words. I know that now it's very trendy to be very offended by words or perceived slights (microaggressions), but those things don't actually matter and have any outside influence other than some psychobabble ideas of slanting society in unseen ways, but I think more would get done if people focus on slanting society in seen ways. Ways that have an actual impact on quality of life and economics and healthcare and employment.

Let's worry about a actual discrimination and put a stop to that before we worry about implied meanings that have to be analyzed to be found. Right now the only group that can legitimately sit back and worry about implied meanings is straight, white, upper middle class, NT, physically fit and reasonably attractive, American born men, and I don't see them really caring what is said about them. They aren't discriminated against except in cases of broadening diversity. Which is discrimination too, but it's for a good cause so I guess we aren't supposed to consider it that. My point is, when we get to where people don't think we are mentally ret*d when they hear the word autism, or that we are complete idiots about everything except science, math, video games, computers, and occasionally playing piano, then we can worry about it. That's how the feminists did with Ms instead of Ms or Mrs. It was relevant and mattered and made a difference, unlike womyn, zie, hir, and shim. The former is an example of an appropriately timed demand for different language (as in firefighter, police officer, mail carrier, and chairperson which happened around and after but Wasn't too far out there and made actual logical sense and the latter is an example of emotionally based demands once basic equality and rights had been established, and focused on a small group of radicals who felt that it would change how we think and get rid of the rest of the inequalities when in fact it just made most people laugh at them. So let's wait to work on language. Let's work on removing "mentally handicapped" or whatever it's called now from autism before we worry about that please. Changing fireman to firefighter etc changed how those jobs were perceived as women entered them. Nowadays even when someone says fireman, policeman, etc, most people are fine with the compound word applying to both sexes. In other words, it changed something out in the world.

Anyway, I've never heard of anything being denied to someone or something changing because of the order of the words. It's not like the group of friends is going to not invite Jane who they think of as an autistic person to the party but if they thought of her as a person with autism they would. It might matter to Jane, but Jane has bigger fish to fry than that and should be focusing on them. She's got to prove to employers and anyone else with authority that she is capable. Jane has to constantly convince the world that she can do things. Fretting about the order of words used to describe her place on the spectrum is kind of going to have the opposite effect. It's not going to help educate people about autism. Jane will look like Rain Man obsessing over Quantas never crashing and being a good driver. (I know he wasn't autistic really, but in the movie he was so that's how people think we are)

I'm not saying it's stupid to care about it. I'm saying it makes no sense to make a big deal out of it. It looks obsessive and other things I won't type. Yes we matter as much as everybody else who is busy taking offense to inoffensive things, but I think they are wrong too. And when the Twitter craze passes and the progressives stop the whining and jazz hands, and people stop looking for offense and sanity returns, then it would be nice to be a group fighting for rights and acceptanc who knew better than to buy into all that BS. That's one thing that will make society think twice about us.

But, if it means that much to you, then go for it. just step back and look at the big picture before you make it a thing please.

_________________
I'm giving it another shot. We will see.
My forum is still there and everyone is welcome to come join as well. There is a private women only subforum there if anyone is interested. Also, there is no CAPTCHA.

The link to the forum is http://www.rightplanet.proboards.com

^
Well put, I agree with most of that. Personally I'd have preferred it if they'd invented a new handle for married men instead of this "Ms" thing, and I've have preferred it even more if society just grew up and treated all its members with respect without the need for any label changes at all.

Good to see from your signature that there's a non-Capcha alternative to WrongPlanet, by the way.

When the media goes to Autism Speaks and their spokesperson uses the phrasing, "person with Autism" it is in the context of "a person who is afflicted with Autism, which can and should be cured. Please send us all the money to do so".

However, when someone says without shame, "I am an autistic" it implies that autism is just another way of being human.

That's the power of language. Words matter. They change perception, and people's perception of us directly influences how we are treated.

hmm well i'm autistic and i'm a person so therefore i'm a person with autism.
but autistic person has a better flow.
or just autistic. obviously i'm a person.

i think its kinda like when someone tries so hard to be not racist and thinks that saying someone is black is insensitive, so they call a black person an african american, when in reality black people aren't all african or american even if their skin is black and they are in america.
same with person with autism. it assumes that an autistic person wants their condition to be treated delicately, and wants to be reminded of their status as a person if they are going to be described as autistic. it almost seems patronizing.

does this make sense?

I could care less either way. To me an autistic person is a person with autism. The terms mean the same thing to me when I hear them.

This is somewhat related and I've always loved it. After Ronald Reagan had surgery for cancer, he was asked what it felt like to have cancer. His reply was "I didn't have cancer. Something inside of me had cancer, and it was removed." It's the same thing, just a different outlook.