In various cases when people with autism are put down in one
way or another (often by using the “R” word), I’ve seen many respond with statements like “My son is autistic and
he has an IQ of 180.” “My niece is
autistic and she is going to college in the fall.” And even “You are the one who is retarded!
” I want to ask these people, “So if
your son had a low IQ and your niece didn’t make it into college, would these
nasty, hateful things be any more acceptable?” “By labeling someone who is
vicious, hateful and shallow as ‘retarded’ aren’t you really insulting those
that had a diagnosis of being ‘mentally retarded’ and therefore, adding insult
to injury?”
If there were no
Temple Grandin and no John Elder Robison, that pink letter would be no less
offensive. I understand the desire to
recognize the achievements of people with disabilities, but in the face of
hateful attacks, this is not the time for one-upmanship. We simply need to stand together and say
“This is wrong”. We don’t care how many or how few
accomplishments can be referred to, it’s still wrong. Making it about intelligence levels says “Hey,
it’s justified to talk about some people that way, but not about us!”
Nobody deserves to be referred to so hatefully, regardless of their IQ,
their level of education, or even their lifetime achievements. People deserve respect just because they are
living, breathing beings.
