#kassiane asasumasu

[trans-axolotl]

and this is also why i think that any meaningful community building/advocacy/support around madness/neurodivergence/mental illness needs to be founded on principles of liberation and abolition, and that we need to be able to distinguish between people who are allies based on our shared values + goals, and between people who use some of the same language as us, but are fundamentally advocating for separate things.

One example I see a lot of is the idea of "lived experience" professionals, people who have a career in the mental health system and who also have some personal experience with mental illness. These professionals oftentimes will talk about their own negative experiences in the mental health system, and come into their careers with a genuine desire to improve the experience of patients. But their impact is incredibly limited by the system they have chosen to work in: the coercive elements of psychiatry incentivize professionals to buy into the existing power structures instead of disrupting them. And as a whole, many lived experience professionals end up getting exploited and tokenized by their employers and used as an attempt to make carceral psychiatry seem more palatable. Professionals in this dynamic are not working to effectively challenge the structural violence of their profession: they become complicit, even if they do also have good intentions and provide individual support.

(I do know some radical providers who have found innovative ways to fuck up the system and destabilize and shift power in their workplaces, but this is a very small number of providers and is not most of the lived experience providers I've talked with.)

Another example I see a lot in our spaces has to do with the evolution of the neurodiversity paradigm. I feel a very deep connection to the original conceptualization of neurodiversity and neurodivergent as coined by Kassiane Asasumasu, but in recent years I've seen a lot of people using neurodivergent language in a way that feels pretty dramatically different than the foundational principles. This isn't saying that people should stop using ND terminology or that all neurodivergent spaces are like this--rather, I just want to point out some trends I see in certain communities, both online and in my in personal life. Although people will often use neurodivergent language and on the surface, seem allied with concepts of deinstitutionalization, acceptance, etc, the values and structure in these community spaces often rely heavily on ideas of classification based in DSM, and build very prescriptive and rigid models for categorizing different types of neurodivergence in a way that ends up excluding some M/MI/ND people. Certain types of knowledge are valued over other types of knowledge, and certain diagnoses are prioritized as worthy of support over others. There's a lot of value placed on identifying and classifying many types of behaviors, beliefs, thoughts, actions, into specific categories, and a lack of solidarity between different diagnoses or the wider disability community.

Again, this isn't to say that ND terminology is bad or useless--I think it is an incredibly helpful explanatory model/shorthand for finding community and will call myself neurodivergent, and find a lot of value in community identification and sharing of wisdom. I just feel like it's important to realize that not every ND person, organization, or initiative, is actually invested in the project of fighting for our liberation.

when thinking about our activism, as abolitionists, it's important to be very specific about what our goals, values, and tactics are. For example, understanding the concept of non-reformist reforms helps us distinguish what immediate goals are useful, versus what reforms work to increase the carceral power of the psychiatric system. And when building our own value systems and trying to build alternative ways of caring for ourselves and our communities, we need to be able to evaluate what brings us closer to autonomy, freedom, and interdependence. I need people to understand that just because someone is also against psych hospitalization does not mean that they are also allies in the project of letting mad people live free, authentic, meaningful, and supported lives, and that oftentimes people's allyship is conditional on our willingness to conform to their ideas of a "good" mentally ill person.

#personal #psych abolition #mad liberation #surviving psych #antipsych #neurodivergent #also to be clear i'm not saying any of this as a way to say some people are more or less disabled than others #or that becoming a provider makes you no longer neurodivergent or something #but rather this is discussion of activism + strategy + goals + tactics #not a commentary on "who counts as disabled or who deserves support #this is talking about: how do we build the type of world where mad people are liberated and how can we tell who is also working towards tha

[autisticarchive]

Setting the Record Straight on Neurodiversity

Edit 1/11/24-This version is now outdated. See the 2nd edition here.

Edit 7/13/23-Martijn Dekker has now supplied direct evidence of people using "neurological diversity", which neurodiversity is shortened to, as early as 1996. So now we know for sure Singer did not coin the term, nor did the idea ever belong to a single person.

There has been much upheaval lately over the actions of Judy Singer, who has long been credited as the person to coin the term neurodiversity. Much of the ensuing discourse comes from a place of shock. Many are surprised to see the sudden heel turn she’s made to the reactionary side of autism politics. As someone who practically knows the Neurodiversity Movement’s history inside and out, I am not surprised by this. It kind of feels like it was a matter of time before people started to learn about Judy’s true nature, quite frankly. There’s a lot I want to discuss that is independent of recent happenings. I feel that I really don’t need to say much about that, as it’s already been said by many others. The story behind her apology on Twitter, which then led to a post on her LinkedIn that was a rescinding of said apology, is quite peculiar, and the true story behind that is unclear. So anyway, let’s really look at the origins of the term neurodiversity, how it’s actually been defined over the years, and who the actual originators of it are.

First off, even when looking at Judy’s work in the late 90s, it’s clear that she really was never the sole proprietor of neurodiversity, or even close to it. Harvey Blume, a journalist for The Atlantic, also helped popularize the term the same year Judy published her thesis. A journalist is more likely to play a role in popularizing a term than someone writing a paper for a Masters degree. Now there’s evidence to suggest that they both came up with the word together around 1997 when discussing their involvement with autistic-led email listservs, namely ANI-L and InLv. Multiple people who were actually there back in those days have claimed that neurodiversity was actually used informally on email lists like those before Singer or Blume published it in print. If you want to be hyper specific, Blume actually published it in print first. Without having access to the archives of ANI-L or InLv, it's hard to find direct evidence to confirm or deny these claims. Using the email lists that have been made available for Autistic Archive, there is claim on alt.support.autism, a list which dates back to 1998, that Singer did not coin neurodiversity, but it was rather Larry Arnold. However, there is an email from Larry on AutAdvo, a Yahoo Groups list, that says he didn’t but rather Blume did.

A book on WebArchive from 2002 called Contexts: understanding people in their social worlds credits Singer for originating the term. So it’s long been attributed to her as her word, even back when it was a newer term. It feels like a case of chicken-or-the-egg as to whether Singer or Blume came up with it first, though it’s fair to say they both played a role in bringing the word into mainstream. That’s not the same as actually coining it, but there is still some truth to their role in the term’s history. Singer specifically was more so a person who rode the fledgling movement and described it in her writing than someone who actually did the on-the-ground work people like Jim Sinclair, Phil Schwarz, Mel Baggs, and Kassiane Asasumasu among others did to really build momentum for it. If anything, those people are the real originators of neurodiversity-not just as a term or concept, but as an actual movement with core principles. Core principles Singer either perpetually has failed to understand or misappropriate. 

Even when looking back at her thesis from 1998, her misconceptions are clear from the start. She describes neurodiversity as a concept and a movement that only applies to “high functioning autistics' ' or people with Asperger’s syndrome. This isn’t true now, and it wasn’t true then. Severe/profound autism proponents are using this as a way to “prove” the neurodiversity movement doesn’t care about the autistic people they care about. Jim talks about this in xyr 2005 article “History of ANI ''. When Jim, Xenia, and Donna were first creating ANI, they had discussions about who they would open membership to. The article is really long, but this can be found under “Defining membership: Who are ‘we’?”. They decided to open membership not only to autistic people who could reliably speak to be understood and were considered “high functioning”, but also to autistic people who were deemed lower functioning, as well as “cousins” as Xenia described them. This actually was part of the conflict ANI had with More Abled Autistic People, a parent-run group that they collaborated with when planning MAAP’s 1995 conference. MAAP would not allow autistic people they deemed low functioning into the conference. ANI did not like this and tried to push back against that rule. At least one autistic person who used an AAC device to communicate ended up attending regardless. One of the people involved in the early days of ANI was Cal Montgomery, who mainly used AAC to communicate. He still often does and can speak intermittently, but he also has several co-occuring disabilities and requires constant care. A lot of his work was very important in framing the movement in its early days, with essays published in self-advocacy magazines like A Ragged Edge titled “Critic of the Dawn ''. Mel Baggs is one of the key figures of the neurodiversity movement’s history and sie also required round the clock care. Sie seems to be the one to have coined the term aspie supremacy. There is certainly a point to be made about the contributions of autistic people who are non-speaking or unreliably speaking as well as autistic people with intellectual disabilities not being properly recognized. However, saying that is not the same thing as saying the neurodiversity movement or the concept of neurodiversity does not include them. The truth of the matter is that Judy Singer is a single person, as are all of the other people I’ve mentioned here. To treat her, or for her to act as the sole entity who gets to define neurodiversity, is naive at best.

Judy’s problems extend beyond her definition of neurodiversity. She did some stuff in the 2000s that really showed her hand. She lead an online forum for autistic parents called ASpar (Asperger's Syndrome Parenting). She also ended up writing a blog about them and described them from the pov of their offsprings, supporting the dubious Cassandra Syndrome label. It was basically the inverse of the typical stuff you would hear parents of autistic people say about their kids. She also speculated about how certain historical figures might have been autistic-namely Hitler. You can read more on her archived website here

So where do we go from here? Some have suggested that the word neurodiversity is ruined now that Singer has shown her true colors. I personally don’t see it that way. For one, Singer was already like this, it just wasn’t apparent to many people. According to a newly published article on The Guardian, Judy’s thesis wasn’t given much attention until she was found by Steve Silberman, author of NeuroTribes, and then she was featured in the book, which became a New York Times Best-Seller. It seems like Judy’s importance to the Neurodiversity Movement has over time been exaggerated to the point where she has even been dubbed “the mother of neurodiversity” by some. It is common for information to be morphed and the truth exaggerated, especially on the internet. There are many other misconceptions about the neurodiversity movement of all sizes, and Autistic Archive has been an attempt at providing as accurate and nuanced an image as possible. The movement’s history is complicated, and none of its originators are saints or are above criticism. So I don’t see this so much as a case of “let’s call this movement something else” and most certainly not proof that the movement needs to be scrapped and started over from scratch. History is complicated. It is entirely possible to appreciate the contributions those in the past have made to something and honor them when credit is due, while still recognizing their imperfections and the current shortcomings that persist to this day. It is also important to have an accurate account of said history. Two things can indeed be true.

For further reading, check out Martijn Dekker's blog post

#neurodiversity #autism #history #disability #judy singer

[brightlotusmoon]

oh my god. Not only did Judy Singer steal neurodiversity from kassiane asasumasu, who is woc, she's also transphobic 🤦‍♂️

Yup! People didn't want to believe any of it for years. Good think Nick Walker set everyone straight. Kassiane has literally had to fight her whole life for respect.

#but everything changed when my mentor coined neurodivergence #being neurodivergent #autism history

[didyouknow-wp]

#wikipedia #random facts #did you know

[greghatecrimes]

just want to inform you that neurodiversity and neurodivergent are two seperate terms meaning seperate things, one being coined in the 90s and the other being coined in the 2000s. neurodivergent *does* include all minds that diverge from neurotypicality, not just developmental disorders, and was coined by an activist named Kassiane Asasumasu. neurodiversity, first used in print on 1998 and coined by Judy Singer, refers to the inherent differences in each brain and particularly how people jump to labelling these differences (particularly in those with autism) as deficits

i dont mean harm or critique by this, i understand why you made the poll the way you did, but neurodivergence absolutely doesnt mean the same thing as neurodiversity thanks for your time

I appreciate this ask a lot! It prompted me to do some reading and it seems like there’s a sort of ‘epidemic’ in the field as a whole, both professional and casual, of people using one word when they mean the other. The only thing I’ll add is that I think this page from UMass has a really good way of lying it out (it makes sense to me, at least), in saying this:

Neurodiversity was coined by Judy Singer and means that no two brains are exactly the same. Every person has things they are good at and things they need help with, and there is no such thing as a “normal” brain. The term neurodiversity should never be applied to an individual. Neurodiversity encompasses both neurodivergent and neurotypical people – aka everyone falls under the concept of neurodiversity. Kassiane Asasumasu went on to coin two terms that identify individuals that fall under the neurodiversity umbrella: Neurodivergent: Neurodivergent simply means that a person's brain works in a way that is not expected. It is commonly used when the behavior or response diverges from what is expected socially, physically, or verbally. Neurodivergence can be innate (e.g., ADHD, autism, depression, dyslexia, or obsessive compulsive disorder, etc.) or due to a brain-altering event (e.g., head trauma, medicines, or drug use). Neurotypical: A neurotypical person is an individual who thinks, perceives, and behaves in ways that are considered the norm by the general population. Neurotypical does not mean “normal.” It simply means that the behaviors fall within expected boundaries, which can differ from one culture to another. (Direct eye contact, for example, is considered rude in some cultures and expected in others).

So it seems like I did use 'neurodivergent' correctly in the census to mean "a person's brain works in a way that is not expected."; and that neurodivergence is a part of neurodiversity. It was my more narrow definition that I wrote a post on that was too narrow and didn't include the entire spectrum of neurodivergence, and I used the term 'neurodiversity' where I should have used 'neurodivergence'. Which is my bad. Thank you for prompting me to do some reading and for informing me of the origins of each term!! I am always happy to learn more, and I'm the first to admit that I'm not an expert on any of this (I would like to be someday in the far future haha, I'm currently debating whether I want to get my masters first or go straight for a PhD)

It seems to me like the definitions of neurodiversity and neurodivergence are constantly evolving and growing right now as the concepts are becoming much more well-known in psychology. And I'm glad for that! I think the field would be worse off if we tried to only have one single, clinical definition of neurodivergence. My hope for the future is that we'll start to move away from the very cut-and-dry, pathological method we've carried since the DSM-1 (and before), and create a framework that's much more free-flowing and flexible, and works with the human psyche instead of trying to put it into boxes.

#ask #anon #houseblr census 2023

[dissociacrip]

whoever is describing a poor trans POC whose work has been stolen from her multiple times as a “petulant little fuck” i wish you a very die.

idk anything about kassiane asasumasu but idc if she wrote a 10-page callout post or whatever lmfao that doesn't change what neurodivergent was intended to mean and that the ways people misuse it (such as basically using it to mean low-support needs autism and ADHD) are shitty. it's funny to me how this person hasn't mentioned that judy singer revealed herself as a transmisogynist a while ago but neurodiversity can't solely be accredited to her.

#asks #Anonymous

[dragonfisharts]

Friendly reminder that all mental illnesses fall under the neurodivergent umbrella and if u say otherwise ur going directly against the autistic, multiply disabled, woman of colour activist who coined the term :)

#and autistic woc are silenced way too much #stop speaking over her #kassiane asasumasu #in case you need to google

[illnessfaker]

"neurodiverse" is not an identity term to refer to an individual person

neurodivergent = term created by kassiane asasumasu, an autistic neurodiversity activist, to refer to anyone with any kind of mental or brain condition.

neurodiversity = "the limitless variability of human cognition and the uniqueness of each human mind" (x) created by autistic activist judy singer.

neurodiversity movement = "an umbrella term used to advocate for the common interests of various neurological minorities, as were originally described and differentiated by the 20th century Psycho-Medical Complex" (x) also create by judy singer.

neurodiverse = "a neurodiverse group is a group in which multiple neurocognitive styles are represented" (x), derived from neurodiversity.

neurodivergent is the only identity term for an individual person here.

neurodiversity and neurodiverse are absolutely not the "neurodevelopmental" versions of neurodivergent and neurodivergent as a term isn't a "ripoff" of either of those two. it serves a different purpose.

an individual person isn't "neurodiverse" nor do they "have neurodiversity." judy singer explicitly speaks against this usage on her blog:

It [diversity] is NOT a characteristic of the individuals in that population

—

Every heard the phrase "People with Neurodiversity"? About as absurd as "Josephina Bloggs has come down with a bad case of Neurodiversity", Just don't.

—

We are ALL Neurodiverse because no two humans on the planet are exactly alike

Our planet has a neurodiverse population

If you are an employer, for example, you can talk about a neurodiverse environment eg. a workplace or team, if you mean that you consciously seek to increase the neurodiversity of your workplace, because it makes good business sense

But you can't say that Worker A is "neurodiverse" while Worker B is not.

However, if Worker A has identified themselves with a specific syndrome, e.g. Autism, they can be called "autistic". But they are no more neurodiverse than anyone else on the planet

Do not use Neurodiversity as a scalpel for dividing "Us" from "Them"

—

hope that clears things up for some people especially since there's still ridiculous arguments all over social media about whether neurodivergent includes people with clinical depression and anxiety disorder diagnoses or not made by people who obviously don't even know who created the term, who it refers to, and for what purpose...

#neurodiversity #neurodiverse #neurodivergent #ableism #disability #op

[sunflowersbloominthewinter]

Image Description

A reply on tumblr dark mode from packxofxrats. It tags this blog, then says “what’s wrong with the term ND?”

End ID

@pack-of-rats Great question!

TL;DR, the term is actually fine, but its usage is often problematic because it is possible to be both neurodivergent and neurotypical.

Longer explanation under the cut.

There’s a lot of different facets to this conversation, but let’s address the definition of neurodivergent first: neurodivergent means any person whose brain structure or neural processes diverge from the norm.

By nature, this includes almost everything that is currently considered a mental health disorder by the APA and the DSM5 (with certain exceptions, such as gender dysphoria).

Neurodivergent was coined by Kassiane Asasumasu in the early ots. But let’s go back even further. In the 90s, autistic sociologist Judy Singer created the term neurodiverse, which is a concept that states that there are certain variations of neurotype and brain structure that are different from the dominant ones, but are also fine and don’t necessarily need to be treated or cured.

Later on in the 90s, another autistic activist named Jim Sinclair created the term neurotypical, which means “not having autism or an autistic-like brain” (including ‘cousin disorders’ like ADHD, Tourette’s, or Down’s).

That’s when Kassiane came along with neurodivergent. I don’t necessarily think she had any ill intent, but I do find it interesting the way that neurodivergence inherently — and, it seems, almost intentionally — widens the definition of neurodiversity.

Which is problematic, because the core feature of neurodiversity is that it’s anti-cure. We don’t need a cure for autism because it’s a normal variation of neurotype: the vast majority of barriers that autistic people face are there because of society’s rigidity and refusal to accommodate us, NOT because there’s anything that is inherently wrong with us that needs to be “fixed”. And the things that ARE “issues” (for lack of a better word) can be treated individually, and symptoms that are upsetting or distressing can be managed.

But if you try to apply that logic to mental illness, you’ll get laughed out of town. No one in the world would tell you that major depression or PTSD don’t need treatment, because they do. They are inherently distressing in and of themselves.

Now, I’ll admit it’s a little extreme to say “no one should use this word EVER” and I apologize. I’ve seen a number of bad takes over the last few days that were sort of simmering inside of me and I didn’t express that culmination of annoyance well.

At the same time, I find it frustrating that many people present neurodivergent as the opposition to neurotypical when in fact many people who identify as neurodivergent for say, a personality disorder or DID are, in fact, neurotypical: by nature of not having “an autistic-like brain”.

I prefer “neuroatypical” to describe neurotypical people with mental illnesses, because it doesn’t shorten to ND, which I do think is the root of the confusion between neurodiverse and neurodivergent.

However, I am aware that I don’t know everything, and if anyone has other perspectives or resources they want to share with me, I would love to see them! I’m always open to learning and willing to change my opinions if presented with sufficient evidence.

#autism #autistic #neurodivergent #neurodiverse #merc’s voice

[traumata-heart]

By Nick Walker, PhD

Refer to the source page for examples of correct and incorrect usage.

NEURODIVERSITY What It Means:

Neurodiversity is the diversity of human minds, the infinite variation in neurocognitive functioning within our species.

What It Doesn’t Mean:

Neurodiversity is a biological fact. It’s not a perspective, an approach, a belief, a political position, or a paradigm. That’s the neurodiversity paradigm (see below), not neurodiversity itself.

Neurodiversity is not a political or social activist movement. That’s the Neurodiversity Movement (see below), not neurodiversity itself.

Neurodiversity is not a trait that any individual possesses or can possess. When an individual or group of individuals diverges from the dominant societal standards of “normal” neurocognitive functioning, they don’t “have neurodiversity,” they’re neurodivergent (see below).

NEURODIVERGENT and NEURODIVERGENCE What It Means:

Neurodivergent, sometimes abbreviated as ND, means having a mind that functions in ways which diverge significantly from the dominant societal standards of “normal.”

Neurodivergent is quite a broad term. Neurodivergence (the state of being neurodivergent) can be largely or entirely genetic and innate, or it can be largely or entirely produced by brain-altering experience, or some combination of the two. Autism and dyslexia are examples of innate forms of neurodivergence, while alterations in brain functioning caused by such things as trauma, long-term meditation practice, or heavy usage of psychedelic drugs are examples of forms of neurodivergence produced through experience.

A person whose neurocognitive functioning diverges from dominant societal norms in multiple ways – for instance, a person who is Autistic, dyslexic, and epileptic – can be described as multiply neurodivergent.

Some forms of innate or largely innate neurodivergence, like autism, are intrinsic and pervasive factors in an individual’s psyche, personality, and fundamental way of relating to the world. The neurodiversity paradigm rejects the pathologizing of such forms of neurodivergence, and the Neurodiversity Movement opposes attempts to get rid of them.

Other forms of neurodivergence, like epilepsy or the effects of traumatic brain injuries, could be removed from an individual without erasing fundamental aspects of the individual’s selfhood, and in many cases the individual would be happy to be rid of such forms of neurodivergence. The neurodiversity paradigm does not reject the pathologizing of these forms of neurodivergence, and the Neurodiversity Movement does not object to consensual attempts to cure them (but still most definitely objects to discrimination against people who have them).

Thus, neurodivergence is not intrinsically positive or negative, desirable or undesirable – it all depends on what sort of neurodivergence one is talking about.

The terms neurodivergent and neurodivergence were coined in the year 2000 by Kassiane Asasumasu, a multiply neurodivergent neurodiversity activist.

What It Doesn’t Mean:

Neurodivergent is not a synonym for autistic. There are countless possible ways to be neurodivergent, and being autistic is only one of those ways. There are myriad ways of being neurodivergent that have no resemblance or connection to autism whatsoever. Never, ever use neurodivergent as a euphemism for autistic. If you mean that someone is autistic, say they’re autistic. It’s not a dirty word.

NEUROTYPICAL, or NT What It Means:

Neurotypical, often abbreviated as NT, means having a style of neurocognitive functioning that falls within the dominant societal standards of “normal.”

Neurotypical can be used as either an adjective (“He’s neurotypical”) or a noun (“He’s a neurotypical”).

Neurotypical is the opposite of neurodivergent. Neurotypicality is the way-of-being from which neurodivergent people diverge.

What It Doesn’t Mean:

Neurotypical is not synonymous with non-autistic.

Neurotypical is the opposite of neurodivergent, not the opposite of autistic. Autism is only one of many forms of neurodivergence, so there are many, many people who are neither neurotypical nor autistic. Using neurotypical to mean non-autistic is like using “white” to mean “not black.”

Also, neurotypical is not a derogatory word, and has no intrinsic negative connotation. Of course, sometimes people use the word in the context of criticizing the behavior of neurotypicals, but that doesn’t make it an intrinsically negative word. A lot of people criticize the behavior of men, too, but that doesn’t make “man” an intrinsically derogatory word.

NEURODIVERSE What It Means:

A group of people is neurodiverse if one or more members of the group differ substantially from other members, in terms of their neurocognitive functioning.

Or, to phrase it another way, a neurodiverse group is a group in which multiple neurocognitive styles are represented.

What It Doesn’t Mean:

Many people mistakenly use neurodiverse where the correct word would be neurodivergent.

There is no such thing as a “neurodiverse individual.” The correct term is “neurodivergent individual.” An individual can diverge, but an individual cannot be diverse.

Neurodiverse does not mean “non-neurotypical.” The opposite of neurotypical is neurodivergent, not neurodiverse. Neurodiverse cannot be used to mean “non-neurotypical,” because neurotypical people, like all other human beings, are part of the spectrum of human neurodiversity.

To refer to neurominority groups or neurodivergent individuals as “neurodiverse” is incorrect grammatically, because diverse doesn’t mean different from the majority, it means made up of multiple different types. So an individual can never be diverse, by definition. And a group where everyone is neurodivergent in more or less the same way (e.g., a group composed entirely of Autistic people) wouldn’t be “neurodiverse,” either.

The only appropriate and grammatically correct use of the term neurodiverse is when it’s used to describe a group of people whose members differ neurocognitively from each other.

NEURODIVERSITY PARADIGM What It Means:

The neurodiversity paradigm is a specific perspective on neurodiversity – a perspective or approach that boils down to these fundamental principles:

1.) Neurodiversity is a natural and valuable form of human diversity.

2.) The idea that there is one “normal” or “healthy” type of brain or mind, or one “right” style of neurocognitive functioning, is a culturally constructed fiction, no more valid (and no more conducive to a healthy society or to the overall well-being of humanity) than the idea that there is one “normal” or “right” ethnicity, gender, or culture.

3.) The social dynamics that manifest in regard to neurodiversity are similar to the social dynamics that manifest in regard to other forms of human diversity (e.g., diversity of ethnicity, gender, or culture). These dynamics include the dynamics of social power inequalities, and also the dynamics by which diversity, when embraced, acts as a source of creative potential.

What It Doesn’t Mean:

The neurodiversity paradigm provides a philosophical foundation for the activism of the Neurodiversity Movement, but the two aren’t the same. For instance, there are people working on developing inclusive education strategies based on the neurodiversity paradigm, who don’t identify as social justice activists or as part of the Neurodiversity Movement.

NEURODIVERSITY MOVEMENT What It Means:

The Neurodiversity Movement is a social justice movement that seeks civil rights, equality, respect, and full societal inclusion for the neurodivergent.

What It Doesn’t Mean:

The Neurodiversity Movement is not a single group or organization, and has no leader. Like most civil rights movements, the Neurodiversity Movement is made up of a great many individuals, some of them organized into groups of one sort or another. These individuals and groups are quite diverse in their viewpoints, goals, concerns, political positions, affiliations, methods of activism, and interpretations of the neurodiversity paradigm.

The Neurodiversity Movement began within the Autism Rights Movement, and there is still a great deal of overlap between the two movements. But the Neurodiversity Movement and the Autism Rights Movement are not one and the same. The most significant distinction between the two is that the Neurodiversity Movement seeks to be inclusive of all neurominorities, not just Autistics. Also, there some who advocate for the rights of Autistics but who cannot rightly be considered part of the Neurodiversity Movement because they still consider autism to be a medical pathology or “disorder,” a view at odds with the neurodiversity paradigm.

#neurodiversity #neurodivergence #neurodivergent #neurodiversity paradigm #neurodiversity movement #mental health #autism #ADHD #trauma #complex trauma #PTSD #innate neurodivergence #acquired neurodivergence #language #resources

[lonelier-version-of-you]

Honestly the term “neurodivergent” is becoming meaningless now. It used to have a coherent and useful meaning, back when it referred to people who are treated badly by society because their brains work differently (which is what Kassiane Asasumasu originally coined it for), but nowadays it’s just used to mean “Developmental disabilities, but like, only the cute quirky smart ones! None of those dirty mentally ill people or gross intellectually disabled people or the autistic people who are too weird in our spaces!”.

Sigh.

“People with ADHD, autism, and maybe dyslexia or dyspraxia if we can be bothered to remember those things exist” is not actually a useful or coherent category for disability activism. It’s just Aspie-elitism on steroids, extended to DD people in general rather than specifically autistic people. “Developmentally disabled” is a useful category, the original meaning of “neurodivergent” is, this revisionist usage of “neurodivergent”... isn’t.

Anyway, I’m starting to think we should bring back “brainweird”. At least the “neurodivergent just means quirky smart people with ADHD or autism” crowd aren’t likely to get to that term, given it’s literally got “weird” in it (and the idea that there are ND people who aren’t “totally normal and actually better than you, we only have problems because of society uwu” is something that crowd absolutely despises).

#personal tag #idk just been thinking about the discourse again #i just don't get this new usage of ''neurodivergent''! it's not useful for anything

[brightlotusmoon]

Was your autistic mentor Judy Singer? :O

No, but Judy stole from Kassiane Asasumasu! K is the mentor, and we met online around the early 2010s. Back in the 90s, Kassiane and Ibby Grace came up with Neurodiversity, and later, Judy came around but didn't credit them. According to Nick Walker, my other mentor, Kassiane was plagiarised by a lot of people advocating for autism and a lot of people working with Autism Speaks. No wonder she's often angry. I haven't spoken to K in a while, though.

#but everything changed when my mentor coined neurodivergence #neurodivergence

[neurowonderful]

[Image description: White rectangles filled with text overlaid on a photo of the Capitol Crawl that took place on March 12, 1990. The photo shows a blonde eight-year-old named Jennifer Keelan, who has cerebral palsy, walking on hands and knees as she leads a group of physically disabled people in crawling and walking up the stone steps leading to the austere white Capitol building in Washington, D.C.

The text reads, "Not person experiencing disability as in 'a Republican president gave me the ADA', Capital D Disabled as in people literally crawling up the steps and parking their chairs in front of buses gave me the ADA" and is credited to activist Kassiane Asasumasu. End of image description.]

#disability #actuallydisabled #disabled #social justice #disability justice #ada #capitol crawl #disability history

[datsderbunnyblog]

I posted 7,217 times in 2021

737 posts created (10%)

6480 posts reblogged (90%)

For every post I created, I reblogged 8.8 posts.

I added 3,274 tags in 2021

#gnu terry pratchett - 1329 posts

#havelock vetinari - 369 posts

#sam vimes - 323 posts

#discworld art - 253 posts

#neil gaiman - 229 posts

#good omens - 185 posts

#always reblog - 160 posts

#vetvimes - 159 posts

#bbc ghosts - 139 posts

#susanna clarke - 128 posts

Longest Tag: 140 characters

#this has completely organically turned into a sybil ramkin apprication and body positivity post and i haven’t been this pleased in a long ti

My Top Posts in 2021

#5

I love the dynamic in the Discworld fandom on this site, I think it's mainly because there are a lot of dormant fans, if you will, who've read and loved the books for years but haven't engaged much recently, who sort of reappear whenever a fun post is doing the rounds. It's fantastic. We get the cozy small fandom vibe without the screaming matches, but also get the popular posts from time to time, y'know?

3401 notes • Posted 2021-05-24 12:14:47 GMT

#4

Normalise autistic adults voluntarily wasting an entire day on special interests and then posting a bad selfie with a glass of wine on Facebook like a white Autism Warrior Mommy™ with the caption "Autism won today" x

3429 notes • Posted 2021-10-02 22:23:45 GMT

#3

I’m always mildly surprised when books have chapters.

That’s it, that’s all I have to say. Discworld people will get it.

4617 notes • Posted 2021-01-14 17:37:49 GMT

#2

I think it’s becoming clear how difficult this is to appreciate in certain social media bubbles: Transphobes (including terfs) read Discworld and don’t think it applies to them. Racists read Discworld and don’t think it applies to them. I’ve seen far-right MAGA hat gun-toting white supremacists talk about Discworld and they simply haven’t noticed that they’re openly being mocked for their narrow-minded bigotry with every page.

They’re out there, and they really aren’t as rare as you’d like to believe. When you believe that you’re the default setting, you can simply decide that you’re going to live in a world where you can just ignore anything that doesn’t align with your prejudices. They don’t even notice.

4858 notes • Posted 2021-07-31 22:03:08 GMT

#1

This is your friendly (but autistically blunt) reminder that the term "neurodivergent" has always included mental health conditions, and the disabled woman of colour who coined the term, Kassiane Asasumasu, did so precisely because we were missing an inclusive umbrella term for anyone whose brain operates differently.

Not only do you sound clownish when trying to suggest that there is such a thing as neurotypical mentally ill people, you are slamming the door of neurodivergence on people who are also ostracized and marginalized and I have to wonder about your motivations for being so keen to distance yourself from us.

And as Asasumasu herself has said when y'all try to bring up the "but you have to be neurodivergent from birth or it doesn't really count" definition that people keep plucking out of thin air for no apparent reason, the term you are looking for already existed and it is "developmental disorders".

TL;DR Stop trying to retrospectively change the definition of a word if you don't even know its history, neurodivergence includes mental illness and that is not up for debate.

5604 notes • Posted 2021-10-05 17:42:44 GMT

Get your Tumblr 2021 Year in Review →

#my 2021 tumblr year in review #okay that's pretty funny #was it worth waiting 2 hours for? nope lol

[actingnt]

The term “neurodivergent” was coined by a hapa woman named Kassiane Asasumasu with a specific intent to be as inclusive as possible. Calling one person “neurodiverse” makes no sense and if you use “neuro-atypical” I’ll assume you’re racist.

#also if you think mental illness is a separate category from neurodivergence you're wrong #neurodiversity #neurodivergent #actually neurodivergent #neurodiverse #actually neurodiverse #original post