It seems like a lifetime ago now, but do you remember way back last year when people were debating whether 2020 was the start of a new decade or the end of one? It was a question which haunted many a perfectionist, yet now, as we stand at the end of this year, it seems that many are no longer asking how will we remember 2020 but, what will it take to forget it?
However, with all things considered, was 2020 really all that bad? Well, yes, but along with the constant barrage of bad news, there were also a handful of announcements, discoveries and news pieces which promised progression for our community when brighter skies emerge. So, if you can take off that pessimist’s hat for just one moment, then today I invite you to a recap of the major autism moments from the year gone by – a journey which I can’t promise will be all that fun, but is at least well and truly behind us.
[As always, links to the full stories can be accessed by clicking on the red titles and the bold headings.]
5. Maybe Celebrities Should Stop Talking About Autism?
In a year where everything was constantly going tits up, 2020 provided many, much-needed distractions for the autism community, through the shining stars and socialites of glitz and glamour.
Of course, it would have been great if these distractions were due to positive stories and not, you know, what we actually got. But beggars can’t be choosers and over the last 12 months, celebs certainly got people talking about the spectrum. For example:
- The self-sabotage of singer Sia: who created a film ‘for the autism community’ but then began berating and belittling us when the trailer wasn’t well received
- The continued decline of JK Rowling: who used autism’s links with gender diversity to critique non-binary identities (and ruin any shred of goodwill we had left for the author)
- YouTuber Myka Stauffer: who rehomed her adopted autistic son because she is a narrow-minded, uncaring monster (or, if you ask her, because he was too difficult to care for)
Nevertheless, whilst nearly all the news regarding famous people was borderline intolerable, it wasn’t a total wipeout, as could be seen in other cases, like Elon Musk saying he was going to ‘cure autism’ (when he actually meant using tech to remove the negative aspects of the condition) or, when Amy Schumer discussed her autistic husband’s quirks during a comedy special, but instead of making fun of him, she shared some truly positive and enlightening anecdotes (whilst making fun of him).
With all this considered, many are now asking ‘Should celebrities just stop talking about autism?’ – a question which, in all honesty, should be answered with ‘no’. However, we should definitely start moderating how much we are willing to listen to them.
4. Autism Charities Move the World
Autism once felt like one of the most isolating conditions, wherein an autistic person, our families and friends could feel extremely detached and unable to find help where needed. Thankfully, we now have a plethora of autism charities championing our cause and offering support – organisations which, when they were needed most, rose to the challenge this year.
This can be seen in the National Autistic Society’s Left Stranded campaign; which sought to find justice for those in the community who have seemingly been left without guidance during the pandemic, whilst autistic research charities like Autistica created a whole slew of Covid protection resources and promoted them as far and wide as possible.
Sadly, doing so much for so many can quickly wear you out and leave you looking dishevelled, which is why it was also great to see many of the most prominent names in the sector receive a facelift this year, with revitalised images and identities, e.g. the National Autistic Society; who now have one of the most accessible websites I’ve ever seen, or the ever-controversial Autism Speaks who, erm, changed their logo – and that’s about it.
However, not all of these updates were purely cosmetic, as one of the largest highlights this year was the news that the previously mentioned Autistica appointed the first autistic CEO in James Cusack. This was a huge milestone for both the charity sector and autism in general, so now let’s see if other industries will follow suit.
3. A Strong Year for Autism in Entertainment
When the year started with Disney announcing its first autistic character, I was pretty sure that we were heading for a fantastic 12 months of autism portrayals and depictions. However, even I was surprised by how incredible autism’s presence turned out to be – and it was a joy reading, watching and reviewing it all (and I’m not just saying that because there was no new series of Atypical).
After a new year’s commitment to read more non-fiction, It was a pleasure to be greeted with so many choices from Stim, Spectrum Women and The Spectrum Girl’s Survival Guide, whilst stories of fiction wowed with titles such as Moojag and the Auticode Secret, Underdogs: Tooth and Nail and the phenomenal A Kind of Spark.
In the world of talking pictures, The A Word returned for probably it’s best season yet and new shows like Everything’s Gonna Be Alright dominated (something which, regrettably I still haven’t got around to).
Media giant, Netflix, undoubtedly helped push autism to the forefront of our minds this year with the roaring success of Love on the Spectrum and, that’s nothing to say of the cult hit The Queen’s Gambit which, nothing you can tell me will convince me that the character isn’t autistic.
In 2020, autism also pushed its roots into new genres, like horror movie Come Play. However, as we’ve all had enough shocks and scares this year, I’ll leave any discussion of that until next Halloween and swiftly move on.
2. Autism Research Diversifies
A person with autism isn’t just an autistic person. They can be a parent, a partner, a brother, a sister, a son, a daughter or any other relation that comes when you introduce more generations. Furthermore, an autistic person can be of any ethnicity, hailing from the west, east, south or north pole (as discussed last post), and autistic people can also be extremely diverse when it comes to sexuality; falling into any category from heterosexual to LGBTQIAQ and K. So, with that said, isn’t it great that, in 2020, autism research became just as diverse?
Yes, this highlight is dedicated to just how wide autism researchers cast their net when they set out this year and, how could I not, when instead of seeing studies on the same old young white male (which has been a trend since the first autistic person was diagnosed), we got to hear amazing discoveries surrounding demographics like:
- Autistic Mothers i.e: how mothers with autism compare to neurotypicals
- BAME Autists i.e: how autism has evolved new strains in African originating demographics
- Autism and Gender i.e: Linking sexuality to the spectrum
- Siblings of Autistic People – which, okay, isn’t directly autistic related, but regardless it’s interesting to see how the autism gene is carried through non-autistic siblings
Nevertheless, it should be said that this story is only a true highlight if this marks the start of the direction we are heading (and isn’t just a small blip in what could be). So, before I give everything too much credit, let’s go to our last piece of news (something which still stands in the way of all research in general).
1. Covid
Do you ever watch a disaster movie and question every wrong turn the heroes take, thinking ‘no one would be that stupid in real life’? Well, after 2020, I can’t imagine I’ll have those thoughts again, as the last 12 months have been dominated by disaster, partly because of the pandemic but mostly the fault of fools.
For the autism community, this meant that, when the world was going into a lockdown (due to the virus), ignorance led to indecision and bickering on whether those on the spectrum should or shouldn’t wear a mask, while not much later the same uncertainty arose whether school was in session or online for those who needed the consistency most.
Things momentarily got more frightful from then on when, in early 2020, reports came out questioning how our condition would impact on our chances of getting a respirator – if supplies were limited.
Outside of autistic people ourselves, many in the autism community were also greatly held back this year when, almost seconds after the first lab assistant coughed, all research was shut down and put on hold – damaging the consistency of results and holding back any progress it might have brought.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, 2020 also firmly ripped away all those hugely important chance meetings at conferences, as almost all events were put on hold or closed due to risk of raising the infection rate.
Nevertheless, Covid really has proven the rule of what doesn’t kill you can only make you stronger/take away your taste as, despite this being one of the cruellest 12 months to date, the autism community has really come together; creating innovative fundraisers and online support bubbles for those who find strength in numbers.
Of course, it would have been great if we weren’t pushed to a point where learning this was a necessity yet, because of it, I will no longer see 2020 as the end or beginning of a decade, but a challenging time that showed how, when the chips are down, the autism community will always stand up for one another.
Carry on the Conversation:
Well that was a bit of a sour note to end on, so let’s see if we can turn this around. What was your personal highlight of 2020, let me know in the comments below.
As always, I can also be found on Twitter @AutismRevised, on Instagram @autisticandunapologetic and via my email: AutisticandUnapologetic@gmail.com.
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Thank you for reading and I will see you next time for more thoughts from across the spectrum.
