tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post2975294121795874208..comments2023-05-09T06:00:19.599-04:00Comments on Autistic Hoya — A blog by Lydia X. Z. Brown (2011-2020): Who gets to be an ally?Lydia Brownhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13484063914873791571noreply@blogger.comBlogger17125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-17817732511515174232019-04-28T11:03:57.872-04:002019-04-28T11:03:57.872-04:00Hi, short bio here: School bus assistant for speci...Hi, short bio here: School bus assistant for special needs students for 16 years and I have seen the gamut of so called allies. When I discovered my own autism after reading Rudy Simone's book "Aspergirls", I quit my job because, well, my worlds began to collide in interesting and life changing ways. Suffice to say: my anger at children being dosed with "meds" at Mavenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16044485892550707295noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-75169557145329253572013-06-27T11:54:53.015-04:002013-06-27T11:54:53.015-04:00Love this ... "You are not an ally if you in...Love this ... "You are not an ally if you insist that we or your kids are broken, diseased, or defective." <br /><br />My number one "fight" against others while protecting my son (Autism spectrum - NLD) is trying to explain that he isn't broken or defective. He is a unique individual that sees the world so much different than we do, and has SO MUCH value to add to Kara Kelsohttp://www.idea-queen.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-59087116955189011582013-02-15T16:02:40.816-05:002013-02-15T16:02:40.816-05:00You can live your whole life, and never be regarde...<br /><br />You can live your whole life, and never be regarded as an ally of any group. All that matters is how you live your life, and how you treat others, especially the ones you love. The rest is political, I think. <br /><br />I adore my son. I'll do what I think is right for him, because, in his behavior towards me or I towards him, we will communicate that to each other. Life is Usethebrains Godgiveyouhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05026223483117357541noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-39522516559786939552013-02-12T22:56:49.747-05:002013-02-12T22:56:49.747-05:00"You are not an ally if you refuse to acknowl..."You are not an ally if you refuse to acknowledge the validity of an Autistic person's opinions or ideas.<br /><br />"You are not an ally if you routinely attack or dismiss an Autistic person's opinions or ideas."<br /><br />I hope this means "...on the basis of that person being Autistic, rather than on the merit of the ideas themselves."<br /><br />Because beingAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-65219181248284552522012-03-23T21:22:51.090-04:002012-03-23T21:22:51.090-04:00Like.Like.CJ Shilohhttp://www.themusicalautist.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-66161519678922234532012-03-22T19:46:05.677-04:002012-03-22T19:46:05.677-04:00A couple people said something like that to me at ...A couple people said something like that to me at the Allies in Self Advocacy conference I was at recently. Or maybe it was just one person. I was so overstimulated, I don't really know.katie millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09066919932013866984noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-49003538636224699732012-03-22T19:26:51.073-04:002012-03-22T19:26:51.073-04:00Landon,
I don't cast judgment on people based...Landon,<br /><br />I don't cast judgment on people based on whether they are "personal friends" of mine or not. I am not "personal friends," in fact, with the vast majority of the people with whom I maintain correspondence or connect on social media websites. The circle of people whom I can honestly describe as "personal friends" is very small compared to the Lydia Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13484063914873791571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-26398694343806412612012-03-22T15:01:27.959-04:002012-03-22T15:01:27.959-04:00Thanks Julia, yeah, I'm definitely looking at ...Thanks Julia, yeah, I'm definitely looking at the absolute certainty of the screwup potential. And it does remind me of my time in the Deaf culture, where, even though I had a name sign, I would always be a "hepe," or a hearing person (with no Deaf relatives), and therefore never a member of the community. I was a teen and desperate to belong (wherever, anywhere), but I could also Karla McLarenhttp://karlamclaren.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-3856787438145400092012-03-22T13:41:11.833-04:002012-03-22T13:41:11.833-04:00Being an ally is not the same as having a name, an...Being an ally is not the same as having a name, and it's not the same kind of an identity as being autistic or Deaf. In fact, making being an ally your identity gets very dangerous very fast, because then when you do screw up--and you will, it's inevitable, you're a human, right?--attempts to point this out will be felt as personal attacks, and you will lash out and wind up hurting Juliahttp://juststimming.wordpress.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-66042385968448100182012-03-22T13:24:12.243-04:002012-03-22T13:24:12.243-04:00Lydia, this is an awesome piece, and I find myself...Lydia, this is an awesome piece, and I find myself saying, "You go, testify!" Your list is excellent for this situation, but it's also excellent for teaching outsiders on the borders of any marginalized community some sensitivity and manners.<br /><br />In your description of what an ally is and isn't, I'm reminded of the Deaf culture, where I was once an outsider strugglingKarla McLarenhttp://karlamclaren.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-85140523407367129652012-03-22T09:39:44.313-04:002012-03-22T09:39:44.313-04:00This troubles me. Allies do in fact do all of the...This troubles me. Allies do in fact do all of these things. Because allies are people, and people are imperfect. Even someone like your friend Kim, who has done many, many of the things on your list, is an ally-- just not a very good one.<br /><br />I would argue that good allies do not attack ASAN for objecting strongly to something like the CDC Wandering Code. They do not insist that Landon Brycehttp://www.thautcast.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-55115023752267573632012-03-22T02:36:36.114-04:002012-03-22T02:36:36.114-04:00I definitely appreciate folks who realize that the...I definitely appreciate folks who realize that they need to learn, and are committed to the learning process. :)Lydia Brownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13484063914873791571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-90459181789334887832012-03-22T01:53:05.169-04:002012-03-22T01:53:05.169-04:00Totally agree with this, too. Acknowledging that y...Totally agree with this, too. Acknowledging that you need to learn something is, as the Buddhists would say, the first step on the path to enlightenment. Who are these folks you speak of, katie?Dean McIntoshhttp://stillfinditsohard.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-46896768629984439872012-03-22T00:20:56.362-04:002012-03-22T00:20:56.362-04:00I met some folks recently who introduced themselve...I met some folks recently who introduced themselves as , " I'm trying to learn how to be an ally." I liked that.katie millerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09066919932013866984noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-51359895527816690622012-03-21T23:47:11.889-04:002012-03-21T23:47:11.889-04:00Totally and utterly behind this statement. I have ...Totally and utterly behind this statement. I have "family" whom I would perpetrate violence against if they called themselves an ally in front of me. So far as I am concerned, a person attempting to speak for me who is not autistic is not my ally precisely because I am perfectly capable of speaking for myself.<br /><br />One of your statements, [...]"and there's no need to wearDean McIntoshhttp://stillfinditsohard.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-13955874449824730012012-03-21T23:43:21.584-04:002012-03-21T23:43:21.584-04:00And I still have not figured out what the autistic...And I still have not figured out what the autistic community actually *is*, outside of my own family who seem to all be on the spectrum. I certainly find few allies of my own, and fewer still who understand what it is to be both autistic and a parent of autistic kids.Jane Strausshttp://www.a-part-or-apart.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-338581633491322703.post-41267379404419387502012-03-21T23:38:14.232-04:002012-03-21T23:38:14.232-04:00Omg, my daughter went to a school that did so much...Omg, my daughter went to a school that did so much self promotion but when push came to shove it was all talk nothing real to back it up. Being an ally can be tough work, but that is where you get to prove that you really are an ally.<br /><br />This is so true,<br />Thanks,<br />Rosie c.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com