An All-inclusive Society for All

We Asian Aspies have what it takes to take a step towards acceptance. We can do it in various ways, and we try to do them well. However, our journey will be especially arduous and tiring at the moment because it does not seem to work.

For example, we can pursue something that is of use in society individually - just as what is done by Prof. Temple Grandin (food handling designer) or Clay Marzo (champion surfer), and then, when we have a professional standing, we can use it to promote acceptance for fellow people like us. However, the situation is, Asia has the resources to produce the champions and the most effective teams for everything productive they can produce, from agricultural output to space exploration. The future of the world would be the team with a purpose, and so, it is my hope that Aspies can be part of this vision; particularly in Asia, the region of the future, which Aspies should be part of given their intuitive, passionate talents.

As an alternative, we can also follow the footsteps of Michelle Dawson, Zoey Roberts and Jim Sinclair, who spend most of their careers in Autism advocacy. With strong individual rights in their countries, they can afford to speak for themselves while getting governmental and sponsors' grants. However, as Asia is still developing, it is of my opinion that such autism advocacy is hollow on its own. It saps society of energy and resources to move forward as a whole. In addition, there is little hope for people outside the autism community, thinking of a way to build a better world together.

In Asia, we have to do things differently from what is done in the West. Learning from the experiences from Western-dominated Autism advocacy and support systems, and tweaking it to include features that support the Autie's ability to work with the team, Asia and eventually, the world, can be a better place for all globally, with more resources for more people.

First of all, we need to build an all-inclusive structure. It should support as many Aspies as we can engage. Also, we should include not just Aspies, but also all people who may do better when given the resources that also help Aspies, regardless of current or past medical conditions. 

When I speak of supporting people with autism, I speak about including individuals' talents because of their inability to respond to typical team-based efforts, as what is reflected in Aspies' failure in group-based employment throughout the world. However, I recognise that some people who can competently work in teams do actually have the personality to work more effectively, when they work alone. Examples would include INTJs on the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator, which most Aspies also fall on. Why don't we work for them as well?

Secondly, the Autism community should work both for their own accommodations to function better in organisations, as well as work with all stakeholders under Carroll's Stakeholder Model, to achieve a sustainable all-round involvement for people with autism.

I really hope we can engage, well, everybody to give us support for Autism.  We work with not just those direct stakeholders who are directly answerable to the success of the person with Autism, i.e. the parents, the educators and the individual Aspie, but also indirect stakeholders as well: different commercial enterprises (particularly social enterprises and large corporate social responsibility sections of Companies), the different religious groups, the different interest groups (most notably, the My Little Pony and anime fan groups, at this juncture of writing), the local autism associations, the different layers of local governments, and perhaps even relevant international non-governmental groups when necessary. 

Most importantly to us, we need to have a strategy, to make things better for Aspies and Auties.

We need not just an individual space for all Aspies in work - this is good but superficial in my opinion - we need to provide the assurance, the connectors to social networks that provide an outlet for Aspies' talents, the ability to guide individual Aspies to be more useful socially through uncovering their talents, the support and the resources, to better enable the Aspie contributes to society, just as anybody else in society. We should never leave any stone unturned, as we are at the forefront of our world's problems, and that we can seek solutions to our current common challenges globally.

Because of the diverse needs (not wants) of Aspies and Auties, we need to engage, well, with 'everybody', just to give our  Aspies support in our globalised societies. 

Autism Vision

I have a vision for the autism community around the world. I hope that eventually, all around the world, people with autism can be empowered and enabled to contribute to the world, through their unique gifts and talents that they share with the rest of the world, regardless of autism functioning levels, existence of other co-morbid disorders, race, religion or sexual orientation.

The stirring slogan for Occupy Wall Street is 'we are the 99%'. Well, the NTs are 87 out of the 88 people, don't they? Our society is a mostly Neurotypical-based society. The fact is, those with Autism and Asperger's will remain a minority. This is why we only ask for acceptance to live within the Neurotypical society, as other fellow NTs, while recognising both the limitations and talents that our conditions bring us - regardless of what we seem to be. 

Autism is a wide spectrum. We understand that society may be preoccupied by other concerns. I thought of it this way - regardless of functioning levels, those with autism bring out the essence of life, which is - love. Love which leads us to passionately pursue in some interests. Love to feel and care for others, like other human beings do, despite our social deficits that inhibit our functioning.

With globalisation, there is so much potential for information to be spread and transmitted all around the world. There is an increased likelihood that there will be a common refrain of, 'we want acceptance' by all Aspies and Auties. We may be divided by different mental paradigms because of our circumstances. But surely, psychiatrists and other medical professionals must found a commonality in all people with autism spectrum disorders, that really warrants more support for our community.

I really hope any Aspie or Autie around the world may never feel alone, may feel more accepted as what he is, and finds the strength to live in the Neurotypical-dominant society that does we do not seem to fit in - well, at least for now.