Friday, February 06, 2009

Catalyst are going there again


There's every indication that the upcoming story on autism on the ABCTV science show Catalyst will be as insensitive to the viewpoints of autistic people as last year's stories about autism and Asperger syndrome. I saw a promo for the show on the telly. There was a nauseating voice-over saying something about teaching little kiddies how to love (retch, puke). Please, give me a break, Catalyst reporters! I'm sure that there are inumerable autistic children and adults out there who have been bullied, ridiculed, harassed, assaulted and/or excluded by their neurotypical peers since their earliest forays into the world of social exchange, who wonder what neurotypical people could possibly possess to enable them to teach autists about love and sharing.

I couldn't help noticing that this year the Catalyst people are once again referring to autistic people as minds rather than people; "Teaching young autistic minds to communicate". Yep, just emotionless computers embodied in flesh! No doubt about that!

Link to Catalyst web site:
http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/2473020.htm

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