Daughter of the Ring of Fire » Blog Archive » Autistics Speak, But Will Autism Speaks Listen?

Jun

2008

Autistics Speak, But Will Autism Speaks Listen?

Posted on 21:21, June 23rd, 2008 by EKSwitaj

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Honestly, it’s hardly surprising anymore to see Autism Speaks trying to silence autistics. One can hardly expect a group that, in order to raise funds and put forward an agenda of eliminating a population, relies on fear of that population to let them speak without a fight. However, you don’t have to be an autistic or even an ally to care about this case.

Autism Speaks sent a copyright infringement notice to Zazzle after Zach from Aspieweb had used the site to make a T-shirt reading:

‘Autism Speaks’
can go away
I have autism
I can speak for myself

The specious grounds for this would appear to be the use of the organization’s name. This particular use, however, is clearly not illegal, but this is how companies and industries behave in the age of the DMCA when they want to eliminate dissent. The board of Autism Speaks includes individuals who have held high positions in the pharmaceutical companies and the mainstream media (including NBC and the Wall Street Journal) among other industries. They represent corporate interests, especially when they try to silence those who dare to disagree with them.

It’s time for neurotypicals to wake up: even if you think you don’t know someone with autism, opposing groups like Autism Speaks matters because what they want to control isn’t just behavior and isn’t a disease. What they want to control is thought.

By way of protest, I though I’d add my own T-shirt design to the mix, and I encourage everyone to do the same. I wonder just how many members of their staff we could tie up trying to take us all down.

EDIT: Apparently, at least according Zazzle management, Autism Speaks did not object to this particular T-shirt. However, the decision to remove it was based on unspecified previous complaints and an atmosphere of intolerance created by said organization.

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