Autistic Child Shamed Online by “Activist” Parent

Note: This is a throwback article. Originally published November 16th, 2022.

A video is circulating at the moment of a child being dressed, having a sensory overload, and then rushing to self-soothe… Who recorded this intimate and private moment? His parents.

In the video, this child – potentially underage at the time but has since turned 18 – was being dressed by his father. After this, sensory overload occurs, and he rushes over to the stove. It’s common for self-soothing to include self-harm – whether by burning oneself, cutting, or hitting. It’s not the only self-soothe practice available but appears to be the only one directly available for this child.

His mother is recording the video, sounding fearful. But, on the other hand, his father seems to have a disciplining tone towards his son’s overload. 

Clearly, this boy is experiencing ableism in his own home – where he’s supposed to be safe.

Besides the considerable invasion of privacy and mocking online, something else is wrong in this video: the caption.

Why We Have PTSD Every Day

The video of her son having sensory overload is supposed to be an example of why the parents have PTSD (every day).

First, let me tell you, as an Autistic person with PTSD, you don’t have PTSD “every day” – you just have PTSD. But, unfortunately, every day is a given for a chronic mental health condition.

Secondly, I find it impressive that an Autistic person having sensory overload gives you PTSD… Because something that is much more likely to give someone PTSD is being chastised when you’re not doing anything wrong, being put through abusive therapies such as ABA, and being forced to self-harm to self-soothe because there are no other outlets.

So, no – you don’t have “PTSD every day”.

The further into this that you look, it slowly gets worse. Julie Skolnik, the boy’s mother in the video, is noted as an “Author, Activist, [and] Profound-Autism-Mom”… 

This is typically a critical sign that she probably supports Autism Speaks – she’s certainly giving the vibe.

If you don’t know what’s wrong with Autism Speaks, let me explain:

Autism Speaks is an organisation that is run by parents of Autistic children and supports parents more than Autistic people. It’s also got the goal of curing Autism.

The concept of a “Profound-Autism-Mom” is beyond me. As an Autistic person, my diagnosis didn’t become my mother’s personality. 

Following on from “Autism Mums”, many of them ignore Autistic people. How long have we, as a community, been asking Allistic people not to use terms such as High Functioning/Low Functioning and Aspergers? 

Why shouldn’t we use them? Because they come directly from research obtained from Auschwitz and the Nazis…

The term Aspergers is used to describe someone who has Autism but is “good enough” to fit into society. People diagnosed with Aspergers are usually regarded as some of the most intelligent people in the world. Still, they are often denied Autism Support Services for not being severe enough or being too Neurotypical.

Some psychiatrists and psychologists go as far as to say that Aspergers isn’t even a form of Autism – trying to remove the Autism stigma from intelligent people.

Let’s have a rundown:

• Aspergers is the “socially acceptable” form of Autism.
• We should no longer be using terms coined by the Nazis – considering the Nazis killed thousands of Autistic people who weren’t socially acceptable enough, among the millions of Roma, Gay, and Jews.
• We should not be filming an Autistic person having sensory overload – it will likely make the issue worse, it takes away their privacy, and it indicates to them that they are not human enough for you. 
• At what point on the Autism spectrum does privacy get taken away from someone for activism? Skolnik believes her “severely autistic” son doesn’t deserve privacy, while her “high functioning” son seems to be protected from social media…
• You do not get PTSD from an Autistic person existing – no matter where they fall on the Autistic scale.
• ABA is known for giving Autistic people PTSD due to the mental abuse it entails – forcing Autistic people not to be visibly Autistic.
• Forcing someone to mask 24/7 is the leading cause of 7 out of 10 Autistic people suffering from Depression and Anxiety.
• If your child has Autism, you are not an “Autism Mom”. Your child’s existence is not your identity – rather than boosting your ableism disguised as activism, how about you promote Autistic Activists – people who live with it, know how it feels, and can say whether something is acceptable.
• Autism Speaks is an Ableist, Hate Organisation that believes in Eugenics and supports the reform of Autistic people.
• If you see a parent using their Autistic child to promote their activism – DO NOT PRAISE THEM. They chose to have a child; the child did not choose to exist, nor did they choose to have Autism. They are not doing anything good by invading their child’s privacy when they cannot consent due to age and /or mental capacity.