Neurodiversity Pride isn’t centered on LGBTQ+ people, but perhaps it should be

Neurodiversity Pride Day will be observed internationally on June 18, 2024 as a way to celebrate people who have neurologically atypical ways of thinking, learning, and behaving, and to reduce stigma against these people.

The neurodiversity (ND) movement often uses a rainbow infinity symbol — one that’s also used by autism awareness advocates. But while neither movements are specifically centered on LGBTQ+ people, perhaps it’s time to re-think that, especially since LGBTQ+ identities have long been stigmatized as forms of mental illness and numerous studies have linked queerness with autism.

Related: 2 librarians were fired after the board mistook an autism symbol for a Pride display. They’re suing.

The display featured two rainbow images that were actually about disabilities.

Below is a quick look at the slippery concept of neurodivergence, the origins of the neurodiversity movement, and the curious link between autism and LGBTQ+ people.

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Daily Weekly Good News What does “neurodivergent” mean? It depends…

Neurodivergence is a slippery concept, depending on where and when it’s defined. That’s because different societies throughout history have often labeled neurological differences as mental illnesses and “disorders,” even when those differences result from genetic inheritance, neurochemical imbalances, or trauma.

The term is often applied to autism spectrum disorder (ASD), an umbrella term that covers a wide variety of symptoms that manifest differently in each individual, including difficulties in social interactions, repetitive behaviors, resistance to change, and increased or decreased sensory sensitivity. ASD often accompanies other diagnoses, including learning disabilities, attention hyperactivity deficit disorder (ADHD), and self-harm.

While some people with autism are high-functioning and live independently, others may require lifelong support. Regardless, neurodiversity proponents say that people with autism should be accommodated rather than cured; that there’s not a one-size-fits-all solution to helping them; and that their symptoms may be worsened by societal norms that force them to behave in “neurotypical” (NT) ways.

Since the start of the autism awareness movement in the late 1980s, public understanding of neurodivergence has changed as psychology learns more about the unique ways that people perceive, process, and react to different situations. As such, the concept of neurodiversity has widened to include people with a range of psychological issues, including complex post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, bipolar disorder, and many others.

The neurodiversity movement’s origins & LGBTQ+ connection

Society has long struggled with how to handle people who exhibit psychological differences. While ancient societies often blamed these differences on supernatural causes, philosophers in the Middle Ages blamed them on an imbalance of mood-altering fluids (or “humors”) in the body.

Over time, people with psychological differences were criminalized and hidden from society by being thrown into prisons alongside violent offenders, religiously-run asylums, or workhouses for the poor. In all places, they were often subjected to inhuman living conditions, cruel abuse, and unproven experimental “treatments.”

The rise of psychoanalysis, psychosurgery, and psychopharmacology in the 19th and 20th centuries accompanied a mental health reform movement that sought to provide greater support for neurodivergent people in order to gradually reunite them with their families, jobs, and society at large.

During these centuries, LGBTQ+ identities were increasingly stigmatized as forms of “sexual deviation” by mental health authorities. Even today, right-wingers claim that transgender people are mentally ill and that queerness can be “cured” by so-called conversion therapy. The resulting discrimination and stigma have resulted in higher rates of mental distress and illness among LGBTQ+ people and increased calls to treat queer people with compassion and respect.

The formal neurodiversity movement began in the late 1990s, as internet users with autism began communicating and creating supportive online forums. This movement eventually connected with the disability rights movement and sought to destigmatize autism and provide greater support for people with autism.

In 1999, the Autism Society created the infinity symbol for autism awareness to represent the infinite potential of individuals with autism. The symbol has been appropriated by the wider neurodiversity movement and illustrated in rainbow colors, sometimes to denote a broad and varied spectrum of experiences among neurodiverse people and, other times, to acknowledge the existence of neurodiverse LGBTQ+ people in the movement.

In 2005, the group Aspies for Freedom (AFF) first celebrated Autistic Pride Day, choosing June 18 because it was the birthday of the youngest AFF member at that time. Since then, organizations have observed the day internationally, holding celebrations and meetups to raise awareness and support. There’s no official flag for Neurodiversity Pride, though numerous ones have been created by web users.

Why is autism linked to LGBTQ+ people?

Increasingly, conservative legislation seeking to ban gender-affirming care for trans youth has said that mental health professionals should evaluate minors for autism before diagnosing them with gender dysphoria, unease due to a mismatch between a person’s gender identity and the biological sex they were assigned at birth. But autism doesn’t “cause” trans identity per se, nor does trans identity cause autism — experts are still exploring the link between the two.

A 2016 study found that autistic children were seven times more likely to exhibit gender variance than their non-autistic peers. A 2019 study found that trans and nonbinary people are also more likely to be autistic or display autistic traits than those who are cisgender. In 2021, a University of Cambridge study — the largest study on autistic people to date — found that people with autism (especially girls and women) were about eight times more likely to identify as asexual and “other” sexuality than their non-autistic peers.

“It is more common for autistic individuals to deviate from gender norms … that attempt to dictate the ways a person should act, look, and identify based on their gender,” according to the Organization for Autism Research. Alternately, some psychiatrists think that prenatal hormonal exposure may increase the likelihood of queerness and autism.

Regardless, studies show that LGBTQ+ people and people with autism both suffer from stigma and unmet healthcare needs, making the need for Neurodiversity Pride and advocacy more important now than ever.

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