I really liked Unmasking Autism. I liked the story telling. I thought it was well researched and very personal. Then I followed Dr Price on Insta and was increasingly put off by some of the takes. I also found it interesting that the comments were turned off there. I believe Dr. Price has a lot to contribute but I agree that sticking to lived experience is where the strength lies. I imagine it's difficult to come up through the education system, to PhD level, and experience all of those pitfalls and try to make sense of what's wrong with it, and then try to make sense of what's wrong with the greater society, without making mistakes. I really liked Dr. Price's take on enjoying male privilege after transition. It was very enlightening. However, with age, my ability to consume content is decreasing so I find myself unfollowing. There is so much competition for our attention. Keeping my focus on lived experience has taught me the most. The weak generalizations only have a grain of truth. Take it with a grain of salt is good advice.
I enjoyed a lot of this but this is the part I feel compelled to comment on because I never ran across someone else saying it:
"I started asking around, and have since learned that Devon Price is known for being the opposite of the kind of autistic advocate we need. They're known for sharing their personal experience, and extrapolating it to claim they speak for all autistic people"
This was a bit part of why their book was really offputting to me even though everyone was raving about it. And it feels gross to side eye a book I haven't read but I couldn't finish it. I LOVED the Laziness Doesn't Exist article and probably always will, I think it was really important. The rest is a hard pass for me. I wish that book wasn't always the go to resource people point others to.
I really liked Unmasking Autism. I liked the story telling. I thought it was well researched and very personal. Then I followed Dr Price on Insta and was increasingly put off by some of the takes. I also found it interesting that the comments were turned off there. I believe Dr. Price has a lot to contribute but I agree that sticking to lived experience is where the strength lies. I imagine it's difficult to come up through the education system, to PhD level, and experience all of those pitfalls and try to make sense of what's wrong with it, and then try to make sense of what's wrong with the greater society, without making mistakes. I really liked Dr. Price's take on enjoying male privilege after transition. It was very enlightening. However, with age, my ability to consume content is decreasing so I find myself unfollowing. There is so much competition for our attention. Keeping my focus on lived experience has taught me the most. The weak generalizations only have a grain of truth. Take it with a grain of salt is good advice.
I enjoyed a lot of this but this is the part I feel compelled to comment on because I never ran across someone else saying it:
"I started asking around, and have since learned that Devon Price is known for being the opposite of the kind of autistic advocate we need. They're known for sharing their personal experience, and extrapolating it to claim they speak for all autistic people"
This was a bit part of why their book was really offputting to me even though everyone was raving about it. And it feels gross to side eye a book I haven't read but I couldn't finish it. I LOVED the Laziness Doesn't Exist article and probably always will, I think it was really important. The rest is a hard pass for me. I wish that book wasn't always the go to resource people point others to.