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Hello, welcome to another episode of Unpacking Neuroqueerness. This episode is

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honestly another episode that I really wish I didn't have to record. I really

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wish that people knew better at this point and I didn't have to record another

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episode like this calling someone else, calling someone out. In this case a major

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streaming, probably the biggest streaming network in the world, Netflix, for their

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deeply irresponsible, deeply ableist and offensive narrative around autism

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featured in their Hack Your Health the Secrets of Your Gut new documentary

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that just came out. Now a big sad thing about this is that I ended up exposed to

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this deeply offensive content as an autistic person because I was actually

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curious to watch this documentary because I myself struggle with with gut

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health on and off. I've struggled with it throughout my life and I I know a lot of

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other autistic people have struggled with it as well and there might be a link

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there and so I thought maybe they're gonna discuss this in a positive

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neurodiversity affirming way where they're gonna want to study the talk

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about the relations, the relationship in between having developmental

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disabilities and having poor gut health and what could be done to help folks to

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make the world more accommodating and to help folks understand and have

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tools to like figure out what's going on with their gut and how to help their gut

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but within the first two minutes of this documentary they managed to offend and

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insult and its entire community where they're eugenics narratives by characterizing

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autism as a disease. This old narrative again of calling autism a

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disease and trying to cure, talking about curing autism which is basically

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eliminating autistic people like myself from the planet. Classic eugenics just

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months after I had to do an episode about a eugenics article that came out that

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was done by UCSF which is considered to be a majorly progressive university in

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a progressive city which turns out they're not very progressive after all

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and a lot of progressive spaces do not do not seem to include neurodiversity

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inclusion and anti eugenics in their values clearly because they come out

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with an article about curing or curing autism months ago that I had to call out.

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Now here we are I'm calling out Netflix for this deeply problematic

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narrative in this documentary where within the first two minutes they refer

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to autism as a disease they say in this phrase quote diseases like anxiety

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depression cancer autism and Parkinson's are all related to the gut so terrible

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start right there where you characterize autism as a disease and then they go on

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to refer to it as a brain problem which is also deeply problematic and

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offensive it is not a brain problem there is nothing to be fixed or cured it

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is a disability a lifelong disability to be accommodated and it's nothing and

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it's not a disease to be cured or fixed and I can't believe that we're still

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having this conversation in 2022 but it seems we are and of course the National

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Autistic Society of the UK was also quick to call this out Tom Nichols head of

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influencing and research at the National Autistic Society highlights the not

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only the problematic use of brain problem in relation to autism but also

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this link that is casually made and not backed up by any scientific evidence

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and the National Autistic Society have urged Netflix to take down the

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documentary it is Mr. Nichols goes on to explain that it is disgraceful that

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next that Netflix has given a platform to a show which casually promotes dodgy

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and untested science about autism and autistic people watching will have heard

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themselves talked about in the most stigmatizing deeply offensive and

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unacceptable ways they will have heard autism referred to as a disease as a

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brain problem a chronic condition that we need to get a handle on whatever that

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means whatever the heck that means please explain to the autistic community

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what you mean when you're calling us diseased and you're saying that you

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need to get a handle on us please I'm very very curious to hear if Netflix has

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any or the makers of this documentary if they have any response to this and for

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Netflix the airing something like this and Mr. Nichols goes on to explain as

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I have mentioned as well autism is a lifelong disability not a disease or a

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temporary symptom linked to gut health it cannot be treated or cured to suggest

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otherwise is wrong deeply irresponsible and offensive to autistic people and

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their families the National Autistic Society as I mentioned is now urging

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Netflix to take down the documentary stating that autistic people are not

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clickbait from media companies to entice viewers we will challenge their

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stereotypes stigma and misinformation about autism wherever we see it so we

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can create a society that works for autistic people and apparently Netflix

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has thanked the National Autistic Society for their feedback adding they have

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made a note of their complaints have contacted the streaming service for

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the way now the National Autistic Society has contacted the streaming

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service for further comment but our get to receive a response now this should

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not even be a thing that flicks Netflix should know better there there is just

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too much information out there on your diversity for Netflix a major streaming

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service who has already released shows with autistic actors and advocates and

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actually trying to move the needle and do better with autistic representation

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that the idea I was getting up until this point and then they release complete

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ablest garbage like this and and this affects autistic people that are watching

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the show let's let's remember as mr. Nichols said there are autistic people

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including like myself that watch the show and that have to see this deeply

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offensive stigmatizing information about themselves and let's not forget that

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as that partly because of all this misinformation out there that

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autistics have to constantly see about themselves that is why suicide rates

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are so high in the autistic community that's why autistic people have an

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average life expectancy of 35 years old that's why 80% of the autistic

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community has attempted suicide so how do you think someone an autistic person

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that's struggling with their mental health that's already struggling with

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their self-worth and their self-image and what once they've been told about

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about themselves from society and this narrative of society considering them

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diseased as an autistic person that is struggling with their mental health how

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are they supposed to feel when they see something like this this person might

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already be I'm sorry this person might already be I'm just gonna be very

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straight and telling it how it is they might already be experiencing suicidal

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thoughts and ideations and they turn on Netflix and Netflix is calling them

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diseased and disordered and they have a brain problem that needs to be gotten a

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handle on do you think this is going to take them out of that suicidal state or

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do you think it is going to lead them further into it like this exacerbates a

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major problem that we already have in the community this makes people feel

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broken this makes people want to take their lives and this is unacceptable I

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am livid I am livid I'm living at this this garbage that has been released by

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Netflix let's just be honest let's not mince any words here this is garbage

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documentary and I hope I have I hope I have warned enough people to not watch

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it don't even waste your time watching this garbage this is outdated ableist

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deeply offensive piece of garbage that Netflix has just released so yeah I just

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wanted to touch on that for this episode and I really wish I weren't still

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having to do episodes like this but apparently the world does not still

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does not listen enough to neurodivergent people and our lived

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experiences so I am having to do this once again on a more positive note I

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have a brand new website shout out to my friend Christina Yarmelich for helping

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me design this this website I have a great new website it has a collection of

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my acting work my podcasting work as you all are familiar with and a little bit

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of my of the essays I have written on my blog I used to have a blog called

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different not broken and now it's all integrated into this one at this one

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website so feel free to check that out if you'd like I will be putting the link

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below in the episode description without further ado thank you for listening I

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hope you're able to get something from this episode and please spread the word

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if you can on how problematic this documentary is and I'll see you guys

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next time thanks