#autisminmedia

[matildaisautisticandproud]

April 7th - 30 Days of Autism Acceptance

April 7: Talk about autism in the media. Do you think that autism is typically portayed well? Badly? Is there anything you'd like to see more of when it comes to autistic representation? Who are your favorite autistic characters? Do you have any headcanons?

Personally, I don’t think that there is enough representation of autism in the media. The only media platform that I’ve really seen a properly depicted autistic character in is a book I adore. Also, I’ve seen most autistics portrayed either as savants or incompetent. Autism is a diverse disorder and presents itself differently in everyone therefore, for an accurate representation of it, they have to show different presentations of it.

Personally, I would like to see more autistics in literature, TV shows, medias, etc. It would make the media all the more special to me if there was an autistic character in it. I want to find a media that has a strong, autistic lead (whether it be a superhero thing or just any genre) who’s autism is portrayed correctly. I do want to see more representation for women and girls on the spectrum also. However, I don’t think that every single book should have to have an autistic character in it. Some people have autism, some don’t. Not everyone has it therefore, I don’t expect every single media to have a character on the spectrum.

My favorite autistic character has to be Caitlin Smith from Kathryn Erskine’s book Mockingbird. I loved the book, although it is for a younger audience, and really connect with Caitlin. Also, although the presentation isn’t the best, I like Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory. Symmetra (Satya Vaswani) from Overwatch is another favorite of mine; I really relate to her, especially so her need for things to be in her image of perfect. Additionally, I like Renee from the short film “Loop”; the portrayal of Level 3 Autism Spectrum Disorder in that short film has to be one of the best I’ve come across. Isadora Smackle from Girl Meets World is another character I hold dear to my heart.

I do have a few headcanons, but not too many when it comes to fandoms. I don’t really like to change the characters when writing fanfiction unless I get a specific idea; that also pertains to the subjects of ships: I almost always prefer the canon relationships over the fan-made ships. It’s just how I am, I dunno.