Autistic culture and community: what families should know
By Helen Edgar and David Gray-Hammond · From the Re-Storying Autism workbook, Module 1
Autistic people are not a failed version of neurotypicality. We are a cultural group with often shared values, communication styles, sensory practices, and survival strategies. Autistic people often thrive by gathering in online spaces, forming communities of care, building language together, and reshaping their identity outside of medical models. Families who spend time learning from Autistic adults and honouring their young person’s authentic identity gain access to this cultural knowledge; knowledge that professionals often overlook. This is why it is important to engage with Autistic spaces as a listener and learner in order to understand and connect with the wide breadth of Autistic experience that exists. Autistic culture teaches things like (not an exhaustive list!):
- Directness is respect.
- Passion is communication.
- Information-sharing is intimacy.
- Routine is safety.
- Special interests are lifelines.
- Alone time is necessary, not avoidant.
- Stimming is regulation, not misbehaviour.
- Literal language is clarity, not rudeness.
When families and other professionals embrace a person’s Autistic identity and give time and space for them to be themselves, they are better able to advocate for their loved ones and help them advocate for themselves. and discuss more neurodivergent competent ways to build a relational space where their Autistic identity is celebrated.
Keep going in the course
This is a short extract. The full lesson in Module 1: Understanding Autistic Experience includes the video teaching, the rest of the workbook text, reflection questions for parents, carers and Autistic people, and progress tracking.