Why people with ADHD and autism fear stigma will get worse under Trump and RFK Jr.

As an angel investor, Peter Shankman has made millions investing in startups, yet it wasn’t easy getting to the top of the ladder. “My middle name was ‘sit down, you're disrupting the class.’ I scraped by in school and college through the skin of my teeth, and have spent the last 25 years in therapy trying to undo the damage that constantly being told I was broken my entire childhood did to me as an adult.” Despite starting five companies, selling three, and becoming quite successful, Shankman says “not a day goes by where I don't believe that it's all bulls**t, and I'm a complete fraud.” Related Autistic people are tired of the stigma and fetishization While Shankman has put together a decent life for himself despite these stigmas, he is concerned that the policies being pushed by America’s newly-elected leaders will make life even harder for neurodiverse people today than it was for him growing up. Systematic reviews in scientific journals repeatedly find that stigma against autistic people is prevalent and causes real-world harm, with one scholar concluding that policymakers who want to help neurodivergent people should start by “identifying active ingredients of interventions, measuring reliable changes in behaviors and attitudes, and targeting structural stigma.” "‘You're different, and that's wrong’ doesn't help people, doesn't help our country, and doesn't help us heal." “His statement isn't just offensive; it's a call to action for those of us fighting for the right to exist without being treated as a threat.” Sol Smith coaches people with both autism and ADHD, running support groups for them and is the author of the upcoming book “Autistic’s Guide to Self- Discovery: Flourishing as a Neurodivergent Adult.” He said that the current culture of contempt for autistic individuals directly and negatively impacts their lives. It means constantly monitoring yourself, trying to fit into a world that wasn’t built for you, and hiding your struggles, even when it’s costing you your mental and physical health.” If America wants to help its neurodivergent citizens, advocates like Smith believe they need to accept that the disabilities are social, not medical — that is, “we are disabled by our social climate and the expectations that we will think and work in the same ways that neurotypicals do.” Instead of encouraging society to broaden its perspective about acceptable behavior, Smith believes the current trend is to move in the opposite direction, with “people kindling our ancient fears is a powerful political move that distracts us from real social reforms that we should be addressing.” This is in stark contrast to the RFK Jr. approach.