Neurodivergent on Sidechat | Why do some people find the puzzle piece being the symbol for autism offensive? I thought it made sense because it was like “our brains are scattered but it fits together” or “not all minds are the same” like how a puzzle is??

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Neurodivergent 1d

Why do some people find the puzzle piece being the symbol for autism offensive? I thought it made sense because it was like “our brains are scattered but it fits together” or “not all minds are the same” like how a puzzle is??

Anonymous 20h

i thought it was because the organization (autism speaks) is looking for a cure for autism and also doesn’t have any autistic people in positions of power in the org so it’s not actually representative of them. thus the puzzle piece is really representative of the fact that they don’t think autistic people are whole - they’re missing some of their pieces. which is super fucked up

Anonymous 1d

It’s because it looks infantilizing

Anonymous 21h

It’s primarily used by the organization autism speaks which many consider to be something akin to a hate group with the way they actually lobby against disability rights

Anonymous 13h

I thought it was pattern recognition thing

Anonymous 22h

I don't really care what normies think tbh

-1

Anonymous

#1 1d

It’s considered a toy, plus the bright primary colors that always get used with it makes it look like decorations you’d find in a kindergarten, which goes along with how autism is already heavily infantilized and misunderstood

Anonymous

#1 1d

Ok thank you!!

Anonymous

#1 1d

As an autist myself I’ve never gotten the infantilizing point til now, I personally love doing puzzles at my ripe old age of 20 and could never picture any baby completing one. heavy on the til now tho bc now I have context to the larger social commentary that I typically ignore

Anonymous

#2 1d

I love puzzles too, but the way that it’s portrayed is what’s infantilizing to me and a lot of people. Not saying people can’t choose to identify with it if they want to but a looot of people find it offensive or just kinda sucky

Anonymous

#1 1d

I saw a dad at the store I worked at with a son who I believe had Down syndrome (I didn’t ask for specifics). The dad had a tattoo sleeve with the puzzle pieces and some of them were colored in so people could recognize it, but others were blank and he said it’s because he lets his son color them in.