This is amazing.

For a long time, I have been uncomfortable with people saying “I am neurodiverse” and meaning “I have been diagnosed with some form of autism and/or an intellectual disability and/or brain injury and/or mental illness(es) and/or an SpLD and/or synaethesia and/or some other neurological quirk.” “Diverse” isn’t something you can be alone. Diversity requires multiple different people.

My favourite part:

But, neurodiversity is more than that. Neurodiversity isn’t for any one type or group. Neurodiversity is for everyone. Neurodiversity is for Willy who is doing so well by societies standards despite with his autism. Neurodiversity is for Alex who still struggles so very much. Neurodiversity is for Ben who is his own little man. Neurodiversity is for Mark, who needs acceptance and accommodation because society sees him as a failure, and so he sees himself. Neurodiversity is for me, though my differences aren’t “disabling,” I’m still too different to succeed without the acknowledgement that being different is okay. And neurodiversity is for my neurotypical step-son, who has unique learning needs of his own, though he can get by in the status-quo society we live in.

To me, neurodiversity is about questioning what we know and what we think we know about how people think. It’s about discarding prejudices and assumptions about the existence of a “proper” or “appropriate” way to think. It’s about questioning the use of “normal” or “abnormal” to describe anyone’s thinking. To me, neurodiversity is about recognizing and appreciating that everyone has a “different” mind, one that is unique to them, and that nobody should be marginalized, disenfranchised, or violated because their mind doesn’t meet somebody else’s standards or expectations.

Every brain is beautiful and unique. There is no NT/ND divide except in certain narrow conceptions of how the world should be. Of course, people with brains considered “normal” or “default” are accorded certain privileges (and having privileges doesn’t make them bad people, but it is a consequence of living in a flawed world. If my type of brain were considered the “normal” type then I would be the one with the unearned, unnoticed privilege. I do have certain kinds of unearned, unnoticed privilege because I’m white, for example. The point is not that one kind of brain or one kind of skin is “evil”. The point is that we need a world where every kind of brain, skin, etc can be safe and equal.)

There is no normal. We’re all mutants. And we will all, whatever our diagnoses or lack therof, be much happier if we can build a world without flawed assumptions, a world where anyone can everyone can ask for help without shame, a world where people’s worth is not measured by narrow things like test-scores, or body language. I believe that God gives us all a vocation, and the bodies and brains we need to live that vocation. Whether or not you believe in God, surely it is better to find a way to live happily with the minds we have than to pine for “normal” minds which no people, even allegedly “normal” people, have?

It’s time we all appreciated our own beautiful brains and those of others. They’re more than just a snack for zombies.