"Each example of a stereotype has its own nuance and exceptions, but stereotypes about disabilities and mental disorders tend to dehumanize, demonize, villainize, and/or infantilize a character. Autistic stereotypes aren’t written for a character who happens to be autistic, they are written as someone with autism, whose life is either so terrible because of their autism, or they’re a bad person because of their autism. Either way, the narrative is that autism is bad, and this usually caters to the eugenics mindset of treating it as a disease that needs a cure."
"For a point of reference, the most famous character stereotyping low empathy is Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory. Characters that fit this caricature of autism are such terrible representation generally because they’re assholes. Specifically, their low empathy makes them an asshole. I cannot stress that point enough. Their low empathy is what makes them an asshole. The stories are, whether intentionally or not, writing these characters to be so aloof and dry in emotional situations for the audience to laugh at them or to antagonize them. Slapping the label of 'autistic' onto characters like this alleviates the malice in these actions… supposedly. In some cases, they even make them out to be completely emotionless. As if they are incapable of experiencing anything that could possibly connect them to the world. Because as we all know, autistic people are just incapable of experiencing emotions!"
"And in cases like Entrapta from She-Ra, these traits are given to them to do the opposite of demonizing them, to instead infantilize them. (Even though she is literally in her 30s, so why the fuck was she put on a leash in this scene like an unruly toddler?) This stereotype of low empathy autistics is done in the same manner that an unstable character would be given some kind of identity disorder in order to justify their actions, or so that the audience understands how someone could end up like that."
"It perpetuates the idea that a 'normal person' could never act like this, pushing the belief that someone who is mentally ill, disabled, or autistic, isn’t 'normal' and that there’s obviously something wrong with them. Them being emotionless is easier to understand for allistic people if they’re explained to be different and weird. Which is obviously a bullshit ableist take that stigmatizes autism."
"That’s not a good message to send out there to the world. At all."
"For a point of reference, the most famous character stereotyping low empathy is Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory. Characters that fit this caricature of autism are such terrible representation generally because they’re assholes. Specifically, their low empathy makes them an asshole. I cannot stress that point enough. Their low empathy is what makes them an asshole. The stories are, whether intentionally or not, writing these characters to be so aloof and dry in emotional situations for the audience to laugh at them or to antagonize them. Slapping the label of 'autistic' onto characters like this alleviates the malice in these actions… supposedly. In some cases, they even make them out to be completely emotionless. As if they are incapable of experiencing anything that could possibly connect them to the world. Because as we all know, autistic people are just incapable of experiencing emotions!"
"And in cases like Entrapta from She-Ra, these traits are given to them to do the opposite of demonizing them, to instead infantilize them. (Even though she is literally in her 30s, so why the fuck was she put on a leash in this scene like an unruly toddler?) This stereotype of low empathy autistics is done in the same manner that an unstable character would be given some kind of identity disorder in order to justify their actions, or so that the audience understands how someone could end up like that."
"It perpetuates the idea that a 'normal person' could never act like this, pushing the belief that someone who is mentally ill, disabled, or autistic, isn’t 'normal' and that there’s obviously something wrong with them. Them being emotionless is easier to understand for allistic people if they’re explained to be different and weird. Which is obviously a bullshit ableist take that stigmatizes autism."
"That’s not a good message to send out there to the world. At all."
