“Hate Is a Straight Line in a World of Casual Ableism”

Key points

• Narrator recalls growing up with an autistic brother and constant public scrutiny.
• Casual insults and slurs about autism persist in classrooms and social spaces.
• Hosts of a podcast mocked autism and Down syndrome, apologized using ADHD as defense.
• Education fails to erase discrimination; it becomes more socially palatable with time.
• Advocacy highlights gaps in rights protections under PWD law and societal neglect.