Joe James The Autistic Photographer’s tongue-in-cheek Facebook post and Autism meme quickly went viral on social media. The simple post raising awareness of online attitudes faced by autistic individuals daily. The post hit a cord with many autistic individuals and parents and the response that ensued was both eye-opening and very funny.
Read more: What is Autism in 2023?
I Love someone with Neurotypicalness
The post simply said, “I Love Someone with Neurotypicalness” The meme intended to mock the common social media post “I love someone with Autism” Many calling out typical posts like this as “Inspirational porn,” Because many autistic individuals view similar posts as degrading and sometimes Ableist. Hence, perpetuating autism stereotypes that the Autistic community are keen to redifine.
Read more: Being neurodiverse is not a barrier to success, but traditional job interviews might be
Advocacy through Photography
Joe James is a 38 Year Autistic Photographer based in Horsham, UK. James received his late Autism diagnosis at the age of 32.
James shares his journey through, photography, social media posts and Youtube
“I started sharing my photography on Facebook and received a great response. I decided to tell people that I am autistic to show them that being autistic was not something to be pitied but something to be admired”.
“I have come on leaps and bounds since then, having many articles and media spots thanks to my photography and the articulate way I describe how my autistic brain works. I always use my photography as a platform to spread Neuro diversity awareness”. James explains via his LinkedIn page.
The Comments
The comments are still coming in fast with over 5.7K responses on the Facebook thread. Many sharing posts that swap the concept of Autism and Neurotypical thoughts. The Hashtag #lightitbeige gaining traction and support. A comical twist on the #lightitblue movement started by the organisation Autism Speaks.
Joe James has now published his take on the light it beige concept. But, because of the tongue and cheek of it all, while raising awareness, it does win the internet this week.
The Autism memes keep coming
Many other groups and individuals could not resist adding their own memes to the thread. Yellow ladybugs, the autism advocacy group for Autistic girls were quick to add their own memes to the thread. They did not disappoint.
If you want a belly laugh. And, maybe even to learn a bit about Autistic perspective, I highly recommend checking out this Facebook thread. It may take a while to read all of the 5.7K comments. But is worth it.