Episode 30 - Trust, Goodbye and Farewell
Neurologic
After five years of production, I will be shutting down this podcast. I have no regrets - it's been a journey of creativity, advocacy, and discovery, exploring various topics and individuals all along the way. I kept my word that the content would be freely available, and tried to ensure it was accessible within my limited means. Most importantly, I answered and realized my utmost question - is this, for me, even possible? And, for 5 years, it was. However, all things must come to an end. Everything, eventually, must cease. Neurologic is no exception. While I am contemplating and considering...
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Episode 29 - Neuroqueer Heresies: An Interview with Dr. Nick Walker
Neurologic
Over the past few years, the notoriety of the term Neurodiversity, as well as its siblings - Neurodiverse, Neurotypical, Neurodivergent, among others - expanded and transformed what it means to have a mind that differs from the subjective sociocultural norm. Yet despite a rise in adoption, many both inside and outside autistic spaces are unable to accurately define Neurodiversity, leading to confusion and misunderstanding. In her latest book, Neuroqueer Heresies: Notes On The Neurodiversity Paradigm, Autistic Empowerment, And Postnormal Possibilities, Dr. Nick Walker explains the...
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Episode 28 - Scrubbing The Record
Neurologic
What's “next” for autism seems to be a rising trend in the autism community: removing potentially problematic content, connections to extreme organizations, and giving painfully vague explanations while passively denying such actions - and even the very existence of what is being erased in the first place. In this episode, Leo Jones highlights clandestine efforts by prominent autism charities, events and even researchers to wipe away a divisive past, putting us in danger of repeat it.
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Episode 27 - Time To Face The Music
Neurologic
After covering the controversy over the movie ‘Music’, watching the movie itself and posting a real-time review it, Leo Jones finalizes the last word on Sia and her movie ‘Music’. Discussing Sia's apology - and how she failed to live up to her post-apology promises - this episode tries to explain why neurotypical people in the autism community (like her) have a difficult and painful time accepting the unpleasant consequences of their actions, especially when their intentions are supposedly good.
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Dissecting Sia's movie Music, one timestamp at a time
Neurologic
This past week, I obtained a copy of Sia's movie Music, taking her up on her tweeted request to watch the film before judging it. Released clips aside, I went into it with expectations based on its description and promotion. Below are real-time notes with time-stamps as proof of screening. This dissection cannot and does not cover everything, with selections focused on specific and problematic depictions of autism, autism treatments, parents and caregivers, ableist tropes and other issues I felt could not be ignored. I watched this with a friend whose insights are included with my own. ...
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Episode 26 - My Heart Has Always Been In The Right Place: Good Intention Gaslighting
Neurologic
Good-intention gaslighting has been used frequently - regardless of intention - against autistic self-advocates and activists for decades. It's a way of deflecting fair and valid criticism of neurotypical-led autism charities, segregative housing, stigmatizing symbolism, and more. But what, exactly, is good-intention gaslighting, and why is it so pervasive among supposed neurotypical autism advocates?
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Episode 25 - Why This Happens
Neurologic
Earlier this month, the social media app TikTok was host to the ‘autism challenge’,which encouraged people to display mocking autism behavior, including stimming and seizure-like movements on video, which was then shared with the hashtag autismchallenge. It's obvious that this was a hateful trend, and while TikTok as a platform has since appeared to have deleted the hashtag and condemned the challenge, there are significant numbers of people that are stymied, shocked and in disbelief that this happened. But haven't we seen this before? Are the people creating these videos and perpetuating...
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Episode 24 - Care During COVID
Neurologic
In this episode, Leo gets a bit personal, talking about how he's managing during the COVID-19 pandemic - discussing hobbies, games and coping strategies during this time.
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Episode 23 - The Lucrative Autism Industry
Neurologic
In this episode, Leo finds out about the Autism Industry, a healthcare sector that has seen significant private equity financial investment - and is stunned at what he discovers. CONTENT WARNING: this episode begins with a parody that may include words or phrases that some may find offensive and/or traumatizing. To skip the parody, please jump ahead to the 3 minute 15 second mark to listen to the episode.
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Be Kind (to us), Don't Rewind (the past 15 years)
Neurologic
On February 11th, Autism Speaks celebrated its 15-year anniversary, as well as kicking off their ‘Year of Kindness’ campaign, describing a new, more inclusive and diversified organization. Yet many autistics still retain heavy aversion and avarice regarding Autism Speaks, precisely because of their actions over the past 15 years. What's the history behind this conflict? Is Autism Speaks changing, and if so, is it enough to heal the trauma and bridge the divide between the autism and autistic communities? In this episode, Leo Jones covers the basic history of Autism Speaks, their actions,...
info_outlineIn this episode, Leo finds out about the Autism Industry, a healthcare sector that has seen significant private equity financial investment - and is stunned at what he discovers.
CONTENT WARNING: this episode begins with a parody that may include words or phrases that some may find offensive and/or traumatizing. To skip the parody, please jump ahead to the 3 minute 15 second mark to listen to the episode.