National Autistic Society strategy survey

[JellySlice]

The NAS have their 2020 strategy consultation survey running right now.

They already list Stonewall, Mermaids, Gendered Intelligence and GIRES (albeit without endorsing them) as useful resources, but ignore Transgender Trend and SSA.

Q13 "We want to make society work for autistic people. Are there any businesses or organisations we shouldn't work with?"

Please help me frame a good response.

I have had a couple of conversations with parents in our local NAS group recently and have been shocked at how many have FTM teens. The NAS have an incredibly close link to the above organisations that I find worrying.
I'm off to fill in the survey, will come back with a response.

Off the top of my head here - Something like - I'm concerned that vulnerable young people who are susceptible to confusion over both sex and gender issues in a complex field are being prematurely pressurised into treatments that will have irreversible affects on their long-term physical, emotional and psychological health. For this reason I have reservations about the stance taken by Mermaids etc in relation to the diagnosis and treatment of apparent trans-sexualism.

It says the survery is closed.

Survey even

I'm filling it in as we speak?

I'm putting this for that question - I'm extremely worried about the number of young people who seem to believe they are transexual and I think you need to be very, very careful in working with organisations that believe that young people can 'decide' that they are 'in the wrong body'. I think it's dangerous and unproven.
Not going to say which orgs, just leaving it at that.

Maybe my link wasn't good? I've got it open on another device and it's fine. Try going in via autism.org.uk, rather than my link.

Autism.org.uk

And now none of my links are working!

autism.org.uk

I've done it - all worked fine for me.

This might also work:
www.smartsurvey.co.uk/s/66EP4J

And I used the Other boixes to shout at them for the fuckwittery about gender....

Yeah, I thought about doing that, too. But I worried that they would then discard my response on the 'TERFy Batshittery' pile. So I stuck to Prefer Not To Say.

As an autistic woman with an autistic child, this whole thing makes me furious.

I filled it in as such:

“I don’t think you should be working with certain lobby groups. I’m concerned about some of the organisations you partner with, as such my autistic child will be going nowhere near you.
As an autistic child, I loathed puberty, the way my body was changing, and how women were treated by society. These days I’m absolutely certain I would have thought I was really a boy. The prevalence of autistic children with ‘gender dysphoria’ is terrifying to me. And partnering with organisations who clearly do not understand the autistic experience of puberty can only be harmful for autistic children. They need understanding and support, not being told that their bodies are indeed wrong and they need medication and other aids to change it.”

Probably not the most eloquent response, but I am absolutely fuming at the way autistic children are victimised by the transgender groups and transgender ideology.

I filled in the survey. There weren't any other boxes so I used their Facebook page. Firstly I disagreed with their question what is your gender: male, female, non-binary, prefer not to say, other. I used the other box to say her sex is female and she has no gender.

I said they should do more about autistic girls and parents about puberty and point out that puberty is uncomfortable.
I also pointed out that more research should be done about why there are so many autistic and undiagnosed autistic girls in the Tavistock and that recently Tony Attwood recently commented that gender change is not a cure for autism.

I didn't put GI and Mermaids down under organisations to work with as I didn't want to come across too strongly GC.

I put:

Vulnerable young people struggling with the changes of puberty, and any mismatch of their own personalities with the expectations of society, need support tailored to their own needs to explore their sense of self and to learn how to cope with society’s conflicting expectations. I am concerned that affirmation, instead of tailored support, prematurely pressurises them into treatments that will have irreversible effects on their long-term physical, emotional and psychological health. For this reason I have serious reservations about the stance taken by Mermaids, and believe that Mermaids should not be signposted by the NAS, nor should the NAS work with them.

Maybe I should also have mentioned GIRES and Gendered Intelligence?

I managed to make it work on my phone. I told them my concerns about the high levels of possibly autistic girls identifying as boys and how the NAS should be pushing for urgent research into this.

Bumping for the evening crowd.

Do they also ask who they should work with? Because i dont remember this shouldnt work with question. Im wondering if i misread it

No, they don't.

I’m in a fb group for families with children with a variety of SEN. Have noted on a few occasions there are members with young teen girls with ASD who identify as male.

JellySlice - oh crap. I suggested the national trust so they are probably wondering why i dont think they are suitable to work with.

pmk

I'm completed it.
I genuinely think that the NAS should be more cautious about their links with these organisations. They are doing disproportionate harm to autistic people.

Moggie Monster
I'm in a group too and there are quite a few girls who have come out as trans or non-binary. Some parents are totally on board and supportive others are more cautious. I'm totally out on there as GC so I always post something in a sensitive way and point parents to Transgender Trend. Every time I see someone worried and someone suggest Mermaids I counter it with Transgender Trend.
Parents just want to support their children and not do them any harm by questioning them. Autistic girls can be super focused on something once they get an idea in their head and then they can leave it just as quick, but my worry always is that they find that online family and then get more and more focused on the idea that they feel different because they should really be a boy. Mermaids only affirm a child's belief so this really concerns me. Autistic girls are very vulnerable to manipulation it is something I have to use in my parenting!