Hi there! Good question. Lydia Brown of autistichoya wrote a good post on Shiny Aspies here. While there is a bit of overlap between Shiny Aspies and Aspie Supremacists, not every Shiny Aspie will be an Aspie Supremacist. I think that true Aspie Supremacists are somewhat rare.



I would define Aspie Supremacists as autistic people who hate autistic people. To give you an idea of what an Aspie Supremacist looks like:

Aspie Supremacists are able to talk with their mouthparts and can generally “pass” (or think they can pass) as normal-but-quirky, or as totally neurotypical. They are usually cis men but I’ve seen a couple of specimens of other genders. They will go on about how “high-functioning” they are, about how Aspergers isn’t Autism (???), about how Aspergers should be it’s own diagnosis (because they don’t want to be associated with the “low functioning” autistics) and about how Aspergers or HFA “isn’t a disability”. In fact they get really caught up on the whole disability thing, often pulling out their achievements, school grades, careers, relationships, etc. in an attempt to prove how not-disabled they are. There is a real misunderstanding of disability in general coming from the Aspie Supremacist corner.

Aspie Supremacists get their name from two core beliefs that all Aspie Supremacists seem to subscribe to. The first is that “aspies” or “high functioning autistics” are not disabled, and don’t need to cured of their autism. In fact, almost every Aspie Supremacist I’ve ever encountered has taken it a step further and claimed that the shining beacon of logic and intelligence that is the aspie brain is superior to the illogical, emotion-clouded neurotypical brain and that aspies are the “next step in human evolution”. I wish I was joking, but they actually profess this.

The second is that autistics— you know, the pitiable, sub-human, “low-functioning” ones— are disabled and do need to be cured of their autism, or at least prevented from ever being born. There is a staggering amount of ableism and hatred focused towards autistics coming out of the Aspie Supremacists corner, which is even more sad and more frustrating when you consider that they are autistic too. It’s very much a projected self-hate thing, with lots of internalized ableism and a little eugenics thrown in there for good measure. You can tell that these are all individuals who have been hurt very badly and who have let it twist them up inside.

You can find Aspie Supremacists lurking around wrongplanet, striking out from the shadowy corners of the youtube comment system, and planning their global takeover over at /r/aspergers. If you encounter an Aspie Supremacist, don’t be afraid. Simply throwing a copy of the DSM-5 in their general direction will enrage and confuse them long enough for you to escape. For the brave of heart (or those of you who like the feeling of beating your head against a brick wall), take up the shield of The Social Model of Disability and the sword of Asperger’s is Autism, You Ableist Jerk and go proudly into battle. And good luck.