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Australian sociologist Judy Singer, who coined the term ‘neurodiversity,’ was forced to delete her Twitter account after sharing allegedly transphobic views on the social networking site. Singer posted a seemingly anti-trans message in one of her tweets and quote-tweeted JK Rowling in another, leaving several netizens infuriated.
The academic is well-known for her studies on autism. A few days ago, Singer took to Twitter and announced to her followers that those who do not have autism cannot call themselves autistic, those who are Caucasian cannot call themselves Blac, and those who are biologically male cannot call themselves a woman. She also wrote:
“If you are an actual biological woman, don’t be suckered into your own erasure.”
Judy Singer went on to quote tweet JK Rowling, who had said in a tweet that in the current day and age, a woman can only be defined in reference to a biological male. She went on to say that a person can be described as a woman only by “an absence, a vacuum where there’s no man-ness.”
The popular author was referring to a John Hopkins study on the LGBTQ community, which was describing the lesbian community.
Judy Singer added in the tweet:
“Enough is enough. This is going too far. As a lover and a coiner of clean language, I promise that there is no such thing as a #Trans #Woman. Rather, I propose Trans Femoid. #Femoid.”
Several Twitter users were enraged by Singer's views and opined that she is a danger to the autistic community.
Who is Judy Singer?
Judy Singer coined the term ‘neurodiversity’ in between 1997-1998, as part of her honours thesis at the University of Technology, Sydney. In her work, titled A personal exploration of a new social movement based on “neurological diversity,” she introduced the “autistic self-advocacy movement.”
The sociologist coined the phrase ‘neurodiversity’ after discovering that people with different ways of thinking were similarly oppressed to women and gay people. She believed that they needed their own revolution, which led to her founding a movement that has helped several people battling mental health struggles today.
She has also done her best to support the neurodivergent community. As per Neurodiversity2:
“she was the founder, via the internet, of the world's first support group for people raised by autistic parent, became the secretary of Sydney’s largest support group for the parents of autistic children and a co-founder of Sydney’s only independent social club for teenagers on the spectrum.”
At the time of writing this article, she had not addressed the backlash she has received for her Twitter comments.
As many continue to express their thoughts on the Judy Singer controversy, celebrations for Autistic Pride Day, marked on June 18 every year, are in full swing.
The day is dedicated to promoting awareness, acceptance and understanding of those who are on the autism spectrum. It also serves as a platform to celebrate those autistic individuals who have succeeded in various fields.
