" Further stigmatizing autism as an epidemic to ' touch on ' or ' cure ' will make me contribute even less to companionship — in the manner that these multitude clearly seem to think equates to human economic value . "
Earlier this week, the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services,Robert F. Kennedy Jr., discussed theprevalence of autismat a news conference. Commenting on a 2025CDC report, which stated that rates of autism have increased from 1 in 36 to 1 in 31 children between 4 and 8 years old, Kennedy’s remarks were “laced with scientific inaccuracies,“accordingto the New York Times.
In his speech, Secretary Kennedy Jr.calledautism “preventable,” adding that it “destroys families, and more importantly, it destroys our greatest resource, which is our children. These are children who should not be suffering like this. These are kids who will never pay taxes. They’ll never hold a job. They’ll never play baseball. They’ll never write a poem. They’ll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted.”
The New York Timesnotesthat " scientists have not govern out the possibleness that both cistron and environmental broker could influence whether a small fry develops autism , " but " there is no evidence to suggest that autism can be avoided . "
Minna shared that she’d previously referred to herself as “neurodivergent” because she was diagnosed with autism and ADHD later in life and felt new to the term.
Minna said that she hadn’t planned on having “any kind of formal autistic coming out story on [her] social media pages,” but felt it was time to “stop hiding in plain sight” because people with a “limited perception of what an autistic person might look like” see them as “a problem or weight on society.”
“But, hi,” Minna continued, “I’m autistic, and I also have ADHD. What the cool kids these days are callingAuDHD.”
Minna shared that her AuDHD has given her some “special spidey senses,” includinghyperlexiaandheightened sensory input.
“But I would argue that my lowest productivity output times in my life come from having to mask and compensate in a world that is not built for people like me,” Minna said.
“And ironically, as someone capable of high levels of productivity when she is fully supported, derailing federal support and further stigmatizing autism as an epidemic to ‘fix’ or ‘cure’ will make me contribute even less to society — in the way that these people clearly seem to think equates to human value,” she said.
“So, if there is a problem we have that is not contributing enough to our shared society, and if we’re using paying taxes as one of the criteria to measure that value, it looks like the disease we need to eradicate is billionaires in capitalism, not autism.”
After Minna posted the video, commenters were quick to agree with her points. “As a mum with 2 autistic children, thank you for saying all of this,” said one.
“Late diagnosed AuDHD here also! I came out so badly that I was just accepted into three very competitive PhD programs in the US… I also pay taxes, hold a steady job, have not destroyed my family, and have gone on several dates. Sorry to say, sir, but I don’t need treatment nor a cure.”
“Thank you. I’m also autistic. I don’t broadcast that. And I’m not scared to say it, here. But what this man is doing is DANGEROUS.”
“The fact that he started with ‘they’ll never pay taxes’ says EVERYTHING about him.”
“All of THIS. His entire, extremely problematic, rhetoric clearly shows he has never actually met and interacted with an actual person with autism in his life. He is the problem, not Autism.”
You can watch Minna’s full video below, and follow her over on herInstagram:
