Mainstreaming Neurodiversity With Intersectional First-Person Narratives
Issue Twelve
Hiya! Welcome, new subscribers! I’m Priti Salian, an independent journalist, researcher and media trainer from Bengaluru, India. Thanks to all who answered the poll in the eleventh issue. I’d nudge you to revisit the poll and respond if you haven’t already. There are just three questions but they will help me better understand your expectations from this newsletter.
In this twelfth issue of Reframing Disability, find a simple way to look after your mental health, hear from Aditi Gangrade of Much Much Spectrum about the representation of neurodiversity in the media, resources to dig into, and tips for coverage. Discover how Aditi has tweaked her work life to accommodate her neurodiversity. Check out an opportunity and read where Reframing Disability has been featured!
It matters who you talk to every day
Have you done anything to take care of your mental health lately? My mother has consistently given me and my sister one tip to uplift our mood, recharge ourselves, and stay healthy: “Step outside and engage with strangers, greet someone with a smile or a hello, make small talk, and see how your energy replenishes,” she says. Mom practices this herself, quite religiously, and in the process, has found friends, and opportunities for social interactions.
My mom’s advice has been corroborated by various studies, so I decided to share it with you.
Sociologists call connections made with strangers, acquaintances, etc., ‘weak ties’. More social interactions with weak ties can make us happy and uplift our mood. Read how psychologist Gillian Sandstrom felt less lonely and happier by exchanging smiles with a lady who sold hot dogs.
So, who is that weak tie you’ll interact with today? The 5-year-old who is fussing over boarding the school bus? The man whose dog takes him for a walk every evening (no, that’s not a typo!)? The person who sits next to you on the train to work? I’d love to know.
“Some reporters believe that neurodivergent people’s perspectives don’t matter”
In a recent Much Much Spectrum (MMS) video, Aditi Gangrade reviewed a Hindi-language film, Laar (Hindi for saliva). Laar has an autistic protagonist and his mother at the centre of the story.
“It (the movie) not only infantalises, but also dehumanises its autistic protagonist,” Aditi says in her review. The movie assumes “autistic individuals to be inherently violent or abusive. It’s as if the filmmaker searched for the most ableist take on autism and decided to make a checklist out of it,” she added.
This is one among the numerous videos and films by Much Much Spectrum, an inclusive storytelling studio publishing intersectional narratives around mental health, disability and neurodivergence.
Co-founder and chief creative officer of Much Much Media and Much Much Spectrum, Aditi is also the face of many of its productions, creating awareness and smashing stereotypes about neurodivergence with her wit and humour. Self-identified as an adult, Aditi is an autistic woman who also has ADHD. Growing up, she couldn’t find neurodivergent representation in the media or pop culture. Much Much Spectrum was born out of the need for such representation and is published across YouTube, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
Aditi and I met at the Purple Fest this January, where as a fashion show participant, to avoid sensory overload, she wore sunglasses and noise-cancelling headphones. Sensory overload dysregulates her and causes her anxiety, meltdowns, and shutdowns as an autistic individual. Did I say that she walks the talk?
April is Autism Acceptance Month and I interviewed Aditi for her take on media representation of neurodiversity.
But first, what is neurodiversity?
Neurodiversity is an umbrella term often used for several related medical diagnoses such as autism spectrum disorder, ADHD, dyspraxia, dyslexia, and tic disorders. Approximately 15-20% of the world’s population is neurodiverse.
Priti: What are the tropes about neurodiversity you find in the news media?
Aditi: Many Indian media, especially the Hindi-language newspapers, presume that disabled people are incompetent, so they do not portray them as having autonomy or agency. English newspapers are notorious for using the “r word” and phrases like “suffering from autism” or “overcame Down Syndrome.” Neurodivergent individuals or those who live with a mental illness are demonised in the media for presenting differently. I grew up reading such narratives and always thought that having a mental illness is a bad thing and being different is something that’s unacceptable.
Such media narratives give a boost to the already existent ableism in society. Journalism’s role is to demystify neurodivergence for audiences and not add to the stigma. If media professionals work to break these biases and stereotypes, and learn more about neurodivergence from neurodivergent people, there is a good chance of normalising neurodivergence and conversations around it.
Priti: What steps can the media take to improve coverage?
Aditi: It is essential to involve neurodivergent people in the interviews instead of talking to their families, neighbours, and everyone else around them. I think that the media avoids talking to neurodivergent people, presuming incompetence. Some reporters believe that neurodivergent people’s perspectives don’t matter and this notion further marginalizes an already underrepresented community. There might be some neurodivergent people who communicate differently, and reporters should find ways to have conversations with them and not avoid them. [Tip- Professionals are available to facilitate such communication]
Priti: How is Much Much Spectrum mainstreaming neurodiversity?
Aditi: My partner, Aalap Deboor and I, started Much Much Spectrum two years ago to mainstream neurodiversity in India. During our market research, we found that Indian perspectives, especially in Hindi and other Indian languages, were largely missing from the discourse. People were talking about mental health and illnesses, but not about autism, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia or other disabilities. We also found that first-person narratives were missing. So, we decided to bring in representation by enabling neurodivergent people to tell our own stories. Our discourse includes conversations around policy, and also parent, caregiver and professional lived experiences. We engage with our global audiences through mixed media formats. Our main focus is building a community where larger stakeholders such as brands, non-profits, media outlets and policymakers can engage with the youth, parents and caregivers through meaningful content and live formats.
Much Much Spectrum’s content is neurodiversity-affirming and keeps neurodivergent people front and centre. We aim to build a repository of content that helps people educate their family and friends and be accepted for who they are. This has worked for many of our audiences. We're soon planning to enter the fiction space with content addressing mental health, neurodiversity, and disability.
Accessibility tips of the fortnight
Aditi and Aalap have tweaked their work life to accommodate their neurodiversity. They share their tips here with the readers of Reframing Disability. Let these ideas guide you to understand some of the access needs of neurodivergent people and find better ways to work with them.
1. I prefer to process things in advance, so each week’s calendar is predetermined. Our social media posts are scheduled weeks earlier.
2. We keep our team meetings short with a pre-decided agenda.
3. Sometimes, I prefer to keep the camera off during online meetings. Looking at the screen while talking to someone makes me anxious.
4. All our shoots are scheduled factoring in enough time for breaks. We use the breaks to self-regulate.
5. On days when we or our team members have limited energy, we accommodate each other through alternative forms of communication such as email or Slack.
Resources to learn more about neurodiversity
Aditi’s recommendations
Much Much Spectrum on Instagram, Linkedin and YouTube
YouTube channel of Developmental Disabilities India
Creators on Instagram: Sonny Jane Wise, Callum Stephen, Neurodivergent Lou
Book: Unmasking Autism by Devon Price
Media guides
Several of these exist and I’ll share three today.
Neurodiversity Media has a quick guide on ADHD reporting, covering framing, language and terminology. The UK's National Autistic Society has one on talking and writing about autism.
An article from journalism.co.uk discusses reporting on neurodiversity. The main points it makes are below:
Create a comfortable interviewing environment for sources.
Ask and make room for reasonable accommodations like sending questions in advance, giving people time to process the question before replying, being off-camera on a virtual call, etc.
Don’t push sources for their medical diagnosis if it is not relevant to the story.
Check how they would like their neurodiversity to be referred to in the story.
Avoid oversharing and sensationalism of personal experiences.
Invitation to join Worldwide Wheelchair Photographers
Larry Landrie, a friend of Reframing Disability, runs the Facebook group, Worldwide Wheelchair Photographers and invites interested individuals to join.
A note from Larry:
“We're attempting to unite wheelchair photographers around the world and share their stories, websites, photos, etc. We hope to encourage the connecting of members. Once united, we will do all we can to promote the activities, services, and photographs of all of our members. We welcome professionals and amateurs, those with web pages and those without. If you find yourself in a wheelchair and in a bit of a funk, please consider photography and joining us. We hope to be an inspiration.”
Opportunity
Processing Foundation Fellowship 2024: ‘Sustaining Community: Expansion & Access.’
The fellowship is seeking innovative projects from artists, designers, activists, educators, engineers, researchers, coders, collectives, and many more, who are working at the intersection of creative technology, art, and open-source software.
For: U.S.-based and international applicants.
Deadline: 2 May 2024
A big thank you!
Last December, Reframing Disability was added as a resource for disability journalism to Global Investigative Journalism Network’s useful guide for investigating disability issues. Thank you, GIJN, for the huge honour and for trusting Reframing Disability!
Do you care to make your content inclusive of disability? Hire me!
Interested in conducting training for disability-inclusive journalism for your newsroom? I’m an accredited media trainer and consultant in Gender Equality Diversity and Inclusion, and Solutions Journalism, and specialise in conducting workshops for making content inclusive of disability. Hit reply if you’d like to hire me, talk further, or just say hi! Write to me about your experiences with neurodiversity and weak ties. I respond to everyone.
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Warmly,
Priti
Thanks for the mention, Priti!