What can I get that isn't a puzzle to say yo, autism
August 29, 2023 10:38 PM Subscribe
I have some subtle LGBTQ pins and charms that I wear which go under the radar for most people but have been ways to connect with people at my somewhat conservative workplace and church who recognise them. I'd like to add something as a patch/bracelet/pin that says 'yo, autism and more!' on the same line so what's the current go-to? The rainbow infinity is a bit - loud for me.
The puzzle piece is loathed by most autistic adults because of its ableist roots.
OP, I haven't found a good subtle charm and I don't like to wear loud things either. You could do a gold infinity loop, which is specific to autism rather than the broader rainbow of neurodiversity. Or you could drop verbal hints like I do. All my autistic friends are reading Unmasking Autism by Devon Price right now, so I mention the author's name and their earlier work Laziness Does Not Exist to see if folks pick up the reference.
posted by lloquat at 10:58 PM on August 29, 2023 [18 favorites]
OP, I haven't found a good subtle charm and I don't like to wear loud things either. You could do a gold infinity loop, which is specific to autism rather than the broader rainbow of neurodiversity. Or you could drop verbal hints like I do. All my autistic friends are reading Unmasking Autism by Devon Price right now, so I mention the author's name and their earlier work Laziness Does Not Exist to see if folks pick up the reference.
posted by lloquat at 10:58 PM on August 29, 2023 [18 favorites]
The updated disability pride flag has gold for neurodiversity and is also inclusive of other marginalized identities.
posted by Crystalinne at 11:00 PM on August 29, 2023 [5 favorites]
posted by Crystalinne at 11:00 PM on August 29, 2023 [5 favorites]
Etsy seller Retrophiliac has a whole collection very simply-designed autism/neurodiversity-related pins and patches (including a crossed-out puzzle piece, which I have to say, while I understand the intended sentiment, seems likely to be badly misconstrued).
posted by wreckingball at 11:04 PM on August 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by wreckingball at 11:04 PM on August 29, 2023 [1 favorite]
Jubly-Umph has some neurodiversity-themed enamel pins of various degrees of subtlty... the neurodivergent one is nice (my kids threatened to do a violence if I ever use the phrase "neurosparkly" though)
posted by slightlybewildered at 1:20 AM on August 30, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by slightlybewildered at 1:20 AM on August 30, 2023 [6 favorites]
Maybe possibly a whale pin referencing Extraordinary Attorney Woo, but that may be too under the radar and also not everyone who's seen the show might connect to its representation.
posted by trig at 2:32 AM on August 30, 2023
posted by trig at 2:32 AM on August 30, 2023
Gold infinity is the one! Plausible deniability if you want it, recognition for those in the know, especially next to other symbolic pins.
posted by lokta at 2:50 AM on August 30, 2023 [1 favorite]
posted by lokta at 2:50 AM on August 30, 2023 [1 favorite]
There are pins that say "not a puzzle" in words. They aren't as cute as enamel pins but autistic people are more likely to recognize it than other symbols.
posted by metasarah at 3:20 AM on August 30, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by metasarah at 3:20 AM on August 30, 2023 [3 favorites]
"Neurospicy" is a phrase I've seen on Etsy pins/patches shaped like a cute little chilli or a packet of hot sauce.
posted by guessthis at 4:33 AM on August 30, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by guessthis at 4:33 AM on August 30, 2023 [3 favorites]
You may be interested in Yas Petit Poulet's Enamel Pins. They are fantastic.
posted by seanmpuckett at 5:01 AM on August 30, 2023 [6 favorites]
posted by seanmpuckett at 5:01 AM on August 30, 2023 [6 favorites]
"Special interest" is getting a lot of play on the internet these days. I think a button that says "Ask Me About My Special Interest" might do quite nicely. People who know will see you, and people who don't know might just politely find themselves on the other end of a 25 minute monologue about the specific travel logistics of each of the characters in Roland Emmerich's seminal 1996 film Independence Day, and that is totally okay.
posted by phunniemee at 7:10 AM on August 30, 2023
posted by phunniemee at 7:10 AM on August 30, 2023
The Etsy shop is on a break right now, but I think Neurodivers’ art is really cute. Here’s an Instagram.
posted by matildaben at 8:20 AM on August 30, 2023
posted by matildaben at 8:20 AM on August 30, 2023
Neurospicy is... polarizing, fair warning. I know a number of people who feel very strongly about it and feel like it is trivializing. It's also worth considering what your preferred failure mode is: I would absolutely miss, for instance, the T-rex Arms Club pin and would have no idea what it was going for, but it's certainly less likely to be picked up on than others.
I would nth using the infinity symbol; the disability pride flag might be useful but I would not count on it being recognized because it's a) rather new and b) was even more recently adjusted to minimize the chance of inflicting seizures. (You can still see many of these sellers with pins modeled on the old version, which had zigzags. Here's one with the new one.) References to spoons might be more effective to at least signal hidden disability, as with this pin, or there's always the phrase 'nothing about us without us'.
Riffs off the neurodivergence infinity symbol will have the biggest recognition from other folks, in-group or not, and anything involving the puzzle pieces (e.g. this) is going to get a certain amount of bristling from some of the folks you'd like to reach. The most-used spectral rainbow infinity symbol is also kind of difficult to translate into pin form. I've seen variants like this that fairly clearly convey the rainbow-ness while also not being clearly Hello This Is a Pride Pin. There is also the option of printed shoelaces or lanyards for a keychain, although the former might open you up to mortifying responses to shoelace compliments.
Do you have any examples of the kinds of subtle pride stuff that does work for you? It would help calibrate some of the recs, I suspect. I'm envisioning something like The Pin Prick's stuff as being your design aesthetic here. (In fact, his infinitely line could do pretty good double duty: I'd absolutely parse that as being a signal of neurodivergence as well as queerness, but it's fairly quiet (particularly if you paired it with a secondary flag).
posted by sciatrix at 12:59 PM on August 30, 2023 [4 favorites]
I would nth using the infinity symbol; the disability pride flag might be useful but I would not count on it being recognized because it's a) rather new and b) was even more recently adjusted to minimize the chance of inflicting seizures. (You can still see many of these sellers with pins modeled on the old version, which had zigzags. Here's one with the new one.) References to spoons might be more effective to at least signal hidden disability, as with this pin, or there's always the phrase 'nothing about us without us'.
Riffs off the neurodivergence infinity symbol will have the biggest recognition from other folks, in-group or not, and anything involving the puzzle pieces (e.g. this) is going to get a certain amount of bristling from some of the folks you'd like to reach. The most-used spectral rainbow infinity symbol is also kind of difficult to translate into pin form. I've seen variants like this that fairly clearly convey the rainbow-ness while also not being clearly Hello This Is a Pride Pin. There is also the option of printed shoelaces or lanyards for a keychain, although the former might open you up to mortifying responses to shoelace compliments.
Do you have any examples of the kinds of subtle pride stuff that does work for you? It would help calibrate some of the recs, I suspect. I'm envisioning something like The Pin Prick's stuff as being your design aesthetic here. (In fact, his infinitely line could do pretty good double duty: I'd absolutely parse that as being a signal of neurodivergence as well as queerness, but it's fairly quiet (particularly if you paired it with a secondary flag).
posted by sciatrix at 12:59 PM on August 30, 2023 [4 favorites]
Maybe a cluster of a few pins shaped like spoons?
posted by nouvelle-personne at 2:50 PM on August 30, 2023
posted by nouvelle-personne at 2:50 PM on August 30, 2023
Not sure if autism creature is mainstream or just popular on Tumblr but there are pins of it:
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1424565911/20-tbh-autism-creature-meme-acrylic-pin
posted by Jacqueline at 3:49 PM on August 30, 2023 [2 favorites]
https://www.etsy.com/listing/1424565911/20-tbh-autism-creature-meme-acrylic-pin
posted by Jacqueline at 3:49 PM on August 30, 2023 [2 favorites]
If you decide to use a whale pin because of Extraordinary Attorney Woo, I'd pick one that also has the name of the show on it. Pins of plain whales may give mixed signals, because of different meanings. Orcas, for instance, have been co-opted by anarchists/anti-fascists/leftists as a symbol of anti-capitalism.
I really like the gold infinity pins, myself, as someone who is autistic.
posted by spinifex23 at 9:03 PM on August 30, 2023
I really like the gold infinity pins, myself, as someone who is autistic.
posted by spinifex23 at 9:03 PM on August 30, 2023
Etsy seller Sootmegs has a lot of buttons with clear, brief messages, including a section dedicated to neurodiversity.
posted by xedrik at 9:00 AM on August 31, 2023
posted by xedrik at 9:00 AM on August 31, 2023
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posted by Jane the Brown at 10:51 PM on August 29, 2023 [1 favorite]