There is no worse version of a single story than the single story we hear when it comes to Autism Awareness. Quite honestly, almost anything in the mainstream media and the majority of public knowledge is based on a single story of autism. An intensely damaging one, that can put children in harm’s way.

Most Americans have likely heard of the anti-vaccination movement that has become a new craze, based off of a false study from a now discredited physician named Andrew Wakefield. This study claimed that vaccinations directly caused autism, prompting parents to avoid life-saving vaccines that would protect their child, simply because of this intense fear of their child being on the Autism Spectrum.

It is here that I feel what Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie stated during her TED Talk about the dangers of a single story rings especially true. She said “What this demonstrates, I think, is how impressionable and vulnerable we are in the face of a story.” Now, how does this even apply?

Consider what we think about when we think of autism. Perhaps the organization Autism Speaks comes to mind? Autism Speaks practically dominates the conversation on autism and autism awareness, but what many outside of the autistic community don’t realize, is how harmful the single story that Autism Speaks gives to the public is.

Autism Speaks originally used most of it’s budget to find a supposed “cure” for autism, which they soon found to be impossible, so now they focus on research meant to find genetic markers that can be used to test for autism in fetuses so that fetuses with autism can be selectively aborted. They focus their resources around non-autistic people who happen to have autistic people in their lives in some capacity. Autism Speaks is meant only for the non-autistic, based on the resources they provide and they way they present these resources. This organization is responsible for some horrific ad campaigns that have contributed to many of the myths and stereotypes that autistic people suffer from today, including the infamous “I Am Autism” video and the “Autism Every Day.” You can watch both videos below.

Autism Speaks also does not include autistic people on their decision-making board outside of a couple of token diversity positions that hold no power. They also support harmful therapies that attempt to “correct” a child’s autism by forcing them to behave more “normally.” A common slogan among the autistic community is “Autism Speaks does not speak for me!”

Considering how this organization has dominated the narrative of Autism Awareness and the common perception of autism, it is no wonder we have movement like the anti-vaccination movement. With the color blue and the puzzle piece symbol being associated with autism due to the influence of Autism Speaks, it really shows how strong this single story of theirs is. Autistic voices are drowned out in favor of the non-autistic majority’s perspective on autism. The only way we can combat this is by exposing the public to the many, many stories of those who are actually autistic, so that our society will no longer be confined by this single story.

After all, this single story is putting real children in danger. Children who are forced to suppress autistic behaviors and masquerade as “normal” children suffer very real trauma that follows them well into adulthood. Stereotypes and myths are often what prevent autistic people from living their lives to the fullest, not their autism itself. Children die from preventable diseases when their parents choose not to vaccinate, because they are so afraid of what they believe autism to be.

I am an autistic woman, and I am sick and tired of this single story defining not only me, but many others like me. That single story is not the story of any autistic person. We need to change the narrative and let the many voices of the real stories be heard.

Works Cited

Hansen, Quincy. “Speaking of Autism…” Speaking of Autism…(blog). WordPress, April 2, 2019. https://speakingofautismcom.wordpress.com.

TEDTalks: Chimamanda Adichie–The Danger of a Single Story. YouTube. TED, 2009. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=112&v=D9Ihs241zeg&feature=emb_logo.

Works Cited

“City of Paterson, New Jersey.” Paterson Vista Park / City of Paterson, New Jersey. Accessed 

January 29, 2020. https://www.patersonnj.gov/department/division.php?structureid=125. 

“Fatal Shooting on East 25th Street in Paterson NJ.” NJ. North Jersey Media Group, January 1, 

1AD. 

YouTube. YouTube. Accessed January 29, 2020. 

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie tells her single story through her TED talk and how she was not as everyone had thought; Adichie was an African attending University in America and her roommate, for example, expected her to have tribal music and not know how to use a stove because media portrays Africans so poorly. As she continues to present, Adichie explains that everyone can have their own single story and there are many that are not about catastrophes and still just s important. Adichie’s story was one of people believing she was less than she actually was; my single story makes me more generic than I am. People look at me and see a white, blonde, female with blue eyes. I am middle class and my parents have been together for twenty-seven years and people know that. I was a varsity athlete for four years and everyone assumed I was popular and not the smartest. While yes, I do fit a definition of white girl as I dress a certain way, wear scrunchies, and carry my hydroflask around, I am more than people think.

I have been in honors classes my whole life, including college currently, and care a lot about my education. I also wasn’t that popular and actually had no real friends for a while. I had attending therapy in high school and felt very alone.  People also can’t see in their single story of me that I am a type 1 diabetic. Being a diabetic has changed my life and alters certain situations for me that a lot of people will never know about. For this assignment, I asked my friends what they first thought of me and I do fit their single story of me in many ways but there are many other details that impact who I am. I am by no means less than what people see me but I am less generic- to them I am a basic white girl, while in reality, I am deeper.

While people may not see the real me, but rather the single story of me that they have created, I cannot blame them as I too see people as their single story. Moving into my dorm, the first semester of freshman year here at Ramapo College, I had a single story of my roommate already laid out in my head. My roommate and I had met once prior to moving in and all I got from her was that she was too nice; she said no to nothing, she was open to everything, and she was spoiled her whole life. I was aware that she lived in a gated community in Kinnelon, New Jersey, a rather rich area. She told me about her huge house and how she had traveled the world when we first met and for some reason that bothered me. In my mind, I had a single story of her: a rich, spoiled girl who was used to getting whatever she had wanted. While moving in, her mother took complete control and I had no say in where I wanted my bed or dressers because it was her way or no way. They began hanging paintings all over our dorm, quite expensive ones actually, while I attempted to put up my printed photos of my friends. I saw my roommate as materialistic. As we began living together, I will admit that for a long time I only saw her as this single story that I had formed but in reality she was much more. My roommate is a very smart person; she came into college with over forty college credits from AP classes in high school. She is also super friendly and not materialistic at all but rather she can be very down to earth. We all question why everyone sees us in one light but we too are to blame as we see others in one way as well. The world will always have judgement but we as individuals need to dig a little deeper to discover the truth. Single stories are single for a reason; they maintain one plot with no depth or truth.

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi, “The Danger of a Single Story,” October 7, 2009. TED video, 

This is a picture of my best friend and me. We have been friends since we were both four years old.

Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie tells the narrative of the dangers evoked by telling one version of a multiversion story.  She acknowledges that people often have notions of stereotypes which unintentionally pass judgement, and she enlightens her audience that one story is not definitive for all.  Introspectively, Adichie elicits the realization that not a day passes by where I do not think of the blessings I have been granted along with the life I have been given. Considering the hardships many generations of families face in the United States alone, my parents endured sacrifices to prevent my sister and I from having to, although that is not the end result for many.  Despite common associations and misconceptions, single stories are more than economic status, education level, and physical appearance. One of my best friends appears to be just like me: we are both nineteen-year-old college students who love to relax and spend time with friends and our large Italian families. Her single story, however, sets her apart from the large majority of individuals our age.  The beginning of her single story began when she was fifteen years old. One day in 2015, I went to the mall with my best friend, and that night she went to sleep without knowing her life would be forever altered the following day. An emergency surgery revealed a tumor to be in one of her intestines. The severity of her condition was unknown, but she was diagnosed with Peutz-Jeghers Syndrome (PJS), a rare genetic disease that drastically increases her risk of getting cancer while causing her to get tumors throughout her body. Her family worked diligently to find the best doctors and treatments, only to discover that her disease is incurable.  Not many people are affected by this disease and even less are aware of its existence. At that point, despite the unclear future she faced, her family and friends believed the hardest days to be behind them. The sickness from within did not match the person from outside: she does not match the stereotypical descriptions of being sickly, frail, and weak. She defies the odds and is a strong, courageous young woman who does not allow for her setbacks to be her downfalls.

This image is from my friend’s sixteenth birthday; it was just a year after her diagnosis of PJS.

Although her progress has been consistent, events took a turn for the worse in December 2019.  She told me that she had been diagnosed with breast cancer, and I was left heartbroken once again. This “single story” affects me on a personal level because no one ever expects for a loved one to experience it.  By looking at her, she seems to be completely normal and healthy; one would never guess that my friend standing at five feet tall is one of the strongest people I have ever known.  The relationships she has with people are genuine, and she touches the hearts of everyone she comes across. She witholds the information of her sickness and disease, never divulging to a soul of the battles she is attempting to overcome.  Her rare disease and now cancer battle have allowed her to build strong relationships between herself and her supporters. She has built a strong foundation by herself.  It takes a strong individual to overcome what she is experiencing, but it takes an even stronger soul to not allow her weaknesses to define her character.  Adichie points out that, “the consequence of the single story is this: it robs people of dignity. It makes our recognition of our equal humanity difficult. It emphasizes how we are different rather than how we are similar.”1   The single story of an ill person is written so that they look weak, they have no hair, and they are disabled physically, mentally, and emotionally.  The single story portrays their differences and identifies them in society to be dependent on others. Considering this, Adichie also states, “So that is how to create a single story. Show a people as one thing, as only one thing, over and over again, and that is what they become.”2   When surveying the power relationships between herself and those surrounding her, one can only blame society for spreading this misconception.  By depicting sick individuals to be visually different, people begin to perceive them as different beings who do not possess similar qualities. Going against this, the relationships my friend has built between herself and her friends, however, disprove the single story of sickness: she is strong, physically and mentally able, and so unbelievably genuine, courageous, and independent.

There is power in numbers, and with that comes strength. In honor of my friend, her family founded a foundation for people with rare genetic diseases a number of years ago.  Through this foundation, they have come in contact with people from all over the world, some even having the same rare disease as my best friend. Her family has helped so many other families deal with their hardships.  I first realized their impact just a few years ago; every year, they host a benefit dinner to raise awareness for those with life-threatening diseases. It is an occasion to give back to those in need, but it is an emotionally heavy event.  While her family speaks, time halts for everyone in the room. My best friend’s family has granted a voice to those who feel alone and hopeless that their quality of life has drastically declined. The more that this foundation expands and the more that their message flourishes, the more people and victims are reaching out to share their stories.  Her family has connected people from all over the globe. People are navigating their voices to be heard and to be related to, and it is a beautiful community to be a part of. The power relationships formed as a result of my best friend are solid and irreplaceable as no one could possibly fathom or relate to what they are enduring. I learned from my best friend that disease does not have a face, and it does not know a single story. As stated in Adichie’s talk, “The single story creates stereotypes, and the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story.”3   Looking at my friend, no one would know that her body is fighting her.  Our bond and friendship have only grown in the last several years, and it is still due to what we share in common, but it is now the result of being there for someone who still puts everyone above herself. The powerful friendship dynamic we share is a direct result of the amazingly strong individual she has become, and I admire her for it. I admire her for keeping her head held high in the midst of what is undoubtedly the darkest time of her and her family’s lives. I observed the power of multiple narratives, and I have witnessed how they brought unity among people who may have lost hope and faith along the way. Just like Chimamanda Adichie faced assumptions about her culture and origins, people could assume that my friend is handicapped because of her condition. Judging an entire population based on a small fragment of knowledge denies people of their own narratives.  Culture and sickness do not have definitive looks. There is diversity in every person, and power thrives within that diversity. “Power is the ability not just to tell the story of another person, but to make it the definitive story of that person.”4 One narrative portrays one voice, but when multiple people express their stories, the power that is evoked is one-of-a-kind, and I have faith that one day, these voices will be able to transform society to look at people with broader minds and bigger hearts.

__________________________

1 Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, “The Danger of a Single Story,” October 7, 2009. TED video, 13:54, https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=630&v=D9Ihs241zeg&feature=emb_logo.

2 Ibid, 9:26.

3 Ibid, 13:11.

 4 Ibid, 10:01.

Bibliography

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi, “The Danger of a Single Story,” October 7, 2009. TED video,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=630&v=D9Ihs241zeg&feature=emb_logo.

BLOG POST 1

Adichie discusses many topics including stereotypes, power, ignorance, and biases. She believes having one story about a people causes an assumption about all those who fall under the group, even if it may not be true for everyone. The quote in the image is one of the more prevalent statements she made during her talk.

Many Americans have a single story about America. There is a failure to acknowledge the country’s past and present mistakes. Errors are excused by claiming America is still the best place for freedom, allowing citizens to become content with current situations. By education and media covering up or ignoring events in the past where America has done morally questionable actions allows the continuation of the single-story Americans are taught about the inherent goodness of their country.

This is an example of how single-stories are supported by media images whether covert or overt, whether intentional or unintentional. By continuing this single-story idea about colored men being rapists or brutes presenting a danger to white women can heavily influence implicit biases. With images in our everyday life proving single-stories, it makes it extremely difficult to challenge what the stories tell us.

Welcome to the blog space for Honors Social Science Inquiry. Check back here for student blogging as the semester goes on.