Published in the Guardian today here.

Sir,

I must take exception to your recent reference to autism as a “distressing illness” (Andrew Wakefield case highlights the importance of ethics in science, 24th May). I am autistic, and I am not ill, sick, or retarded – I merely think differently to other people, and subsequently find it harder to understand how other people think. All autistic spectrum disorders may be summed up thus to a greater or lesser extent. If others find that distressing, that is their problem, not mine. But I am not ill.

Yours faithfully,

Sarah McCulloch

Subscribe to SarahMcCulloch.com via Email! (or via RSS!)