Ableism, derived from “able” plus “-ism”, is a term for discriminating against people based on disability. Just like racism and sexism, ableism is a form of discrimination. Discrimination is bad when it targets irrelevant traits in disqualifying a person for performance of a job. But how can it be wrong to discriminate against a person for being unable to perform the job? If the disability in question is relevant to job performance, then ableism is not that different from meritocracy.
In an odd form of gaslighting, termed by Kate Gladstone as “information scapegoating” some people on the autism spectrum have been discriminated against as being too able — or possessing knowledge that the average person does not have.
Meanwhile, current autism advocates insist that autism is only a disability, and that if a person on the spectrum does not need special accommodations, that person cannot be entitled to an autism diagnosis. The idea that autism is a super power that enables autistics to perform at a higher level than neurotypicals is soundly denied.
Clearly the DSM–V is a diagnostic and statistical manual that is intended to allot government interventions and funding based on a series of criteria. As long the government is involved in the diagnosis and allotment of special privileges, the autism diagnosis will be used to thwart meritocracy and to promote disability over ability.
