My daughter has autism.
And according to TIME Magazine, she is crazy.
This is the screen shot of John Ashley Cloud’s article on the DSM-V:
click on image to link to the article
First item up in the article? The redefining of autism and the possible affects of such redefinition.
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Do I believe that Time Magazine really thinks that my little Brooke is crazy? No. Do I think that the author John Ashley Cloud truly believes my girl is crazy? I’m pretty sure he doesn’t. Do I think that he or whoever entitled his piece is a complete and utter asshole? In the words of Sarah Palin, You Betcha!
The article in and of itself is not a bad one. It’s fairly matter of fact in its approach. But that title…that title!
I have nothing against the word “crazy”. I use it all the time. Random acts of violence? That’s crazy! A buddy of mine running a sub-3:00 marathon his first time out? That’s crazy! Preparing for the Mayan apocalypse on December 21st? That’s crazy! The Giants beating the Pats in the Superbowl on late 4th quarter drives? TWICE? That’s crazy!
Setting back years and years of hard work by those in the mental disability and disorder community with the simple stroke of a keyboard? THAT is crazy!!!
As a society we have inched ever so slowly toward a more inclusive society. More and more we are realizing the gift of having all people participate in our communities. Slowly we have inched toward removing the stigma of either mental illness or disability or disorder.
Cloud’s article does nothing to change that, but the title does that and more. We live in a headline society. That is not a gripe, that is a fact. Just look at this past election cycle. So many of us get our news and information from either the headlines or from the 50 word bullet points at the beginning of an article. The only things we WILL read are those articles we find most interesting; ones that reinforce our own ways of thinking. That’s why a title like Redefining Crazy is awful, disrespectful and downright dangerous.
People will skim over this article and walk away thinking, wow, autistic people ARE crazy…I mean they flap their arms and run around and make strange noises. And they will hold on to that headline because that is what sticks in their head.
Now before you accuse me of joining the ranks of the PC Word Police, I want you to think about what the word “crazy” means to you. I’m sure there was a time when it was a clinical word. Is that how the word is used today? Would you go up to the mother of a child with what was formerly known as Asperger’s and tell her that her son or daughter is crazy? For those of you who know my Brooke, would you say that she is crazy?
Crazy is defined in the dictionary as:
mentally deranged; demented; insane.
I would not put my Brooke in that category, but thanks to Mr. Cloud, someone who doesn’t know her, but knows her diagnosis, might.
I hope that TIME and Cloud will change the title of his article and issue a general apology. TIME used to be such a wonderful, even handed magazine, but lately they’ve been acting like a mud-slinging headline grabbing rag. I called them this morning to cancel my subscription. I hope you will consider doing the same.
Run Luau Run 
they used to be even-handed, yes. but i’ve noticed a lean toward the sensational lately. very disappointing. also not a fan of their publishing different fluff pieces only for the U.S. edition. i was annoyed at them, but still interested in reading it. now, i refuse to give them my money. they’ve become irresponsible with it. cancelled.
To be brutally honest, there are times that living with my sweet boy does actually meet the definition of insanity. But that’s nothing to be ashamed of and certainly not anything that a magazine should make light of .. Their headline was just disrespectful. ;(
So, I tried to be a responsible person and go read the article before commenting; only to find out that this same author wrote another article for TIME on March 19, 2012 entitled “What Counts as Crazy?” That article was very similar in recounting the changes to the DSM. I am very disappointed in the process that TIME will allow the same guy to run the same stuff repeatedly in such a disrespectful way! IF I had a subscription, it would for sure be cancelled!
Thank you Luau! Well said. As the mother of an eight year old son who is non-verbal and profoundly affected by autism and the sister-in-law of a wonderful man who has schizophrenia and seemingly battles a mind that betrays him daily, this headline is outrageous to me. Thank you for holding TIME accountable to all of us who’ve been subscribers and who’ve fought for years to see our loved ones garner the support and acceptance they so richly deserve. Different not less.
So insulting.
I feel like Time has sort of degenerated to the “People Magazine” of news.
Thanks for writing this. I hadn’t seen Time or the article and my blood pressure went up big time when I saw the title. We need to stay on guard and speak up for our kids because they have a hard enough time and need to have progress rewarded instead of words like “crazy” being used.
Redefining Retarded would have been a much more negative headline, even though it is still correct… beyond DSM-V, Retarded will no longer have a medical meaning.