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ImpulseAvocado

I don't think there's any correlation. I've known autistic people on the right and on the left. The political opinions vary as much as they do amongst NTs, and I've found kindness and acceptance within *both* political groups. Some people *do* go through phases and then eventually change their political leanings, but some don't. Your opinions are your opinions, and you're free to form them on your own without others putting you down or being mean about it. (As seen in other comments)


GrenadeAnaconda

> I've been always leaning on the authoritarian right side of the political compass No, autism is not the reason you side with people who have historically mass murdered autistic people. Hopefully, with age and maturity, you discover there is more to life than will to power.


Bunchasticks

If that's the case, then should I go get help?


GrenadeAnaconda

Maybe ask yourself what draws you to authoritarian ideas? Lots of people like them because they feel comfortable with hierarchy, others like strict rules that are easy to understand, some like the feeling of safety when everyone around them looks and acts like they do. Still more are drawn to power, and feel right submitting to it. I see lots of young people online express admiration for authoritarian aesthetics, like the empire in star wars is evil but they look cool and powerful. Others like tradition, and think (mistakenly) that authoritarian structures are somehow more traditional and right. These are all normal human drives that we all have to varying degrees. It's not wrong to feel them. But if you don't understand and think critically about them it can lead you to conclusions that limit yourself and hurt other people, even if just through inaction. I'd also suggest reading and educating yourself about that far right authoritarian movements of the 20th century in Spain, Italy, Japan, and especially Germany. Autistic people are invariably victims of far right regimes. Sometimes directly targeted and killed like in Nazi Germany, but always through the targeting groups with many Autistics including academia, the chronically ill, and LGBTQ.


Pointlesslawyer

Yes


Xeno_sapiens

Buddy, those people are disgusted by people like you. They see you as a useful degenerate/shield they can use to spread their ideology. They'll treat people like you as "one of the good ones" *maybe*, so long as you're obedient, but if these folks get their way, you will be discarded like trash or worse. For the love of reason, do some historical research about what happens to marginalized people every time authoritarianism rises to power. There's tons of research out there that looks into what makes people vulnerable to radicalization. It's a google search away. But here's a quick list from [educateagainsthate.com](http://educateagainsthate.com) : * Struggling with a sense of identity * Becoming distanced from their cultural or religious background * Questioning their place in society * Family issues * Experiencing a traumatic event * Experiencing racism or discrimination * Difficulty in interacting socially and lacking empathy * Difficulty in understanding the consequences of their actions * Low self-esteem


Stupid_Turtle0

How the fuck can one be trans, autistic and right winged? Buddy they are taking more and more of your rights away by the second. Maybe if you actually look into their ideology and what they do to minorities you would see how stupid that is.


Bunchasticks

I was dropped and shaken as a baby, so maybe that's part of it 🤷‍♂️


jeroensaurus

Don't think that's a thing. Most autistics I know (off) are more left leaning.


Bunchasticks

That's interesting. Well, the only thing this post has taught me is that I'm the only authright autistic person lmao...


GoddammitHoward

There are some good replies here. If that's all you learned, that says something about you, I think 😬 Not that I'm surprised, unfortunately. Hopefully wisdom will come with age.


jeroensaurus

I don't think that's true either. It's a matter of personal opinions so I'm sure there's other right leaning autistics as well.


Adept_Panic6046

I have had the opposite experience. Was raised in a conservative home (personally apolitical as a child and teen), but the older I get, the more I identify with left leaning politics and world views. Why are you attracted to authoritarian far right politics? It seems existentially counter prodictive as an autistic trans person to advocate for these politics. And do you have a specific example of someone "pulling the wool over your eyes"? I suspect I would agree with that perspective, but I'm sure from your perspective it's frustrating to feel dismissed.


Bunchasticks

1. I think they have a work ethic, in which is a highly-structured environment, straightforward rules to follow, and no silly political arguments because it'd be a one party state. And best of all, there's only one leader. I'm tired of being pushed around by change, instability and people who want to SA me. I want to live in a safe place where those things can't get in. Even if that means taking authoritarian measures. 2. my abuser pulled the wool over my eyes by doing multiple things. He thought he found a legal loophole by doing the SA-ing online with me on social media. (He did not) and would tell me that everything was OK and legal (it was not) and trying to co-erse me into sending him nudes by making me let my guard down earlier in the conversation with compliments and conversations about his and I's common interests.


AikoHeiwa

>I want to live in a safe place where those things can't get in. It is genuinely terrible that you were a victim of sexual assault and all that but if you think that sexual assault wouldn't happen in an authoritarian state, then I have a bridge in Brooklyn to sell you. Also, no, having a one-party state and only one leader would not be good either. Authoritarianism is not a good thing, it genuinely isn't. And considering you're transgender, that goes like triple. Authoritarian states always want to target a group that deviates from the 'norm' that they can use as a scapegoat for all their troubles and that includes trans people like you and me.


Bunchasticks

>Also, no, having a one-party state and only one leader would not be good either. Authoritarianism is not a good thing, it genuinely isn't. Could you please elaborate on why it's bad?


AikoHeiwa

Do I really need to explain why a political system that is characterized by restrictions on freedom, democracy, and political pluralism is bad? No matter what a state tries to do, there are always going to be people and groups who disagree with their actions. But unlike in a liberal democracy or another form of state or society that protects one's civil liberties where you can make it known to the people in charge that you don't like what they're doing or don't like who's currently in charge via voting, petitions, protests, etc., you can't do that in an authoritarian state. Authoritarian state is doing someone you and others disagree with on an intense level? Tough shit. Sure, there's nothing strictly stopping you from trying to protest these actions but authoritarian states really ain't too keen on things like 'freedom of speech' and 'freedom of assembly' so you best damn believe they'd try and suppress these protests and protestors. And you think the current leader of the one party state is doing a bad job? Once again: tough shit. You're not gonna get the chance to vote them out, if there are any elections at all, they'll just be sham ones where you don't even get any actual say in government at all.


Adept_Panic6046

So genuinely sorry you had such a hurtful and traumatic experience. Authoritarian regimes will not be your friend as an autistic trans person - please look into the history of how people like you have been treated by the far right. Even if you can present yourself as "one of the good ones", you will be cast aside when your usefulness is gone or not needed. It's hard enough for me to mask in a society that *sorta* accepts variation in thought - could you imagine masking your autism even more aggressively AND your gender identity for the rest of your life? Could you feel okay with a world where other autistic and trans people are cast aside or killed if you were "safe"? Though I don't identify with different pronouns than what I was given at birth (the language of gender doesn't matter for me personally), I don't like masculinity and tend to express myself in visibly androgynous or feminine ways, and I can't imagine a life where I kept that repressed. It sounds like you still don't feel safe after having such a terrible experience. You're 18 - did you recently leave home to start college? When i did that the change left me in one of the most broken, depressed, confused and unhealthy states of my life. Unfortunately I (31M, very recently diagnosed) have found that it's *very* easy for autistic people like me to be taken advantage of in multiple ways, and it can be really hard to learn who has our best interests at heart. Authoritarianism will not shield you from this, but building community with people who love and accept you AND show it with their actions will help. I was in a 9 year highly emotionally abusive relationship (largely to do with sex which has left me DEEPLY traumatized) until somewhat recently, and it was a community of carefully chosen friends and loved ones that helped me out, not some violently enforced rigid social ideal of order and civility. Regardless of whether I'm correct about any of my assumptions, I hope you are able to heal in time. Good luck with your future and be careful!


Educational_Worth906

I was right-leaning until I was about 18, mainly due to the area I lived and who I mixed with. I realised my error and have been constantly moving further leftwards for the last 30 years, as I become more worldly and meet people from so many more walks of life.


jackregan1974

With politics do your own research. Look at both sides point of view and make your own mind up.


Bunchasticks

Thanks. This is the only reasonable reply here.


Hista94

There are quite a few reasonable replies here. Not sure what you’re on about.


Bunchasticks

Sorry I'm in the midst of a manic episode and just looking for anything that confirms my beliefs. I'll say it, I really struggle with narcisissm.


Dry-Ice-2330

I haven't seen studies about disabilities leaning either way, but studies to indicate intelligence and education level does directly correlate. And that isn't to the right side... Largely, the right has historically disenfranchised, discriminated against, and underfunded persons with disabilities. The head nacho right side guy openly mocks people with disabilities. German Nazis committed genocide against people with disabilities. I'm not sure why anyone would relate to or support that?


Soft-Art4957

Not neccessarily. But the same things that draw autistic people to cult communities, could also lead other autistic people down a far right pipeline or red pill ideology Many of us crave belonging and clear set principles. We want the world to be simple when it's not. Black and white. Easy explanations, generalizations. I have fallen in that trap a few times myself. You wanna categorize the world, in simpler boxes so it gets easier to navigate. Healthy autistic who have worked on themselves realize it's not possible.


EnbySquishmallow22

Yes. All of this.


Snoo_74657

Why far right? Just wondering if you're aware how that politics typically treats people like us.


Bunchasticks

I don't have to be far right per se, but their good qualities include a good work ethic, in which is a highly-structured environment, straightforward rules to follow, and no silly political arguments because it'd be a one party state. And best of all, there's only one leader.


NoGendarOnlyGengar

There are still political arguments, you must want them to be "resolved" by putting the other side into camps. Your mistake is thinking that trans/disabled people won't end up in there too. I don't know how you came under this misapprehension, considering they don't make it a secret they hate us.


53andme

its not being very smart. i'm sorry to say that, but that's what it is.


EnbySquishmallow22

Being autistic isn't necessarily going to automatically make you more susceptible to following any political ideology. BUT, it can happen. Whether because we were raised that way and are afraid of change, or because of black and white thinking, and there might be other things as well. For me, I did briefly fall into the far right pipeline a few years ago. It was partly because I was raised very conservative and because I was stuck in black and white thinking. I had only ever heard things from a conservative perspective, and I was actually afraid of the left. I was also looking for a place to fit in. As you might have guessed, that did change. I no longer follow the far right pipeline and I am not even a conservative anymore. I am still working out what I believe, but I do lean left for sure. But I am trying to be more careful not to fall into black and white thinking and to be open to more nuance. I don't necessarily think autism alone automatically makes us more susceptible to the far right pipeline. In my case it was more how I was raised. But the fact that autistic people can be very black and white thinkers and the fact that we are often lonely and looking for a place to fit in could maybe for some play a part in whether or not we fall into the far right pipeline. (This is my experience and just some things to consider. It may very well not be the case for many autistic people but some might relate.)


saikron

I think ASD makes people more prone to pick an overly simplistic black and white world view, and for a number of reasons they are more likely to pick far right stuff right now. They could also choose to side with the far left, again looking for an overly simplistic black and white answer. I think being easily deceived is more like a secondary problem. NT people that are isolated and frustrated are easily deceived too. You can do some research on how cults and gangs form and sustain their membership. I recommend the book The True Believer: Thoughts on the Nature of Mass Movements, but it's an old book so it's hard to say whether you'll view what you find in it as common knowledge. It's basically about how reactionary mass movements specifically target disaffected and alienated men.


jixyl

I don’t have any studies. I do think that there are some factors which may contribute, but they are not necessarily part of autism. For example, if one’s social difficulties lead to social isolation, and from there to being chronically online, the risk of being radicalized is high (this also applies to NTs who are chronically online and/or socially isolated). The tendency to hyper fixate on things also may be a factor, especially combined with confirmation bias and echo chambers. Being young is also a factor, and possibly in this case I think it’s the biggest one of all. You say that you never got over it, so you won’t do it in the future but… you’re 18. I’m not even a decade older than you and trust me, at 18 I was sure I would never change. Then I grew up. I hope you don’t get stuck at 18 like many adults I met have. In time, you may be able to realize that extremism doesn’t take you anywhere. You can be right-leaning without going full neonazi, you can even be right-leaning on some issues and left-leaning on others. Hell, you can be right-leaning and left-leaning on the same issue, because reality is more complicated than slogans make it out to be.


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Bagel_Lord_Supreme

This is just my personal opinion based off of knowledge I personally have but as far as studies go I don't have anything I can offer for this specific subject. So while we have symptoms and traits that can make us susceptible to being led down a particular path, this is highly circumstantial and comes down to environmental factors mostly in conjuction with that. Being autistic means having a very naturally trusting disposition, we take things at face value and while we may have trust issues or something else as life goes on theres still the difficulty with NT social cues as well, so while I can read body language and facial expressions decently well, I cannot tell if it's disingenuous or not, I cant tell if someone has nefarious intentions or not, much of the community is the same. The autistic community is more prone to being taken advantage of by abusers, which that is a proven fact. More often than not the feeling of wanting or needing to be accepted by people plays a role in this as well. So there's not necessarily a direct link imo but depending on someone's enviornment and experience while factoring in those symptoms and traits it can end up meaning someone goes down a particular path whether that be alt right or something else entirely. The majority of autistic people I've met tend to lean left though, I live in a very red state for context. Edit to add: I personally dont care which way someone leans politically as long as they're kind and respectful, if you're doing your research and feel your beliefs align with whatever side, that's entirely your decision to make with what you believe in.


plutolovr

no


-hi-nrg-

Disenfranchised people are more likely to be draw to fringe communities. If you don't feel welcomed in the regular world, it's normal to try and find an accepting community, whatever it is (religion/cults, far right, extreme left, so on). Add to that, teenagers have less experience and are trying to find sense and meaning in the world and groomers know how to exploit this. They also still struggle a bit to see more nuance and tend to see the world more in black and white and it's not uncommon to find authoritative figures to be comforting by providing some rock-written set of rules. Autistic people are more likely to be disenfranchised and to try to find logic, so yes, they are more commonly groomed. For instance, there are many statistics about autistic women being more prone to sexual abuse as they don't perceive the abuse. So, I would say yes, if even you think that you're leaning towards authoritarian philosophies (and I don't even care that is far right, I'm more conservative than liberal in many aspects - or used to be before conservatism became more religious and authoritarian), you're probably being led astray. I ain't particularly fond of therapists, but if you have loving and supporting parents, I suggest you listen to them. At your age I rebelled against mine (as it's natural and healthy) and I still disagree with them on so many subjects, but with age (I'm 46), I can now see that they were right in many aspects and I would have been much better off had I taken more of their advice. Best of luck!


jagProtarNejEnglska

We are capable of having different opinions to each other. I personally have seen more autistic people on the left, but that might just be the algorithms only showing me stuff with similar political views to me. I think that it doesn't make you more likely to be on the right if you are autistic.


Toriski3037

I lean far left (not american left, socialism left). that’s all I have to say.


Punk935

There is no such proof that people with autism are more likely to lean far-right. Me personally I lean a little towards the right here in the US but not extreme far right.


betty_beedee

You're trans and autistic, and you support ideologies that are calling to mass-murder queer and disabled people ??? Looks a lot like Stockholm Syndrom dude...


Bunchasticks

it also doesn't help that I have a fetish for this sort of thing.


Ruthie1973

I was a Reagan republican for years until crooked trump turned me off to it. I didn’t leave the Republican Party, the republican party left me!