Kevin Leitch is up to his usual nonsense. This time, at Opposing Views, he asks whether "autism is a disability" and he gives his helpful answer that "autism is what it is, like the colour brown or the shape of a circle. My reply to Mr. Leitch's silly comment on OV, edited slightly, follows:
"[2] In her complaint, dated August 9, 2002, Ms. Dawson alleges that the Respondent discriminated against her on the basis of disability, in breach of section 7 of the Canadian Human Rights Act in that it failed to accommodate her disability (autism). Ms. Dawson further alleges that the Respondent subjected her to harassment on the basis of disability, contrary to section 14 of the Canadian Human Rights Act."
"[220] The Tribunal thus finds that Ms. Dawson's disability was an important factor in the way she was treated by the Respondent in relation to the above mentioned events and that the Respondent's conduct amounts to harassment and contravenes section 14 of the Act. "
Dawson v. Canada Post Corporation, 2008 CHRT 41 (CanLII) — 2008-10-03
Kev Leitch's question about whether autism is a disability is asked without reference to the hard realities facing many autistic children and adults. It is asked without reference to legal findings that autism is a disability.
autism
"Kevin Leitch has asked whether "autism" is a disability. After asking this silly question he then gives a silly answer - autism is what it is, like the colour brown or the shape of a circle. His answer is meaningless.
For persons with mild Aspergers Disorder their "autism" may not be a disability. For one of the 80% of persons witth Autistic Disorder who are intellectually disabiled and have communication deficits, their Autistic Disorder is obviously a disability.
For a child who wanders away to freeze to death in a snow storm, or into automobile traffic or drowns in local swimming pool, autism is a disability. For a child who bites his hands and wrists, chews the cheeks of his mouth, starves himself to death because of extreme aversion to food tastes and textures autism is a disabililty. For the autistic adults who live in institutional and residential care autism is a disability. For the 80% of persons with Autistic Disorder who are intellectually disabled, autism is a disability.
Even Michelle Dawson, the former Canada Post employee, now an "autism researcher", has acknowledged that autism is a disability when she filed a human rights complaint on the grounds of disability when CPC discriminated against her and harassed her on the grounds of her disability - her autism. The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal found that Ms Dawson had been harassed because of her disability - her autism disability.
"[2] In her complaint, dated August 9, 2002, Ms. Dawson alleges that the Respondent discriminated against her on the basis of disability, in breach of section 7 of the Canadian Human Rights Act in that it failed to accommodate her disability (autism). Ms. Dawson further alleges that the Respondent subjected her to harassment on the basis of disability, contrary to section 14 of the Canadian Human Rights Act."
"[220] The Tribunal thus finds that Ms. Dawson's disability was an important factor in the way she was treated by the Respondent in relation to the above mentioned events and that the Respondent's conduct amounts to harassment and contravenes section 14 of the Act. "
Dawson v. Canada Post Corporation, 2008 CHRT 41 (CanLII) — 2008-10-03
Kev Leitch's question about whether autism is a disability is asked without reference to the hard realities facing many autistic children and adults. It is asked without reference to legal findings that autism is a disability.
Kev Leitch's question whether autism is a disability "is what it is", like the colour brown, or the shape of a circle, the question ,and Kev's silly answer, are absurd nonsense.
autism 
