Framing autism as prenatal damage fuels stigma, tragedy narratives, and dehumanisation without offering any benefit to Autistic people.

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	Forwarded this email? Subscribe here for more Does Tylenol in Pregnancy Really Cause Autism? A Critique Of Trump's Announcement Framing autism as prenatal damage fuels stigma, tragedy narratives, and dehumanisation without offering any benefit to Autistic people. David Gray-Hammond Sep 22   READ IN APP   The Trump administration has once again put autism in the headlines, this time by suggesting that taking Tylenol (known as paracetamol in the UK) during pregnancy causes autism. At first glance, this announcement seems like another attempt to stir panic rather than improve lives. Digging deeper, it becomes clear that the real purpose of this narrative is to reinforce tired tragedy stories about autism. For decades, Autistic people have been subjected to endless debates over what supposedly “causes” us. Was it vaccines? Pollution? Parenting styles? Now it’s Tylenol. None of these narratives have ever brought about improvements to the quality of life for Autistic people. Instead, they feed a cultural obsession with preventing our existence. The Tragedy Narrative at Work When officials highlight speculative research like this, the message is often framed as being about medical risk when in truth it’s about re-centering autism as a tragedy, a problem that could and should have been avoided. This narrative treats Autistic life as a mistake; a disaster that society should prevent at all costs. This rhetoric is not neutral. It tells Autistic people, and the world around us, that our existence is something that should never have happened. It bolsters the same dehumanising logic that underpins calls for prenatal testing, eugenics style prevention strategies, and harmful “cures”. No Meaningful Benefit to Autistic Lives What is striking about this Tylenol-autism narrative is how little it offers Autistic people in terms of actual quality of life. Does this research suggest better mental health services? Housing support? Workplace accommodations? Access to community care? Of course not. It only focuses on framing our existence as the result of harm to justify stopping Autistic people from being born in the first place. Autism is framed solely as a burden to be prevented rather than a natural variation of human neurology that deserves acceptance and support. This is why so much autism research fails us, because it asks the wrong questions. Instead of asking how we can thrive, it asks how we can be avoided. Damaged in Utero: The Stigma of “Prenatal Blame” By linking autism to TTylenoluse during pregnancy, this narrative pushes a deeply harmful framing, that Autistic people are damaged before we even take our first breath. It casts us as broken from the very beginning, the product of some parental mistake or medical misstep. This increases stigma not only for Autistic people, but for mothers who are already subjected to relentless scrutiny and blame for their children’s wellbeing. Families are pressured into guilt, while Autistic people are left to live with the burden of being seen as faulty or defective. It combines the misogynistic trope of maternal blame with the sickly ableism of Autistic tragedy narratives. The reality is that Autistic people are not broken. We are not mistakes. We are human beings with value, culture, and community. Suggesting that autism is caused by something as everyday as paracetamol trivialises our existence while magnifying the hostility we already face. Subscribe To David's Business We Deserve Better If policymakers and researchers were genuinely invested in Autistic wellbeing, their focus would not be on Tylenol or any other supposed cause. It would be on creating environments where Autistic people can thrive. That means funding accessible healthcare, reforming education systems, addressing employment discrimination, and supporting Autistic-led research. Instead, the Trump administration’s announcement pushes us further down the path of stigma and dehumanisation. It fuels tragedy narratives while ignoring the urgent changes that could actually improve our lives. Autistic people don’t need more speculation about how we came to exist. We need society to listen to us about how we live now, and what thriving looks like on our terms. Buy David A Coffee This Substack is reader-supported. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Upgrade to paid You're currently a free subscriber to David Gray-Hammond. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription. Upgrade to paid   Like Comment Restack   © 2025 David Gray-Hammond Unsubscribe