Template talk:User Aspie

Changing the image

Continuing from the conversation on the mod elections page. I know someone suggested Temple Grandin as a replacement, although that would open her own can of worms even if it is a better choice than Hans Asperger. Any other suggestions? Plutocow (talk) 21:08, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

Since according to the new DSM there is no such thing as Asperger Syndrome, it's just autism, maybe some autism awareness symbol? GeeJayK^{Where all evil dwells} _{Where every lie is true} 21:12, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

Autism awareness has problematic, ableist even, undertones to it. Carthage (talk) 21:15, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

Didn't know about it. The "depression" userbox has a pictures of a non notable, depressed person, but I don't think we should do this here. GeeJayK^{Where all evil dwells} _{Where every lie is true} 21:17, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

Greta Thunberg is autistic, as was Bobby Fischer. I don't think people want a template image associated with Bobby Fischer, though. Carthage (talk) 21:18, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

My proposal (had an edit conflict):

What do we say that the photo is changed away from Hans Asperger, an alleged Nazi collaborator who was not confirmed to be autistic himself? I would propose a picture of Temple Grandin, who is autistic and a well-known autism self-advocate (according to this she even specifically has Asperger's, fitting the template name). Her main political beliefs as far as she expresses any appear to be about animal welfare (not the most controversial thing... but seems she did get a PETA award in 2004). OR: we could just use the autistic pride flag that Wikipedia uses (here). Or something like that.

I'll ping recently-active users (people who have edited during 2023 and aren't banned) who have the userbox, since this would indirectly be a change to their user page. Apologies in advance, but @BJA2112 @LeGrandePumbloom @Jsonitsac @CorruptUser @ZoeTheWobbly @Nasm @ExChristian @Jake Holmes @LiamM32 @TheEternalOutsider @TheOneAndOnlyCirrusMan @DaisyGeekyTransGirl @Rockford the Roe @Patty Pat @IdiosyncraticLawyer @Hertzy @JJPMaster @Daemonspudguy @Sapient cogbag @Summa Atheologica @Summa Atheologica @Colossal Squid

Others are welcome to give input as well. Chillpilled (talk) 21:20, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

I think the best idea is to generalise to 'Neurodiversity' (not just ASD), and use the rainbow infinity symbol (which is less contentious in a neurodiversity context than it is in an ASD one). I say this because I've never seen a representation within any ASD spaces which didn't spark a lot of debate, with either one group feeling unseen, or another group being lumped in with symptoms and traits they don't experience or identify with (and receiving the stigma, too). The only thing you can guarantee in common between even two high-functioning people with ASD, is that they both have ASD! There's no single symptom which we all have in common. Beyond this, offering several options to choose from seems like the only other way (option for ASD, option for Aspergers, option for Autism). I'd say avoid using figureheads entirely and stick with symbol/flag offerings for the same reason, as I'm sure everyone either has their own 'autism idol' or doesn't have one at all. 77.98.117.80 (talk) 22:04, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

I don't think it's that big a deal either way, but thought it would be worth inquiry since someone brought it up. Chillpilled (talk) 22:25, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

Yeah I'm not personally too tied up about any of it myself, but I wanted to weigh in as I see it discussed pretty much weekly in some of the spaces I frequent. 77.98.117.80 (talk) 22:39, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

Me, personally, I don't care in any case. TheOneAndOnlyCirrusMan (talk) 22:45, 8 November 2023 (UTC)

I'd propose using a picture of Asparagus. The food. Because why not? CorruptUser 01:25, 9 November 2023 (UTC)

That's a fun idea. Chillpilled (talk) 18:08, 9 November 2023 (UTC)

I've changed it to that since I anticipate that's the least controversial option. The one counter argument I could see is that it "makes fun of" autism or something like that. But really it just makes fun of a linguistic coincidence. Chillpilled (talk) 22:11, 9 November 2023 (UTC)

I think we should use the infinity symbol. It's the least controversial one. Even Temple Grandin is controversial. ^{— Unsigned, by: Daemonspudguy / talk / contribs}

This is Hans Asperger? Well then it should be changed ASAP, and I might remove it from my page until it is changed. I think "autistic" is the word that should be used. "This user is autistic" is good enough. I think that "on the autism spectrum" is a phrase from when the autism spectrum had to be differentiated from classic autism. And please don't just change it to "neurodivergent". That's too broad.

I totally support an immediate change of image to Temple Grandin. Albert Einstein is another option, though he wasn't diagnosed in his lifetime. I think Temple Grandin would be a good drop-in replacement for the current image, but another userbox can be made with the rainbow infiniti. --LiamM32 (talk) 08:33, 9 November 2023 (UTC)

Here are some previews of what it may look like:

This user is autistic.

This user is autistic.

This user is autistic.

--LiamM32 (talk) 02:27, 10 November 2023 (UTC)

Why not make all 4 userboxes? Both the Temple Grandin ones, the Einstein one and the rainbow infinity symbol one? You could call the templates User: Autistic1, User: Autistic2 etc. Spud (talk) 04:14, 10 November 2023 (UTC)

A lot of users with the userbox are inactive, so. Chillpilled (talk) 04:31, 10 November 2023 (UTC)

Trying to choose a single face to represent being autistic seems untenable. There's no single person who'll be universally embraced by all autistic people. A rainbow-coloured infinity symbol is the iconography generally preferred within the autistic community itself. Freely-licensed examples can be found here, here, and here. Puzzle pieces are also a common symbol of autism awareness organizations. These are not popular within the autistic community due to perceived negative connotations (e.g. that autistic people are a "puzzle" to be "solved"). Noodles (talk) 08:29, 11 November 2023 (UTC)

I second this. --Zoe (talk) 18:51, 17 January 2024 (UTC)

I don't quite remember what it was, but some time after posting this originally I found out Grandin has some more serious controversies that couldn't be ignored. Chillpilled (talk) 18:53, 17 January 2024 (UTC)

Honestly, I have no real preference, so long as it's respectful.--LeGrandePumbloom _{Peace, Land, and Nuclear Annihilation} 03:00, 19 January 2024 (UTC)

There's no reason to change the image on this template; it amounts to editing other people's userpages, which is frowned upon. Just make a new userbox. Christopher (talk) 20:04, 11 November 2023 (UTC)

It's mainly because the guy on the template was a Nazi, which many people who had the template weren't exactly happy with. While I agree that the images on userboxes shouldn't usually be changed, I think this is a rare circumstance that justifies it. Plutocow (talk) 20:56, 11 November 2023 (UTC)

Sometimes it's best to just let people pick and choose. A base template with no set picture can be a start, while new pictures are specified as a secondary parameter. TheEternalOutsider (talk) 10:03, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

Because in the end, autism is a spectrum and not a mere boolean tag. TheEternalOutsider (talk) 10:05, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

Correction: A default picture could be a start instead of no picture. TheEternalOutsider (talk) 10:09, 13 November 2023 (UTC)

Personally I'd be in favour of the rainbow infinity symbol, but not super bothered as long as it isn't someone who promotes ABA (or is a nazi) ^.^ ⏣sapient_cogbag⏣ ^{[all-lowercase name pls] talk} 04:18, 10 February 2024 (UTC)