Asperger’s Syndrome: A Brief History Lesson
Johann “Hans” Friedrich Karl Asperger was an Austrian pediatrician, eugenicist, medical theorist, and medical professor that worked in Nazi Vienna. He was particularly interested in studying children that he characterized as “autistic psychopaths.”
Asperger’s work with autism started with his first designated group of children in 1938, 30+ years after Eugen Bleuler coined the term “autism” in 1908 and predates Leo Kanner’s work with “early infantile autism” published in 1943 and Ole Ivar Lovaas’ work that started in the 1960s.
The spectrum that Hans Asperger developed is based on how much an individual could contribute to society, i.e. their potential for capitalistic value. High-functioning autistic individuals, with behavior modification, could essentially pass as non-autistic and thus be cured. These were the types of children that he selected to stay in his experiments.
Hans Asperger was rewarded with career opportunities for this work. He joined several organizations affiliated with the Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei (NSDAP, aka the Nazi Party). Asperger actively contributed to the Nazi eugenics program by sending patients that didn’t meet his requirements to the Am Spiegelgrund clinic. This clinic was part of the child euthanasia program where children were murdered as part of the Nazi goal of eugenically engineering a genetic “pure” society through racial hygiene and the elimination of lives deemed a burden and not worthy of life.
Hans Asperger was even lauded as a hero for saving the children he accepted for his experiments since they escaped the fate that he otherwise rejected.
The term, “Asperger’s Syndrome” was coined by British psychiatrist Lorna Wing in 1981 was added to the DSM-IV in 1994 as a separate disorder from autism, considering it a mild form. It was removed in 2013 when the DMS-V was published and is now clinically included under the umbrella diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (299.00).
Why Everyone Should Stop Using It
The only reason anyone would prefer to use Asperger’s Syndrome over any other label is to take advantage of the privilege that comes with it.
It is undeniable that autism is generally seen as undesirable. Many parents have wept with grief over the news of receiving an autism diagnosis for their child. Neurotypical parents do not want autistic children.
However, neurotypical parents can tolerate children with Asperger’s Syndrome because that means their child isn’t disabled enough to require constant support. When that kid grows up, they can move out and have a life. When that kid grows up, they won’t be dependent on you. When that kid grows up, they can have a job and contribute to society like everybody else. When that kid grows up, they’re not your problem anymore because, with behavior modification, they can pass for neurotypical.
Media also portrays people with Asperger’s Syndrome as the white man-child who is a jerk but everyone tolerates him because he’s super smart. Once again, this person can contribute to society in a positive way and everyone tolerates him because they consider his contributions as worth it. This means if you claim to have Asperger’s Syndrome, people will overlook your social flaws and condescending attitude because they also associate the term with high intelligence. This is the privilege you’re taking advantage of if you still use this term.
If you just say you’re autistic, you might fear being lumped in with Kanner’s autistics, with being thought of as stupid. You want people to know you’re more like Sheldon Cooper than Forrest Gump which is the only reason why you’d still use an outdated term.
Sources
- Herwig Czech. “Hans Asperger, National Socialism, and ‘race hygiene’ in Nazi-era Vienna” (Apr. 19, 2018). Molecular Autism.
- Simon Baron-Cohen, Ami Klin, Steve Silberman, and Joseph D. Buxbaum. “Did Hans Asperger actively assist the Nazi euthanasia program?” (Apr. 19, 2018). Molecular Autism.
- Ananya Mandal, MD, “Autism History” (Feb. 26, 2019). News-Medical.
