Cazalis et al. conducted an online survey of 225 adult autistic females on their experiences with sexual assault. They found nearly 90% of those surveyed reported having experienced sexual assault and analyzed patterns and predictors in the data gathered. They concluded that the answer to this astonishingly high prevalence data is to support autistic individuals with strong, nurturing relationships.
This handout summarizes the paper and the authors’ positions faithfully. However, these positions do not reflect my own, necessarily.
I agree with the authors that we should be careful not to engage in subtle victim-blaming and acknowledge that freezing and dissociation during abuse can prevent individuals from accessing knowledge and skills immediately. However, 40% of the individuals surveyed said knowledge of risk and self-affirmation strategies could have prevented some of these events. There is a balance between placing ALL responsibility for prevention on children and giving autistic children SOME knowledge and skills they can use in specific situations. It would be important for them to know what may happen, and that if they do freeze and dissociate, if the abuse happens anyway, it is NOT their fault or responsibility.
(I feel sorry for Spider-Man. Ability does not have to equal responsibility. People should be able to grow without burden. Just because you can, doesn’t mean it is your job.)
What I think is more important than knowledge and skills is attitude. What is more important is that relationships with autistic children and adults wholeheartedly support their autonomy over their own bodies and boundaries. It is a different thing from knowledge and skills, to grow up feeling entitled to one’s own choices–as an equal member of society and not as an inferior human. Your body (not just your mind) learns that it is able to say no, it is not okay to be asked to “obey,” it doesn’t owe anyone anything, and it has complete agency to feel uncomfortable and honor its natural inhibitions–without punishment or abandonment as a consequence. Society grooms us to obey, and then we’re surprised when predators take advantage of that grooming.
In my humble opinion, raising kids who are secure in their autonomy and agency will go a long way towards prevention without misplaced responsibility and victim-blaming.
An addendum: Although this study surveyed self-identified females, I believe the vulnerabilities identified and the empowerment strategies can apply to any autistic individual regardless of gender identification.
References:
Cazalis, F., Reyes, E., Leduc, S., & Gourion, D. (2022). Evidence That Nine Autistic Women Out of Ten Have Been Victims of Sexual Violence. Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience, 16, 852203. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2022.852203
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