The Autistic Enclave and the Shtetl Model

Image of a pogrom where 600,000 Jews were killed, by Issachar Ber Ryback

 Before the birth of Israel, Jews came together in little towns known as Shtetls. These Shtetls were small villages in Eastern Europe with a majority Jewish population. Non-jews also inhabited these towns and intermingled mostly peacefully, though sometimes tensions strained and conflicts broke out, resulting in deadly pogroms. Even so, these towns were centers of Jewish culture and even had their own language, Yiddish, a combination of German, Hebrew, and Aramaic. Tragically, the Holocaust wiped out nearly all the Shtetls in existence. A small number existed up until the 70's, but emigration to Israel and America caused these settlements largely to vanish and lose their Jewish character.

Now, what does the Shtetl have to do with autistic liberation? A lot, actually. Autistic culture can only grow if we have our own ethnic enclaves. And, as a hated minority, we can see the threat that living in such enclaves poses for us. Pogroms against the autist are unlikely, but not unthinkable. However, domestic terrorism against us is a very real possibility. It is quite imaginable for a mass shooter to target us, thinking we are whatever degenerate of the week. Hate against us online is rampant; however, we are protected from radicalized people simply by the nature of being a small, non-concentrated minority.

Even so, despite the danger, other factors such as isolation, homelessness, and death due to despair make an autistic enclave completely necessary. The Autistic people will never be free until we have our own home. And, once we have our own home, we will be able to create a new Renaissance. Autistic creativity will shine, and the Autists will finally have an opportunity to thrive. A new view of the autist will appear, and we will be known for our culture worldwide. Instead of being individual geniuses, we will begin to get the collective credit that long has alluded us.