Open AccessIf I were a weighted blanket
Author(s) -
Sarah Owocki
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
canadian journal of autism equity
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2563-9226
DOI - 10.15173/cjae.v2i1.4774
Subject(s) - thriving , blanket , commodification , psychology , computer science , political science , law , economics , psychotherapist , market economy
This is a poem written in the first person, "by" a weighted blanket. It addresses the person who is using the blanket from two perspectives: firstly, a natural one and secondly, a commercialized one. This evokes the divide between the inherent purpose that a weighted blanket can serve as an assistive device for an Autistic person (a liberating potential) vs. its use and commodification in a medical system built around structures of profit and control. This tension is widely present in the Autistic community as well as among individuals who interact with those of us in the community. Confronting this tension helps with building an equitable world where Autistic people can be thriving members of our communities, rather than institutionalized or hidden away.