The AutSide Podcast

Episode 206: Reading the System - Critical Autism Studies and Power

18 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode advocates for the establishment of Critical Autism Studies as a necessary challenge to prevailing power structures and societal n...

Episode 205: Solving for Belonging- Reclaiming Maths with Story and Clarity

17 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode presents a reflective journey into creating a math textbook, “The Story of Math,” which aims to be inclusive and accessible, ...

Episode 204: Tartan Day - Memory, Genocide, and the Scottish Diaspora

16 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode is an analysis of a personal essay from Dr. Jaime Hoerricks, who identifies as a descendant of those impacted by the so-called Hi...

Episode 203: The Digital Oubliette

15 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode describes the experience of being digitally silenced when a heartfelt post about autism, gender fluidity, and identity was deemed...

Episode 202: The Grammar of Control

14 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the act of misgendering not as a mistake but as a deliberate refusal rooted in systemic beliefs. The author of the sourc...

Episode 201: Invisible Twice - Masking Autism and Gender

13 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the significant mental health challenges faced by autistic individuals who are also transgender or gender-diverse. The a...

Episode 200: Autistic Picky Eaters and the Peculiar Effects of a Restricted Diet

12 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“In today’s episode, Dr. Jaime Hoerricks explores the connection between diet and health, particularly for autistic people and those undergoing HR...

Episode 199: Fading Whose Voice? ABA, Scripting, and Gestalt Language

11 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the widespread use of ‘script fading’ within Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for autistic individuals, arguing that...

Episode 198: Scripting is Speech

10 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques a 2025 ABA study targeting autistic toddlers, arguing it dangerously disregards their communication rights and lived ex...

Episode 197: The Three Body Problem

09 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode employs the metaphor of the three-body problem in astrophysics to illuminate the lived experiences of the author of the source ar...

Episode 196: House Red

08 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the frequent misinterpretation of autistic emotions. The author of the source article, Dr. Jaime Hoerricks, uses rich s...

Episode 195: Narrative Control - Dismantling Education Oversight

07 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that recent budget cuts to the U.S. Department of Education are not simply about finances but represent a deliberate effor...

Episode 194: Autism, Psychoanalysis, and Neurodivergent Affirming Therapy

06 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores a personal reflection that examines the shortcomings of traditional psychoanalysis in understanding and supporting autis...

Episode 193: Masking Autism - the Invisibility of High-Masking Girls of Colour

05 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores how the requirement of visible "impairment" in autism diagnostic criteria leads to the systematic exclusion of high-mask...

Episode 192: Beyond Relationship-Centered: Systemic Harm and Authentic Creation

04 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the prevalent idea that education is inherently “relationship-centered,” arguing that this concept often masks syst...

Episode 191: Beyond Binary - Autism, Gender, and Trans Inclusion

03 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critically examines the historical and persistent exclusion of trans women from autism discourse, arguing that the current unders...

Episode 190: Creating Beyond Compliance - a Teacher's Journey of Innovation

02 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the author of the source article, Dr. Jaime Hoerricks’ experiences within teacher professional development systems, re...

Episode 189: Neuroqueer Becoming - Goals Beyond Arrival

01 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the unexpected emergence of personal goals through the lens of neuroqueerness and medical transition. Challenging conven...

Episode 188: The Shock Doctrine Comes Home

31 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that economic tactics used by the United States to exploit post-Soviet Eastern Bloc countries are now being employed domes...

Episode 187: Knowledge as Wonder

30 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode reflects on the intrinsic joy of learning, contrasting it with a purely rational, utilitarian view of knowledge. The author of th...

Episode 186: The Failure of "Evidence-Based" Education

29 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode is based upon an article by Dr. Jaime Hoerricks, a former forensic scientist and current teacher, who argues that the term “evi...

Episode 185: Echoes of Eugenics: Autism, Research, and Erasure

28 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that the US CDC’s renewed investigation into the so-called vaccine-autism link echoes historical eugenics by suggesting ...

Episode 184: Unchosen - a Memoir of Defiance and Self-Belonging

27 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Dr. Jaime Hoerricks’s “Blast Radius: Epicentre of a Thousand Memories” explores the profound impact of a simple online meme, which triggered ...

Episode 183: Autism, Mental Health, and the Trap of Capitalist Control

26 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that the current mental health system under capitalism is fundamentally designed for control and compliance, not genuine c...

Episode 182: Sorting the Future - Education, Exclusion, and Authoritarian Logic

25 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critically examines contemporary shifts in public education within the United States, arguing that policies are increasingly driv...

Episode 181: Autism Research - Ignoring Autistic Adults for Medicalisation

24 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critically examines the stark disparity in autism research, highlighting a prevailing focus on medical interventions and early di...

Episode 180: The Betrayal of Trans Liberation - on the Aftermath of Trust

23 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that mainstream LGB organisations have betrayed the trans and queer communities by prioritising assimilation into heterono...

Episode 179: The Far-Right War on Public Education and the Demonisation of Care

22 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the current political climate, arguing that the framing of public education advocates and concepts like care and equity...

Episode 178: Sabotaging Education - Stupidification for Class Control

21 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that the decline of public education in the U.S. is a deliberate strategy by the ruling class to maintain social hierarchi...

Episode 177: Too Expensive to Teach - Austerity and the Erosion of Education

20 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that the crisis in public education is intentionally created through austerity measures and a business-driven model that p...

Episode 176: Soviet Psychology and Gestalt Language Processing - a Forgotten History

19 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode champions the overlooked work of Soviet psychologists Vygotsky, Luria, and Leontiev, asserting they identified gestalt language p...

Episode 175: Setun - the Lost Future of Non-Binary Computing and Profit's Price

18 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the Soviet Setun computer, which utilised a balanced ternary system instead of the now-standard binary. The author of th...

Episode 174: Prompts and Cues - Fostering Independence in the Classroom

17 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode differentiates between prompts, which are direct interventions that can lead to student dependence, and cues, which are subtler s...

Episode 173: Still Here, Still Queer - Neuroqueer Futures Beyond Empire

16 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that queerness and neuroqueerness offer a path beyond the oppressive structures of capitalism and empire, viewing these id...

Episode 172: Burnout - a Broken World, Not a Personal Failing

15 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that burnout is not an individual failing but a predictable outcome of an oppressive system that relentlessly extracts res...

Episode 171: Corporate Gaslighting - Parental Engagement vs. Systemic Survival

14 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the notion that a lack of parental engagement is the primary cause of educational disparities. Instead, the source arti...

Episode 170: The Theft of Meaning - Literacy as Enclosure

13 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the conventional literacy industry, arguing that it prioritises control and standardisation over genuine comprehension ...

Episode 169: Decolonise Your Mind

12 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores how gestalt language processing allows for a holistic understanding of information and how this can be used to decolonis...

Episode 168: The Settler's Manifesto

11 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode, “The Settler’s Manifesto,” critically examines the Heritage Foundation's strategy to reshape public education through init...

Episode 167: Autism - Eugenics, Diagnosis, and the Fight for Existence

10 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode revisits an old article with a new update and expresses concerns about the future of autism support and acceptance under the new ...

Episode 166: Autistic Time - History, Memory, and the Fluidity of Becoming

09 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode is an exploration of autistic temporality, contrasting it with neurotypical models of time and history. The source article from D...

Episode 165: Decolonising Autism Studies - Language, Identity, and Education

08 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques a study that suggests multilingualism benefits autistic children by improving executive function. The author of the sou...

Episode 164: Before and After Gender - Speculations on Time and Identity

07 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the concept of gender as a colonial imposition, contrasting a pre-gender existence with a potential post-gender future. ...

Episode 163: Capitalist Collapse - Neofeudalism, Socialist Resistance, and the Future

06 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode asserts that capitalism is collapsing and transitioning into corporate neo-feudalism, creating a global system of oppression with...

Episode 162: ChatGPT, Translation, and the Power of Language

05 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the shortcomings of LLM translation, particularly concerning marginalized languages. Dr. Jaime Hoerricks, the author of ...

Episode 161: The Reserve Army of Labour

04 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques capitalism’s exploitation and exclusion of autistic individuals within the labor market. It argues that capitalism ut...

Episode 160: Learned Helplessness in Autistic Students - Breaking the Cycle

03 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode discusses learned helplessness in autistic students, a condition where repeated failures lead them to believe their efforts are f...

Episode 159: AI-Driven Autism Detection - Eugenics, Surveillance, and Control

02 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques a recent study that uses machine learning to improve autism detection, arguing it stems from a eugenicist logic focused...

Episode 158: Florida - a Corporate Dystopia in the Making

01 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“A satirical news article sets the stage for an analysis of Florida's potential future under corporate control, specifically through the lens of Man...

Episode 157: The Far-Right's War on 'Wokeness' is a Rejection of History

28 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the far-right’s “war on wokeness,” arguing it's a historically inaccurate attack on gender fluidity and nonbinary...

Episode 156: Alienation - Capitalism, Mental Health, and the Path to Liberation

27 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores how alienation under capitalism significantly impacts mental health. It argues that societal structures, rather than ind...

Episode 155: The Tangerine Regime's War on Neurodivergence

26 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode analyses the potential threats to neurodivergent individuals and disability rights under the new political regime in the US. The ...

Episode 154: The Broken Contract - Literacy, Dyslexia, and the Legal Obligation

25 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that many schools fail to provide adequate literacy education, particularly for students with disabilities like dyslexia. ...

Episode 153: The MAHA Commission - Privatising Public Health for Corporate Profit

24 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode analyses the Make America Healthy Again Commission (MAHA), arguing that it is a neoliberal scheme designed to privatise public he...

Episode 152: Capitalism - Myths, Machinery, Exploitation, and Colonialism

23 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode dissects capitalism, challenging common misconceptions and exposing its exploitative nature. It contrasts capitalism with trade a...

Episode 151: AGP and Ethical Research for Autistic Lives

22 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode introduces Able Grounded Phenomenology (AGP), a framework to reform autism research. AGP was created by Dr. Henny Kupferstein to ...

Episode 150: Bridging Reform and Revolution for Systemic Change

21 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the divide between reformist and revolutionary approaches within neurodiversity advocacy, particularly regarding the exp...

Episode 149: Texas v. Becerra - Disability Rights, Trans Liberation, and Solidarity

20 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that “Texas v. Becerra” is not simply a legal challenge, but a strategic attack on disability rights that uses trans p...

Episode 148: The Assault on Section 504 and the Systemic Erosion of Disability Rights

19 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the attack on Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, viewing it as an effort to undermine disability rights and equity....

Episode 147: Autism and Sleep

18 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the challenges of sleep disorders in autistic individuals, particularly night terrors. The author of the source article,...

Episode 146: Autism, Technology, and the Exhaustion of Modern Life

17 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the challenges and exhaustion faced by autistic individuals navigating a world and digital landscape often hostile to ne...

Episode 145: Ditch the SAVE Act

16 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode analyses the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) Act in the US as a modern tool of patriarchal exclusion, linking it to h...

Episode 144: Red Clydeside Today

15 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode reflects on the historical Red Clydeside movement and its relevance to contemporary issues, particularly regarding disability and...

Episode 143: a Tale of Two Approaches to Neurodiversity

14 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode contrasts two distinct approaches to autism: a Soviet model of inclusion and a Global North model rooted in eugenics. It highligh...

Episode 142: Autism, Neurodivergence, and the Case Against Capitalism

13 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the commodification of neurodivergence under capitalism, highlighting how diagnosis becomes a gatekeeping tool that fav...

Episode 141: Academic Neurodiversity vs. Autistic Reality - A Critical Divide

12 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the academic field of ‘neurodiversity,’ arguing that it has become a lucrative industry that benefits corporations ...

Episode 140: Goodbye HRC

11 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) historical and recent actions, arguing that the organisation has consistently prioriti...

Episode 139: Hayek's Road to Serfdom, a Neoliberal Inversion

10 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques Friedrich Hayek’s The Road to Serfdom, arguing that its neoliberal followers have ironically created the authoritaria...

Episode 138: The Corporate Takeover of Housing and the Case for Socialism

09 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that the current housing crisis in the US is not accidental but a deliberate corporate takeover engineered by Private Capi...

Episode 137: Trans Erasure-A History of Abandonment and the Fight for Liberation

08 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that mainstream gay and lesbian organisations have historically marginalised and abandoned transgender people in the pursu...

Episode 136: Stop Studying Autism and Do Something Already

07 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“In today’s episode, Dr. Jaime Hoerricks critiques the Autism Research Centre (ARC) at Cambridge, led by Simon Baron-Cohen, for decades of researc...

Episode 135: A Takedown of Christian Nationalism

06 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores the intersection of Christian nationalism and American politics, focusing on a scenario where the US tax code is rewritt...

Episode 134: The War on Neurodivergence

05 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the misuse of scientific research to promote harmful ideologies, particularly concerning autism. A satirical study from...

Episode 133: Embracing the Beautiful Beast - Anxiety, Autism, and the Art of Transformation

04 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode features a book review and personal essay reflecting on Sarah Wilson’s First, We Make the Beast Beautiful, which reframes anxie...

Episode 132: Financial Colonialism - The Great American Grift

03 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that modern capitalism functions like financial colonialism, systematically extracting wealth from ordinary people (the “...

Episode 131: What can we learn from DeepSeek?

02 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode analyses DeepSeek, a Chinese AI company that has achieved remarkable results with significantly fewer resources than its Western ...

Episode 130: Where are the autistic women?

01 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the underdiagnosis of autistic girls and gender-diverse individuals, arguing that this is not merely a result of flawed ...

Episode 129: Penny Schwinn and the Neoliberal Looting of Public Education

31 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that Penny Schwinn’s nomination for Deputy Secretary of Education represents a dangerous advancement of neoliberal polic...

Episode 128: Whimsy as Rebellion

30 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode describes finding solace and rebellion in nature amidst political turmoil and social injustice. Dr. Jaime Hoerricks contrasts the...

Episode 127: True Partnerships in Education

29 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode advocates for true partnership in education, moving beyond mere co-creation in classrooms. It argues that systemic inequities, su...

Episode 126: Decolonising Classroom UX - Co-Creation in Education

28 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode advocates for decolonising the classroom user experience (UX) by shifting from mandated curricula to co-creation. The author of t...

Episode 125: Autistic Employment in a Rigged Economy

27 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode analyses the challenges autistic individuals face in the US workforce, particularly concerning low wages and systemic barriers to...

Episode 124: Full Inclusion Classrooms

26 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the current implementation of “full inclusion” in education, arguing that flawed research, insufficient funding, an...

Episode 123: financial literacy - reclaiming economics from exploitation

25 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques mainstream financial literacy programs, arguing that they are tools of capitalist indoctrination designed to perpetuate...

Episode 122: Trans Identity as Both Origin and Destination

24 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode explores a personal essay reflecting on the author’s experience as a trans, autistic person navigating online spaces and the im...

Episode 121: Dude, where's my Prado?

23 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the stark contrast between the U.S. and Mexican automotive markets, highlighting the limited choices and high prices of ...

Episode 120: The Lexicographer and the Fae

22 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode uses a fictional allegory of a lexicographer studying the "fae" to critique the "decoding" of autism through artificial intellige...

Episode 119: Capitalism, Neurodivergence, and Matristic Alternatives

21 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques the capitalist commodification of neurodivergence, specifically targeting the exploitative coaching industry that profi...

Episode 118a: A Coronation Day Lament - Imperial Power and the Illusion of Democracy

20 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s bonus episode critiques the United States' presidential inauguration as a coronation of an emperor rather than a democratic event. The au...

Episode 118: TikTok is dead. Long live TikTok.

20 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode analyses the forced sale / banning of TikTok, framing it as a modern-day enclosure mirroring historical land grabs. The author of...

Episode 117: Wear 'em down ...

19 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode argues that seemingly neutral news articles about education, particularly concerning teacher shortages, are actually corporate me...

Episode 116: Don't Panic!

18 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode examines the harmful framing of neurodiversity and gender diversity as societal problems, arguing that this narrative stems from ...

Episode 115: What Slide Rules Can Teach Today's Students

17 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode advocates for the use of slide rules in modern mathematics education, particularly for students with Specific Learning Disabiliti...

Episode 114: Lost in Translation

16 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critically analyses a study on the effectiveness of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy for autistic children in institutiona...

Episode 113: He Who Shrank

15 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode analyses Henry Hasse’s 1936 science fiction story, “He Who Shrank,” arguing that its themes and structure resonate strongly...

Episode 112: Systemic Gaslighting Obscures the Facts About the Financialisation of Colleges

14 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode discusses the detrimental effects of the financialisation of higher education on autistic students. The author of the source arti...

Episode 111: IQ Scales and Reductive Autism Research

13 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode critiques a new study proposing an IQ-based framework for classifying autism. Dr. Jaime Hoerricks, an autistic individual, argues...

Episode 110: The Glass Bead Game of Life

12 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode is a personal essay reflecting on Dr. Jaime Hoerricks’ experience reading Hermann Hesse’s Das Glasperlenspiel (The Glass Bead...

Episode 109: Reserve Army of Labour

11 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode uses Marx and Engels' concept of the “reserve army of labor” to analyse the oversupply of STEM graduates in the U.S. Dr. Jaim...

Episode 108: How to counsel neurodivergent students about college and careers

10 Jan 2025

Contributed by Lukas

“Today’s episode discusses the overemphasis on STEM careers in education, arguing that this approach is detrimental to many students, particularly...