1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

I’m writing in response to recent statements made by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who described autism as a “preventable disease” and claimed that autistic children are a burden to their families. These remarks are not only inaccurate and unscientific—they are dangerous. Autism is not a disease. It is a neurotype—a natural and lifelong variation in the way some people think, process, and experience the world. Major scientific and medical organizations agree that autism has strong genetic roots. The rise in diagnoses is not an epidemic—it reflects decades of progress in understanding, identifying, and supporting neurodivergent individuals. Secretary Kennedy’s language—suggesting that autistic people destroy families, don’t belong in society, and are somehow “broken”—is dehumanizing. Coming from the nation’s top health official, it carries the weight of policy and precedent. It is also eerily reminiscent of eugenics-era ideology that devalued disabled lives and led to generations of harm. We cannot allow this rhetoric to go unchecked. I urge you to: • Condemn Secretary Kennedy’s statements publicly. • Affirm that autistic people are valuable, capable, and deserving of dignity, safety, and support. • Ensure that federal health policy remains grounded in science, inclusion, and disability rights—not misinformation. This is not just about words—it’s about the future of how we treat neurodivergent people in this country. Please be on the right side of history.