Asperger & WW2 (In-depth Truth)

There is so much speculation and hear say about Hans Asperger and his connections to the NSDAP-era Vienna.

Lots of this data is miss communicated, many of the information is incorrect when it hits youtuber videos and almost all of the hyped up information misses vital information.

Due to this, there is a split in the autism community over the use of the term Aspergers Syndrome or Asperger.

This split is totally non-thought out as the reasons for such are miss connected.

Here is me putting the record truthfully and as it is.

Please let me know your comments.

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[goosemama]

I appreciate this. Thank you for promoting critical thinking and research. People are very quick to run from controversial subjects or conversations - that's not how we learn and challenge ourselves. Thank you for sharing.

[daniellefedak]

To most extent I find the situation of calling Dr. Asperger’s a Nazi and it shamed other people with Asperger’s Syndrome that it, to some extent, erases history. I was diagnosed with it long before the changes for the DSM-5.

[logicalameetsworld]

This is an incredible video Daniel. I was diagnosed well before the change in 2013. I think the world is in a sad state so many tow a line of accepting blindly the opinion of others about Dr. Hans Asperger. That is literally towing a line also.
I named my channel logicalameetsworld so whether a person uses Autism or Asperger's they're very much accepted.
I truly admire the work you do man.

[Keeper_of_the_Hearth]

Thank you Daniel. I really appreciate all the research and detail you offered here. I do feel like the term matters, especially p those who received the diagnosis, and it should not be something people are told they can’t use. It matters to those of us who are also so called high functioning, and would have been previously diagnosed aspie. Because I find that when I say autistic, there are certain traits others assume that do not actually apply to me, but that would to another autistic person with higher needs. I find the spectrum to be a little too big and confusing, and some labels within labels are helpful to me. Anyway, that’s my ramble and I do thank you for this and lots of other videos 🙏🏼 you have helped me and my son both.

[gaynorowen]

I agree with you on this, my daughter was diagnosed with Aspergers at the age of 5, as far as she's concerned she has Aspergers. I've had so many arguments with people over this, it seems to me a lot of them can't see any further than their own noses, and are only too happy to get one side of a story and spread the word on it without even getting all the facts. Was Hans Asperger a nazi, probably not, many people were forced to do things they objected to back then. He was never proven to be anything other than a dr working in this field. It's a shame people weren't so opposed to the likes of the councilors in Warwickshire, who spouted nazi views on children with SEN needs recently, yet in this day and age they are getting away with it, while a dr who seems to have had the childrens best interests at heart years ago gets slammed and slandered.

[TessaCoker]

Totally agree. My psychotherapist thinks it IS different and should not be included in ASD. Also the general public understand Asperger’s so much better than ASD level 1. We are also told not to use the term high functioning! How the f**k do we explain ourselves to people so they understand and we are not invalidated or discounted. Even my husband thinks I am an imposter

[leilap]

I am okay with the current diagnostic nomenclature. My son and I share the same diagnoses, with the exception of our support needs. Autism is so much more complex than the stereotypical autistic boy. My son has a lot of stereotypical traits, but he also is a heavy sensory seeker, which is not seen as stereotypically autistic. A doctor friend once told me that he must be “high functioning” because he likes to hug as part of his sensory seeking. He is developmentally delayed, a diagnosis that he has yet to receive, but is the case now, but his relative developmental level is changing, just not like the average person (so I can understand why he hasn’t been given this diagnosis). It’s not my job to ensure that everybody fully understands autism diagnostic criteria. Do I fall under it? Yes, and so does my son. Having him in my life has helped me understand my genetic heritage and finally obtain my own diagnosis. It is just a name, but it is helpful to understand that the presentation of autism can change throughout the lifespan. My son’s presentation has changed in his 7 years, and I anticipate that his presentation will continue to change, including his support needs, meaning he may meet criteria for what was Aspergers in the future. For that reason, I appreciate the use of autism for all of us.
Asperger the person was not in a position of freedom to not follow along at least somewhat with the Nazi regime. I have met people who were members of the Hitler Youth. They didn’t have a choice. I can have sympathy for Asperger along with all others affected by the Nazis.

[zoebowler]

Thank you so much for this video. I feel a lot better informed about this subject now. ❤

[e.j.leonard]

From the paper itself for those who haven't followed the link:

Results

Asperger managed to accommodate himself to the Nazi regime and was rewarded for his affirmations of loyalty with career opportunities. He joined several organizations affiliated with the NSDAP (although not the Nazi party itself), publicly legitimized race hygiene policies including forced sterilizations and, on several occasions, actively cooperated with the child ‘euthanasia’ program. The language he employed to diagnose his patients was often remarkably harsh (even in comparison with assessments written by the staff at Vienna’s notorious Spiegelgrund ‘euthanasia’ institution), belying the notion that he tried to protect the children under his care by embellishing their diagnoses.

Conclusion

The narrative of Asperger as a principled opponent of National Socialism and a courageous defender of his patients against Nazi ‘euthanasia’ and other race hygiene measures does not hold up in the face of the historical evidence. What emerges is a much more problematic role played by this pioneer of autism research. Future use of the eponym should reflect the troubling context of its origins in Nazi-era Vienna

[Arrowloan]

This clears up a lot of different things I've been told, thank you for making it.

[bryanmerton]

Thanks Dan, a great even balanced history you presented. Not a cut a dry story to be sure. Thanks as always for your great work!

[idajasmine]

I have been quite baffled about this "problemacy". Some time ago I saw a local famous person on TV talking about his adult diagnosis and he bluntly stated to the interviewer that "You can't say Asperger's because he was a nazi". I received my adult diagnosis a couple of weeks ago, before that I was already kinda settleing in the possibility of a diagnosis because I felt that's who I am. My paper's say Asperger's syndrome and I feel that resonates with me much more than Autism Spectrum Disorder. So even tho at that time I watced the interview I wasn't diagnosed yet, I felt a bit angry because I felt that he was attacking the way I felt comfortable defining myself. He went on there and pretty much told the mostly neurotypical audience that Asperger's syndrome is not OK language to use.
Truth speaking I don't think it matters if Hans Asperger was a nazi or not. I find the whole polemic completely futile or even asinine. Are we gonna search through every diagnosis that was named after a person to determine if they were morally clean.
Thank you for the video, I didn't know much about Hans Asperger and it was interesting to learn!

[Passing_for_Neurotypical]

Thanks for covering this. I think it's very brave to cover, but you did a great job of just presenting things as best you could find them, and I agree that we can personally claim to use a label if it makes us personally feel ok. That we are not supporting bad things, just by using labels. If anything, I think that if we so choose to, we can use a label and made something bad (not looking at this case specifically necessarily) and make it better for the future!

Words can have a lot of power, but the power is either given or taken away by individual listeners. We can't let the shifting opinions of various individuals make us have to change our minds so often. Especially when, as you found, those motivations could have been with malicious intent against Asperger.

That being said, language continually evolves.

But in summary, if you let me talk too long, it sounds like I'm arguing with myself! Cheers man!

[MayaLarsen-yr]

I have autism myself, and it is important to rember those who had suffered in that time of war. 😢

[Equilibria]

Thanks for presenting documated evidence. I've never understood the attack on the term either.
He basically tried to be neutral in times of war. So he could still help and be of some benefit to his patients. Definitely a difficult time to take your own personal stand.

[anemeR]

I remember seeing an article from the radiological society that there was a clear distinction between autism and aspergers. I was one of those who objected when APA collapse aspergers into autism.

[lisareid]

I was just diagnosed today 2/13/24 with Aspergers and was told many don’t call it that anymore. Also that it was called high functioning autism. But all are lumped together now under ASD. I am ok with both terms.

[junkettarp]

Thanks Dan...Nice to see you you are well.

[jackieayres]

Thank you Dan, I just think it is so useful to use the term Asperger’s syndrome. Autism is too big of a spectrum to try and explain it to people. My son was diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome at 16 in 2018 in the Uk so clinicians were still using the term too. Thanks for all your good work .

[ehowiehowie]

They did kill people with SEN needs. On buses. It might not have been Asperger himself. But they still did it x