Autigender

Autigender, or autismgender, is a neurogender which can only be understood in the context of being autistic or when one's autism greatly affects one's gender or how one experiences gender, because autistic people are apparently incapable of understanding gender. Autigender is not autism as a gender, but rather is a gender that is so heavily influenced by autism that one's autism and one's experience of gender cannot be unlinked. Thus, it is basically autism as a gender. There are many studies that show that autistic people are more likely to be transgender^[1].

Autigender can be a stand alone gender or it can be used in combination with another gender (e.g. autigirl, autiboy, autienby, autixenby, etc) to show that one's experience of that gender is heavily influenced by being autistic. One's gender can be influenced by one's autism in many ways. Since gender is a social construct created by allistics/neurotypicals, and social constructs are one thing that autistic people generally struggle with, there are many people who may feel like being autistic influences their experience, perception, or understanding of gender. Autistic people may also face unique challenges in coming out and transitioning. Autigender is a way to express this and to find others with similar gender experiences.

Not all autistic people identify as autigender, only those whose gender is influenced by them being autistic. Autigender is an exclusive gender as, obviously, non-autistic people cannot have a gender influenced by autism. Once again, it must be reiterated that this gender exists because autistic people apparently cannot understand gender. Autigender is only valid if you subscribe to gender being a social construct, which it is not.

History

Autigender was coined on or before Aug 25th, 2014 by Tumblr users Autismgender and Esperancegirl via MOGAI-Archive.

Flag

The original autigender flag was designed by Tumblr user Pride-Flags-for-Us as late as July 15, 2016. Green represents neurodivergence. The symbol represents the autism spectrum.

The alternative flag was designed by an anonymous wiki user on November 15, 2020. The colors represent a spectrum, both for gender and for autism. The red, specifically, represents the #RedInstead movement, supporting autistic individuals, not Autism Speaks. The symbol represents the autism spectrum.