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Well, that’s what the professor with autism can do though: in a statement establish that they will create a mentorship environment with explicit rule and clear

Well, that’s what the professor with autism can do though: in a statement establish that they will create a mentorship environment with explicit rule and clear boundaries such that will foster an environment for other autistics to succeed in the field.

Pannoniae 3y ago
Yes, but compulsory DEI statements achieve the opposite effect sadly - they water down true commitment to the issue by making everyone make them, which has the effect of making the pledge worthless. This again disadvantages neurodivergent people because they often can't effectively filter between mandatory bullshit and genuine commitments, so they might be abused by people who were just forced to sign the DEI pledge but do not actually care about it to make proper accommodations like explicit rules and the such.
- SamoyedFurFluff 3y ago
  There’s no proof that making everyone make such statements waters them down. It might also just make everyone actually think about ways their labs and mentorship style might exclude people and adjust accordingly. I think an autistic professor who writes about making a genuine commitment into supporting other autistic students and actually following through with that is just as competitive as other professors who may lie about it, because autistic people are just as capable of success as neurotypical. In fact I’m willing to be that autistic professor will be even more so, because they are going to foster amazing students that other ableist professors overlook.
  - Pannoniae 3y ago
    It creates pushback though... even when some people are generally sympathetic to inclusion and those general goals, a forced statement might make them push back and say "fuck it I hate this and I won't be taking it seriously". I think the best way of promoting inclusivity is offering incentives for doing so (not necessarily financial by the way - even small things like events or postcards help!) and creating a healthy atmosphere. Trying to make a polarised and generally toxic atmosphere inclusive only furthers the divide and the polarisation.

Pannoniae 3y ago

Yes, but compulsory DEI statements achieve the opposite effect sadly - they water down true commitment to the issue by making everyone make them, which has the effect of making the pledge worthless. This again disadvantages neurodivergent people because they often can't effectively filter between mandatory bullshit and genuine commitments, so they might be abused by people who were just forced to sign the DEI pledge but do not actually care about it to make proper accommodations like explicit rules and the such.

SamoyedFurFluff 3y ago
There’s no proof that making everyone make such statements waters them down. It might also just make everyone actually think about ways their labs and mentorship style might exclude people and adjust accordingly. I think an autistic professor who writes about making a genuine commitment into supporting other autistic students and actually following through with that is just as competitive as other professors who may lie about it, because autistic people are just as capable of success as neurotypical. In fact I’m willing to be that autistic professor will be even more so, because they are going to foster amazing students that other ableist professors overlook.
- Pannoniae 3y ago
  It creates pushback though... even when some people are generally sympathetic to inclusion and those general goals, a forced statement might make them push back and say "fuck it I hate this and I won't be taking it seriously". I think the best way of promoting inclusivity is offering incentives for doing so (not necessarily financial by the way - even small things like events or postcards help!) and creating a healthy atmosphere. Trying to make a polarised and generally toxic atmosphere inclusive only furthers the divide and the polarisation.