The stars of Netflix reality show Love on the Spectrum have reacted to controversial comments about autism made by US Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert Kennedy Jr. (AKA, RFK Jr).
RFK Jr described autism as a “preventable” disease that “destroys families” in a press conference last week, and announced plans to launch a registry to track Americans who have autism.
“I am very displeased, very disheartened to hear someone make comments of that nature,” Love on the Spectrum‘s James B. Jones said in a TikTok response to RFK Jr’s comments.
“I found [the comments] to be extremely ignorant and, to be pretty frank, downright offensive.
“Autism manifests itself differently in every person. No two people who have it are exactly the same.”
In the same press conference last week, RFK Jr made broad claims about autistic people’s lives.
“These are kids who will never pay taxes. They’ll never hold a job. They’ll never play baseball. They’ll never write a poem. They’ll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted,” he said.
RFK Jr’s comments were widely criticised. (Source: Getty Images)
“Wanting to cure autism implies that our way of being is wrong, and it isn’t,” said fellow star Dani Bowman to NewsRoom.
“I have a job, and I do pay taxes. I’ve dated, and I have a Masters’ degree.”
Jones also told PEOPLE that RFK Jr shouldn’t make sweeping statements on the autistic experience.
“One should not apply a blanket approach or make generalized presumptions about people who have autism,” Jones told the outlet.
“I have a permanent 40-hour per week job with benefits, which I have held steadily since 2017 and am in no danger of losing. I can operate a vehicle with no issues. I pay all of my own expenses.
“Other than the fact that I live with my parents still, I believe I’m doing quite a good job being self-sufficient.”
Jones described RFK Jr’s comments as “offensive”. (Source: Getty Images)
Other stars of the show, including Jones’ girlfriend Shelley Wolfe, who he met on the show’s third season, spoke out against RFK Jr’s comments.
“Autistic people are not broken. They just think differently,” she said in a TikTok.
“Autism has definitely made my life harder, but it’s not something we should be told that we need to prevent. It should be something we should accept.”
Love on the Spectrum season three is currently streaming on Netflix.
