Comment by pfisherman
2 years ago
Read the details of the case.
Did they diagnose people with high functioning autism back in the 60s and 70s? Was Asperger’s even refinished as a thing back then? I don’t know for sure that he got a diagnosis. But was pretty obvious to all in the neighborhood in retrospect.
Anyway, I shared my perspective as someone who was a little closer to the whole episode than most. Perhaps there are some details in there that did not make the Wikipedia page. You are free to discount it or not. Ain’t a thang to me.
Diagnosed Aspie here. No, they did not diagnose high functioning autism back then, at least in English speaking countries. The first English translation of Dr Asperger's research appeared in the 80s. That's when they first coined the terms "Asperger syndrome", "autism spectrum", etc. These didn't become mainstream ideas until the 90s.
It should also be noted that Asperger syndrome as a diagnosis was removed from the DSM in 2013, and Asperger himself has fallen out of favor with the autistic community in recent years due to his connections to the Nazi eugenics regime.