Were RFK’s Comments On Autism REALLY Something To Be Outraged By?

By now, you’ve probably seen the viral clips of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaking candidly about the devastating impact of profound autism. His actual words? “Autism destroys family. And more importantly, it destroys our greatest resource, our children… These are kids who will never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job… many of them will never use a toilet unassisted.” He wasn’t mocking or dismissing autistic people—he was highlighting the tragic reality for families raising children with the most severe forms of autism.

But naturally, the internet lit its hair on fire. Influencers rushed to post heartwarming stories of their brilliant, quirky, high-functioning autistic children, as if RFK was talking about them. He wasn’t. And it doesn’t take a PhD in nuance to understand the difference. But in today’s outrage Olympics, it’s not about truth—it’s about who can center themselves the fastest.

Here’s the irony: the same people scolding RFK for being “insensitive” are often the ones who would terminate a pregnancy for far less severe conditions. They champion “awareness,” but show zero curiosity about why autism diagnoses have skyrocketed in recent decades. They say every life is valuable—until it’s inconvenient. So which is it?

Let’s be real. If RFK had said autism isn’t a big deal, they’d scream that he was minimizing the massive resources required to support autistic kids. If he says it’s a crisis, he’s “ableist.” It’s exhausting. These people aren’t advocates—they’re just addicted to being mad.

RFK wasn’t attacking autistic people. He was telling the truth about the heartbreaking burden of profound autism—something too few politicians have the guts to do. And that, not his words, is what really threatens the outrage brigade.