interview
According to Strack-Zimmermann’s statements
Autistic politician: “By the way, we are not without empathy”
Green Party MP Sabine Grützmacher: “Such ‘autistic traits’ are often very helpful at work”
© Ralf Joost/private
FDP politician Strack-Zimmermann has received a lot of criticism for a comment about Chancellor Scholz’s “autistic traits”. A person affected, who sits with her in the Bundestag, explains what bothers her most about the debate.
Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann is in the election campaign – as always, the defence politician is eloquent. But on Wednesday, the EU top candidate of the FDP missed the mark. In an interview, it accused the Chancellor of having “autistic traits” – “both in terms of his social contacts in politics and his inability to explain his actions to the citizens.”
In the meantime, Strack-Zimmermann has apologized to those affected, whom she said she had hurt with her “ill-considered comparison.” One of them is Sabine Grützmacher. The Green Party MP sits in the Bundestag together with Strack-Zimmermann. In an interview with the star The 38-year-old financial politician explains how she explains the statement, whether she accepts the apology – and what urgently needs to change.
Woman Grützmacher, what was your first thought when you read Ms. Strack-Zimmermann’s statement?
I thought: I’ll get my bingo card and tick off a box. Unfortunately, those affected can tell you all about incidents like this. Because I heard false and discriminatory portrayals of autistic people over and over again, I came out a few months ago. Before that, very few people knew that I was autistic. But I wanted to do something to counteract the false portrayals.
How do you explain Ms Strack-Zimmermann’s statement?
This certainly has something to do with thoughtlessness and existing stereotypes. We politicians are only human. But I think we have a special responsibility and should be more sensitive. All democratic parties, from the Left Party to the Union, have signed the code of conduct for respect in election campaigns. For me, this means that we all have to be aware that we are also further cementing certain stereotypes with language.
What bothers you most about the current debate?
That autism is – once again – seen as a cross-border insult. Some media outlets are now writing about an illness again. There is simply a lot of ignorance: it is a spectrum. There are autistic people in science, in the management levels of companies and even in the Bundestag. Such “autistic traits” are often very helpful at work, for example in my topics at the interface of finance and digitalization. Society should therefore see this as an advantage, not as an insult. I hope that many people use the debate to talk to autistic people and to find out more. By the way, we are not lacking in empathy, even if some of us admittedly do not have the best small talk skills.
Ms. Strack-Zimmermann has apologized to everyone affected for having “hurt people with autism with an ill-considered comparison.” Can you accept the apology?
I am not a fan of the term “autistic”, I am autistic. But yes, the apology is a start. In politics in particular, we have to admit that we are human and make mistakes. I would like Ms Strack-Zimmermann to use the excitement to support the community. This could turn into an opportunity: We could, for example, have a debate with those affected about the inadequate implementation of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Or about the untenable state of the high unemployment rate among autistic people, even though many of them can bring important resources to the job market.
What prejudices do you have to deal with in your everyday life?
After I came out, I heard comments like: “You don’t look autistic at all” or “But you can look people in the eye.” Prejudices against female autistics go both ways, because many women diagnosed late have gotten into the habit of so-called masking and don’t seem particularly “different” at first glance. The energy that this costs, however, is not visible. And I have also heard that I can’t be autistic because I don’t have some of the supposed characteristics.
Is this also a problem for your work as a parliamentarian in Berlin?
Discrimination and prejudice are just as much a problem for me as they are for all other discriminated people. It takes time and energy. And it is a matter of weighing up the extent to which you go public, because that also takes energy and makes you vulnerable. The attack on the Lebenshilfe shared accommodation in Mönchengladbach also shows that discrimination against people with disabilities is unfortunately a real danger.
What would you wish for?
I would like to see more talk with us instead of about us – this applies to all people with disabilities. Ideally, as Raúl Krauthausen said at re:publica: not without us at all. For autistic people in particular, I would like the women among us to become more visible, for there to be role models and for more awareness to be raised.
What should politicians do?
I have an idea: The Bundestag could invite Daniela Schreiter, author of the comic “Schattenspringer”, to a reading – a wonderful cartoonist who contributes a lot to understanding. Apart from that, there needs to be exchange with the community and real participation. I would like all politicians to support this. In times of growing right-wing extremism, we also need a strong alliance that stands up against discrimination, hatred and incitement.