ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the developing internet-based phenomenon of the autistic movement in Indonesia, from its beginnings as a parents' movement through to examples of how autistic individuals are voicing change for themselves. The research covers the neurodiversity movement, both its contribution to an understanding of autism in Indonesia and its promotion of internet-based advocacy, and how this might gradually change that country's perspective on disability from a medical model to a social one. The campaign was initiated by Autism Speaks, one of the largest autism advocacy groups in the United States, in order to spread the awareness of autism by lighting up buildings in blue. In the case of autism, a distinction found among high and low-functioning autism has meant a difference in the functionality of technology for those both groups. Traditionally, advocating for autism in Indonesia has mostly been advanced – in both online and offline media – by communities and groups made up of parents and health practitioners.
