Knowledge pioneered by tojisha:From the perspective of an autistic person

Abstract

Since childhood, I have been unable to share my experiences with those around me and lived in chaos. With a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder, I recognized myself as a member of a minority group and gained connections to minority communities. On the other hand, I also experienced the unfairness of being overly blamed for miscommunication. Therefore, based on the social model of disability, I conducted tojisha-kenkyu in order to explore my characteristics and the conditions of the environment that suited those characteristics. As a result, I was able to gain knowledge about my characteristics behind communication difficulties and how to guarantee informational accommodation appropriate for these characteristics. Although this knowledge improved my current wellbeing, the traumatic memory of the past remained afterwards, and I was unable to integrate my present and past selves. However, the knowledge from others who knew the past gave meaning to such memories and enabled me to construct an integrated self-narrative. The above process of tojisha-kenkyu brought about knowledge that made it possible to connect with the body, the world, and the past, but this knowledge was at the individual level. It was only by acquiring historical knowledge that enabled me to situate my own tojisha-kenkyu in the genealogy of the knowledge of tojishas, which I received from my past peers, updated and transferred to my subsequent peers, that I was able to challenge the exclusive society.