Luigi, Trains and Anime

Super Mario Sunshine splash page from a 2002 issue of the Nintendo Dream magazine.

I've been a Moonwalker for a decade now since 2008 and have been in the Moonwalkers fandom for quite a while now, and I want to say just how much I truly appreciate all of you for providing a safe space for me and MJ fans everywhere. I'm extremely thankful for all of you.

So with that out of the way, I'm just gonna get right to the main point and say that I wholeheartedly support the theory of MJ possibly being autistic and neurodivergent.

Because seriously, everything about MJ--his quirks, his tics, his eccentricities, his razor sharp eye for the most meticulous details in everything from his dancing and choreography to his music and sound to his visuals, to his overall artistic vision, to his intelligent innovation in his artistry, etc. screams autistic.

Plus there was MJ's adamance on perfecting every single thing he did, his hyperfixation on Peter Pan and Neverland, his bluntness and hilarious pattern of letting his intrusive thoughts win most of the time lol. Seriously, my autistic-dar is sounding off!

Then, like I said before, I myself am autistic and have displayed many of these traits before and plus my personality is similar to MJ's, so I see a lot of myself in him (and I have some of the same hyperfixations as he did!).

And finally, to illustrate my main point: while it won't ever be entirely clear if and whether MJ was autistic as he's no longer here, bringing up the possibility of MJ being autistic shouldn't be dismissed or looked at negatively.

Now this part I'm addressing mainly to some fans that have reacted negatively with hostility to this theory, which disappoints me as an autistic moonwalker, as such negativity and hostility is rooted in ignorance, ableism, autiphobia and stigma that's harmful.

I understand that everybody's protective of MJ's character, legacy and memory due to how horribly the media and tabloids treated him and the many hateful narratives they push about him. But mentioning the possibility of MJ being autistic is not one of them.

Autism and being autistic does not mean dumb, slow, stupid or weak, and being seen as autistic is not an insult or something to treat as shameful, embarassing, offensive or something to hide out of embarassment. So don't treat it like it is.

All of these notions are rooted in ignorance, falsely misconceived notions and lack of education at best and hateful ableism, bigotry and prejudice at worst, which further fuel stigma and all of which need to be dismantled. Especially in black communities.

If anything, it's all the more reason why MJ's possible autism should be talked about as it's an even sadder and more damning indictment of the media and tabloids' cruelty towards MJ, and much of that cruelty being rooted in racism and autiphobic ableism--which in turn makes MJ's story and the severity of his trauma and suffering from the abuse others inflicted on him even more heartbreaking, especially as that in turn parallels how many autistics face that exact same trauma from bullying, discrimination and abuse from others just for being different--and this needs to be discussed regarding how these systemic forms of stigma, prejudice, bigotry and ignorance harms and affects autistic folks and especially black and brown autistic folks of color. And as Moonwalkers who've become increasingly aware of the ableism fueling the media's cruelty towards MJ for his disabilities, we should know better than to continue that cycle of ignorance, prejudice and stigma.

So I wanna say this as a word of admonishment to other Moonwalkers: how you react to somebody mentioning the probability of MJ being autistic reflects how you yourself feel about autistic folks like me and autism as a whole.

So it's high time to unlearn and dismantle the mentalities of ableism and autiphobia in a casteist, discriminatory and ableist world that refuses to accomodate, and less so with black and brown autistic folks of color.

And like it or not, autistic liberation and black liberation are deeply tied to each other, just like civil rights for the chronically ill and physically disabled and civil rights for black people are tied to each other. And all of these things are at the heart of Michael's story.

So the fight to recognize MJ's struggles as a chronically ill, physically disabled and undiagnosed autistic black man and all of the bullying, racism, ableism, autiphobia, prejudice, stigma and discrimination that came with it must become a fight for the rights of those like him. And in order for that stigma and prejudice to be erased and unlearned, it starts with you and me.

So be cognizant of how you react to anyone that brings up the theory of MJ's possible autism. Because it'll reflect how you ultimately feel about autistic folks like me and whether you truly care about MJ and honoring his memory.

And any autistic Moonwalkers such as myself that see myself in him and now find deeper resonance with him and his work and who he was as an individual are watching.

Yes I definitely do agree the Michael has undiagnosed autism. When I saw the Michael movie back in April and how he was portrayed in terms of personality and his way of seeing the world, his hyperfixation with Disney and animals, I had autism thoughts at the back of my mind because if I say it, I might get bashed by other Mj fans. Until the next day when my mum watch it (she works for an autism organisation in my local area and works with neurodivergent children) that she also thought Michael was autistic and then I was able to talk about it confidently and I was not the only one.

Because of the biopic, now more people have started to talk about Michael having autism because they felt that he was different and he shared a lot of common autistic traits and they relate to it.

The fans who have been not listening or even dismissed that goes to shows that ableism is still present (even more so now with the rise of the far right and stripping marginalised groups of their right to safety and understanding). Despite me seeing comments like, ‘’Michael, I wanna play twister with you’’ or ‘’gen z would have treated Michael better’’ etc, they would not do these things in real life, especially with a neurodivergent person, and it’s really telling that they don’t really care autistic people including myself as I am an autistic person.

Also, we must consider the full history of autism and how it affected people for generations with ableist policies and people from Michael’s generation we’re not able to get an analysis because of the stigma and lack of resources, understanding and empathy, especially among POC communities. I have been a Moonwalker fan since birth and I have been through a lot of ableism and discrimination personally, so I get really upset where I saw people bashing others just because they did an analysis on Michael and his undiagnosed autism on top of his vitiligo, lupus, his experiences with bullying by the media and the general public who refused to understand him.

… no but fr tho yall I LOST it when I finished this. I love this so freaking much, and I don’t say that often about my own art

Guess what new scam commentsss yay. 💀

(I just got fucking 5 of these in 1 post wtf) also idk if its a specific tag or something but I've only got them on my mizzyrainclouds blog tf

Ofc its scam and their accounts have been hacked and stuff so pls report them and any others

I've been getting it a lot and i had to block them