Cartas de mães e pais de autistas ao Jornal do Brasil na década de 1980

Abstract

Este artigo analisa um conjunto de cartas escritas por mães e pais de autistas, publicadas no Jornal do Brasil na década de 1980. O trabalho busca contribuir, a partir de uma pesquisa documental realizada na imprensa periódica, com a ampliação de conhecimentos sobre aspectos relacionados à história do autismo no país. Objetiva demonstrar duas questões: que as correspondências publicadas no período expressaram variedade de posicionamentos em torno do entendimento do fenômeno do autismo; e que as cartas podem ser entendidas como expressões de advocacy de familiares interessados em ações de assistência aos autistas. Os resultados da pesquisa apontam para mães e pais transformando sua maternagem e paternagem em instrumento político.

Autismo, Narrativas Maternas e Ativismo dos Anos 1970 a 20081

“…Thus, the experience of Cleusa Barbosa Szabo (1988) is published in a context in which several subjects, including mothers and fathers of autistic children, entered the public sphere, initiating the process of politicizing motherhood/paternity in autism. 7 Among the works that deal with the history of autism in Brazil, we mention: the article Cartas de mães e pais de autistas ao Jornal do Brasil na década de 1980 (Letters from mothers and fathers of autistic people to Jornal do Brasil in the 1980s), written by Leandro and Lopes (2018); the book Pessoas muito especiais: a construção social do portador de deficiência e a reinvenção da família (Very special people: the social construction of the disabled and the reinvention of the family), written by Cavalcante (2003); and Lopes's (2019) doctoral dissertation, entitled Não existe mãe-geladeira: uma análise feminista da construção do ativismo de mães de autistas no Brasil (There is no refrigerator mother: a feminist analysis of the construction of activism by mothers of autistic children in Brazil (1940Brazil ( -2019.…”

“…With regard to Brazil, it is worth noting that, although there have been some publications -mainly in print media -on the subject since the 1950s (Lopes, 2019), autism as an object of political mobilization emerged in the 1980s, dating of this period the emergence of the first associations of mothers and fathers of autistic people in defense of the cause (Cavalcante, 2003;Leandro & Lopes, 2018;Lopes, 2019). Some examples are: the Associação de Amigos do Autista (AMA) -Association of Autistic Friends, created on August 8, 1983, in São Paulo; the Associação de Pais de Autistas do Rio de Janeiro (APARJ) -Association of Parents of Autistics of Rio de Janeiro, officially founded on July 17, 1985; and the Associação Terapêutica e Educacional para Crianças Autistas (ASTECA) -Therapeutic and Educational Association for Autistic Children, opened by family members of autistic children in the Federal District, in 1986(Cavalcante, 2003Leandro & Lopes, 2018;Lopes, 2019). Inspired by similar associations from other countries, these devices were intended to help family members, disseminate, share and produce information on the subject, in addition to demanding effective actions from the State.…”

“…It is at this moment that mothers and fathers of autistic people -either individually or through associations -used the media, mainly the printed one, to publicize their experiences and perceptions about autism and demand from the State public policies aimed at this public, being the main elements of their claims: the training of professionals, especially doctors, on the subject -since there were very few who knew the topic; and the criticism of the absence of qualified institutions to meet the demands of this public and the prejudice experienced by autistic people and their families (Leandro & Lopes, 2018;Lopes, 2019).…”

“…There is, in the field of studies on autism in Brazil, a gap about the history of the political mobilization of families in the realization of citizenship of autistic people in the country (Leandro & Lopes, 2018) and the role of mothers in the construction of this process 3 . Thus, this paper proposes to collaborate in filling this gap, addressing the history of activism in autism in Brazil from the 1970s to 2008, based on the analysis of two autobiographies: Autismo: depoimentos e informações (Autism: testimonials and information), written by Cleusa Barbosa Szabo, published by Edicon in 1988; and Um autista muito especial (A very special autistic), elaborated by Deusina Lopes da Cruz, in 2008, published by Mediação.…”

“…Regarding the works that address the relationship between autism and activism in Brazil, from a historical perspective, we highlight: Cavalcante (2003), who discusses the history of the creation of the Associação de Amigos do Autista (AMA) -Association of Autistic Friends, the first association of autistic mothers and fathers in Brazil;Leandro and Lopes (2018), who presented the claims of family members of autistic people, by sending letters to the Jornal do Brasil in the 1980s; and Lopes (2019), who analyzes the history of maternal activism in Brazil.4 In general, these theories can be divided as follows: psychoanalytic theories, psychological theories, neurological theories and social, cognitive and neuropsychological theories(Castela, 2013;Joseph, Soorya, & Thurm, 2016).…”