Charlie Keeble, 39, on why he fights the good fight and how being neurodiverse connects him to Jews
Long an avid politics geek, my political activism began in the lead up to the general election in 2015. I became involved in campaigning with my local Conservative Party and I started to comment on news stories on social media. Meanwhile, I was reading a lot about autism, and I was surprised how under-represented neurodiversity was in politics.
I know what it is like to be targeted for who you are and I refuse to stand by while others face the same
I also began to read about how much Jewish people have done for autism and disability civil rights. Within the book, NeuroTribes, by Steve Silberman, I found many fascinating connections between Jewish people and neurodiversity. I learnt about figures such as Dr Ludwig Guttmann, a German Jewish refugee who founded the Paralympic Games, and Leo Kanner, a Jewish psychologist who was among the first to diagnose autism. These stories inspired me. Later, I also discovered that in some sections of Israeli society, autistic people are seen as the closest beings to God, and some Jewish traditions view neurodiverse individuals as possessing high souls. That inclusion and respect made me feel connected to Jewish culture.
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