"Never Hold a Job, Never Go on a Date": RFK Jr.'s Cruel Autism Comments Ignite Fierce Backlash

Yesterday, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. stepped up to a podium to discuss the CDC's latest autism prevalence report (showing an increase to 1 in 31 children). Instead of offering support, nuance, or a commitment to evidence-based services, he unleashed a torrent of remarks so breathtakingly ignorant and offensive that the backlash today, Thursday, April 17th, has been swift, furious, and utterly deserved.

While doubling down on his scientifically debunked crusade to find the single "environmental toxin" supposedly causing an autism "epidemic" (a promise he bafflingly thinks HHS can fulfill by September), Kennedy decided to paint a picture of what life is apparently like for autistic individuals. And folks, it was bleak.

According to multiple reports citing his press conference remarks, Kennedy described autistic children as individuals who are "suffering," claiming they "will never pay taxes, they'll never hold a job, they'll never play baseball, they'll never write a poem. They'll never go out on a date. Many of them will never use a toilet unassisted."

Let those words sink in. The Secretary of Health and Human Services essentially wrote off millions of Americans, reducing the diverse autism spectrum to a list of things he assumes they can never do.

The reaction? An immediate explosion of outrage from people who actually understand autism. Autism advocacy groups, scientists, parents of autistic children (including celebrities like Rosie O'Donnell and Holly Robinson Peete), and autistic individuals themselves took to social media and news outlets to condemn Kennedy's comments as "cruel," "dehumanizing," "harmful," "misleading," and "completely out of touch."

As many pointed out, Kennedy's bleak pronouncements are demonstrably false. Autism is a spectrum. Many autistic people do pay taxes, hold jobs (often excelling in fields requiring intense focus), play sports, write poetry, fall in love, date, get married, and live independent, fulfilling lives. Others may require significant support throughout their lives, but reducing their existence to a list of perceived deficits is profoundly insulting and damaging.

One user on X summed up the feeling perfectly: "Autistic people pay taxes. Autistic people work. Autistic people fall in love. RFK Jr. just doesn't see them as human. That's the problem." Another parent wrote, "My daughter with ASD plays the violin, went to college, works and pays taxes, drives, and is one of the most loving people you'll ever meet... She is my sunshine and I wouldn't change a thing about her."

Major organizations like the Autism Society of America blasted Kennedy's "epidemic" rhetoric and his focus on finding a simplistic "cause" to eliminate, stating it perpetuates "harmful stigma" and distracts from the community's actual needs: "access to quality care, early intervention, adult services, inclusive education, and long-term supports." They emphasized that rising prevalence numbers reflect diagnostic progress and an urgent need for support, not an "epidemic" to be cured by eliminating supposed "toxins."

This isn't just a gaffe; it's the nation's top health official actively promoting harmful stereotypes and demonstrating a profound lack of understanding (or empathy) regarding a significant neurodevelopmental difference. It comes on the heels of his scientifically unsupported attacks on vaccines and fluoride, and whistleblower allegations that his team tried to gain editable access to vaccine safety data. It paints a deeply disturbing picture of the priorities and competence at the helm of HHS.

What does it say when the person in charge of national health policy seems more interested in peddling fear and misinformation based on personal crusades than in supporting the well-being and dignity of millions of Americans? It says we've got a serious WTF problem at the Department of Health and Human Services.

Sources:

• People. "RFK Jr. Says People with Autism 'Will Never Pay Taxes, Hold a Job, Go on a Date,' Sparking Fierce Backlash." April 17, 2025.

• The Times of India. "RFK Jr. faces massive backlash as his comments on autism go viral! Here's what he said." April 17, 2025.

• WGBH. "RFK seeks the 'environmental' cause of autism. Scientists say it's not that simple." April 16, 2025.

• Healthcare Innovation. "RFK Jr.: Autism Is an Epidemic." April 16, 2025.