@admin I wanted to open a dialogue about flairs. Do you think it would be inappropriate for a user to have a flair that indicates they are on the autism spectrum, if they request it themselves?

I ask because I personally am and don't mind others knowing (because I don't consider it a negative).

At its best, I think this could help set correct expectations and de-stigmatize people like myself through safe self-disclosure and dialogue.

Of course, it could also be one more label with which to hurt someone if misused.

I welcome your thoughts.

🖥️ zetamacs

Jan 10 · 4 months ago · 👍 dragfyre

5 Comments ↓

🚀 stack · Jan 10 at 17:49:

That is a great idea!

🕹️ skyjake [...] · Jan 10 at 19:30:

I think that is a good use of the feature, although I'll want to tweak how such "elective" flairs get displayed. The current method shows the flair everywhere in the same way, and that may get too busy UI-wise. It should also be made clear that the label is self-selected, a sort of a badge of honor, instead of some warning label.

Don't forget that you can always include such details in your profile description, although those might easily go unnoticed by many during a discussion.

I have some ideas, let's see in v8.1.

🖥️ zetamacs [OP] · Jan 10 at 20:14:

@admin I appreciate the thoughtful answer.

I agree, there needs to be a clear distinction between this being some kind of "mark of shame" an admin can put on you, and how you self-identify. Maybe a positive framing like "Proudly on the spectrum" could make that clear, or some combination of that with an icon choice.

Of course, that applies equally well to other aspects of human identity, provided people aren't choosing clearly antagonistic flairs ("Proud to be KKK" is emphatically something I hope to never see!).

I'll look forward to seeing what you come up with.

Thanks for all you do!

🚀 stack · Jan 10 at 20:57:

I can already see that there are possible problems. In OP's case such a badge can add to the context of the message, and perhaps avoid needless friction. In other cases, the lack of context is good - knowing the writer's race or gender, for instance, ideally should not alter the meaning of a message (although I am sure some would disagree), and these 'tribe' badges could just stir up trouble. Also, you may not want the same badges in all the forums - I'd wear a '6502' badge on retrocomputing forums but not in other places, for instance...

🕹️ skyjake [...] · Jan 11 at 06:34:

@stack Yes, very good points.