No one truly knows what it's like to live with autism unless they are autistic.

Yet, so many people have the audacity to make unfair stereotypes and assumptions about autism. Yes, this happens with many things, but it is time for this to stop.

Two of my brothers drive me crazy with snide and rude comments about autism. They call me stupid and retarded, and equate autism to a lack of intelligence in their minds, while forming extremely ignorant opinions.

Here's something everyone should know:

1. Autism does not make anyone who has it stupid. Like non-autistic people, autistic people have a different IQs. Some people have higher IQs, some have average IQs, and some have lower IQs.

2. The lack of sufficient verbal communication and understanding of social cues does not mean that an autistic person is stupid.

3. Each symptom of autism is on its own spectrum. That means there are people who can mask easily because they are higher functioning in terms of communication but lower functioning in terms or sensory issues, autistic people who are low functioning in communication but higher functioning in sensory issues, just to name some examples. Not a single autistic person displays the same amount or same concentration of symptoms.

4. Autistic people are just as deserving of love and respect as non-autistic people.