This one’s a bit heavy, prepare yourselves. I am not the first one to experience this problem, and I certainly won’t be the last… bullying.
People of all ages in all sorts of interesting communities face misconceptions developed just to belittle them and their interests. Bullying is intolerance, and in many cases this intolerance stems from misconceptions. In this way the issue of bullying is an issue in the lack of communication between a community and the general public.
Before we get to cubing let’s take a look at some other examples of misconceptions about niche communities targeted by bullies to get a sense of what techniques these individuals use to attack a community.
I want to preface this by saying that none of these opinions are shared by me and many of them can be considered offensive and upsetting. Feel free to skip to the discussion of cubing if this sounds like something you do not want to read.
E-sports
Pro gamers hear the same criticism over and over again, mostly concerning how what they do is not a sport and they waste their time on meaningless games. Let’s play a quick game called Who Said This, a 10-year-old on a YouTube Comment or a Grown Man?!?!!
“eSports is for booger eaters.”
SURVEY SAYS:
Yep. That’s a grown man with his own sports podacst. He also says gamers have social anxiety, never go outside, and live in their parents house. What a class act. It brings me physical pain to watch that clip.
WNBA
The Women’s National Basketball Association has been criticized for its entire existence. Despite support from nearly every important male basketball talent in the game, fans of basketball still hold misconceptions about the WNBA that they use to target that community.
You don’t have to look further than the comment section of that video to find some examples:
“Women Not Being Attractive”
“I can’t wait till the-real basketballers play”
Another common joke is to is to refer to a WNBA player’s “points per game” stat as “sandwiches per game,” which to me is a discouraging sign that maybe we haven’t made as much progress as we thought with gender equality in this country.
Clearly the stereotype latched onto by these individuals relates to gender roles. Women are not “supposed” to be athletic. They are “supposed” to be moms with domestic roles that are focused on their looks.
Cubing
We see from the e-sports and WNBA communities that stereotypes are drawn on in order to develop misconceptions that are used to attack that group. What about in cubing?
The stereotypical misconception of a cuber is somewhat similar to that of the pro gamer. We are often perceived to waste our time on a meaningless toy. We’re nerds without social skills living in our mom’s house. The only difference from gaming that we have is that cubing is viewed as eccentric and unique, unlike the common video game.
So the conclusion for some becomes: gaming is to a social reclusivity, as cubing is to autism.
Of course this stereotype stems from Savant Syndrome, where particular autistic individuals demonstrate amazing abilities in very specific niche hobbies.
First let’s dispel this myth that leads to the conclusion of autism:
- Cubing is practical in that it is a hobby; everyone needs a hobby. Yes, it can teach you some basic things about memorizing or fine motor skills, but more importantly it challenges the individual’s focus. Cubing teaches discipline, self-improvement, and social skills, which leads us into…
- Cubers are social. A cubing competition is probably the most social event I’ve ever been to in my life, and the community is so accepting a tight-knit that it is a certainty that you will develop life long friendships if you start.
- You do not need to be a savant to solve a Rubik’s cube.
- Are we all nerds? Lets just say that a lot of cubers are academically oriented, but certainly not all.
All it took was understanding of the community, and the autism stereotype was completely debunked. While I’m not a pro gamer or WNBA player, I can guarantee that the same issue exists. The issue is communication.
So while we probably won’t be able to change the minds of the hard-headed intolerant bullies of YouTube, better communication about cubing can help stop the portrayal of cubers as strange social outcasts, ultimately helping draw in new members to the community.
As someone who has been on the other side of bullying, especially given my online presence in cubing, I can offer this advice. Remember that these bullies are often compensating for a lack of intelligence, self esteem, or general direction in life. I honestly hope that they find that direction; maybe they should pick up a hobby, I hear cubing is great.
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An interesting note I wanted to add is the story of Max Park, arguably one of the best cubers on the planet. He also just so happens to have autism. The documentary Why We Cube by Chris Olsen not only shows an accurate picture of cubing for those unfamiliar with the hobby, but it dissects the story of 4 cubers and how the Rubik’s Cube affected their lives. It’s interesting to hear how cubing has brought Max out of his social shell, and how cubing, contrary to the stereotype discussed in this blog, can help atypical individuals with autism, ADHD, and OCD among other things.
Emily Ciganik
I really appreciate the opening of this blog entry because those misconceptions you talk about are dangerous and hurtful, and I’m glad you took the time to talk about them. That being said, I think your blog is so neat! Your passion is evident, and that’s what makes it so interesting.
Matthew Powell
As someone who has followed and attended professional eSports events, I am fully aware of the attitude towards it that some people have. I have met people like the man in the video you included. I find that these are often older sports-oriented white men who get a kick out of mocking something that they do not fundamentally understand. It really just is them being frustrated with a changing world. We should not pay much attention to these people, as their ideas will die with them as the world changes and moves on.
John Sanderson
I completely disagree. I myself have meet many a cubers who have in fact caught autism by participating in this meaningless activity.
Veikko Sorsa
1. It is not meaningless, although your comment is.
2. Autism is not caught like covid.
3. There is nothing wrong with being autistic anyways.
Juliette Sébastien
Though inaccurate and problematic, the statement in the title also holds some level of truth. I do not aim to contradict you and am on board with the point you are trying to get across, but I would just like to add some details and perhaps mitigate it to a degree. One thing I am convinced of, is that there is a higher proportion of autistic people in the cubing community than in the general population. It might not be the most helpful sample size, but to my knowledge, as many as 4 people in the top 40 3×3 solvers are diagnosed autistic (including myself). It is 10%, thus 10 times more than the number estimated for the general population. An explanation for this might be that cubing is a very convenient special interest for autistic — or otherwise neurodivergent — people, because, among other things, it is an inexhaustible source of intellectual and physical stimulation and fulfilment, and, as you highlighted with Max’s case, is an easy(/ier) way into socializing and making friends, through cubing competitions and such. On a final note, as far as I agree with the unhelpful nature of the nerdy/reclusive/math genius stereotype regarding cubers, I don’t think autistic people should be equated to such a thing either. I don’t think you exactly meant to conflate autistic people with this image, but it may come across that way when reading. This is a loaded topic regardless and I find you handled it well.
Adam Vetser
Thank you for this really nuanced take Juliette. I was honored to see that I received input from such a prominent member of the cubing community. Before I comment I would like to note there there is a lot that I would likely write differently today compared to what an 18 year old Adam ultimately wrote to fulfill a school assignment. Not to say I didn’t care about the topic then or now. I just look back with all the life experience I’ve had through college, and can’t help but question the decision to voluntarily handle such an important and sensitive topic so publicly (not to mention I probably wrote this rushed right before the deadline as I handle most of my assignments). As you have pointed out, understanding that there may be a higher proportion of neurodivergent people in this hobby is important for understanding what makes cubing and its community so great. Recognizing that fact does nothing to undermine that message that assuming someone is or isn’t neurodivergent based on their hobby is problematic. Thank you for your note on conflating autism with certain stereotypes. You’re right that it wasn’t my intention to do this, but I feel that I likely missed the mark there in communication (which is ironic since it was what I was trying to preach). I’m not quite sure why this blog post is getting some attention all of a sudden 4 years later, but I’ll certainly direct anyone who asks or talks to me about this topic to your comments as I have found them very insightful. Thanks!