Last semester, I wrote about the Trump administration’s misinformation regarding autism. Now, I’m facing déjà vu as I write about RFK Jr. and Trump’s deceptive claim that Tylenol taken during pregnancy causes autism in children.
These claims unfairly blame mothers — arguably even more so than the medications themselves — for giving their children a neurological condition that simply is not tied to these actions taken during pregnancy. Women are now told to ignore their health and well-being throughout pregnancy to defend themselves from criticism.
Let’s take a closer look at the targeted language Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. spewed following Trump’s declaration of the link between autism and Tylenol taken during pregnancy on Sept. 22. Within the first five seconds of this clip from PBS News Hour, RFK Jr. opens by criticizing how Dr. Michelle Vu, a second-year fellow in the Division of Reproductive Endocrinology & Infertility at Columbia University, took Tylenol while pregnant. He claimed she did so only to spite Trump, arguing that she is intentionally harming the baby that he incorrectly states is “in her placenta.”
Despite her medical knowledge and understanding of her own body, RFK Jr. states that her actions are attributable to “Trump Derangement Syndrome,” claiming Dr. Vu’s hatred for Trump allowed her to “overwhelm millions of years of maternal instinct,” deliberately hurting her unborn baby only to get back at him.
As a medical professional, Dr. Vu knows that taking Tylenol — the only recommended over-the-counter painkiller during pregnancy — is safe. RFK Jr.’s accusatory statements purposefully divert attention from Vu’s intelligence and autonomy. Instead, RFK Jr. aims to invalidate her expertise and claim the administration knows more than any mother could about her baby, which alarmingly resembles the ties the current administration has to limiting women’s bodily autonomy and choice in medical situations.
Although RFK Jr. acknowledges that his claims are not backed by evidence, he states that the administration will “make the proof,” hinting at the future possibility of misinformation or fabricated conclusive studies. This administration has already faced numerous accusations of creating false appearances, and in my view, this incident serves as a telling Freudian slip.
When speaking directly to women and mothers, RFK Jr.’s choice of words is even more telling. RFK Jr. describes women as behaving pathologically, which means “caused by, indicative of, or involving disease” and “evidencing a mentally disturbed condition,” according to Dictionary.com. With phrasing like this, RFK Jr. structures his point to portray women as either crazy or lacking instinctive judgment for taking acetaminophen while pregnant.
Statements like these are exactly why we cannot rely on politicians who have no scientific or medical training or experience in motherhood to direct our understanding of what autism is or how it originates. In fact, the House Appropriations Committee and Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Subcommittee Ranking Member Rep. Rosa DeLauro has even called for RFK Jr. to be fired, citing his lack of scientific or medical expertise. Specifically, she stated that RFK Jr. promotes “dangerous and deadly conspiracies” and “spreads lies and misinformation.”
Despite what the administration says, expecting mothers are told by their doctors that “when you’re pregnant, it’s riskier to have an untreated fever than it is to take acetaminophen, and with some conditions, taking limited amounts of acetaminophen might actually be your safest bet,” according to a doctor from the Cleveland Clinic.
Clearly, this administration has shifted some of its focus from distrusting science to distrusting women. Current leaders divide women into two categories: either they don’t care about the health of their children, or they are so liberal, anti-Republican and anti-Trump that they would intentionally harm their babies to go against the administration.
But this doesn’t just affect women who oppose the current administration. This would even affect conservative women who now have to choose between criticism and exclusion from their political party and knowingly ignoring advice given to them by their doctors.
The desire of Republicans to control women’s health and autonomy, including pregnancy, is a key factor as to why Republican leadership cares so much about finding new origins to autism — not an actual concern for those with autism. In my opinion, if the current administration “finds” that autism can be blamed on women who take medication and vaccinate their children, there would be a greater push to monitor pregnant women, and the general acceptance of neurodivergence would decline as it becomes viewed as “preventable.”
In recent years, it has become evident that the Conservative Party fears losing its power to the acceptance of “woke” behaviors, such as understanding neurodivergence and female inclusion in education and the workforce. The idea of “preventable neurodivergence” would elevate the power that neurotypical men have held for centuries.
It is this fear that I believe is pushing the current administration to pursue a “nonwoke” response to the mere existence of neurodivergence, blaming mothers for essentially giving their children autism to make women appear irresponsible and unintelligent. Meanwhile, autism is made out to be seemingly impossible to have without influence, refuting years of “woke” research proving its inheritability and necessary acceptance.
We must acknowledge the role that this administration has played in pushing traditional values and agendas that disproportionately affect women and devalue mothers’ ability to understand their own bodies and their families’ needs. We must remain skeptical of this administration’s advice, claims and research, and continue to compare them with progressive studies and consistent results.
Merrigan Butcher is a sophomore majoring in anthropology.
Views expressed in the opinions pages represent the opinions of the columnists. The only piece that represents the view of the Pipe Dream Editorial Board is the Staff Editorial.