Elon Musk Is a Hero—but Not for the Reason You Think | Opinion

Time Magazine announced this week that Elon Musk, the Tesla/SpaceX CEO and world's richest man, was their pick for person of the year.

The decision was not uncontroversial. Some called out Musk's privilege ("Sometimes I forget that Elon Musk has always been a privileged rich kid") while others suggested alternative picks (Officer Eugene Goodman, who stopped the January 6 rioters, was popular, as were the inventors of the vaccine) and others still brought up the fact that America's schoolchildren might have been more apt, given all they had suffered.

The controversy evolved further after Musk took the opportunity the day after the announcement to mock Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, calling her "Senator Karen" after Warren tweeted that Musk didn't pay enough in taxes and comparing her to an angry mother.

But Time's decision to put Musk on the cover was historic for a reason no one has yet mentioned—one that is very specific and very personal for me: Musk has autism. And for those of us with autism or who are neurodivergent in other ways, Elon Musk is a hero in whom we can see ourselves.

Musk first mentioned his autism a few months ago while hosting Saturday Night Live. "I'm actually making history tonight as the first person with Aspergers to host SNL," Musk said during his opening monologue.

Asperger's Syndrome is a form of autism and one I know well, because I, too, have Aspergers. And it meant the world to me to learn that a superstar like Elon Musk has the same syndrome.

People with Aspergers have a hard time getting ahead in life. The unemployment rate for people living with autism is higher than the average, and our life expectancy is lower than that of the general population.

Like Musk, I am one of the lucky ones. I have a university degree and stable employment. But many more people with autism live challenging, difficult lives than are billionaires.

Musk isn't just the world's richest man, though. He's a brilliant inventor. And he did the impossible: He made electric cars cool. And he made space travel exciting again.

This is not to say there is no room for criticism. We can ask what is the utility of mocking a senator calling for higher taxes on the rich. We can be critical of Tesla's business model, too, which has relied on a lot of subsidies from the government. We can ask if Tesla cars will be able to be mass-marketed and accessible to middle-class families, and whether the batteries for electric cars will still pollute the air.

We can also point out that Musk has gone above and beyond in placating China to gain access to the Chinese market, even defending China's tough data laws that have been used to surveil Chinese citizens.

But we should also give credit where credit is due: Elon Musk made something as obtuse as electric cars something into with an edge. He turned electric cars from the Trabant into the Lamborghini.

And if I'm being honest, it seems to me that that's probably something only a neurodivergent person could do. It's the kind of thing that someone who names his child X Æ A-Xii would do.

What makes Elon Musk great in other words is not separate from what makes him a hero for many of us in the neurodivergent community. It's deeply tied to it.

That's why I'm glad Time Magazine nominated Musk as their 2021 person of the year. In so doing, they made him the living proof that everything is possible in this world, even if you have a neurological condition like I have, with all the blessings and shortfalls associated with it.

Maybe we each have a little Elon Musk in us. Time's recognition made it that much easier to think we do, and to be excited about what that might entail.

Mathieu Vaillancourt is a writer. He holds a degree in International Development and Globalization.

The views in this article are the writer's own.