Surplus to requirements? That's #MARGgoals

Author: Hayley Morgan (MARG co-founder, social media manager)

Not many collectives daydream about not needing to exist. Fear not, MARG are not having an existential crisis and we aren't wallowing in ennui- we are just as determined and passionate as ever! In a recent meeting, thoughts turned to musing about how in ideal world MARG wouldn't need to exist. Yep, you read correctly and nope, it doesn't mean we don't love what we do. But, chatting amongst ourselves with our swirling, overwhelming thoughts and experiences of autistic pregnancy and birth, some MARG members posed the idea that in an ideal (neuro-affirming) world, we wouldn't have a need to exist at all.

Assembling like a titan of justice and knowledge, MARG members have turned their experiences and skills into tangible improvements for autistic people in maternity settings. However, the bigger picture of why we need to be such unrelenting advocates for equity of care doesn't slip far from our minds. Our collective MARG mindset (or MegaOmniBrain if we continue with the superhero theme) carries with it a weight of both knowledge and responsibility throughout or daily lives, not just our fancy conference talks. Like many Autistic people, MARG members are intensely justice-orientated. But the unsettling reality of not 'gettings things right' is even more ever-present.

Not hitting a sales target or juggling customer needs could mean a hard day at the office for many of us- however, our idea of success can sometimes look like working to secure basic Human Rights for people with brains like ours. Improving equity of access to quality maternity care for Autistic people is imperative to us, but the fight we have chosen means that we often meet with those who don't quite share our views. While we are so encouraged by the allies and friends we have made since founding MARG, we are all too aware that sometimes we are preaching to the choir.

We also need to be able to reach the Powers That Be that don't know why MARG would need to exist in the first place. Getting these people, policies or organisations on board to help us meet our objective could fast-track our route to redundancy.

Could you help MARG cease to be needed?

Do you know of places or networks that could use our knowledge and skills to reach the unreachable?

Join us in the discussion by using the hashtag #MARGgoals , commenting on this post or emailing us with your thoughts.