‘Love on the Spectrum’ ‘s James B. Jones Slams RFK Jr.’s ‘Flagrantly False’ Autism Remarks (Unique)

• James B. Jones responds to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s feedback about autism in an unique interview with PEOPLE
• The Love on the Spectrum star slams Kennedy’s generalizations about autism
• He shares what he finally would need individuals to find out about autism

For James B. Jones, one of many stars of Netflix’s hit present Love on the Spectrum, Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s feedback about autism are nothing to take flippantly.

James, who made issues official together with his girlfriend, Shelley Wolfe, on the present’s season 3 finale, tells PEOPLE that after the secretary of well being and human companies made derogatory remarks about autism throughout his first press convention together with his new title, he was “not notably happy.”

“They clearly had been constructed from a place of utmost ignorance. Autism manifests itself otherwise in each particular person. No two individuals who have it are precisely the identical,” James says, calling Kennedy’s remarks “flagrantly false.”

In his controversial remarks, which had been made in response to a brand new research by the CDC that discovered 3% of kids within the U.S. have autism, Kennedy made sweeping claims in regards to the livelihood of individuals with autism.

“These are youngsters who won’t ever pay taxes. They will by no means maintain a job. They will by no means play baseball. They will by no means write a poem. They will by no means exit on a date. Lots of them won’t ever use a bathroom unassisted,” he mentioned.

In response, James tells PEOPLE that “one shouldn’t apply a blanket method or make generalized presumptions about individuals who have autism.”

Whereas he admits that it took “barely longer” to develop his social abilities, and it was one thing he needed to “work more durable” and “put forth larger effort in growing and honing,” he has succeeded in doing so.

“I’ve a everlasting 40-hour per week job with advantages, which I’ve held steadily since 2017 and am in no hazard of shedding. I can function a car with no points. I pay all of my very own bills,” he shares.

“Aside from the truth that I dwell with my dad and mom nonetheless, I consider I am doing fairly job being self-sufficient. And the truth that I don’t but have my very own home at age 37 is because of elements which can be past my management,” says James, who notes that he additionally graduated from faculty with a 3.85 GPA.

“I did very properly in that. So sure, I’ve not struggled academically in any respect. I pay my payments. I pay my taxes. I drive a automobile,” he says.

“Look the place I’m now. I’m a star of a serious Netflix present. I’ve an enormous relationship with a girl whom I really like very a lot, who loves me very a lot, and the whole lot’s going nice for me in my life proper now,” continues James.

Additional denouncing Kennedy’s feedback, James says that “it’s not that there are extra individuals with autism, it’s that docs have change into extra expert in figuring out traits of autism, and that society has change into extra accepting of autism general.”

“I might hate to see all that progress be misplaced,” he says.

Nonetheless, he acknowledges that “sadly, there are nonetheless some individuals who don’t have an intensive understanding of those that are completely different from themselves.”

He considers himself “very lucky” that “nearly all of individuals whom I’ve met perceive autism or a minimum of make an effort to know it.”

When requested what he finally desires individuals to find out about autism, James says, “We have to be accepting of one another’s variations and perceive that no two individuals ever have the identical expertise.”

“The truth that somebody’s completely different from oneself is just not essentially a nasty factor and doesn’t essentially make them a nasty particular person,” he provides. “So we have to be affected person and understanding of one another.”

By no means miss a narrative — join PEOPLE’s free day by day publication to remain up-to-date on one of the best of what PEOPLE has to supply​​, from superstar information to forcing human curiosity tales.

Love on the Spectrum season 3 is streaming on Netflix.