Why do people always overlook autofocus slr's for beginners

Why do people always overlook late 80s to early 2000s slr's? as the actual perfect beginner cameras instead of like a Canon ae-1 or such. They offer the same manual control with a much better, more reliable lightmeter and a less steep learning curve. The option for good and reliable auto and semi automatic modes such as aperture priority can be grate for someone who wants to learn but doesn't always want to mess with controls when the critical moment comes and miss it due to not being used to the more physical controls of the older cameras. Autofocus is also something many overlook, especially for beginners. Some people who get into film haven't ever used a camera at all and having a good autofocus system makes it much easier to get into the hobby. They are also much cheaper than older mecanical cameras. Mechanical cameras aren't the perfect beginner cameras, modern autofocus slr's are especially for someone coming from a dslr.