#and the classism racism sexism etc etc we can go on for a while here | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

cowboypossume · 4 years

Text

so i reread keeper of the lost cities and here’s my fresh input:

a note before we begin: you know how people fake throw up at things on tik tok? this book is the reason i now unironically do that.

dex and fitz really have the enemies to lovers troupe going for them and i’m ok with it. i really am.

so do sophie and biana at the beginning but it fizzes out so a better description is enimies to friends to lovers

marhella and stina give me such power top energy i cannot express how much i think that contributes to people not liking them

speaking of stina i wish sophie didn’t just immediately hop onto the bandwagon of “oh she’s evil” without investing further, especially with how much she is written as a ‘good’ person (which i can and will defend to the day i die that good people don’t exist but that’s for a different day).

there’s way too much heteronormativity and Patriarchical Ideas mushed into the book. like three hole pages of a 488 page book of teenagers being like “oooooo girls like guys and guys like girls” only for della to join in. not to mention the amount of times keefe is the reason for those ideas because he’s teasing like “oh fitz has a girlfriend”

keefe and fitz didn’t have as many bonding moments™️ in this book as i remember, but they stil know each other really well, have comfortability around each other, and would make a 10/10 best friends to lovers troupe.

oh my god s o many crushes i swear. like two teenagers of the opposite gender really can’t not like each other apperantly

i miss read a line and really thought there was cannon sexism for me to do a whole ass rant about in the notes part of my analyzation but n o p e

but we do have classism, sexist stereotypes, and the fact that there’s been SO many characters who’ve spoken and ✨🌺far too many of them are white🌺✨

oh also: no ones disabled. which annoys me because their society is described as ‘euptopic’ almost implying that it’s something that makes people problematic, which,,,, no

ok a side note on the society, i understand that the story’s message (kinda) is that things that seem perfect are probably deeply flawed, but something tergan said stuck with me. on a page i can’t remember at the moment he says something like “[the black swan exists] in a society that doesn’t have rebels”, which it suck with me bc that’s boarderline dystopic if it’s not there already. it’s one thing for laws not to be broken, but when you think your society is so perfect despite it having obvious flaws and you think that no one rebels, then i really hate to break it to you, you have a massive rebellion about to occur; it’s just scented as foul under your resplendent nose.

please stop flirting. i get its part of teenagers being teens but i swear if i read “s/he realeased a breath” or “their heart fluttered” or literally ANYTHING like that god no.

yall. i missed dex. he actually has more role in this book than ‘you can gadget and we need one’ and oh boy i really missed him. he’s a BEAN and deserves better.

hole’s said everyone deserves better and i absolutely agree so we’re adding that note here.

if you do what i did and read this book out loud to one of your best friends who has no clue anything about this weird fandom and give fitz a really deep voice for no reason it’s comdy GOLD.

i really think i’m reading too much into this point but iggy seems,,,, symbolic to me?

like ok with humans, sophie didn’t ‘fit in’, right? like she grew up hearing things like “why can’t you be normal like your sister” (which i can do a whole other rant about how that will affect her for the rest of her life just a s k)

not to mention looking really different from her family and graduating high school at age twelve

but you know who never judged her?

m a r t y

so anyway sophie meets this teal-eyed, movie star smiled wonder boy who takes away her entire knowledge of everything she’s known while taking away her family too

and it turns out even in a place of weirdos she still manages to be the exception to everything

and she doesn’t have the comfort to hear what people are really thinking about her anymore (which as i said before say the word and i’ll deadass write a whole speech about how everything she heard will completely fuck up every relationship she has) which unfortunately means that she grew used to confirming people didn’t like her but now she doesn’t have that

she has to adapt to this new space and feel like she’s always felt, like an outcast in a place that was accepting, but yet again, she the exception to everything

but about halfway through the book she starts to become more comfortable around grady and edaline and that’s when iggy comes in

she finds him while cleaning garbage, and grady compliments her. they have a bonding moment and it’s because of this t h i n g. and then sophie actually feels proud not only does she take up a room, but she did something

and her new parents are proud of her

so she finally feels like she BELONGS because she helped out at the place where she lives/they work

to me it seems iggy is kinda a manifesto of the world building and character development that happens in this book

i think the plot/character arc is fixated a little too much on how different sophie is. like, i get it, she’s exception to everything, but the plot really didn’t need her to be that quirky. yes, she’s different, but there’s a lot more to the plot and her character than how different she is.

also, i had to reread pages a lot bc i needed an exact paragraph number and,,,, it’s really paced like a fanfic

some questions i have about the society is:

it’s established that they use books, physical papers, etc., and the only thing i remember about trees is the speech alden gave her about how she doesn’t know the name of their most popular tree, and the fact that people become trees when they die. even then i don’t think the second one is in this book. never o n c e do i remember something about planting trees that aren’t dead elf’s, so do they feel the affects of deforestation and that jazz?? like if they use trees, will they run out of them? can they??? and do they use the coffins of elf’s for paper??

this is more of a rant than a question, but here it goes anyway. in foxfire, students have a testing system very similar to the one in america: a huge test at the end of the year determines the future of a student. that in of itself doesn’t sound too drastic, right? well,,,,, not necessarily. several studies have shown that tests in general, but especially these types, don’t work. despite how good or bad of a teacher i think my past and current teachers have been, every single one of them hates this system that we have in place. they know it’s an unfair assessment that does it’s damnist to make you fail, and they’re trying so hard to denounce it. however, that doesn’t happen at all in the lost cities. in fact, most of the teachers pride themselves on failing students. so if elf’s are in such an advanced society, why do tests still exist? especially in an environment where the consequences are far greater than just staying back a grade.

so sophie’s figuring out that major problems exist in the world the elf’s created, right? i wonder if more society structured problems exist more than ‘oh bad people do things and the law justifies which is what’. like, as i’ve previously stated, there’s sexist stereotypes presented (like girls like dresses and guys don’t), but does sexism still exist? does racism exist? it’s established that poverty isn’t a thing because of the fund elf’s have at birth and their limited usage of money (which if you understand please explain bc i don’t really get how they buy stuff but still don’t use money) but if someone gets shipped off to exile, do they lose their money? is it possible for elf’s to starve to death because they can’t afford food? do they pay for food?? if they did starve who would they call? because someone on this website, who’s post i tried to find but i couldn’t so if y’all know what i’m talking about please link it, brought up a good point that elwin is a school physician, he shouldn’t be dealing with the near-death experiences sophie has, so who would they turn to? especially if they don’t have access to foxfire because they got exciled??

is therapy a thing in this world? sophie and dex could really benefit from it, yet mental health has only been brought up when someone went insane, which REALLY shows how little they think about it.

that perfectly transitions into my next point: sophie and dex’s trauma. i really don’t get the vibe that there was much thought going into their kidnapping, other than sophie needed something to trigger her inflecting ability and establish the black swan are on the good side, which really sucks because wow trauma doesn’t happen lightly. and the fact that it happened seems rushed to me, but i’ll come back to that. but anyway, their trauma doesn’t get developed that deeply in this book because it wasn’t given the space to. they were beaten, tortured, starved, gagged, and who even knows what else for t e n d a y s, only for them to find them again, repeat the process, but someone saves them and dumps them into an illegal city and they both nearly die from dehydration, coldness, and lack of concentration, and you’re telling me after three days of conscious of bed rest sophie wants to get her failing out of school over with? ma’am, it takes more time than that to adjust to THAT alone, not to mention the realization that “hey your entire life is fake because people genetically altered you to be their weapon in a war so much bigger than yourself” that was recently dumped on her. like,,,, you really expect me to think that three days is what made her feel prepared and CONFIDENT? no sir. i don’t buy it.

coming back to it being rushed: the book starts out slow and then really hits the ground running and doesn’t stop. so much more stuff happens in the second half of the book than the first and it never gets fully developed it feels like. in the first half sophie moves away but gets a new family and struggles a bit but adapts, fires maybe but hey don’t worry about it, dex hates fitz, fitz is ✨d r e a m y ✨ but our main girl doesn’t like him like that, right?, stina’s a bitch, and sophie is a quirky girl and telepath but can’t tell anyone. pretty basic stuff, not too plot intensive. the second half though: sophie almost fails her midterms but doesn’t, grady and elaine want to unadopt her (which that’s never really explained as to why they do that but ok) fires exist in san degio but they’re fine but they’re actually a rebel elf so..., sophie accidentally breaks a law but it was an accident so it’s fine, update on the fires: sophie burns herself trying to get the evidence that it’s a rebel elf and it works, she’s the moon lark and basically a weapon bc no one knows her well enough to evaluate her safety, sophie and dex get kidnapped but fitz can now transmit to her and she has two new abilities so it’s all good, trauma doesn’t exist except for nightmare you can fix with sedatives, sophie doesn’t fail out of school, and yayyy her family doesn’t want her remove their adoption. there’s probably a lot more that i missed, it’s just that’s a LOT of stuff crammed into a little bit further than the second half of the book that really could have been devolped or explore further instead of forcing into less than 244 pages, ya know?

fitz’s eyes are mentioned seven times, the first time being on page TWO of the novel

his smile is mentioned three times

alden says “no reason to worry” five times, he writes it once, and sophie points out he says it a lot so he chances it slightly to something like ‘don’t stress about it’ so i didn’t count those though i should have

speaking of alden, in this book he’s absolutely creepy, but something that stands out to me is how much he calls sophie girl. i didn’t count it, but he said “that’s a good girl” to sophie too many times for it to be normal especially when you consider how he doesn’t do it to anyone else.

i kinda forgot i was annotating for sophie’s anxious habit of pulling out her eyelashes so i got she did it twice, but i highly doubt that number

but i will keep adding to this when i actually do the words with my annotations.

36 notes · View notes

eviltothecore13 · 3 years

Text

This might be a controversial opinion but I really don't think "superhuman supremacist" type characters are a particularly good metaphor for racism.

Partly because in a lot of stories with superhumans, being superhuman doesn't really parallel to race/culture/ethnicity very well. In many stories, either you become superhuman (and people from any ethnicity can become superhuman--if that wasn't the case it would be a whole different set of disturbing implications), or people across the world (again, of any ethnicity) are randomly born superhuman--superhumans don't tend to be one related group with a single culture, or place of origin, etc, they tend to live around humans in whatever country they're from (I tried to think of stories that were an exception to this but they all involved separate *species* like elves or aliens, which is a slightly different trope)--so a lot of things don't...transfer over very well.

(Actually, for an example of a story ending up with those unfortunate implications, just look at Harry Potter. Which sets up a “either you are born with the ability to do magic, or you can never learn it--and if you’re born with the ability to do magic, it’s because you’re from a Special Magical Family--even if your parents are normal nonmagical people, you must just have inherited the ability from some distant ancestor”, and then tries to do an anti-racism metaphor while never questioning the “if you’re descended from Special People, you can do things that people descended from anyone else can’t!” that’s so central to its worldbuilding. There’s a thread here about how that links to racism and classism. https://twitter.com/Hal_Duncan/status/1292560296503054338 And that’s why I’m not keen on superpowers being a Hereditary Special Bloodline thing as opposed to either acquired, or a random mutant thing.)

But more importantly, because superhumans are....well, superhuman. As in, they're actually better at some things than normal humans are. White people aren't stronger or more intelligent than black people. There's nothing that queer people can't do but cishets can. Trying to set up a metaphor for racism, homophobia, transphobia or sexism where the oppressors are actually inherently able to do things that the oppressed can't just isn't a good metaphor.

(It can, if handled well, be quite a good metaphor for ableism, though. Since ultimately a story like this is going to be "even if we can't do all the things that you can do, that doesn't make use worthless or second-class citizens", which parallels much more strongly to disability rights than it does to the various other movements which are often more based in "hey, we CAN do all the things that you can do, stop assuming we can't!")

#tw racism #tw ableism

1 note · View note

kob131 · 4 years

Text

https://sssn-neptune-vasilias.tumblr.com/post/621976494005207040/are-you-in-the-mood-to-go-off-on-why-weiss-is-bad

Weiss was bad because she was just blatantly rude, disrespectful, obnoxious and arrogant during the early seasons. While, yes, her feelings were valid with everything pertaining to Jaune- being rude to someone like Jaune was back during season one and two is totally justified- how she was acting towards Ruby and Yang and Blake was just abhorrent. I get that some characters are just abrasive and catty and stuff- and some people like that about characters and that’s totally okay!- but Weiss landed up higher on my list of “annoying characters” than Draco Malfoy, and was only one step below Katsuki Bakugo, so like... she pissed me the fuck off. There was literally nothing redeeming about her until like, 1.10 when we find out she can actually not be a total bitch for longer than 2 seconds and had an actual conversation with Ruby.

So you have no concept of a flawed protagonist, especially considering other examples you give.

Weiss is bad because victim complex was also so annoying to watch. “I’m a victim” she shouts at Blake, wiping her tears with her million dollar handkerchief. “My daddy took his anger out on me when the White Fang hurt his multi-billion dollar empire,” she says as she tries to justify her abject racism against Faunus, as if that same empire hadn’t orphaned people and branded others as property. She was infuriating during season 1, and then at the end of the Stray arc, she doesn’t even apologize to Blake for the racism! She doesn’t apologize to Blake for the dirty names she was calling Sun or the racist things she was saying about the White Fang Faunus or for scaring Blake and making her so uncomfortable she accidentally outed herself and then ran away! Instead she forces Blake to apologize and they hug it out. What the hot fuck was that about?

You know, this very point illustrates why I loathe this man from the depths of my heart

He ignores the fact that being rich does NOT make parental abuse any better and then tries to blame Weiss, someone who has NO say in the company’s decisions and is even shown to NOT LIKE THEM, for the SDC’s actions. He also blames Weiss for Blake’s own insecurities even though the show made it clear she didn’t want ANYONE, not just Weiss, to know that shit. And then forgets that Blake apologized WITHOUT PROMPTING before WEISS cut her off to show she didn’t care.

He ignores people’s pain, blames them for the actions of others, ignores context and just makes shit up- all to justify his own feelings instead of being an adult and learning to respect the truth. You’re no adult, you’re a child stuck in a man’s body.

Weiss is bad because the narrative just pretends that she got over her racism after season 1 and just... doesn’t address the fact that she was racist and most certainly still harbors racist beliefs. She didn’t talk to Blake about her experiences as a Faunus or being in the White Fang, she didn’t take a Faunus history class, she didn’t attend any rallies, she didn’t talk to friends like Neon or Velvet or Sun about their experiences, she didn’t do any work to move past her racism. But the narrative pretends she did. You don’t just become not racist because you just decided to. Shaking off one’s racism, homophobia, sexism, transphobia, classism, ableism, xenophobia, etc. is a constant journey with no real end point. Just a constant attempt at being better. You don’t grow up in a homophobic society and then one day decide “ah, I’ve finally shaken off all my cultural biases! I am no longer homophobic!” It just doesn’t work that way. And if it did, it definitely wouldn’t happen in twelve hours looking for a friend you threatened to call the police on.

Except does it really? Weiss is still uncomfortable around Sun and doesn’t help a Fanaus again until Velvet when she runs in to protect her at what she assumed was the cost of her life. It sounds more like she became comfortable with Blake.

Also source for that ‘threaten to call the police’ thing. No wait, I’ll do it for you!

Weiss: "Oh! You know what might be able to help? The police!"

Ruby: (crossing her arms in irritation) "Ugh, Weiss..."

Weiss: "It was just an idea!"

Ruby: (walking down the sidewalk) "Yeah, a bad one."

Yang: (following behind Ruby) "Weiss, I think we should hear her side of the story before we jump to any conclusions."

Weiss: (following behind Yang) "I think that when we hear it, you'll all realize I was right!"

Gee, sounds more like a bad joke.

Weiss is bad because she’s such a fucking white-savior that my friends call her WSS in our group chat; Weiss Savior Schnee.

SSSN, I've literally seen you use race as an insult

“What’s that supposed to mean” is such a grating fucking question to hear from her when she of all people should know exactly what it’s “supposed to mean” because she meant the same thing not too long ago!

ALmost like she had...character development.

Even when Blake clearly doesn’t want to stand up for herself and just wants to leave (which is infuriating in itself) Weiss decides to be her White Knight and come to the rescue and make a big thing out of something Blake didn’t even want to be involved in. She didn’t throw that drunk asshole in a dumpster for Blake. She did it for herself. Because she wanted the ego boost. It was performative.

Or you know....she doesn’t like that shit personally. You know, same reason I’m here.

That’s why Weiss is bad.

If you wanna see my previous opinions on Weiss, I literally have a tag called “Weiss sucks” lmao

So basically: Personal bullshit. Gee what a shock.

14 notes · View notes

charismastaticarchive · 4 years

Text

edelgard discourse under the cut...

i know this is a controversial take, but i think edelgard’s story would’ve been better recieved if she didn’t start out as the crown princess. the truth is, at her core---edelgard’s country has an imperialist past, but edelgard herself wants to give rights back to the vassal states (thats what her whole support with petra is about, and tbh, i would be surprised if edelgard did not one day give them back their freedom and indepedence entirely). but edelgard’s country is not the only one with an imperialist past. dimitri’s country committed a fuckin genocide? the leicester alliance’s whole arc with claude is about how they’re racist and horrible against the almyrans. and no matter what side you choose---all of fodlan is unified by that one at the very least previously imperialist and racist country.

what makes real life imperialism evil isn’t like. one medieval kingdom taking over another medieval kingdom. it’s the subjugation and oppression of whole groups of people. while dimitri, edelgard, and claude all go to war (though dimitri and claude may not start it) and then end up taking over an entire continent, none of them can really be compared to real life imperialists because the territories they’re taking over all started out as one country to begin with, they’re not taking away land, property, or liberty from peasants or people of color, and, in fact, edelgard’s war is honestly at least partially against her very own country and their outdated ideas and beliefs of racism, classism, sexism, ableism, etc. she’s enacting a revolution for a new government system for everyone including her own people---not just the leicester alliance and faerghus, and one she claims will give power to the peasants, free public education, a meritocracy where EVERYONE can govern regardless of religion, crest status, or country where u were born, AND if her supports with petra are to be believed, she wants to give brigid at the very least back their rights.

so like. in a way she’s kind of toppling the ACTUAL terrible parts of andrestia’s ACTUAL imperialism and tbh whats she’s doing is more in line with a peasant rebellion, and this would be a lot better recieved (and probably more clearly and concisely written) if she was like. an actual peasant tbh. of course this goes so much deeper because she’s really just a pawn in a larger game those who slither are playing, but she’s using them as much as they’re using her. she’s in a very precarious position, but she’s really trying to do as much good as she can within the very few years she has left on this earth.

OF COURSE. because this is a japanese game, we can criticize the fact that this marrative exists at all, that edelgard appears to be a ‘good imperialist’ that is just and righteous by every account of the crimson flower narrative (as is dimitri in his narrative which could be considered even more damning because dimitri has a lot less revolutionary politics) given japanese history, that a character that takes over other countries is actually right to do so. the writing kiiiinda is more imperialist and dangerous than the actual character, and that, genuinely, is more important than a fictional character’s politics.

but i still think its dangerous to blindly call characters imperialists when these terms have real life meanings, real life impacts that affect real life people every single day. and imperialism isn’t so cut and dry as ‘medieval kingdom invades another medieval kingdom but the medieval ruler is a really nice and sweet anime character!’ it’s basically every terrible and evil act in human history on a global scale? it feels like an insult to everyone whose been affected by any kind of imperialism to be like ‘this anime character who squeals at mice and makes a portrait of ur character and won’t let them see it is an imperalist’ when we should be saying ‘maybe the game is the problem, maybe there are underlying issues in some sects of japanese modern day sentiments (that can be proven by the overall rise of japanese nationalism) that have bled into the game and the perspective of the writers.’ and maybe, just maybe, that’s a more important conversation to have than ‘is this anime character BAD or GOOD’

full disclosure tho: i am white+chinese, my great-uncle was a mechanic for the flying tigers during ww2, i am MORE than aware why edelgard as a character makes people uncomfortable. i understand. and i sympathize with u. i just don’t understand why JUST edelgard makes people uncomfortable and not the game itself as well when it shows through its writing in every single route uncomfortable and often prejudiced writing. shouldn’t u be uncomfortable with the whole game or at the very least the writers and the writers’ prejudices and beliefs and not just a character? it feels like a logical fallacy here of displacing emotions on a single symbol instead of the actual source of ur distress.

especially when roleplay is often about rewriting canon, making it better. ‘transformative works.’

i’m not going to tell u u should like or not like edelgard. i can definitely recognize why she makes people uncomfy, and why other people love her. i’m just saying. u should dislike the writers most of all bc the writers are real people with real harmful ideas. edelgard is just a bunch of pixels, who has some pretty good ideas at the end of the day as a revolutionary as opposed to a direct analogue to a real life imperialist.

this has turned into a whole ass essay lmao.

#ooc #{ ooc: meta }

9 notes · View notes

gaycodedvillainy · 5 years

Text

I feel like a see a lot of posts that say things like “capitalism is built on racism, which is why we need to switch to [socialism, communism, insert relevant ideology here]” and I feel like while it is true that it is, those arguments don’t take into account that unless you actually fix the already present racism whatever governmental ideology you switch to is also going to be built on racism (sexism, ableism, and classism can also apply here in various ways).

I think socialism is a good idea, and a preferable system to our current capitalism, but you can’t deny that we already have governmental support structures, court rulings, and legislature which prioritizes the privileged. Restructuring what constitutes a human right doesn’t do very much when the people who enforce it are trained from birth not to see entire demographics’ humanity. Obviously everything fits together but you have to treat racism(and classism/ableism/ageism/sexism/homophobia/etc) as their own issues, and not as an after effect of something its easier to distance ourselves from

20 notes · View notes

idemandoolong · 4 years

Text

Always blame yourself if you want to be happy.

Everyone at some point has said to himself/herself, “Well there was nothing I could do. This wasn’t my fault.” And a lot of times, this is true. However, most times, it is not true. And the people who believe that 99 percent of the time, there was something they could have done are the ones who among are the healthiest, most educated, they have the highest income, and they live in the safest cities/neighborhoods.

Now we can all say they were lucky, they benefit from racism, sexism, classism, etc. But again, that stems from the “this isn’t my fault” mentality. People who made it to the top frequently blame themselves for any and every thing. But see, the word “blame” is what turns people off. We’ve been conditioned to think “blame” is a bad word, but it doesn’t always have to be. Words only have power if we say so.

People at the top of society are used to having a lot of responsibilities, so naturally, they hold themselves responsible for a lot. On the other hand, people in the middle and at the bottom of society are not used to having a lot of responsibility, so naturally, they figure someone else is responsible. It doesn’t matter who—as long as it’s not them.

Let me give you an example. Let’s say Person A fails an exam in school. If Person A is on his/her way to the top of society, he/she will immediately try to figure out what could’ve been done differently.

“I didn’t pay attention in class as much as I should have.”

“I didn’t study as much as I should have.”

“I didn’t go to tutoring when I had the chance.”

“I kept procrastinating and doing other things.”

How many of you have actually heard people say this? Very few, if any.

What do you hear instead? More commonly, you hear what Person B says:

“This teacher doesn’t know how to teach.”

“None of this was covered in class. This isn’t fair.”

“I have other classes to study for. You can’t expect me to remember everything.”

“I have to work a lot and have a tight schedule. This is just too much.”

Do you see the difference? Same problem, but Person A blames himself/herself, while Person B blames the teacher, other teachers, and his/her job.

Even when something happens that really isn’t Person A’s fault, he/she will still find a way to be partly responsible. Say the CEO of the company he/she works for closes down business and everyone loses their jobs and Person A is struggling financially.

“I lost my job, but I didn’t have a Plan B.”

“I should’ve been saving money for unforeseen circumstances.”

“Had I been paying more attention, I would’ve seen this coming and could’ve prepared.”

What would Person B say?

“This is so unfair. What am I supposed to do now?”

“Don’t these people know we need jobs? They just don’t care.”

“If they had paid me more, I could’ve actually saved some money.”

That mentality of being responsible for circumstances is what pushes people to the top, and it is what keeps them there. Because they feel responsible, they’re more likely to seek advice, think before they act, weigh all their options, research, plan for the future etc.

People who don’t feel responsible are more likely to do whatever they feel like doing at the moment.

“That person looks good. I’ll have unprotected sex with them.”

“I am so angry. I’m going to physically assault that person.”

“I don’t feel like going to work. I’m going to call out sick and go shopping.”

All three of those decisions can have dire consequences. And when those consequences happen, then what?

“Well it was in the heat of the moment. It just happened.”

“Well they pushed me to the point of punching them.”

“Well I hate my job. If it were better, then I would’ve gone into work.”

See how those three quotes deflect personal responsibility?

Most people in lower-income communities think like this. They frequently deflect personal responsibility and blame the government, the school, their supervisor, traffic, the media, sexism, etc. Most people in higher-income communities think like Person A.

Society has (and always will) reward people who blame themselves and hold themselves responsible, because society does not want to be blamed for a person’s actions. These self-blaming people are rewarded with money, power, and respect.

Now some things are 100% out of your control. Don’t get me wrong. But really, the amount of things that are completely out of your control pale in comparison to the amount of things you can actually change.

The difference between Person A and Person B is how they approach a circumstance they don’t like.

Most people in the world think like Person B. This is, “I am powerless, blameless, and a helpless victim. There is nothing I can do about this, and here’s why….”

Very few people in the world think like Person A. This is, “I am going to change my behavior. I am going to change my actions. I am going to change my circumstances.”

So the next time something goes wrong, think, “Was there something I could have done to prevent this? Was there something I could have done to soften this blow? Did I somehow contribute to this? Is there something I can do to ensure this doesn’t happen again?”

If you honestly, deep down believe (and can prove) the answer is no, then you have no choice but to accept the circumstance for the rest of your life. If you believe the answer is yes and you take action, then you’re well on your way to a happier life.

But if you deep down believe the answer is yes, yet you refuse to take action, then stay your broke, triflin, tired and complaining ass off my Tumblr page, goddammit.

1 note · View note

saruma-aki · 5 years

Text

Well, I would like to say I thought this through before dragging this post back up after having posted it way back when ST2 was new and fresh out of the proverbial womb, but, the harsh truth is, I did not. Honestly, I have been ignoring the existence of this post since its conception because the amount of popularity it garnered was mainly negative (no shock there; this is, after all, tumblr) and I had more important things to stress over than what someone interpreted from a line in a show that will fade into obscurity in a couple of years. However, the most recent reblog caught my eye because someone actually wrote something under it—and not just under someone else’s words, but the original post, which I had not seen in a while.

Obviously, what they said did not make me very happy. Otherwise, what is the actual point of making this post?

Here is the thing, the “tea” or however you want to call it—everything they said is way out of line.

I will be the first, the very first (no one is beating me to that spot) to admit that the original post was just a little bit tone deaf. It did not really discuss the topic or why it is that I felt like I did or Dacre’s own opinion. It was just a couple of screenshots from an article that made me feel better about where I stood on the whole debate—and I wanted to share it. I don’t know why. Maybe to just not feel crazy in the midst of that drama? Who can say? However, I will be the first to say that the post is wholly inadequate in explaining anything of note.

I was not exactly surprised when people took to it with raised hackles, even if I really never conceived it would reach close to five hundred notes by the time I got the guts to address it again (and I know that five hundred, 5-0-0, doesn’t really seem like a lot, but considering that I thought maybe one person would pay attention to it, it’s basically the equivalent of a million in my eyes).

But, you know what? I’m tired. I’m stressed. I’m slowly dying. Let’s finally addres this. Because this reblog, this most recent reblog, really bothered me. And I know, trust me when I say I know, that it seems simple and of no need for concern, and I’m sure the few people who are actually bothering to read through this are thinking, “Why on earth did they not just talk to this person instead of making a long post?” But, here’s the thing with this whole shebang: I’m tired, and this person isn’t alone in their opinion. What made this one stand out is how they phrased their belief.

I’ve had to listen to people gripe about how this post “proves there’s no such thing as POC solidarity”, and they’re absolutely right because Native American woman are being slaughtered and raped and abused every day, and Native Americans are represented less that one percent of the time (<1%) ) in film and media (and the few, very rare, times they are it is with an abundance of racism and stereotypes piled onto them), and yet I don’t see black people, with their sixteen percent (16%) representation score raising much of a fuss. (This is not a call out or something. I get it. Get your own representation and rights before helping out anyone else. It makes sense, in a way—I’m not judging. But maybe don’t come at people with that when you’re part of the issue.) I have had to listen to people assume my race, ethnicity, political leaning because of this post, and, honestly, I’m just a wee bit tired of it.

I have four things I really want to say with this post, in response to everyone, but especially in response to this one reblog:

1) I am a proud person of color. I am a proud descendant of African slaves. I am a proud descendant of Taino natives. I am a proud member of the Latino community. I am a proud non-white individual who experiences racism on a daily basis.

I experience racism meant for black people. I experience racism meant for Latinos. I experience xenophobia meant for Middle Easterners and Asians. I experience racism meant for Middle Easterners. I experience racism meant for Indians. I experience Islamophobia meant for Muslims. I have been told they should “build a wall” to keep me out. I have been told that the KKK should pay me a visit. I have been called a terrorist. I have had people dance in crude imitations of Indian traditional dance to my face while laughing. I have experienced all of this and more.

I have been a victim of racism, classism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, etc., from both POCs and white people, straight and gays, natives and immigrants.

Do not presume to know my race and my experiences just because my opinion does not coincide with yours. Quite frankly, don’t do that to anyone. You do not know anyone’s life story, especially over the Internet. Do not assume otherwise. Do not delude yourself into a false confidence and assurance of your own moral superiority when you know nothing of the people you are attacking. It is easy to hide behind a screen, and I am not here to tell you to not talk about what you wish and what you can and cannot talk about and direct at people. I merely suggest you stick to the information readily accessible, not mere assumptions based on your own prejudices. It reveals more about you than the person you are belittling.

2) Billy never saw Max and Dustin together like he did Max and Lucas. Billy never saw Dustin upsetting Max like he did Lucas. Billy never sees Max and Dustin in any capacity like he does Max and Lucas.

This is not a justification. This is not an excuse. This is a mere statement of fact. Whether or not you believe Billy is racist or abusive or whatever, the bottom line is the same. Billy doesn’t witness Max with Dustin like he does Lucas. Honestly, I’m fairly certain Billy never even sees Dustin and Max together at all. Think Billy is racist or don’t, but it doesn’t change this very basic fact. It’s not a situation of “why didn’t he” when every iteration can be debunked by simply understanding that this wasn’t information he was privy to ever. “Why didn’t he?” Because he didn’t know.

3) I don’t take the word of the Duffers on anything. Let’s make that perfectly clear. And this is not some personal dislike or something. This is born from experience. I have sat in the writer’s chair; I have sat in the director’s chair; I have sat in the actor’s chair. You know what I have learned? The writer provides the skeleton, the director gives it movement, the actor gives it life. The job of an actor is solely to understand the character. That, ladies and gentlemen and the general populace, is the secret of acting.

What the writers provide is just the guidelines for the actor. The understanding the actor develops can evolve into a different interpretation than the writer or director had, and it has the potential to be more profound.

The other two reasons I don’t take the word of the Duffers on this is: A) had it not been for Dacre, the Duffers would have been subject to critique on lazy writing moreso than they are already because Billy’s depth and complexity, especially the jarring scene we all remember, came from Dacre—Dacre wanted a villain with a reason if he was going to play Billy and he pushed for it (which says a lot about him and how skilled of an actor he is—understanding that experience and trauma shapes us and forms us into what we are and that we are not static beings, so there should be no such thing as a static character) and that makes Dacre’s opinion a lot heftier than the Duffers’ already——B) Dacre originally did think Billy was racist. Isn’t that a kicker? Dacre remarks in interviews that when he read the script at first, he thought, “Oh, no, gosh, he’s racist on top of all of this?” And he stayed with that mentality for a bit. It was only as he delved deeper into the character and understood Billy more as a person instead of the two dimensional villain he’s set up as that he changed his mind and came to the conclusion that he doesn’t think Billy’s racist.

He put in the work.

The Duffers went in with a throwaway line and labeled the character as racist. They wanted a human villain, someone for people to hate, someone to pit against our heroes, against Steve. They wanted to make him awful and static and to have him do what Steve’s character couldn’t and stay the asshole the audience could hate.

Dacre didn’t fall prey to that mentality. He searched for the human in the label “human villain” that the Duffers wanted and found a much more complex character than the Duffers even considered. Because of this, Dacre’s opinion carries far more weight than the Duffer Brothers’.

And, ultimately, most importantly—the main reason I wanted to make this post, to defend the original post this is born from even though I’ve stated my stance on this issue in a separate post in much clearer terms—the real reason I made the original post to begin with even if I never talked about it:

4) People who immediately assume racism instead of ignorance, racist instead of ignorant, are part of the problem, not the solution.

This really bears no explanation. You cannot change what you believe is irreversible. You cannot educate what you believe is closed off. You cannot help that which you’ve condemned.

I do my utmost to live my life by this. Ignorance before condemnation, always, always, always. The majority of the time it is a lack of education on the subject and a lack of personal experience that leads to such grave misunderstandings. Give a person the chance to learn and to be taught and to redeem themselves, and most of them will. It takes time and patience and a boatload of energy and perseverance, but you get there through understanding and the willingness to help out—by giving them the chance everyone else is denying them.

You cannot help those which you’ve condemned. In life and in fiction, until proven repeatedly over and over again when intervention is applied, I like to adopt the philosophy that people are ignorant before they are racist, before they are a sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, etc., etc.

I’m not saying it’s a popular philosophy (because it’s not), and I’m not saying it’s right (because maybe it isn’t), but it’s my philosophy. And knowing where Billy comes from, what he’s been through, who his father is, what his home life is like, I elect to believe in my philosophy and in my understanding of the human mind, and I don’t think he’s racist. I can definitely see how he might be construed as such, and I don’t belittle those who see it that way, but I stand by my original observation (however ineloquently stated) that I, in my own personal opinion, don’t believe Billy is racist.

And, ultimately, I just want people to accept that. I’m not denying the possibility. I’m not uninformed. I’m not some white, cisgender, hesterosexual man sitting behind his computer screen agreeing with a white actor because it makes me feel more comfortable in myself and my own experiences. I am a proud POC, a proud member of the LGBTQ+ community, a writer, an actor, a director, and a human being. I see where you all are coming from—I hear you; I read what you write. I get it. But can you get me? Can you understand where I am coming from? Can you stop with the misinformation and the moral superiority complex? Life is too short to live like this. I know that it’s Tumblr. I know being superior is the bread and butter of this site. But, honestly, guys, let me get cheesy for a second, let me get real, because you guys clearly need to hear this:

Be willing to understand and to learn. You will get so much further in life. You cannot help that which you’ve condemned, guys. And you really can’t. You can’t change what you believe is irreversible. You can’t teach that which you believe is unwilling to learn. Give people a chance, and they might just surprise you.

Gosh, I hope this cleared some things. I doubt many of you made it to the end if you even got past the beginning, but I sure feel better after writing this. Take care. Bless. I’ll see you on the other side of the war.

#stranger things 2 #billy hargrove #in defense of billy hargrove #in defense of myself #dayummmm never thought i’d end up here #tumblr will forever and always need to chill #chill tumblr chill #mullet wearing asshole #harringrove #i am here to clear the air #that really wasnt muggy to begin with #but some people got confused real fast #so here we go

17 notes · View notes

vatofrain · 5 years

Text

On Winnie the Pooh & Paddington, Honey & Marmalade

Oh, something sweet on bread! To crave only sweet things: marmalade on toast, marmalade straight, another jar of honey. To subsist on sweet spreads and friendship alone: is this not the dream? To be a very nice bear going around the world, making the world (other people! other animals! hell, the weather!) nicer in turn.

My friend K and I have a running metaphor concerning honey. 11pm, on the backroads around a farm near the New York / Connecticut border, as “All the Birds” by Julia Weldon crooned through their beat up speakers, one hand on the wire by the headphone jack to keep the music playing (the wire bent just so)— we were talking about love. We were talking about how we had so much to give but were afraid to give it to anyone for fear that they didn’t want it— which is where the honey comes in, because, we thought, isn’t it like having an armful of honey? So much golden, syrupy sweet to give that we hold on to simply because we are afraid to make of others a sticky mess?

And our arms are not meant to hold viscosity so some of it drips, by accident, onto the grass, the road, someone’s shoe, but when we finally find somebody who says yes, love me, and I will love you too— in whatever capacity it may mean— we start to pour onto them and are afraid that they will stay shit you’re getting sticky all over me I don’t want this I don’t want this anymore. So we hold onto our honey. Though it doesn’t want to be held. You tell me to love you but I’m afraid that you won’t want it once you know what shape it holds. I don’t want to make of anyone a mess they didn’t agree to. There is so much honey in my arms.

A poem on honey and love: “Aunt Rose’s Honey Advice” by Lorna Goodison:

My aunt Rose told me that it is always good for lovers to keep honey mixed in with their food.

"Keep it around the house at all times," she said. Replace slick butter with pure honey on bread.

Feed it to your love from a deep silver spoon. Throw open the curtains draw free honey from the moon.

Use it to lend a gold glow to wan lustreless skin. Fold it into honey cakes, drizzle it into honey drinks.

Add a satin honey glaze to the matte surface of everydays. Voices sing polished with honey's burnishing.

Shall we then beloved become keepers of bees, invite an entire colony of workers, drones and a queen

to build complex multicelled wax cities near our home by the sea? Would that mean that salt

would be savoring through our honey? And you say, "What of it?" and give me a kiss

flavoured with honey and sea-salt mix. Integrated honey you say. Kiss me again is what I say

because the salt in that kiss could be the sting from old tears and we need to make up for all our honeyless years.

Honey as love, honey as effort, honey as a gift that can be both salty and sweet. When I say my love is an armful of honey, what I mean is this: I don’t quite know how to give it out slowly, how to make it just a honeyed piece of bread or a spoonful in the morning. What I mean is this: I am so concerned with its stickiness that I forget how sweet it goes down.

Winnie the Pooh is not a bear concerned with romantic love, but he is a bear concerned with love. Friendship, honey, let me shove my snout into the pot, let me lick out with my long hungry tongue every drop I can manage. Winnie the Pooh is a bear of very great appetite and a bear of very generous loving. His love is a constant loyal warmth, an endless hunger for the presence of the loved, a generosity, a deep and abiding faith. Some exhibitions:

Winnie the Pooh: It's always a sunny day, when Christopher Robin comes to play

Christopher Robin: I've cracked.

Winnie The Pooh: Oh, I don't see any cracks. A few wrinkles, maybe

Piglet: I-I think I'll just s-stay here... Y-you don't really need me anyways.

Winnie The Pooh: Oh Piglet... but we DO need you...

Piglet: Y-you do?

Winnie The Pooh: [takes Piglet's hand] We ALWAYS need you, Piglet.

Christopher Robin: I'm not the person I used to be.

Winnie The Pooh: You saved us. You're a hero.

Christopher Robin: I'm not a hero, Pooh. The fact is, I'm lost.

Winnie The Pooh: But I found you.

Pooh is not only hungry for honey; he’s generous with it. His actual physical honey may be a kind of love he keeps for his own consumption (I don’t feel very much like Pooh today / There, there, I’ll bring you tea and honey until you do), there is no denying the very greatness of his heart. His care for his friends (we ALWAYS need you, Piglet) his faith in them (you’re a hero), his devotion and love, the way his life is crafted around loving: is that not its own doling out of honey? So, then, with Pooh we learn that honey is not something to hide from the world: that while we should be mindful of human dignities like boundaries and agency, there is little to be gained in the rationing of love.

And here we come to another bear who doles out love like something only slightly thicker than water.: Paddington. While Pooh’s essential task is love, Paddington’s is kindness, that cousin of honey, both products of both effort and patience, both sweet & sweet & sweet & delicious on bread. While Pooh’s is the story of loving those we already love, Paddington’s is the story of how to offer kindness and compassion and respect and dignity to those we don’t yet know. Pooh tells us how to live and love within our inner circle; Paddington tells us to offer love wherever we go.

Some exhibitions of Marmaladeism, both by Paddington himself and his films at large:

Paddington Bear: if we're kind and polite the world will be right.'

Paddington: Thank you, Mr. McGinty. Nuckles McGinty: Don’t thank me yet. I don’t do nothing for no one for nothing. Paddington: Beg your pardon? Nuckles McGinty: You get my protection so long as you make that marmalade. Deal? Paddington: Deal.

& how through Paddington’s kindness, McGinty’s perspective changes:

Nuckles McGinty: [to Paddington] If you’re going to clear your name, you’re going to need our help.

Nuckles McGinty: “This bear is now under my protection. Anyone that touches a hair on this bear will have to answer to me, Nuckles McGinty. That’s Nuckles with a capital N.”

Henry Brown: No, of course you don't. YOU never have! As soon as you set eyes on that bear you made up your mind about him. Well Paddington's not like that. He looks for the good in all of us and somehow, he finds it! It's why he makes friends wherever he goes. And it's why Windsor Gardens is a happier place whenever he's around. He wouldn't hesitate if any of us needed help! So stand aside, Mr Curry. 'Cause we're coming through.

Aunt Lucy: Long ago, people in England sent their children by train with labels around their necks, so they could be taken care of by complete strangers in the country side where it was safe. They will not have forgotten how to treat strangers.

While both Paddington movies are completely wonderful, Paddington 2 is more effective in communicating its point: through a surprisingly nuanced look at the prison industrial complex, capitalism, and the insidious nature of evil (and how it roots from believing oneself superior to everyone else), it tells us that by offering people kindness, human dignity, compassion, and even love, we can often coax out their better selves from the protective shell of their worse ones.

These are times like any other: by which I mean, times in which we often learn the correct rhetoric, the correct stances, the correct politics, the correct opinions, and forget what all this is meant to be in service of: honey & marmalade, love & kindness. We speak out against prejudice (racism, sexism, classism, ableism, prejudice against LGBTQ people, etc.) rightly so— I don’t mean to say that we should stop activism or protest or a careful monitoring of language— but we must remember what we do this all for. Yes, structural change is crucial. What else is important? Treating the people you come across who are of these minorities we claim to support and defend well, treating them with kindness, with compassion, loving them well, as they need and want to be loved. Large-scale rhetoric is shaky and doomed if it doesn’t come from some deeper, sweeter instinct to ensure we are all fed: in food, in shelter, in education, in joy, in honey & marmalade. Let us not forget this.

I think we need to watch more kids’ movies. I think we need to reteach ourselves the fundamentals. I think it’s a goddamn shame that kids’ movies are dismissed as uncomplicated and unimportant, that wonder, hope, naivete, whimsy, charm, warmth, sweetness (those 2 secret sauces) are not granted the same gravitas as misery and grittiness, that there is somehow nothing important to say about them, that only cynicism and brutality are intelligent. One is not smarter for being miserable. One is not smarter for their pessimism. One is not smarter, is not better, is not more morally responsible or ethically aware or more worldly for refusing to place in their mouth a piece of bread spread with something sweet, for refusing to say yes, this is , in Leslie Jamison’s words (again, I know) significant, this“ single note of honey”.

#winnie the pooh #k #paddington bear #paddington 2 #christopher robin #honey #love #reflections #cultural criticism #marmalade #leslie jamison

15 notes · View notes

uclaradio · 5 years

Text

Latinx Punks’ Style Against Societal Norms

Article by Samantha Garduno

Photographs by Karina Jaramillo and Kelvin Cerezo

In the United States, white supremacist and patriarchal ideologies create societal norms causing a struggle for survival among marginalized youth. Latinx kids from Los Angeles are currently trying to create their own space in order to openly perform their identities and ideas in an oppressive society. The punk genre is a loud and fast-paced form of music that speaks about the failures of society. Classism, Sexism, and Racism are all issues that limit the growth of marginalized youth. This genre encourages rebellious youth movements against oppressive social norms and government institutions. The punk scene is a form of spatial entitlement and sonic space among Latinx youth trying to survive in Los Angeles. The rebellious aspect of the punk scene is shown through Latinx fashion; their style is considered as nonconforming. The dark “edgy” clothes worn by these youth is critical in giving the space meaning and allows the representation of Latinx punk identities. Conservative adults look down upon Punk Latinx groups because they look intimidating and problematic. However, interacting with these Latinx Punks and hearing their stories it reveals how empowered they are by claiming a space that is rarely inclusive towards their identity.

The aggression and rebellion that is seen through Latinx Punk style is a product of marginalized kids’ creation of subcultures in order to help them survive discrimination and racism. Their styles showcase empowerment and unity among Latinx youth. They are able to separate themselves from mass culture to seek their own individuality. In the following photos, I will present some images from the OC Punk Fest of Latinx youth embodying the punk culture. At the fest, I asked them to introduce themselves, share their identities, and why the punk subculture is important to them. After hearing their stories, I learned that these Latinx punks are visionaries and want to present themselves through their fashion, ideas, and music. They are making an impact in today’s society by being themselves.

Left to Right: Jagger Age 16, Sydney Mendez Age 16, Rodrigo Hernandez Age 15, Daisy Gonzales Age 16, Andrew Hernandez Age 17 (Shot by Karina Jaramillo)

Sidney Mendez: “My name is Sidney, I'm 16 years old. I live in Placita. I’m Latina and Columbiana. Punk is something that has been a part of my life because it runs in my family. My mom was in a band when she was younger and so she taught me basically everything she knows about punk music. It’s basically something that I’ve been listening to my whole life and never got over it. Punk music is more than just listening and liking how it sounds, it makes me feel alive because of how my adrenaline rises. It’s a contest feeling of happiness for me and it brings me and my friends closer because we share the same interest in music.”

Left to Right: Aurora Zavala Age 20, Karina Perez Age 20, Leslie Mayorga Age 19 (Shot by Karina Jaramillo)

Aurora Zavala: “My name is Aurora Zavala I'm 20 years old I'm latina. The way I dress is inspired by some of my favorite musicians from the '80s and of course, I incorporate my own taste into it. It's important to me because I feel like it represents everything that I like.” Karina Perez: “Well hi my name is Karina Perez I’m 20 years I live in South Central Los Angeles. I’m Latina. Well for me it’s a representation of who I am what I like and it’s important to me because I’m representing the punk scene in some way since we are underrepresented and not really paid attention to an extent. It also represents us female since it’s very dominated by males and shows that females do exist in the punk scene that were out here changing the scene and representing it. And also it is a part of me and my style and who I am as a person.” Leslie Mayorga: “My name is Leslie Mayorga I’m 19 years old and I’m from Los Angeles, I identify as Hispanic. My style varies a lot it’s usually lots of black 80s-esqué garments like dresses, trousers, blazers, etc. I love jewelry too! I’ve made earrings and stuff like that. I feel like the reason I like to dress the way I do has a lot to do with how I express myself and want to physically project myself to others, a lot of times people stare at me and mad dog me and I know the reason for that is because of how I look (dress, hairstyle, makeup) and in a way making people angry or uncomfortable in that sense can be liberating because it’s obvious that if someone feels threatened it’s because they are looking at something they don’t know or even bother to understand/respect and I find it kinda funny and kinda sad how people can be so judgmental. Part of it too is that I just love putting outfits together and adding little details. Fashion and style can be very empowering.”

Far Right: Ramon Torres Age 19 (Shot by Karina Jaramillo) Ramon Torres: “Ramon Torres (19) Hispanic. My style is a mix of 90s grunge/punk/hipster style. It’s just a combination of all the things I enjoy listening to or things I find appealing to wear. Usually set myself apart from the general population that wears the new high-end brands while I just thrift most my stuff to save money and mix it up. My style is significant to me because it gives a satisfaction that I don’t look like everyone else and it gives me confidence. This is basically saying to everyone else “This is me, I dress weird and that’s okay.” I always had a sense of style, however, my current style was influenced by OC punk scene going on right now where punk is still seen as abnormal and crazy!”

Anai Mata, Age 19 wearing a distress Black Flag Police Story shirt and a cheetah print skirt (Shot by Karina Jaramillo) Anai Mata: “Anai Mata, age 19, born Chula Vista raised Moreno Valley, I am Mexican American, first language Spanish. My style has a lot of rock and roll roots, my dad was a metal head and I would see pictures of him; he'd talk about the music but in very little interest. When of course I was interested. He has the photo of him and his old friend and they're both in heavy leather jackets and hightop Nikes; I thought it looked badass. Anyway, music wise I started off listening to Rage Against the Machine when I was 5 years old and from there I built up a style, you know. My first punk bands were The Adolescents, Conflict, The Casualties, The Clash, and Circle Jerks. I always thought about the punk scene/music was revolutionary. The style itself was fucking everyone off right and it was an outcast thing. That's goes with me. My parents didn't let me dress myself under up to 5th grade and I would dress casual. At the age of 12 through 15, I was making my own shit(jeans, cut shirts and shit like that). I started attending backyard shows at 13 because my brother had this band, so therefore I was exposed to the Moreno valley punk/ska/indie. It was all mixed in from what I remember. Throughout high school I had my docs and patches I shaved my hair into a tri-hawk and would wear it up every day. My dad has beat me up because of the way I would dress and stuff. It wasn't cool but it’s important because it shows the ones that want to see you "normal" or "una pinche niña adolescente" like it’s a big FUCK”

Nathan Salazar Age 15 (Shot by Kelvin Cerezo) Nathan Salazar: “My name is Nathan Salazar. I am 15 years old and I’m from Long Beach, California. I am Hispanic and Guatemalan. My style isn’t exactly the same as everyone else; I like to dress in my own way where I feel comfortable. I like to paint my nails black and wear docs and tuck in my shirt with cut sleeves and wear a bandana around my leg. I paint my nails and wear the bandana because I hate the fashion now and everyone looks the same and it bugs me. I just try to do the opposite like painting my nails to show that I don’t care that “painting your nails is for females. ” The scene is important to me for many reasons. I’m glad punk rock is still thriving because if it weren’t I would be one bored mf but also it gives me a reason just to go out and be with people I can call my friends because we all feel the same about things and how we think people on the outside are. I’m thankful for the scene because how it brings us together in every way not just through feeling but through the love for punk rock and without the scene I don’t even think I’ll have my own band, The Neurotics, and it encourages me and my band just go hard every time we play because we can’t look sorry. I love the people in it yeah everyone’s not perfect but the people I’ve met I’m thankful for that people are really humble.”

#latinx #punk #punk style #latinx punks #punks #la music #los angeles #culture #ucla radio #college radio #other

60 notes · View notes

byprickingofthumbs-blog · 5 years

Text

Reading Report

The book I chose for this supplementary reading list is The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. I picked this book originally as I tried to find a comprehensive reading of the relationships between doctors and patients, along with the wide array of issues that are commonplace within the medical system (classism, racism, sexism, .etc). There were many options to pick from, some more dry than others, but The Immortal Life really seems to encompass many of the issues I want to address for my final project. One of the major divides here was that of Bioethics regarding patient consent – many, if not most, of Henrietta’s life as a patient was largely disregarded by the medical field. Given that we owe so much of our advancement in medical technology to her cellular lines, it’s important to look at the past events like Henrietta and what patients have gone through to better the rhetoric between patient and doctor. Going forwards this will help me clue in more on the specific things I want to address in my final project, along with understanding that for primary texts I absolutely must include the lived experiences of patients, past, present, and future to extrapolate the concepts themselves.

The rhetoric in this book is that to explain life of Henrietta Lacks, and specifically the cellular lineage of the HeLa cell line taken from Henrietta in 1951. It is the oldest cellular line having been the first cellular line to be cloned and did not die after cellular division which made them vital for exploring biologic research on the cellular level. The cells were taken without Henrietta’s knowledge or consent and the book focuses on her being a black woman being focused heavily as to why she was not informed of these cells being taken. The rhetoric aims to explore concepts of informed consent in a way that doesn’t diverge from the importance of these cells even though they were taken unwillingly, as well as looking at the impact this had on Henrietta and her family.

The rhetoric of this story is Rebecca Skloot with a caveat; Rebecca aimed strongly to have the voices of Henrietta’s family as well as surviving doctors who worked with the HeLa line to be used authentically; as such much of the book is based on first hand conversations with these people.

The situation for this book is to give some notoriety to the HeLa cell line. Henrietta wasn’t credited for her own cells by the scientific community until 1971, 20 years after the cells were taken from her and subsequently the same year Henrietta died from aggressive cervical cancer.

Motivating factors for this research are the fact that while laws were in place at the time of the HeLa cell line being developed regarding patient rights re: the nurmberg trials, they were largely overlooked for the Black communities within the united states. The first major project for the HeLa line was that for developing research at the Tuskegee Institute which was another medical travesty in their blatant disregard for patient wellbeing. However the HeLa line went on to do many amazing things for the medical research world as Jonas Stalk used a strain of the HeLa line to develop the polio vaccine and many other treatments for things such as cancer, AIDs, and radiation. Henrietta’s line was the opener for many large scale cases across the world regarding informed patient consent and the storing of human tissue; because of the HeLa line we have laws in place to avoid happening to us exactly what happened to Henrietta.

The implied target of this book are people interested loosely in scientific research. Unintentionally Skloot has actually come forwards and said that the book has drawn the attention of people who would otherwise have had zero interest in this book but for personal reasons were drawn to it. The book also received reviews from numerous scientists. The primary audience is non-fiction readers who have an interest in medical history and biographies, the secondary audience is likely academia. A possible tertiary audience is Lacks’ family as Skloot mentions creating a way for them to have a history of Henrietta and her cell line.

There are many rhetorical agencies taken here; historically the power dynamics between low income, Black, female patients and doctors is the largest but the book also delves into general patient consent, power dynamics between research and marginalized groups, courts vs. civil cases, proper usage of patient samples.

Key concepts and terms: HeLa cell line, informed consent, racial disparity in the medical and scientific field, Black medical history, cell cloning

The rhetoric of this reading helps shape a platform for people marginalized within the medical community to speak up about their experiences. Studying the history and the outcome of HeLa helps these people understand that their experiences are not singular events, and that it’s ok to ask questions and demand answers when it comes to your bodily autonomy. Giving these people a platform is largely something that has been overlooked in the past and patient voices are becoming a driving force behind scientific and medical ethics.

Perhaps the most compelling medical and scientific study for me in this story is that of Henrietta’s family who penultimately also ended up having their own rights flagrantly disregarded by the medical community. This brings up several specifics that might not otherwise be found in books and that is first hand accounts of how far the medical and scientific research fields will go in order to further these fields for “the greater good”. The fact that Henrietta was from an impoverished background as a Black woman is also something not frequently looked at to understand the specifics as to why there is mistrust in in these fields regarding bodily autonomy.

1)Why is environment so overlooked in regards to patients and case studies; when Henrietta’s cells were taken from her it was in a very violating way in a hospital setting. This is not unusual and yet despite us knowing the psychological damage and trauma this can cause in patients making them unwilling to speak up about concerns in the future and distrusting authority figures in this field, it’s still frequently overlooked as being a nonissue. 2)I know about this issue because of my own lived experiences as both a long term patient having been through similar experiences, as well as the other side of the stethoscope wanting to see how doctors can better interact with their patients to lessen the divide between them. 3)I learned a lot about the politics and laws behind patient consent and storing of human tissues from this book. I would like to learn more about these as they tend to be driving forces behind Doctors and researchers doing what they do, within legal confines yet pushing the boundaries. How might rhetoric here engage both sides to have a better understanding of what each other is going through. First hand accounts of the feelings of doctors seems to be in small supply but I’m eager to find more sources for this as well. 4)Looking into further readings, from past and present experiences will help here. Further understanding the “why” behind clinical research could also prove to be a vital source of information. 5)I’m hoping to improve the relationship between doctor and patient and to hopefully clear up misunderstandings. Helping patients understand why their doctors do the things they do and helping doctors understand why the mistrust is there in the first place will be incredibly important in the coming decades. There’s huge mistrust within the medical and scientific fields leading to harm of life on both sides. This will be a polarizing issue as the rift between these two groups of patient and doctor continue broadening.

Overall I think that The Immortal Life was an excellent read on understanding the issues brought forth. It also does so in a way that isn’t terribly dry while giving the reader the ability to comprehend what specifically happened during the reign of the HeLa cell line.

#english 413

2 notes · View notes

marimacha-tonto · 3 years

Note

I think people join the military because they see news articles on how soldiers are allowed to kill children snd rape women and want to get in on that, and for no other reason at all. Prove me wrong.

Lmao if this is sarcasm you’re fucking hilarious and I love you. Pretty sure it’s a joke but it’s also an excuse to talk about research! The answer to why people join the military is extremely complex and varies wildly by demographic. Here’s some research that gives us some insight:

1) Recent recruits tend to have higher than average socioeconomic background (remember this is extremely skewed as 80% of Americans are in debt and have net negative wealth) they disproportionally come from the middle of the family income, family wealth, and cognitive skill distributions, with both tails under-represented. Higher scores in cognitive skill tests increase the probability of joining the military for lower- and middle-class individuals, but decrease the enlistment likelihood of young men and women coming from the right tail of the income distribution” ― meaning that more affluent prospects tended to pick another path. (US Bureau of Labor Statistics)

2) Survey respondents who had served in the military were less likely to to cite patriotism and citizenship and more likely to cite the pay and benefits ― 40 percent, compared to 47 percent of those who responded but didn’t have military experience. (Krebs & Ralston, 2015)--Obviously this also means that 40% of soldiers are primarily motivated by cultural racist narratives, but also that 60% do are primarily motivated by opportunity/benefits.

3) Research shows that the military is becoming a sort of family business, with a lot of families passing on “military tradition” despite the Army’s efforts to recruit from new bases. These families tend to be rural southern communities whose economy is centered around military forts (like Fort Knox).

In general, the anti-war stance has become a lot more common than it ever has, and along with it we have seen a solid amount of people go from seeing the military as a pursuit of noble patriotic sacrifice to a pointless/endless war machine. The Army knows that it’s very difficult to recruit people in this climate, hence why they specifically target young people in rural communities who are at a turning point in their lives, can be easily influenced by propaganda, and have limited resources/opportunities in their towns. They also like to go on and on about their tuition aid, free housing, food, healthcare, etc. Knowing that homelessness, starvation, economic mobility, tuition affordability, and healthcare are major issues that America faces we can reasonably assume that some people will enlist solely for these resources (and infer that recruitment is deliberately structure this way).

However, there are also lot of recruits who come from specific families tells me that there are genuinely shitty people in the military who have created a family tradition of going overseas and murdering people for their wealth (although obviously they don’t think of it like that, nobody is admitting to themselves that they’re racist in 2021). I think it’s important to remember that the rural south is historically poverty stricken. It’s entire economy was founded upon exploitation, and after the civil war, there was no infrastructure to properly adapt to a self-sufficient economy. As a result, racism simply adapted into chain gangs, slave patrols, KKK vigilantism, to policing, etc. After the civil war, the south couldn’t rely entirely on homegrown racism, and imperialism quickly became popular in America. Even the land in general has a history of this. As soon as America was “discovered”, it was branded as The New World and described as a virgin paradise. It motivated all sorts of groups, from rich bastards who saw an opportunity to accumulate power to moderately oppressed groups with the financial resources flocked in droves to the Americas in search of opportunity, to slaves/indentured servants who immigrated against their will and were used to create the infrastructure needed to enslave Africans. As early as the 1500′s we see that the rise of American activity in the slave trade directly correlates with the decline of indentured servitude. In other words, the erection of racist systems directly correlates with the empowerment of white Americans.

Going back to that one statistic that shows that affluent Americans rarely enlist in the military. Nor do they, historically, become cops or slave patrollers. The affluent profit via stocks, investment, lobbying, trade opportunity, etc across all major iterations of American racism and are not seen as complicit in this system. With this, we begin to see a historical narrative in which racism is culturally justified/normalized towards the purpose of appeasing the financial frustrations of the white lower class while still directly profiting the upper class and reinforcing classist power structures. At the end of the day, being a soldier is a career that confers a multitude of benefits and social status, aka power. Power can attract all sorts of groups from those who are power hungry and complicit in the violence of our society, as well as those who have never tasted social status or financial security and see the military as a unique opportunity to secure things they may not have been able to otherwise. Unfortunately, racist violence is profitable and an intrinsic part of our economy that disproportionately elevates white communities.

I will acknowledge that think there are definitely some soldiers who specifically join to exercise power/cruelty over people. Just like policing, any situation that confers authority with little accountability will generally attract shitty people. 40% of cops are domestic abusers, and similarly, rape/sexual assault is a HUGE issue both in refugee camps and even between soldiers. But I wouldn’t be able to do the issue justice in this post, since throwing sexism into a conversation that already includes classism racism, and imperialism would turn this post from “already too long” to “I’m going to annoy literally all my followers”

1 note · View note

megacircuit9universe · 4 years

Text

Alien Tip Off

WED SEP 16 2020

Woodward’s tapes of Trump, extensively admitting how well he understood the dangers of SarsCoV2, way back in the spring... that it was airborne, that it was far more deadly than the flu, etc... have stayed in the news all week, with longer and longer clips being released that utterly destroy any possible, devil’s advocate, arguments in Trump’s favor on this... the single most important issue facing the nation.

It’s safe to say we’re all stunned!

He was simultaneously smart enough to grasp the true danger of the virus... yet stupid enough to... agree to go off about this on tape with Woodward and... still do what he did in his response to the threat.

The tapes don’t JUST justify his impeachment, and expose every Senator who voted to acquit, as dastardly cowards... but they gut any possible, devil’s advocate, arguments for Trump, by anybody with any grip on sanity.

This puts the current GOP Senate in great peril... even as it reduces the base of loyal Trumpist voters they were banking on... to only the criminally insane.

No more fluffy padding of evangelicals, and other right wing conservatives who, held their nose, so does speak, and went along for the sake of the party. They’ve now formed a very visible, and powerful movement to deny Trump, and any of his hardcore Senate loyalists... another term.

And they’re doing it for the same reason they originally held their noses and went along... to save their party from the brink of irrelevance in a world where the blast doors of history are closing on old school conservatism.*

Which brings us to TikTok...

The deadline for the TikTok ban, as outlined by a sketchy executive order by Trump a while back, draws near.

And while American companies like Microsoft and WalMart scrambled to get a deal done in time, China also chimed in last week and said... Yeah, no... if ByteDance sells it’s American operations... the new owners can’t have the algorithm without our say so... and... we’d rather see TikTok die in America than bow to Trump’s silly demands so... haha, just saying! :D

Meanwhile, TikTok has been challenging the original executive order in court, and everybody is now saying even if the deadline passes, Trump can’t just shut down an app like that... and he’d have to get both Android and Apple to agree to disable it in their app stores... which would lead to more litigation and... well, it could take many more months than Trump has left in power, to sort out.

Unless he gets reelected... or successfully remains in power despite being voted out.

Which brings us to the aliens!..

Monday night (September 14th) TikTok was suddenly flooded with videos of UFO sightings over the United States... concentrated in, but not limited to New Jersey, Colorado, and Nevada.

The earliest and most viral of these was being debunked immediately as the GoodYear Blimp, but... the people at Goodyear Blimp have since said, no... that was not our blimp.

The videos depict a lot of different types of UFOs... they don’t all look the same. Some were singular glowing orbs, or true flying saucer looking crafts, while other videos showed groups of strange lights acting in concert.

The common denominator for all of them, however, was... all are pretty lengthy and clear... corroborated by multiple TikTokers in any given area... and all have so far defied any rational explanation.

Blimps, drones, skydivers with flares, swamp gas, you name it... none of the off the cuff discredits have yet proven out... much less any explanation for why so many sightings happened simultaneously across the continent.

Of course, lots of alien lovers have been quick to tell us this is some message of peace or whatever... but when something like this happens, I can only go to my own model, as established here in this blog.

And I can draw no other conclusion than this... the Aliens were behind it, and they were deliberately using TikTok to spook Trump... and the other powerful men in his Junta (Barr, McConnell, etc).

Recall that earlier this year I speculated that Kim Jong Un was not only dead, but that it was likely the Aliens who killed him, because he was too likely to start a nuclear war.

North Korea has yet to admit that Jong Un is dead... but the rest of the world assumes, these many months later, that he must be. He’s not re-emerged, and the few video reels of him released this year... barely even try to be convincing.

The media hasn’t talked much about this, because so much other shit’s been going on this year... but no... I’m not backing off my conclusion that he’s dead, because nothing’s come along to even slightly prove me wrong on that, much less embarrass me about that conclusion.

He’s dead.

The aliens killed him.

And now those same aliens are using TikTok to spook Trump.

This implies that Aliens are a lot more familiar with the intimate details of our daily life than we normally think... knowing not only that we all have smart phones with cameras, but that we also have a hugely popular app that would ensure any sightings would go viral immediately... and that this is the same app Trump is trying to shut down.

What’s the message for Trump?

Well, first... a bit more context...

This past week, the other huge story in the news has been the west coast wild fires. We’ve seen out of control wildfires on the Pacific coast in late summer for the past four years, as we did in Australia in their late summer, this past January... but this year’s fires in America have been record breaking in terms of their devastation.

The aliens... who’ve been monitoring this planet periodically since humans first learned of fire... paying closer attention after we developed electricity... and who have been permanently stationed in the solar system since we figured out fission bombs at the end of WW2... have had, as their main objective, to stand down, and observe us... unless the planet is in danger of a cascading failure due to either a nuclear or climate catastrophe... or both.

In such cases, they are willing to intervene... for the sake of preserving the level of intelligence, and diversity of life that’s evolved here... because it takes so goddam long for this kind of intelligence, and this kind of diversity to evolve in the first place.

Still, they’d always rather just hang back and observe.

So... since World War Two... they’ve tolerated all kinds of nuclear bomb testing, and everything else, without feeling the need to do much more than hint, to world leaders, that humanity may not be alone in the universe.

Until very recently, when they pinpointed two individuals who were a direct threat to the planet... Kim Jong Un, and Donald Trump.

Jong Un had no real impact on the climate, but he did pose a nuclear threat, dangerous enough, they had to intervene and just off him.

Trump poses both a nuclear threat, and a climate threat, so... Jong Un’s death was a first warning sign, and this latest stunt on TikTok, at the peak of the wildfires, is yet another.

Don’t think you’re commanding the most powerful military force in the universe, because you’re not. We’re real, and you can’t touch us. We know what you’re doing. We know what you fear (TikTok), and we WILL take you out, Space Force or no Space Force... buddy!

Assuming I’m right about this... which I think you at least have to grant is possible this late in the game, given all that’s happened... it’s an unprecidented show of force, from an intergalactic army so shy of confrontation, we barely have any evidence they exist.

That tells you what a dire juncture we are at, right now, on this timeline**.

But the fact that the aliens would use TikTok to make this statement... does seem to suggest that they do have AI bot agents, on our internet, who are in communication with our own advanced AI bots from the future, left behind by our time travelers... and that they are all in cahoots to save the timeline.

Recall that while Alien propulsion tech is likely based in the manupulation of microsingularities, or mini-black holes, to frame-drag spacetime around the ship... for Aliens it’s more about space travel, than time travel.

Time travel doesn’t really mean anything on intergalactic scales. It only has meaning for primitive humans hanging very close to Earth, moving back and forth through the span of a few decades locally, to grab objects, get footage, and leave bot agents behind to promote human rights.

The aliens hanging out in our solar system are more or less just as pinned to our timeline as we are... or the bots those time travelers leave behind.

And if you don’t get that by now, I would suggest reading back in earlier entries, but maybe I’ll do another one as a refresher soon.

It was encouraging to see a TikToker on my For You Page this past week actually mention John Titor, and go into a little depth about him, but as usual, nobody could follow it.***

But more encouraging was this display by the aliens, that gave the first confirmation I’ve seen, that they do know and care what’s going on down here, in times as dire as we’re currently living through.

And with that roundup of a week’s news... it is time for bed.

*With GenX turning 50, Millenials turning 30, and GenZ turning 20, the tide is turning forever away from old school conservatism, with all of it’s racism, sexism, and classism. November 2020 could be the first time, all three of these generations turn out to the polls in force (millenials were too apathetic before this, and Z was too young to vote) to drown out the fading influence of the Boomers and Silents, once and for all.

My guess, as I’ve said, is that the current anti-Trump conservatives will all move to the Democratic Party, leaving the Republican Party to die as a haven for neo nazis and KKK sympathizers... while the progressive left will form a new party to counter the comparatively conservative new democrats, who at least acknowledge climate change, and don’t pin everything else on the single issue of abortion.

**Worth noting that this passed week news also broke that scientists had detected a marker for microbial life in the atmosphere of Venus. It appears to be the strongest evidence yet that life is not exclusive to Earth.

***Not to suggest I’m so much more clever than ordinary people. It took me upwards of fifteen years of studying physics through videos, lectures, and audio books to get the full picture of how Titor’s distortion unit worked, and how the many worlds theory resolves the kinds of paradoxes most people imagine would happen.

0 notes

lokgifsandmusings · 7 years

Note

Don't you feel reluctant to use the term intersectionality when there are Black feminists who don't endorse other feminists using it (strugglingtobeheardtumblrcom/post/66215290586/like-being-very-clear-when-i-asked-patricia-hill)? Btw, this ask is not about calling you out, I would just like to hear your POV specifically. I personally feel the term in a broader sense was important for me as an Asian woman, but I wouldn't want to invalidate their experiences and opinions, so... What do you think?

Well, that post kind of strikes at the heart of all of it:

“intersectionality is meant as a bottom up approach, not a top down approach. those with power cannot be “intersectional”. you are also not living intersectional experiences. intersectionality was always about exposing the ways Black women are caught up in multiple systems of oppression, namely race, gender and class, but often many more. it is meant to help Black women understand their experiences in a white supremacist patriarchal culture like the U.S. or much of Western nations that have applied this model onto most cultures from the outside. most importantly, it is meant to help Black women see the ways their experiences are connected to one another and not a product of self-deficiency but structural real systems that have cultural and economic benefits for ruling/dominant classes.”

The idea of an intersectional feminist framework is that you can’t just look at ~women~ to address systemic sexism, but you have to look at the different experiences of everyone, and the intersecting systems of oppression. Black women experience something far different than white women. Black lesbians experience something far different than straight black women. A lot of these intersecting differences aren’t clean-cut, either, and of course there’s no one experience that can define anything for any one identity. My life, my viewpoint, and my struggles are not going to align with every other white bisexual jewish woman.

“understanding Black women live intersectional experiences gives us insight into the ways race, gender and class, heterosexism and more all work together in ways that restrict Black womens access to resources. and access to resources is what is really one of the most important things needed in Black women’s lives. which white feminism is not committed to in any way. when Black women learn more about classism, sexism, racism, heterosexism and more (such as transmisogyny, islamophobia, convicted felon status, etc) and how they work, we learn more about how we can define ourselves without those systems imposing our identities onto us. we can also learn more about how to combat and navigate these systems.”

This is the key, because again, the benefit of an intersectional lens is that we learn, take in the differences we all experience, and can more successfully combat injustices.

The discomfort here is when you’ve got white feminists just going, “I’m an intersectional feminist!” and leaving it there. Or celebrating black culture without actually listening to black experiences:

“when you’re white saying your an intersectional feminist, you are wrong. you are the white boy singing sad songs to a blues twang claiming to be a Blues artist. you are the miley who wears black womens bodies and perceived sexualities as fun identities to put on and off, without living within those experiences always and forever. it is erasure, it is warping, it is the continual narrative of whiteness as a dominant force, in opposing the creators and destroying the creators while then attempting to re-create those creations with whiteness firmly installed inside of it. which is false, warped, fake and without heart and soul. it is a lifeless imitation. and mostly, it isn’t REAL.”

It’s not a label—it’s a framework, and one that should be used to leverage the voices of those “at the bottom”, as that first quote talks about. Feminism that doesn’t take into account the different intersection power systems is just…not feminism. I kind of mocked the idea of people using it just on the surface level with Ginger in my joking photo recaps.

So, no, I’m not reluctant to use it as a framework and even a useful term in explaining what that framework means (I also find it important on a personal level in a broader sense like you, particularly as antisemitism is ramping up in this country). But I also wouldn’t try to claim it as an identity label, because that’s where the danger is, as that post points out. At the end of the day, I’m here to listen and empathize, and that’s really the only path forward to achieving justice.

#asks #ramblings #Anonymous

17 notes · View notes

7toked · 7 years

Text

**WHY I’VE DISABLED THE COMMENTS SECTION AND WILL NOT BE USING THIS CHANEL FOR A WHILE**

I’ve Disabled the comment section of my most recent video for a variety of reasons, and will not be using this channel till December. Here’s a conversation I had with a very belligerent man which I believe illustrates why:

Holly Lemyre: Hi everyone! The comment section of my videos are not going to be a space for hateful declarations and close-mindedness. If you have questions or concerns, and are excited to listen to alternate perspectives, you are MORE than welcome to discuss the issues… but if you’re out here making conclusive statements like “no first world country needs feminism”, or violently using language that does not belong to your community like the word “dyke”, or bashing on other people’s religion, you have been (and will from now on be) blocked.

The comments section is a privilege. I can turn it off completely if I want to, but I’d rather hold a space for debate. Please use “I statements”, and if you don’t have something constructive to say don’t say anything at all.

If this continues to be a problem I’ll just turn off the comments on this video :)

Ps. We’re clearly going to have to have our first lesson on Feminism because y’all are (collectively) severely misinformed. Read more REPLY

Comment From Adam ???: 3 hours ago Holly Lemyre If you are all for debates, why do you insist on blocking others when they bring up good points and evidence to back it up? Are you advocating for echo chambers? REPLY

Holly Lemyre: 3 hours ago Adam ??? There is a massive difference between “healthy debates” and the epistemic violence that is being reproduced by viewers on my channel. Nothing I’ve deleted has been based in fact, or grounded by “good points”. And I’m sorry, but I will not fall into the “tolerance of all ideas requires tolerance of violent ideas” paradox.

Honestly, running this channel and receiving ya’lls comments is fucking exhausting. I thought I could run a short series about rape culture, and after receiving people’s questions and concerns realized that for ANYONE on this channel to understand the systems of power, privilege, and oppression that support the structure of rape culture the series I’d be making would have to be dozens of videos long. It’s just too much.

In my real life I’m an activist and an academic, working in several classes and organizations that deal with issues of violence (including rape culture). My two majors (and currently 9 classes) are focused on topics of race, class, and gender in politics and social movements. I am not a leftist. I am not a liberal. But for me, the topic of “rape culture” isn’t a debate— it’s an active reality that I am trying to combat by joining forces with others who are deconstructing systems of power (racism, sexism, classism, etc) that allow it to exist in the first place.

MY POINT IS that until I finish my degrees in December this channel is the least of my concern. All I’ve had time for is policing the extremely violent content that I couldn’t tolerate. I am too busy to have a debate about sometime I do not consider to be debatable.

If anyone wants to talk about how we deconstruct systems of power that allow violence against women to be a leading issue in this country, or are actually ready to learn about sometime they previously thought was a “myth”, great. We can talk in December. Read more REPLY

Adam ???: 2 hours ago (edited) Holly Lemyre If you’re busy with schoolwork, I’d rather not bother you, but understand that you’ve made a lot of baseless claims with your video in question and your comment.

Nobody here, as far as I saw, was directing violence toward you. You sound a little defensive. You’ve blocked the other account for absolutely no reason at all.

Women in the developed world are cared for and are cherished members of our society. They have access to abuse shelters, receive the benefits from a divorce, they serve easier prison sentences than men for the same crime, they don’t have to serve in a war draft, and female genital mutilation is illegal.

I’ve seen your other videos of you on stage, and I’m very confused about this supposed rape culture. How can it possibly exist in the 1st world? Convicted rapists go to prison and are looked down upon in society, even getting attacked in prison by other inmates. Even making a small rape joke is enough to get a man fired from his job. Why are you generalizing an entire society based upon the sections of a few horrible individuals? Read more REPLY

Holly Lemyre: 1 hour ago Adam ??? I’m so sorry, but there’s a big difference between “baseless claims” and not citing my sources. This video did not aim to give direct examples and description, it was an announcement about the information that was to come. And now, after realizing the level of information that I would have to disseminate, I do not have time to do so until the circumstances of my life are different.

Additionally, I need to make it very clear that I am not claiming people are directing violence at me. I’m saying that people were sharing violent ideologies that I will not host on my channel. If you care to know more about rape culture RIGHT THIS SECOND, or wish to educate yourself on the systems of oppression and levels of violence that make it possible, go look it up. I am not the only person promoting these ideas, and it’s not my job to give you facts on demand. But just to prove my point..

In 2016, U.S. Department of Justice reports that 17,700,000 women have been raped in the United States since 1998. 1 in 5 women experience attempted rape. Women are 2X as likely to be raped than they are to get breast cancer, and nearly 13% of women in the U.S. get breast cancer…

Women in the military are 4x more likely to be raped than a civilian. 3% of male civilians have been raped, but 1 in 7 people in the military (a majority male institution) have experienced rape or sexual assault. Women with disabilities are 2X more likely to be raped than able bodied people. 64% of trans folx experience rape or sexual assault in their life time.

The great majority of rape cases go unreported, and only 2-10% of rape accusations are false. Almost none of those have ever lead to conviction. The U.S. justice department also reports that 99% of the perpetrators of reported rapes walk free, and 89% never face criminal charges.

These are statistics from the United States Government in 2016. These are the bases of my claims. This is rape culture. Read more REPLY

Adam ???: 53 minutes ago Holly Lemyre If i were to present you various sources and videos from women, would you be willing to look into the matter? REPLY

Adam ??? 47 minutes ago Holly Lemyre I would like citations for these claims. And furthermore, why are supposed rape from twenty years ago evidence that we live in a rape culture today? That’s like saying Europe is still under threat from Adolf Hitler. Also no one here is presenting anything violent toward you. You’d have to posses a victim complex to see that. And technically men experience rape more, it’s just that society doesn’t care. It was feminists that protested and eventually shut down a potential home for abused men.

If we live in a rape culture, exactly how does modern society advocate these actions? They don’t, that’s why we aren’t living in a rape culture. You’re thinking of the Congo Republic in Africa. Read more REPLY

Holly Lemyre 45 minutes ago Adam ??? You don’t seem to understand, I’ve already looked into the matter. I’ve spent the last 5 years of my life studying this issue (and others) from multiple angles, and this is the conclusion I’ve come to. Furthermore, the fact that you can look at those statistics and still not see the systemic issue of rape in this country shows me that you are part of the problem. You are more willing to convince yourself of false realities by grasping at the exceptions instead of doing the work it takes to confront the issue we have in this country: violence against women and female identified folx is a huge problem.

THIS is the reason I can’t run this channel anymore. I did not open this forum to debate rape culture, I opened this a space to share ideas that can help us better understand what rape culture looks like so that we can fight it.

But THIS, this right here, the conversation WE ARE HAVING is a perfect example of rape culture: you are being presented with facts from THE US GOVERNMENT that says roughly 20% of our society experiences rape with almost nobody being convicted, and STILL want to deny that rape is an overwhelming issue in this nation based on your notion that we’re “first world”. That level of crazy denial is what MAKES RAPE CULTURE POSSIBLE.

I think I’ll just disable the comments on these videos until I want to use this channel again because y’all are too much. Read more REPLY

Adam ??? 39 minutes ago Holly Lemyre How do you know that most rapes go unreported if they were never reported?

Where are you getting the citation that 2% of rapes are false?

If these women were raped, why didn’t they report it to the police?

Have you any idea how easy it is for a woman to lie and get her spouse arrested and imprisoned for a crime they did not commit? It’s happening more and more often, and these women often face only a few months in prison, meanwhile the accused men resort to suicide after having their reputations tarnished, sometimes even their mothers. Give me a break already. You are fighting an imaginary war. Read more REPLY

Adam ??? 32 minutes ago Holly Lemyre You can spend a million years convincing me that the moon is made of cheese, it won’t make it so. You haven’t substantiated any of your claims, nor have you provided any links whatsoever. People like you reduce that meaning and actions of rape into nothing by constantly banging on about it. How am I a part of a non existent issue when I’ve brought into attention countless times that rape is taken very seriously in the United States? You spread cliche feminist myths that even women are starting to debunk. You constantly see yourself as the victim and anybody else who dare think different is automatically the problem. You are a perfect example of how far feminism has fallen since its inception. What, you think you can just share your beliefs online, publicly, and not expect any disagreements? I’ve spoken to you in a respectful manner, and now you’re resorting to acting like a child that didn’t get their way.

I thought you were different, Holly. I thought you had some decency.

Don’t even bother speaking to me again. Go back to Tumblr and continue punching at shadows. Show less REPLY

—End of Conversation–

I just want to highlight the fact that I did cite my source (A United States Justice Department Report on Sexual Assault, Published in 2016).

I’m not going to take the time to pick apart “Adam’s” final reply, because I don’t have the time or energy for it. But this type of denial and dilution is not what I signed up for when I reopen my channel.

Additionally, everything I’ve said within that conversation stands true: I was not here to debate, I was here to inform open minds. And while I always encourage healthy dialogue, there’s no hope in convincing someone that US Government stats are equivalent to claims that the “moon is made of cheese”.

Instead of focusing on this channel, as much as I would have liked to,I’m going to focus on organizing with people in the real world and getting through the last semester of my Bachelors degrees.

Oh, and Adam, you don’t need to worry– I will not talk to you again. In fact, you were the only person trying to have this conversation in the first place. But you know that, and I trust that I don’t have to post all the other pathetic comments you tried to bait me with. Xo

6 notes · View notes