#Diversity Awareness

[noisycowboyglitter]

"Stylish Black Lives Matter Butterflies and Flowers Apparel for Every Occasion"

Black Lives Matter Butterflies and Flowers is a powerful artistic concept that blends symbols of social justice with natural beauty. This imagery combines the Black Lives Matter movement's message of equality and racial justice with the delicate grace of butterflies and the vibrant allure of flowers.

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The concept likely features black butterflies, symbolizing transformation and resilience, alongside a variety of colorful flowers. These elements create a visual metaphor for the diversity, growth, and potential for positive change within the Black community and society at large.

The butterflies may be depicted in flight, representing freedom, progress, and the ongoing journey towards equality. Their wings could incorporate patterns or symbols associated with Black culture and heritage, further emphasizing the movement's roots and aspirations.

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Flowers in this context might include species native to Africa or those with historical significance to Black communities. These could be arranged in patterns reminiscent of African textiles or art, adding layers of cultural meaning to the overall design.

The juxtaposition of the stark "Black Lives Matter" slogan with the soft, organic forms of butterflies and flowers creates a striking visual contrast. This combination serves to soften the often confrontational nature of protest imagery while maintaining its core message of dignity, respect, and the sanctity of Black lives.

This artistic concept can be applied to various mediums, from digital art and murals to fabric designs and jewelry. It offers a way to express solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement through a more approachable, nature-inspired aesthetic that appeals to a wide audience.

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Butterfly Gifts for Women encompass a charming array of items inspired by these delicate, beautiful creatures. These gifts appeal to women who appreciate nature's elegance and symbolism. Options range from jewelry like necklaces, earrings, and bracelets adorned with butterfly motifs, to home decor items such as wall art, garden ornaments, and decorative pillows.

Practical gifts with butterfly themes include handbags, scarves, and stationery sets. For the fashion-conscious, butterfly-print dresses or tops make stylish choices. Gardening enthusiasts might enjoy butterfly-attracting plant kits or decorative butterfly houses.

Many of these gifts carry deeper meanings, as butterflies often symbolize transformation, hope, and new beginnings. This makes them particularly thoughtful for occasions like graduations, career changes, or personal milestones.

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Whether delicate and subtle or bold and colorful, butterfly gifts offer a wide range of choices to suit various tastes and preferences.

[dhddmods]

Intersex Guide!

Hello and happy pride! We wished to share a passion project we have been working on for months - a guide to intersex traits and variations! Please reblog to spread awareness.

Now, a question that many ask - what is intersex? Well, we will be answering that question for you here! Anything on this post that is written in red is NOT intersex, so if you wish to skip over any of it, you can. And if you wish to get straight into the intersex types, scroll down to the read-more and start from there.

Intersex, also known as the intersex spectrum, is a term used to describe when someone's biological sex - as in the sex they are born with/what they naturally develop during puberty - is not clearly defined as the typical male or female sex traits.

(This does not include someone that was born male or female, and later chose to have their sex traits changed due to being transgender, transsex, or altersex. It also does not include males that experienced circumcision/dorsal slits or penis splitting, females that experienced genital mutilation, or males & females that indulged in modifications such as piercings and beading.)

This only applies to primary sex traits - chromosomes, genitals, reproductive organs, and hormones. Atypical secondary sex traits (breasts, muscle tone, body/facial hair, deepness of voice) do not make someone intersex unless it is paired with "abnormalities" in primary sex traits.

Before you can understand what it means to be intersex, first we must clarify what it means to not be intersex.

A typical male has XY chromosomes, a penis, two testicles within the scrotum, and more androgens (mostly testosterone) than females. Upon puberty, they usually (but not always) develop more facial hair & muscle tone than females, and a deeper voice than females.

(Note: A penis has a phallus, a scrotum beneath the phallus, foreskin protecting the head of the phallus, and a urethra on the head of the penis. It is is straight or slightly curved when erect.)

A typical female has XX chromosomes, a vulva, two ovaries, a single uterus, and more estrogen than males. Upon puberty, they usually (but not always) develop larger breasts and wider hips than males.

(Note: A vulva has two labia, a single pea-sized clitoris, a single vaginal entry, and a urethra above the vaginal entry and under the clitoris.)

Here is a list of non-typical sex traits that, by themselves, are not intersex.

Accessory Breasts (Polymastia): Having more than two breasts. Accessory Nipples (Polythelia): Having more than two nipples. Athelia: Having only one nipple, or no nipples at all. Amastia: Having only one breast & nipple, or no breasts & nipples at all. Breast Hypertrophy/Macromastia/Gigantomastia: Having extremely large breasts Gynecomostia: Breasts on a male. The reason this is not considered intersex is because all sexes (except for people with amastia) have breast tissue, which can vary in size regardless of sex. Females can have small breasts, and males can have larger breasts than is expected. Hypotonia: Low muscle tone. Bicornuate Uterus: A heart-shaped uterus. Septate Uterus: A uterus that internally has a partition down the middle. Macropenis: A penis that is 7 inches/17.78 centimeters or larger. Macroorchidism: Testicles that are 4 milliliters or above pre-puberty, and above 30 milliliters as an adult. Macrovagina: A vagina that is deeper than 5 inches/13 centimeters. Labial Hypertrophy: Labia that is longer than average (above 2 inches/5 centimeters)

Now, onto the intersex spectrum! First, some notes.

-An intersex trait is a singular atypical trait. For example, someone with ambiguous genitals, but no other "abnormality" has an intersex trait. -An intersex variation is when multiple atypical traits are present, with at least one of them being an intersex trait. For example, someone with ambiguous genitals and fused kidneys has an intersex variation. Equally, someone with ambiguous genitals and cryptorchidism also has an intersex variation. -CTF stands for "close to female." CTF traits are when the traits are predominantly "feminine" (vulvas, uteruses, ovaries, estrogen as the main sex hormone, breasts, widened hips, XX chromosomes, etc.) -CTM stands for "close to male." CTM traits are when the traits are predominantly "masculine" (a penis, testicles, androgens as the main sex hormones, increased hair growth, higher muscle mass, a deepened voice, XY chromosomes, etc.)

Also, when we state that an intersex trait/variation is "fairly common", we mean that it is fairly common amongst the intersex population, not that it is fairly common in the general population. Being intersex is still classified as "rare" statistically speaking (as statistics define "rare" as 1 in 1,000 people.)

So for the sake of this post, here is how we are classifying the following:

"Fairly common" = 1 in every 5,000 (or less)

"Rare" = above 1 in every 5,000, up to 1 in every 100,000

"Extremely rare" = above 1 in every 100,000

Similarly, when we say "higher risk of _", it does not necessarily mean that risk is very high, just that its a higher chance than a person without that trait/variation. It could be as low as 1% higher of a risk. Every sex has its risks, whether its male, female, or on the intersex spectrum. To put it into perspective, females are at a higher risk of breast cancer than males.

Also, keep in mind that "may include" means that not all of the features will be present on every single person with that variation; in fact, none of the extra features could be present. However, for chromosomal variations specifically, it is highly likely that at least 1-5 (or more) of the listed extra features will be present.

And finally, when we say that "fertility is average", what we mean is that the gonads are fully capable of producing healthy average numbers of sperm/eggs, and/or the uterus is capable of carrying healthy babies. Struggles with the sperm reaching the eggs still might occur, but if direct insemination is done (as in the sperm is directly injected), then pregnancy should occur perfectly fine.

---

Penile Traits/Variations (not including those on the agenital spectrum)

Urethral Traits/Variations (not including those on the agenital spectrum)

Ambiguous Genitals

The Agenital Spectrum/Agenital/Agenitalia

An umbrella term, describing those born with no genitals, closed-off genitals, small genitals, or genitals that are missing typical penile or vulval traits.

(Anorchia & Monoorchidism fall under this as well.)

Gonadal Agenesis

An umbrella term, describing an individual that is born with an absence of one or both gonads (ovaries, testicles, or ovotestes).

Other reproductive traits/variations

Hypergonadism

An umbrella term, describing an individual that is born with gonads that produce high levels of hormones compared to males and females.

Hypogonadism

Primary Hypogonadism/Hypergonadotropic Hypogonadism: when its the gonads themselves that have low production levels. The brain is still communicating to produce the average male/female levels of hormones, but the gonads are failing to keep up with the brains-signals.

Secondary Hypogonadism/Hypogonadtropic Hypogonadism/ Central Hypogonadism: when the brain has low levels of communication with the gonads. The brain is failing to send out typical levels of signals to the gonads, and the gonads only produce hormones when a signal is received.

Other Hormonal Variations

Chromosomal Variations

And thats all!

Again, please reblog to spread awareness. Intersex people are highly discriminated against. Their bodies are still regularly mutilated at birth, in order to make them "look right."

This mutilation can cause complete infertility, a loss of sensation in genital areas (making sex unsatisfactory), gender dysphoria, body dysmorphia, and even chronic pain.

Additionally, intersex children are often bullied at school for looking or sounding "abnormal" for their age/gender. And as they grow up, they face the same difficulties transgender individuals do - judgement for not being a "real man" or "real woman" (or for being non-binary), difficulty dating, struggles finding jobs, complications in receiving proper healthcare, and they are at an increased risk of being abused and assaulted. Many are also left out of sports or kicked out of public bathrooms as well.

This is all due to the lack of education. Tolerance and acceptance needs to be taught to children. Many doctors have no idea how to treat intersex patients, as they didn't learn about their bodies, even in advanced schooling. We need to put a stop to this.

[alpaca-clouds]

Two weeks ago, @agramuglia uploaded the cut version of the stream he did with Charlie Knight on disability representation in fantasy worlds. And given that around the same time we had a bit of a discussion in my blog about the same issue in regards of BG3, I want to share some thoughts on this. Mind you, I am also picking up some stuff in regards to the amazing videos that Oakwyrm does on disability representation.

Because there are two topics that are so often not brought up in this context. And I am kinda saddened and a bit annoyed by this. So, let me talk about it. Because the topics of what kind of disability we see in fantasy and science fiction and what kind we don't see is actually a big topic.

Generally most fantasy disabilities fall into one of two categories:

Acquired disabilities (often in forms of missing limbs or a missing eye) that were acquired under dramatical, tragic, or heroic circumstances.

Fantasy-setting specific disabilities (for example a character who cannot fly in a setting, where everyone else can fly, or of course the classic "non-magic character in a magic world").

The first kind is the stuff we see probably most of. Again, often we see this in form of missing limbs, that depending on the setting are either replaced with some sort of magic prothesis. Ideally this is handled at least like it is in Fullmetal Alchemist, where the prothesis does not always work perfectly and needs some maintanance. Sadly, though, in a lot of cases the magic prothesis is perfect, and also other stuff that usually comes to play in regards of missing limbs (like phantom pain and related issues) do not really come to play.

Same goes with some sort of magical glass eyes and so on, if characters are missing an eye. I will not even start with the fact that glass eyes in fantasy are always perfect little balls rather than how those actually look in reality.

And either way: Usually the way those limbs and eyes have gone missing, there is really a big story behind it. In real life very typical ways for people to loose limbs is stuff like simple injuries that lead to infections, or accidents that were really kind of silly. Not in fantasy or scifi. There you do not geenrally lose a limb, unless you lose it to a dragon or devil (or I guess in a desperate attempt to revive your mother). There is always a good story behind it.

And then there are the other kind of disability we see, which the more metaphorical disability. Yes, within a world were everyone can do magic, the person who cannot do magic is disabled. Yes, within the world where everyone can fly, the person who cannot is also disabled. And yes, Karlach in Baldur's Gate 3 with her engine that is killing her has also a disability within the context of the world - as does Gale with his orb, or Shadowheart with her magic pain attacks. Heck, you could make the argument that in a way Astarion as a vampire also has magical disabilities.

But what bugs me so much about this is... The lack of all the stuff that does not get shown.

A lot of people have already spoken about how rarely we see some sort of wheelchair in fantasy settings. (In SciFi we often then see the flying wheelchairs, that are an issue on their own, though that is something I will have to talk about at another time.)

But there is so much more that we usually do not see.

Missing limbs make up around 7-8% of all disabled people. And those are mostly older people, given that - again - limb loss usually occurs because the body struggles to heal a wound and the limb needs to be amputated to prevent infactions from spreading and such. (Almost 90% of people who loose their limps are also older than 45 when they do.)

A lot of disabilities (the vast majorities) are in fact some sort of cognitive disabilities. And sure, we do see quite a few characters that are autism-coded or ADHD-coded in media. Exhibit A would be Dungeon Meshi, of course, but I mean, we all can probably name a few characters that read very autistic or hyperactive. But those are also usually the variations of those where yes, the characters might experience some disability from it, but... We do not have an autistic non-verbal protagonist, do we now?

And then there is of course all those other disabilities. I mean, I cannot imagine a single example of a character with trisomnie in fantasy or scifi media. I also have not seen a character with my disability (severely limited lung function) in fantasy or scifi before - even though, mind you, scifi could probably easily create a device that would allow someone like me to live fairly normally. You will also rarely ever find a character with something like athritis or other forms of rheumatic illness in fantasy and scifi settings. And generally speaking, with a few exceptions there are barely any characters who were born with their disabilities or have acquired their disabilities through sickness of one way or another - even though this is by far in the real world the most common way of acquiring a disability.

Other stuff we do not see: Limb differences, anything that is perceived as disfiguring (and even if those are described in books, they usually get toned down HEAVILY in movies or games, and of course anything that is related to food.

With this I am not saying that the other disabilities - those we see - are bad. But I am saying that we absolutely deserves to see those other disabilities too. And not just in some realworld drama stuff. (I mean, when it comes to depictions of a character with down syndrome in media, I can only think of one good example, which is Ansel in Stumptown, which is very much just crime drama. But that is like the one time I can think of that a character with that disability who is given agency by the plot, and who gets to have his own life, with a job, and a girlfriend and everything.)

And yeah...

Like, the two pieces of fantasy media I wanna point out as being actually pretty darn good with disability representation of a wide variety of disabilities are:

Witch Hat Atelier: This series basically focuses on the question of morality in regards to using magic to cure - and using magic to cure disabilities, too. Because of this, we see a variety of disabilities, including disabilities people were born with, disabilities acquired through sickness or through dramatic plot reasons and so on. This is really, really good in that regard.

The Witcher novel series: I hate it so much that this is something that all the adaptions just ignore. The Witcher books are very, very heavy in dealing with disabilities in a lot more realistic matters. The fact that magicians mostly are disabled people, for whom the society does not have any other use than learning magic (for whcih they get cured of their disability, and the books actually dare to quesiton "Is that a good thing?") is one part. But Geralt himself is fairly disabled, as he is dealing with chronic pain and has a limp. Gods, I would murder for a good adaption of these books

[mrsmiroir]

my big thing with diversity in film and theater is that it’s nice to see diversity on screen/stage, but what about behind the camera or backstage? and what about the writing rooms? what about the directors and producers? when the cast is diverse but everything behind the scenes isn’t, it just feels like tokenism. and when the cast and crew are diverse but the creators and those with power over the project aren’t, well then it’s just replicating established power structures?

[supernovasilence]

Diversity win! Your girly fashion game is abolishing gender norms with gender-neutral wine tankards!

[emeraldspiral]

Zim: Greetings filthy humans. It is I, Zim! Here to bring awareness to your feeble human brains on this, the day of Intersex Awareness. For those of you who are unaware, intersex people, such as myself, are individuals whose physical characteristics do not fit typical binary notions of what you would define as "male" or "female" bodies. This is perfectly normal and in no way an indication of one's extra-terrestrial origin.

Dib: He's actually telling the truth, for once. Of all the physical differences that should make it EXTREMELY OBVIOUS to anyone with functioning eyeballs that Zim is an alien, being intersex isn't one of them. Lots of humans are intersex. Almost 2% of the global population, in fact. That's as common as having red hair.

Zim: The Dib-beast is correct. Having intersex traits is perfectly ordinary, and not something that needs to be corrected in order to conform to a false binary system of identification. Zim's magnificent body is perfect the way it is and that's why I'm proud to fill your filthy heads with my amazing wisdom. Happy Intersex Awareness Day!

[alwaysbewoke]

When I was in college, I let German tourists take pictures with me in my graduation gown. Even at the time I thought it was weird. But since my college years, I haven’t allowed strangers to take pics of me “just because” here or abroad. “Curiosity” means very little to me. People on the clock app were saying in China they actually have been known to post pics of Black people on WeChat to make fun of them. So, maybe not the best idea to let strangers take pics of/with you. Anyway, I wish you all safe, joyous, and comfortable travels. You deserve to see the world in peace just like anyone else.

x

[devouringyourson]

british politics things that would put an american leftist into a coma: we just ousted our first sikh indian prime minister who was a right wing billionaire and replaced him with a (supposedly socialist but disappointingly centrist) LORD and are now facing the threat of an incredibly far right british nigerian woman who's against the teaching of white privilege, colonialism, gender identity or lgbtq rights in schools as the next conservative leader it's as if anyone can be insane right wingers and often the far right hides their bigotry behind diverse faces???

[edaworks]

So @twosides--samecoin writes a super cool Fallout longfic called Long Time Running and everyone should go read it, new chapter just dropped so she gets art

and no I totally didn’t con her into playing 20 questions to guess I was attempting a Dropkick Murphys album spoof feat. her SoSu tapping in for Micky Ward, why would I be such an asshole?

Anyway, here’s Wonderwall The Warrior’s Code (the real album art is below the cut for reference).

[utilitycaster]

*person who repeatedly complains that all actual play is D&D voice* Oh I stopped listening to TAZ after Balance and dipped in for Ethersea but never really got into Amnesty or Steeplechase or any of their mini-series. No, I haven't checked out Candela Obscura or any of the CR one shots...heard weird things about the Monsterhearts one. Yeah I'm more into D20 now...no, haven't been keeping up with Mentopolis.

[lilliankillthisman]

It's a dreadful shame that Aran'gar is a transmysogynistic caricature because I thought she was unbelievably cool when I was reading the books aged 12. Oh well at least there's still Graendal.

[dhddmods]

Trans-women & cis-women can't be told apart.

So tired of people saying they "aren't attracted to trans-women" or "aren't attracted to intersex women."

You cannot tell who is cis or trans by looking at them. You cannot tell who is intersex or dyadic. You can have genital preferences, but you can't know what's in someone's pants by looking at them.

Intersex women can be cisgender. They can be AFAB. They can appear fully female externally, while having "male" or ambiguous organs internally. Or they can be fully female internally and externally, with only their chromosomes or hormones being different. (If you want to actually learn what it means to be intersex, read our post on it and reblog to spread awareness.)

And even if a cisgender woman is female, they can be altersex. They can choose to have their genitals altered. They can choose to go on hormones of some kind.

Equally, trans women can be intersex. They can have a vulva. Or they can be transsex, and have a vaginoplasty or vulvoplasty.

A cis woman could be intersex and have atypical genitals.

A trans woman could be intersex and have a vulva.

A trans woman could have a vulva from bottom surgery.

A cis woman could have been born with a vulva, but due to being altersex, have their genitals changed through bottom surgery.

A cis woman could be bulky, have a deep voice, have lots of body or facial hair, and a prominent Adams apple, due to being intersex, altersex and using hormones, or just straight up genetics.

A trans woman could be petite, have a light voice, have very little hair, and no Adams apple due to being intersex, altersex/transsex, or just straight up genetics.

A cis woman could have no uterus and/or ovaries, due to being intersex or having a hysterectomy or oophorectomy.

A cis woman could have testicles due to being intersex, or being altersex and having prosthetic testes.

A trans woman could have a uterus and/or ovaries due to being intersex.

Saying you are "only attracted to cis-women" is just ignorance, transphobia, intersexism, and altersexism. You don't know what you are talking about. You are implying that trans or intersex women look "less feminine" or "less like a woman." You are WRONG if you think that.

Yes, transphobes and intersexists unfortunately can sometimes clock a trans or intersex women, but cisgender dyadic women are also being accused of "not passing" constantly by transvestigators. That's our point. PASSING AND NOT PASSING IS CISNORMATIVE AND RIDICULOUS.

This goes for people who claim not to be attracted to trans or intersex men too. But its more often seen for trans and intersex women.

[nolongerexistingsadcatface]

Ok yes America hating the cold is funny (eh) BUT. have you considered that I like the imagery of an America sitting alone in the forest in the bleak mid-winter landscape of an east coast woods, all alone in both body and mind, agonizing over her seeming doom to be stuck in the throes of loneliness for all eternity?

[aro-culture-is]

quick note - this blog is gonna be sparse again for at least this week. trying new medications and tbh initial side effects are not super pleasant + actual effects build up. as a result: currently as if unmedicated for mental health, with anxiety+ side effect, extra fatigue, dizziness, and fatigue. it's uh, sure something.

totally recognize that most of y'all know we're absent at times due to health things, just wanted to give a heads up that this one is at least anticipated.

[druvjelly]

Me feeling the urge to tell people who complain about games being too woke to make an oc so they can get proper representation

[halo-eater]

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