#also i think that people should know that activism doesn’t stop with one country and that talking about what’s happening in sudan and congo

[jisnoir]

== carrd! == 27/01/2023 uyghur muslims, yemen, afghanistan, palestine, kashmir, POLICE BRUTALITY IN INDIA, philippines, serbia, antisemitism, black lives matter, educate racism, protest tips, lgbt rights, do the right thing, hongkong, more help carrds, escapes.

[trippinsorrows]

ltye: in your hands

authors note: welp. here i am, once again. we're back with yet another 'what if' scenario, prompted by you lovely people in an ask that i can't seem to find to link right now. smh.

words: 3.3k

warnings: none. just sam being sam.

song inspo: in your hands by halle

Roman should have stuck with his first mind. Stayed home. Texted her some excuse about being caught up with work. She would have never found out the truth, and even if she did, he wouldn’t have given two fucks. 

Because this shit doesn’t seem to be getting any better. 

This dating thing. 

It’s gotta be at least the fifth or sixth one he’s taken her on, and each one has been just as miserable up until the point where he gets her on her knees, gagging or bouncing on his dick the minute they get back to his penthouse. Anything before that has been irksome, borderline miserable. 

Samantha is stunning. Has been since they were kids, and her body is the most desirable of the women he has on his roster. She leans on the thinner side of what he prefers, but the tits and ass are decent, regardless. She’s also just as kinky as him, which is why they’ve worked all these years.

But, the more “dates” Roman forces himself to power through, the more he’s starting to feel like bedroom activities is where it stops for them. 

Technically, he’s always known this. Even if he did have some level of desire to be in a real relationship with someone, which he doesn't, it would never be her. She’s vain, condescending, and seems to think she’s somehow better than the other women he fucks with.

If only she realized he views her just like he views the rest of the women. A warm body with a wet cunt to help him get his dick wet. 

“Roman!” Her voice cuts through his inner dialogue as he focuses on her cleavage. The dress she wore, short and tight, doesn’t help his desire to skip to the fucking part of this evening. “Did you hear what I said?”

“No.” Roman sees no sense in lying to her. “I probably don’t care either.”

She rolls her eyes and proceeds to continue like he literally didn’t just tell her he doesn’t care. “I was saying we should go somewhere.”

He’s partially intrigued now. Mostly because he’ll probably need to set her ass straight. “Where?”

She smiles and shrugs. “I don’t know. I was thinking Bora Bora.”

He shakes his head. “So go.”

She frowns, clarifying. “I said we should go, Roman.”

He scoffs, looking off at the ice sculpture in the middle of the upscale restaurant. A waste of money, in his opinion. “What the hell makes you think I have time to go to fucking Bora Bora with you?” He really wants to ask her what makes her think he would want to in the first place, but he’s trying to be somewhat less of an asshole to see if maybe this could work.

His Wise Man’s nervous voice balanced out with sage wisdom returning to the front of his mind.

“If the Elders are to force you into a marriage, why not with someone you already know? Especially someone who you know would have no issue in giving you an heir.”

If only Samantha wasn’t so fucking annoying.

She leans back in the chair. “You make time for these dates.”

Out of obligation. But, he won’t say that. “Yeah, but I can get my nut and send your ass packing in the same night. Can't do that if we're out of the fucking country.”

“You’re suck a di—”

“I’m so sorry.”

Soft. It’s the first thing that comes to mind hearing her voice. Light, almost. Kind. Even with just three words being spoken. And that’s just based off audio. Visually, Roman’s thoughts take an entirely different direction.

Stunning. 

Roman’s seen, entertained, and done a lot more with some beautiful women in his time, but the one standing at their table seems to have something more than all of them put together. She’s beautiful, easily one of the most gorgeous women he’s ever laid eyes on. And her smile, small but genuine makes him pause. As does her body.

She’s wearing the same uniform he’s noticed on the other waitresses, but none of them fill them out like she does. The white, long sleeved shirt that’s tucked into the knee length black pencil skirt can’t hide the curves he can practically see through the bland outfit. Nice, heavy breast. Curvy hips, thick thighs and an ass he can partially see from the front. 

This. This is his preferred body type. A woman who has something he can grab onto when he’s fucking her from behind. And Roman can only imagine what it would be like to be holding onto those luscious hips of hers while he—

“Oh my god, are you stupid?” Samantha’s annoying voice once again pulls him from his carnal fantasies. She gestures between herself and him. “Can you not see we’re in the middle of something?”

The girl, who Roman would guess is in her late twenties, early thirties at most, immediately looks repentant. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean—I was just going to apologize for your wa—”

“Whatever.” Samantha lifts her hand, silencing the girl who’s now looking down at her shoes, clearly embarrassed. “What’s the special for this evening?”

“What’s your name?” Roman’s question comes out at the same time as Samantha’s inquiry. However, his voice clearly presents with more of a commanding nature. 

She swallows. “S–Solana.”

Pretty. Just like her. 

Samantha notices the way Roman is looking at her and is fully confused as to why he’s asking this fat troll for her name. She cuts in again, in that same nasty tone. “Hello? I asked you a question.” 

Solana is clearly struggling with Samantha’s aggressiveness, Roman wondering why this bitch is directing whatever unresolved feelings she has onto this innocent girl. “Umm, I think—”

Samantha scoffs, nose turned up. “You’re our waitress, and you don’t even know what the evening special is?”

“No ma’am, I do. I’m sorry. It’s just—it’s been a long day.” There’s a weight to her words, a sadness in her voice and in her pretty brown eyes. Roman notices all of these things and finds himself wondering what the story is. Everyone has one, and hers is suddenly of interest to him. For reasons he cannot understand. 

“Pretty unprofessional to bring up your personal life, don’t you think?”

Solana closes her eyes, pausing before answering. She looks exhausted. Mentally and physically. “It’s Squab. That’s the main co—”

“I’m a vegetarian. I don’t eat meat.” Roman rolls his eyes. This hoe has been saying that since they were in high school, yet every so often she goes back to having a normal fucking diet only to switch back to that salad shit. “What’s on your—”

“I’ll do us both a favor and get her to shut the fuck up.” Roman has had enough, both of Samantha’s grating voice but mostly her being a bitch to this girl for no reason. He’s a dick on the regular. He knows this. But, never has he come across someone like this Solana woman who, with just her presence alone, exudes such softness. Like, she doesn’t have a mean bone in her fine ass body. And she clearly doesn’t because anyone else would have probably lost their job by cussing Samantha out. Not that it wouldn’t be deserved.

Roman catches the faintest hint of a smile on Solana’s face as she redirects her attention to him. “Give her the salmon. I’ll take your best steak. For wine, you carry Madeira?” 

She’s pulled out her notepad and finishes taking down the order before answering with a nod. “Yes, sir.”

Roman’s jaw clenches at that sir bit. He could ruin this girl. “What do you recommend?”

She’s visibly taken back by his question, probably by the fact that he’s asking her for her opinion. “Umm—”

“Roman, I can rec—”

“I didn’t ask you,” he cuts that bitch off with the quickness, eyes never leaving the pretty girl before him. “I asked Solana.”

Her smiles widens as she answers in a more confident tone. “Julio Barros…..1950.”

Roman smirks. 

Exactly what he was going to order.

“I’ll take it.”

Their gazes linger on each other a second too long for Samantha’s liking as she cuts in once once more. “You can go now.”

Solana’s smile drops again, Roman suddenly finding himself all annoyed. Her smile is something pretty that he wouldn’t mind seeing more of, though that irritation is waned as he’s granted the view of her nice, round ass and curvy hips swaying as she walks to the back to turn in their order.

Samantha reaches over and touches his hand, Roman snatching it back and sneering at her. “What?”

She sighs. “Baby, I’m trying to talk about us.”

And just like that, he’s annoyed all over again. “There is no us.”

Samantha looks sad only for a brief second. “Roman, I’m not stupid. I know what these dates have been for. You’re trying to see if it could work.”

“If what could work?”

“Us.” She goes on to share. “There’s rumors that the Elders have been putting more pressure on you to settle down and make an heir.” Sam leans over the table, intentionally trying to emphasize her cleavage. It’s nice. He’ll give her that. But, he’s certain it’s nothing compared to Solana though and those big breast of her hers. “I can do that for you. Be that for you. Be your wife. The mother of your children.”

Not a damn thing she’s saying sounds even the least bit desirable. At all. 

“I mean, we’ve been fucking around since we were kids. Why not make it official?”

For a lot of reasons. All the reasons. The main one being Roman don’t like this bitch unless she’s choking on or riding his dick. 

What he does like, however, and finds solace in is the interactions with Ms. Solana as the evening goes on. They’re not very often outside of her bringing the bottle of wine and their food when it’s ready as well as a check-in here or there on how they’re doing.

Each time Samantha sending her the dirtiest look or just being an ol’e nasty bitch, to which Roman shuts down, cutting her off and even telling her to shut the fuck up.

The girl is just trying to do her damn job. And as his eyes locate and land on her on several different occasions, he can see that she works hard. Moving from table to table, almost saddened facial expression indicates she’s on the receiving end of more verbal lashings from people like Samantha.

That actually pisses him off, Roman having to control and stop himself from doing some out of pocket shit. 

Again, for what reason, he hasn’t the slightest clue. He just knows those brief glimpses of her actually smiling, usually when she’s chatting with a coworker, do something for him. 

Maybe even to him. 

And unbeknownst to him, the intrigue goes both ways, because as shitty a day Solana Miller was having, the handsome stranger with the rude girlfriend or wife or whatever has somehow, someway made this day just a little bit better.

It’s been some time, if ever, Solana has come across someone with such a presence about them. Him dining at this uppity restaurant she was able to score a job at tells her that he’s wealthy. His disposition and the fact that he somehow secured it to where the surrounding tables of where he sits have been marked as unavailable tells her that he has pull. But, the way he interacts with her, a literal nobody, she’s not sure what that means.

Especially with the beautiful woman he’s with, because while Solana thinks she’s every bit a bitch as most of the women who come into this place, she’s a stunning bitch. 

Which is why Solana can’t allow herself to believe that that equally beautiful looking man is looking at her in any sort of capacity. 

There’s no way in he—

“Solana.”

And just like that, she's frowning again. “Mami?”

The last thing she expected to see this evening was the sight of her mother, already dressed in her scrubs, baby in her arms. 

Solana’s baby. 

Her 11-month–old daughter, Soraya. 

The shock wears off as Nina gets closer, Solana shaking her head, “what are you—”

Nina shakes her head, face apologetic and tone contrite. “I’m so sorry, baby, but I got called into work. I can’t watch Raya.”

Shit

It's inconvenient, but Solana understands it. She remembers the countless times Nina had no other option but to leave her with a neighbor after being called into work at all kinds of hours. She’s always worked so hard to take care of the two of them when Solana was growing up. 

“It’s okay, mama.” Solana easily reaches for her daughter, a wave of relief and happiness washing over her as she holds and kisses her baby. The source of all her joy. All of the struggle, every bit of it, is worth it as long as she has her daughter. She’d do anything for her. “How was she?”

Nina gives a small chuckle. “She’s like you were and still are. An easy child.” Solana kisses Soraya’s temple. “Sol…..” And just like that, Solana already knows she’s probably not going to like what she’s about to hear. “I know you’ve said you don’t want to go after him for child support, but it’s not fair for you to be out here working two jobs while putting yourself through school to take care of his child.”

Solana holds Soraya just a smidge tighter. “She’s my baby, mami.” 

Nina counters. “She’s his biological child.” Solana looks away, hopeful her manager, Aldis, doesn’t come out and scold her for this little interaction. She’s scheduled to clock out in another half hour anyway. “He should be paying you child support.”

Her mom is right. Solana knows this, knows that it’s not fair for her to have to be the sole provider for her baby girl, while Cruz lives his best life as an absentee, deadbeat dad. And she’s considered on several occasions going to the courthouse to see what she needs to do to get that ball rolling. 

But, every time, she’s haunted by something he said the last time they spoke, not even a month after her daughter was born. 

“Don’t you get it? We were fine before she came in the picture! We could be fine again if she wasn’t.”

Solana’s never been more disturbed than she was to hear those words leave his mouth. That’s why she’s glad he’s gone, that he wants nothing to do with her or his child. Because she would never trust to leave her baby girl with him in the first place.

And if that means she does it without him contributing financially, that’s exactly what she’ll do. 

Solana shifts Soraya from one hip to the other. “I don’t need him, mami.” And she doesn’t. Because if Solana had to resort to sex work to take care of herself and her daughter, it’s exactly what she’d do.

Nina gives a heavy sigh. “Mija, you know I help you when I can.”

“I know.” Because she does. But, the same way that times are hard for her. They’re hard for her mom, too. Everyone’s struggling these days, it seems. Everyone except the rich people who wine and dine without a care in the world around them. “I’ll be okay.”

Always will be.

Nina gives a knowing nod, hugging her daughter and gently taking her granddaughter’s hand, kissing it, speaking in Spanish. “I’ll see you later, okay? Abuela loves you.”

Solana smiles. “Thanks, mama.”

“Always, baby.” 

Nina reaches Solana the diaper bag, Solana placing it on the bar stool, knowing it’s bound to be left alone. These rich ass people would never bother with the Ross purchase. With a final parting smile, Nina is off to the hospital, leaving Solana with her daughter who’s just now waking up.

“Hi, baby girl,” Solana giggles at the almost cranky expression on her baby’s face. Raya is definitely not the happiest camper when being woken up. 

A glance at the time reminds Solana that she technically is still on the clock and really shouldn’t have her child with her. But, with no other option, she accepts she’ll just have to clock out early and take whatever those consequences are.

But before that, the least she can do is grab the bill from the table where the handsome stranger and his girlfriend sat. She’s briefly disappointed to see the table empty, even if she remembers his deep voice thanking her for her assistance this evening as she brought them that same check earlier. 

It’s a silly thing, really. And she tries to push away the disappointment at not properly telling him goodbye. A stranger. 

Silly.

Soraya grasps at the collar of her shirt while Solana walks over to the table, pausing as she gets close enough to see that there’s more than just a bill with a signature. There’s cash. A stack of it. Money in hand, she’s confused, because this man paid with a black card, so what—

“Good.” 

Solana gaps and spins around, her eyes widening as she looks up. He’s a lot taller than she realized, burly body nearly eclipsing her view of anything else, silky black hair in such a neat, perfect bun. “Wanted to make sure you got it.”

Brows furrowed, it’s hard for her to speak for a lot of reasons. One of which is the fact that this man cannot be real. A man cannot be this handsome. But, he is real, and he’s looking at her.

And Soraya. 

“I—” She shakes her head, clearing her throat. “Is this—you already paid—”

“That’s not for the bill,” his voice is so velvety, smooth, and deep. “It’s your tip.”

Eyes widening, her gaze snaps to the wad of cash as Soraya continues to grasp and squeeze her shirt. She doesn’t even need to count to know that this is a nice amount of money. 

Too much.

“I can’t—it’s too much.” 

He chuckles, “do I look like I can’t afford it?” Her eyes roam over his big, muscular build dressed in fine, expensive looking clothes. He just oozes wealth. 

And power. 

“N–no.”

“Dealing with Samantha, trust me, you earned it.” Solana looks down, wanting to hide her small smile. His gaze redirects to the child in her arm. “Who is this?”

And just like that, Solana’s proud smile returns. “My daughter, Soraya.” It’s like Soraya knows she’s being discussed, lifting her little head to look at Roman. A big grin on her face before she buries her face into Solana’s neck. 

Roman makes a sound, and she can almost swear she sees the smallest smile on his handsome face. “She looks like you.”

That creates such a warm, fuzzy feeling in her stomach, “thank you…..”

He looks at her a bit confused, like her unspoken question surprises him, before answering. “Roman.” Roman. “Roman Reigns.”

Roman Reigns. Even his name is powerful.

It fits him.

Solana shifts Soraya around as she starts to get wiggly in her arms. “Well, thank you, Mr. Reigns.” She’s certain the shock of just how much money this random, rich stranger has given her hasn’t truly set in. Because if it had, she’d have a much more visceral response. 

A lot more.

“Roman,” he corrects. “Call me Roman.” 

“Roman….” 

Something indecipherable flashes in his eyes, something that makes her feel a bit unnerved under his intense stare. It’s broken, however, by her now irritated daughter.

“Mama.” Soraya makes her dissatisfaction at being still for too long known by punching her tiny fist against Solana’s chest. “Mama!”

“Shhhhh,” Solana kisses her temple, trying to quiet her down before someone makes Aldis aware of her presence. She looks at Roman, eyes softening, “thank you again.”

Truly. Honestly. He hasn’t the slightest clue how much this will help her. It’s why she can stand here without anxiety and concern about making it to the bus stop on time. Tonight.....tonight she’ll treat herself and her baby with calling an Uber instead. 

Might even stop and pick up dinner.

Roman nods, eyes briefly glancing at her daughter again, the smallest smile on his face. “I’ll see you later, Solana.” His head dips a bit in acknowledgment towards her baby. “Soraya.”

The smile is plastered on her face even as he walks off without another word. And it’s only a good two minutes later that she catches onto what he said. A certain word in particular standing out the most. 

What did he mean by later?

[plow-and-propose]

Orange Flags (found in any post but especially ones about politics)

We don't always have the time and/or energy to do our own research, so here are some things to watch out for:

No sources. Obviously this doesn't 100% guarantee that the post contains misinformation but it does mean you can't easily verify it. Is OP right? Wrong? Outright lying? You don't know!

Contradicting sources in the notes. Again, doesn’t necessarily mean that OP is wrong, but you should absolutely do your own research before sharing if several different people are providing contradictory evidence.

'Unreliable' sources. What constitutes as unreliable depends a bit on context but be especially wary of unsourced screenshots (could be taken out of context), clearly biased sources (e.g. 'Nationalist News of [Country]' type newspapers), and second hand sources (e.g. a different, unsourced tumblr post).

Minor mistakes. Like an incorrect statistic, an exaggerated number, or a omitted detail - something fairly small. Maybe OP just misremembered or forgot about this one thing, but it could be a sign they've made an error or lied about something far more major.

Urgency. Obviously there is a lot of reason for urgency when dealing with crises, but if a post gives you the vibe of go go go there's no time to explain share this give money do it now don't think about it go then OP may not have stopped to check their sources, or even be actively using urgency to mislead you.

And lastly here's a tip: if you're not sure, save the post as a draft. More information might become available later.

Stopping the spread of misinformation is hard. We all want to help and sharing posts feels like a very quick and easy way to do it. But it's also very easy to share the wrong thing by mistake. Try to stop and think.

Source for this post: my own experience. These are things I've picked up over many years of being gullible online. I highly encourage you to take the time to educate yourself about how to stop the spread of misinformation.

[multiheadcanons]

TF2 MERCS DRIVING

scout: scout is actually one of the better drivers. undistracted, and he will lecture anyone who attempts to take his eyes off the road. knows stick shift because soldier taught him how to drive stick shift because “men know stick shift”. however, he doesn’t have his license, so he is legally not allowed to drive for Mann Co. for whatever reason, THAT rule is the one they follow.

soldier: he’s…. definitely capable of driving. nobody would willingly ask him to drive anything that handles better than a campbells soup can, the dogshit cars always act so well maintained with him. he eats at mario kart tho. he’s allowed one (1) shitty car that doesn’t even turn over unless he’s the one with the key in hand. if you ask him about how he happens to start the car he says “just jiggle it!”

pyro: will eat up a vespa. wants so badly to drive a fire truck. can’t for obvious reasons. also eats at mario kart.

engineer: a GREAT driver until you get him on the back roads. then it’s “darlin’, i’ve been driving on texas roads longer than you could see above the wheel, i got this” while your drink is splashing onto your shirt and you’re holding onto the the car handles for dear life and it seems like he’s actively going out of his way to hit every single pot hole and whooping like he’s a kid jesus fucking christ—

heavy: also a great driver! does his best driving on snowy roads, and will not drive a car not within legal parameters. he refuses to allow sascha to be taken because of something as silly as the insurance. easily distracted on the roads though, does better with a passenger princess taking care of directions. brakes for critters, brakes harder for road rage. he does love a good fight.

demo: a bad driver with a lead foot. treats the actual roads like mario kart. he’s also not allowed in the drivers seat of the company cars. that’s why he’s the main user of the teleporters. he uses his turn signals though, and frankly he thinks that’s all that should matter. once tailgated heavy so hard that heavy pulled over and as demo got out, fully ready to fight, and made eye contact with heavy he jumped back in his car and sped off. that was a sobering experience. heavy still laughs about it though.

medic: please do not ask this man to drive. he will be making calls, eating, drinking, changing the radio station, yelling at everyone in the backseat who’s “distracting him”, swerving in and out of lanes, using his knees to keep the wheel straight so he can clap to whatever music he decides on, and if you try to call him out on it, this fucker… this fucker scoffs. “don’t be a baby! i’ve been driving longer than i haven’t been driving, i am a wonderful driver!” with road rage to boot. he is not in his lane half the time. the last time he was allowed to drive for the company he also got into it with heavy. he’s the only one who didn’t get back in his car, but he did apologize. he will fight anyone who asks to fight on the roads, he will race anyone who asks to race. it’s lawless country. sighs about the autobahn often.

sniper: a good enough, responsible enough driver, because he’s the only one (aside from soldier…. technically….) with his own van to maintain. he will never let anyone else in the car if he’s in the car; he has no interest in letting people find out if he’s a good driver or not because his van is his sanctuary and that means everyone else get out. spends most of his time in his van anyway. doesn’t like sedans. does have a habit of tailgating people, and if you are allowed the rare opportunity to be in the vehicle with him and say something about it he’ll go “oh! am i? i’ll stop, thanks for letting me know mate” and then you will never be allowed in the car again. only thing he hates more than passengers are backseat drivers. he will tailgate whoever he wants to. fuck off. has also tailgated heavy so hard heavy pulled over to fight him, and he also got immediately back in his car and waved him off with an appeasing smile. heavy laughs about that too.

spy: you ever wanted to feel like you’re the worst driver in the world? get in a car with spy. feels like james bond. drives with no music, and one of the few times he won’t smoke. feels like an uber frfr. please do not speak to him when he’s driving, he would like to forget about the life he’s actively living and you are a part of that. makes a KILLER getaway car driver. prompt, punctual, professional. won’t drive anything without window tints.

[fasolabean]

warninggg this is a long one ,,,

(Okay so I started writing this uhhh vent before more posts on the n//fts appeared later so plz keep that in mind hah)

So I haven’t been too active on here for the past month – a bit personal start, but I’ve moved to a different country whooo!!!! (its terrifying) (my brains been involved in fandom stuff as usual but physically I wasn’t lmao).

But I wanted to talk ab the n//ft (censoring bc idk ab bots here) thing bc while some people on here provided some great context and threads, most of the talk has happened on twitter. So like. Since it was first confirmed what the raffle thing was I was veryyyy disappointed, especially bc K has made fun of this very thing on stage previously. And like yea, the nature of what hes doing is different than the n//ft crypt0 scams, since the cost of the paywalled content is set and not fluid and the raffle thing was free to enter, and I know there have been threads about the website not being the worst on twitter (link) (edit: now here on tumblr too). But still man. Both of these could’ve been done on either an independent website or through stuff like youtube members or patreon. Or hell, even just on the merch store? Like buy a promo code that buys you access to the material?

Also like I get that this was probably a contract that would be rly hard if not impossible to terminate. STILL though, I wish we just got an even short thing like “hi sorry I wasn’t aware this is gonna be a one time thing we’re not doing it again”. I don’t mind extra content being paywalled personally, I know some people do, but I just really wish it wasn’t don’t with that technology. And yes, I also now know it’s a safer way to handle shit like that but I just cant see this excuse being used for commercial use? Like maybe I can see why I could be made to use it for like idk an important document, but a raffle ticket? Nah

I also, ugh. Felt weird about mikke in the team since the winter. This whole thing seems to be – at least to a large extent – either done or influenced by him, judging by even the fact that the europass thingy webpage has oy photomikke marked (no im not buying it but i did look around curiosity was stronger). Also the previous thing that had made me go hmmm about käärijä as a brand was the bnb, which now seems to be ran entirely by mikke and his wife. Like stick to your photos man? That being said tho, Jere IS an adult and he IS the face of this brand. If he doesn’t think hes qualified to make business decisions all by himself (which I get, this shit is hard), nothing is stopping him really from getting a professional to help him with those things. And if there IS something stopping him then hey man I think you should go to the press with that lol. From any interviews ive seen or read, you can feel he feels this responsibility to keep his friends and family that initially helped him afloat. But I wish he understood that not letting people who in the end are not professional about business and PR and having them stick to their own thing does not have to mean cutting them off.

But now I just wanna share a thought that to some might seem like me defending him – which, in case you didn’t get I am very much not lmao. The thing is, im really glad the fandom is able to call him out on a shitty thing – like a bad baaad business decision. You can like somebody’s art, hell you can even like the public person they are, while not agreeing with everything what they do. What annoys me though, is that apart of the kä fandom, he is also often talked about (usually negatively) in the wider esc fandom. Over the past week I’ve seen multiple threads on twitter from people that rarely ever mention him about this. That would’ve been like, not that much of a deal (though sometimes it really got… engagement bait-y) but the amount of bodyshaming and shaming of his fans that comes up with every valid criticism is making me wanna pull my hair out.

Especially cause he’s neither the first finnish esc-related artist to do that (Robin and Cyan Kicks are mentioned on the kollekt website) nor is he the first esc artist of his influence to do it either. Last year Loreen and Alessandra have released n//fts last year, and Loreen did a very similar raffle a couple months ago. Now I wanna be very clear: I don’t want this to be like. Cancelling these people, that would be so hypocritical of me. I also don’t want this to be like a fandom war like oh youre mad he did xyz?? Well THIS and THIS person did THAT!!1! I’m just merely annoyed that these people doing essentially the same thing went with no echo at all, but now I’ve seen us (the fandom) be literally called the r slur and the most vile things being said about jere and, for some reason, his appearance???

Idk man. I really try to  make it clear im not trying to excuse his decisions and I think being angry and/or disappointed at him is absolutely understandable. Im just angry that every single time he fucks up, every single time he makes a mistake, my timeline is filled with a wave of people rejoicing in it. I know he’s a controversial figure, he’s been one since day one, but I just wish he’s gotten the same amount of shit his peers do for the same actions? And this happens every time, and each time im like “well ig I can see why hes so bad when it comes to criticism”. Because imagine doing a thing that your peers have done with no/minimal criticism and then the moment you try it out you get people calling your fans slurs and commenting how stupid you are. Like ngl id also think any criticism was hate lmao.

Again I wanna be very VERY clear im very critical ab what he chose to do. I wish he took some responsibility – and hope he maybe does, at some point in the future. This year has been a whole lot of bad business decisions for the käärijä brand in my eyes, and I hope he can actually see where its gone wrong and do something about it, both for his and our sake. I am also happy to see fellow fans who are able to call out their fave. But man I am TIRED of him just getting all the shit (from people who very visibly fans are not)?? And now I have the proof that it is comparably more than other people and not just my bias towards him because wdym there’s been at least 4 esc artists, 2 of which more famous than him, and 2 umk artists doing exactly the same thing with almost no echo??

TLDR (thishasover1kwordsfuckshit); I wish he did better, simply. I kinda cling to some hope that maybe hey finally this time he will see that criticism can be constructive. I think this is still a level of fucking up that you can like, come back from. Pity it’s connected to the eurotour since kinda souring my excitement ab my first concert in a new country a bit :(

[she-posts-nerdy-stuff]

It’s one in the morning let’s talk Six of Crows analysis - it feels like it’s been ages since I did any analysis, which is like the entire point of this account so sorry about that but here we go: We should talk more about Adem Bajan you guys okay because first of all he effectively comes to represent the vast majority of everyday people in a clear juxtaposition to both Inej and Van Eck, but he also is in a position of far less choice than I think we give him credit for.

As a reminder, Bajan is a young Suli boy (presumably somewhere around 19 but we have no confirmation of that) working in the Van Eck household teaching Alys music. He is highly implied to be having or to have interest in having as affair with Alys, and was Van Eck’s chosen jailer for Inej at the beginning of Crooked Kingdom. Van Eck claims he made this choice because he thought “a Suli boy would be most conspicuous” when he was attempting to lure Kaz into a trap to save Inej, but it was also an inarguably smart decision in that, as Inej even comments herself, Bajan was easy to talk to, made her feel nostalgic, homesick, and alone, and very nearly succeeded in drawing information out of her without having to restore to torture. If anything, resorting to torture was Van Eck’s major mistake at this point but that’s really a conversation for another time. Bajan is a really interesting character because he doesn’t want to hurt Inej and specifically encourages her to tell him things so Van Eck won’t escalate things further, but when Van Eck does escalate things Bajan is unable - or possibly unwilling - to stop him. For this Inej calls him a monster, and when he claims he did nothing replies “no, you’re the man who stands idly by congratulating himself whilst the monster eats its fill”. She draws a Suli phrase on him that effectively means he’ll be rejected by the community forever and his spirit/soul won’t be accepted, and she describes it as the worst fate or something along those lines sorry I can’t remember exactly. But what’s the most interesting thing is that even though he claims not to believe in any of it Bajan gets noticeably upset by this and says “that’s not fair”. Inej is surprised that he’s this soft, and there’s a very clear juxtaposition between the lives they have lived.

BUT - let’s look at this from Bajan’s perspective. And remember - this is important - Bajan is not described as an employee of Van Eck’s, but an indenture. An indenture. So Bajan is a young boy indentured in a foreign country to a man as high up in the country’s government as you can get and who has clearly been illustrated to the reader as a terrible person on several different levels that I won’t dissect in too much detail right now. He appears to have acclimatised himself to Kerch surroundings and acts with elevation above his status, because that’s what he has to do to survive in the upper echelon of a deeply classist society that actively diminishes and disapproves of his culture. (<<if anyone wants references for that let me know and also I’ve written about it quite a bit before so that’s kicking around on my page somewhere) He refuses to speak to Inej in Suli because “it makes me maudlin” and my question to you is: is he rejecting the language to further attempt to fit in and as a product of internalised prejudice, or because it’s so incredibly painful to be half-connected to a culture not only that he has forced himself to reject but also that he feels he can never safely return to? Probably both. He tells Inej he doesn’t believe in Suli superstition, religion, or culture, and yet is deeply upset when she uses it against him. Is this because he actually does believe, or wants to believe, in the Saints and the Suli interpretation of them but has rejected them for survival and the supposed betterment of himself? Possibly.

Bajan strikes me as very similar to Jesper in the way he presents himself as free, flirty, and casual, but had a considerable weight to almost everything he says and considerable pain hidden closer to the surface than he may have realised. I think there are parallels between him and Inej if we want to see them, but also a very stark difference in the way Kerch and Ketterdam have treated them. Bajan may not be privileged but even as an indenture he has - or at least as far as we know has had - a far safer and kinder experience than Inej has. This could be related to gender since the hyper-sexualisation of Suli culture is mostly centred on women - “the Menagerie always stocked a Suli girl” (I’ve intensely analysis this quote before so I won’t now but ugh there’s so much to say) - but we do know there are young boys captive at the pleasure houses as well although less commonly and it’s also possible that this difference is linked to Bajan’s decision to turn his back on Suli culture in order to appeal more to Kerch society whilst Inej continually embraced her culture and arguably became more religious in response to her experiences.

This is complicated because I’m not entirely sure how I feel about Bajan. I understand and support Inej’s perspective and everything she saw whilst in a far more dangerous position that he was, but is it possible that this was a lonely boy who saw someone he thought was like him and tried to communicate with her the only way he thought was safe? You are completely isolated in a foreign culture and hate yourself for having suppressed your own upbringing in order to survive, but now you meet someone else who yes, is in more danger than you, but who you might be able to help so that she can help you in return. You aren’t safe to speak freely and so you subtly tell her that you are an indenture, hoping she acknowledges that none of this is of your free will and because you know that she was indentured too (and remember from a societal pov there is very little understanding of what indentured girls at the pleasure houses actually go through and although that doesn’t excuse ignoring Inej’s trauma it may explain why he doesn’t fully acknowledge that their positions aren’t equal), you tell her that speaking your own shared language makes you feel maudlin, hoping she realises that you desperately miss your homeland and using your language makes you feel even further from your family than you already are because you can’t share it with them. She doesn’t seem to be taking any of it in, your employer has every intention of hurting her and you don’t know what else to do, so you make a last plea: you ask her about home. You think you’ve already made it clear that speaking about home is painful, so you ask her about it to invite that pain, to share it, so you both understand. But it fails, because she only sees your employer puppeteering you. You openly beg her to tell him the truth so that he won’t hurt her but she refuses to comply, and after all of your efforts and your desperate attempts to connect and beg her to help you both go home, her response is to turn your home against you and banish you from it for eternity. So when you see her the next morning, how could you possibly look her in the eye?

Bajan did not make all of the right choices in his brief time on the page. He didn’t. But maybe he was trying really hard, and he had no other options left.

Anyway I’m not saying this is definitive one way or the other it’s just an interpretation but I find him a very interesting and very sad character and I although I support all of Inej’s actions in these scenes from her point of view I do find myself wondering how she appeared to Bajan and how he felt in the aftermath.

[lacewise]

Hey. I’m still seeing near daily hate speech on my timeline, especially to Jewish and Israeli people (minding their own business!!!). Stop it. Get over yourselves. People other than you also have a right to live.

Hate speech, bigotry, and threats are never acceptable behaviour. There should especially never be a time when intersectionally marginalized people don’t feel safe in communities meant for them on the basis of one of their other identities. I thought we went over this. That includes Jewish people. That includes, explicitly, every group that you think “deserves” it, because discrimination against them is “for a reason” (the only reason is discrimination). If it doesn’t, you have biases you need to unpack and grapple with… yourself. A good start is a lot of listening to Jewish people who explain how it’s discriminatory (which they shouldn’t have to do). No arguing. Just listening.

I’ve seen this about Black people, I’ve seen this about Romani people, I’ve seen this about Muslim people, I’ve seen this about Latine people, I’ve seen this about trans men, non-binary people, ace people, aro people, he/him lesbians—and I could go on. Right now, most often, I’m seeing it about Jewish and Israeli people (which are not interchangeable groups). It needs to stop. It needs to never have begun. You need to deal with this, now.

Unfortunately, I think I need to include some examples of antisemitism: sending Jewish people unfounded conspiracy theories and allegations is harassment. That includes using tags meant for in-Jewish community use.

Spreading the unfounded conspiracy theories because they “sound like” what you think about Jewish people is antisemitic discrimination.

Making Jewish people “prove” to you they have the “right opinions” before you’ll let them into spaces they have a right to access is antisemitic discrimination. Which you’d think a group of people who just learned collective punishment is bad would know.

Saying things like, (and I really hate quoting discriminatory language, so I won’t forgive anyone who made this necessary) “But so-and-so is Jewish” or “Did you know so-and-so is… Jewish…?” is monstrous. It’s antisemitic discrimination, and it’s pretty actively trying to cause harassment campaigns (or worse) against specific Jewish individuals. If you see that, you need to report and block whoever is doing it. I really don’t care what the current euphemism they’re using for Jewish people is, euphemisms have a history in discriminatory practices going back hundreds of years.

Trying to dox Israeli people, trying to mass report them off the internet, telling them to “Go back to their country” (really?), are all active and organized harassment campaigns I have witnessed. Which, after October 7th, strikes me as both violent threats and a support for terrorist attacks.

Some of you were platforming people who are clearly calling for progroms for months and then demanding to know why any Jewish person deserves to live in Israel.

This cannot keep happening. This cannot happen.

Don’t harass Jewish people. Don’t harass Israeli people, especially using antisemitic conspiracy theories. Not every Israeli person is Jewish, and every Israeli person cannot be constantly and individually held responsible for the failures and violence of the Israeli government. If people are committing crimes, you need to focus on the individuals and groups directly and provably responsible, and the government itself. And you still shouldn’t engage in hate speech or harassment campaigns. I shouldn’t have to debunk multiple conspiracy theories at once to say, “Don’t harass Israeli citizens.” You just… shouldn’t be doing it.

Don’t spread hate speech. Don’t engage in hate speech. Don’t engage in harassment campaigns. Don’t justify or defend other people doing it.

[g0g0at]

Malevolent part 47

Oooh let’s go

What is that sound???

Thank you for the exact hours Yorick, I’ll be putting that to good use

Oh one of those medieval prison things.

A gibbot? Joyous name mmm

Are we about to get a sick fic esc episode?

Arthur talking about the air again… he’s been doing that a lot this season…

John shaking Arthur “REST GODDAMNIT!!

Bro straight up has the plague

“If Arthur says he’s fine, he’s fine” NO THAT IS NOT TRUE FOR HIM

John is being so understanding

John pep talk

“He was just a man” he also SUCKED

Arthur you’re not a bad person for this my guy

Probably would be dead otherwise ngl

“I don’t have an answer that will make you feel better”

John is already human

I mean you can try but the plague is contagious

“You know what the right path forward is” I mean mostly

“Thanks you keeping us alive” part 2

Hehe John bragging a little

Oh witches hand?

Welp. Time to desecrate a corpse

ARTHUR SHOULD NOT CLIMB HIGH PLACES!! NOT WITH HIS FALLING OFF OF THINGD HISTORY!!

Yorick you’re being sneaky…

Why did I know he was gonna say eye?

Eye gouging time again 😔

Hand of Malevolen(t)ce

“I am in no rush” ok Yorick thanks

Is he seriously climbing this

Couldn’t he tip it?

The laughing cough BAHAHHA

“There are no wrong answers in brain storming” sounds like my highschool teachers

Shame he doesn’t have an axe

How are you gonna get the pin? Shake it?

John has had enough of being dead named

Haha! Rocks!

How good is your aim?

Hey he hit it! John sounds so proud

Wii Golf

Alexander heyo

Alexander please don’t eat the eyes

ALEXANDER STOP THAT!

“I scared him away 😞 “

Is Alexander actively against Yorick?

Bro is calling himself a nerd 💀

For someone “not good at athletics” he’s good and running a such

“You wanted to fit in” HEY HEY HEY

“If they could see me now” *throws rocks at a corpse*

WHAT WAS THAT

Was that John tapping the cage to guide him? That’s a new trick

Mist creature

Oh no split decision

And another hole!

RIGHT NOW?!! WHY NOW?!!

YORICK PRIORITIES PLEASE

Oh dear

This is not good

Arthur you are “folding” again

Black candle?

Dark magic…

Oh dear dark world shit

What is happening

Did it get rid of the creature?

Oh the vanguard and yorick are seperate?

Hmmm

Interesting…

Hey he called him John

Yorick lore

I thought the antithesis was gonna be “the hand of god” ngl

Oh that’s actually useful af

Haha it was the owl!

Lilith? Sent by Kayne maybe?

Oh ok nvm

Arthur is just getting chased by every second outer god oml

Shape shifters…

Maybe Arthur needed to die for whatever reason

Who is she…

Limited uses AUGHHHHH

SCRATCH

Is John hearing those whispers?

Oh dear

Ok ok so. Alexander is or works for Scratch. But if Arthur is her “favourite”. Then…

Mmmm maybe Arthur NEEDED to die and come back, for some reason

Oooh this episode has so much lore

Can you bluff a god like that??

Maybe don’t confront her…

Double lie

I mean you guys are both ok at lying

Arthur is struggling

Oooh ok it’s starting to make sense

So you only gotta worry about her if she’s nearby that’s some benefit

John and Yorick bonding moment?

John saying he’s projecting and that he thought Yorick was a mistake… does that mean… does that mean John thinks that he’s also a mistake?

“Purely for appearances” yeah ok

Very poetic, my friend

Looks like we’re ramping up to the final season(s)

“We’ll stare it down” well… John will

Yeah play it up! Arthur’s acting skills have improved since the train

John is getting excited too BAHHAHA

How close are you guys to the castle?

Oh they’ve all be cut down hmmmm

Mmmm storm environment

King Louis?

Was there an 8th Louis?

So we’re in a different timeline

That’s a LONG reign

King John hehhe

France and England become one country??

Oooooh world building

AYE CASTLE!!

Eeee I’m excited

Hopefully it’s not full of dead people like in Carcosa

“I know far too much, you will need to be more specific”

That’s a big question

He needs some cough drops

He sounds like he’s gonna pass out kinda

King in Yellow has some French influence, this’ll be interesting

Oh my god he needs some soup and cough drops

Yorick sounded kinda concerned for him there dang

Yeah probably better to rest in the castle than the rain

Cows might be difficult to fake

That cough sounds real (if Harlan recorded this while sick I guess it would be)

Gold ring, good choice

Lovely description from John

Oh is this castle fucked up

Good lord that is a horrid cough

Everart… that sounds familiar… oh that’s a disco elysium character

Oh my god he literally sounds like he’s dying

“Not the way you taught me”

He is mixed up HE HAS THE PLAGUE

“Lean on me” I thought he meant literally for a second ngl and was like “well good luck with that”

Let John handle it for a bit

Castle time!!!

Oh the sound design….

Is Yorick in the bag??? Doesn’t matter if he’s quiet if they can SEE HIM

Oh this sound design is AWESOME

Don’t get stabbed…

Oh WHAT

Of course the castle is fucked up why am I surprised

How does he eat? Does he? Fucked up castle

This imagery is nice

Maaaaaaaaan maybe this castle was a bad choice

AH CARCOSA MENTION

All righty castle time!!

Mmmm I’m nervous tho ngl

Oooh can’t wait for next week!! The castle!!

[jujumin-translates]

★ Main Story | Act 13 - Budding Spring | Chapter 11 - Pause & Pose

Citron: 《It seems that there are no problems regarding this matter.》

Personnel: 《Understood. Well then, there is one more thing I’d like to discuss--.》

Personnel: 《Actually, ever since your activities have become more widely known about to the general public, Citronia-sama, interest in foreign culture and arts has been growing.》

Personnel: 《There is a proposal that the country should take this opportunity to invite performances from abroad.》

Citron: 《I think that’s a wonderful idea. I will talk it over with my father.》

Personnel: 《If that’s the case, I will make putting together a rough outline my number one priority.》

Citron: 《I’ll be keeping an eye out for promising theater companies and other groups on my end.》

Personnel: 《Thank you very much for doing so. I will have a rough outline ready in time for the International Arts Festival, so please wait until then.》

Citron: 《Regarding that… please put the status of my attendance on hold due to scheduling circumstances.》

Personnel: 《Would you like someone else to attend in your place? His Majesty also said that this would be a good opportunity to promote Zahra to places abroad…》

Citron: 《No, if we do participate, I would be the person most suited for it… but I’m currently tied up with some other things. Please just give me some time.》

Personnel: 《Understood.》

Citron: …

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

*Typing*

Tsuzuru: …Phew.

Masumi: …It’s noon.

Tsuzuru: What are you? Some kinda hourly reporter? Chill, I’ll take a break soon.

*Phone buzzes*

Masumi: …

Tsuzuru: If you know who it is, you should answer right away.

Masumi: I know.

Masumi: …I’m answering a call, so get out.

Tsuzuru: Huh? I’m supposed to leave?

Masumi: Go.

Tsuzuru: Yeah, yeah, I’m going.

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

*Door closes*

Tsuzuru: (Maybe this is Masumi’s way of getting me to take a break.)

Tsuzuru: (Guess I could go for a walk after I eat lunch…)

· • —– ٠ ✤ ٠ —– • ·

*Shop bell rings*

Shop Worker: Welcome. Please take a seat anywhere.

Tsuzuru: …

Syu: Oh, would you look at that, if it ain’t Minagi-sensei.

Tsuzuru: Huh--.

Tsuzuru: (I never would’ve expected to see Otomiya-san in a coffee shop like this, it’s like seeing an animal in the wrong environment… Like a bar would make sense, but here?)

Syu: I ain’t out drinkin’ all the time, y’know.

Tsuzuru: (Busted…)

Syu: You alone? Come ‘n hang out with me for a bit.

Tsuzuru: Ah, well, if you insist…

Tsuzuru: (He even acts like we’re in a bar.)

Syu: Damn, that Yukio’s really done it again.

Tsuzuru: Huh?

Syu: The Fleur Award.

Syu: This is Yukio we’re talkin’ about, so I bet he’s all “Theater is the best” and “It’s more fun when everyone’s aiming to win the Fleur Award ♪”

Syu: He probably hasn’t even stopped to think about all the people who got caught up in this and now can’t tell left from right in the confusion.

Tsuzuru: Haha…

Tsuzuru: (I’m really starting to feel like I’m one of those people…)

Syu: So, how are things goin’ for you? Figure out what you’re gonna do to win?

Tsuzuru: Ah, we’re thinking of doing sequels for our debut performances…

Syu: You don’t say. That sounds pretty interestin’.

Tsuzuru: It’s just, this is my first time writing a sequel, so I’m having a lot of trouble trying to figure out how to make it work and what kinds of things people are expecting from me. I’ve got a huge weight on my pen, so to speak.

Syu: Why can’t ya just keep doin’ what you’re doin’? Doesn’t the fact that you chose to do sequels to your debut performances show that you’ve got some kinda determination?

Tsuzuru: Well, I mean, I guess so.

Syu: Well, if you’re in need of some more help--.

Tsuzuru: ?

Syu: …Ever heard of a director named Akazaki?

Tsuzuru: Oh, I have. Isn’t he pretty famous?

Syu: He’s a director and a playwright, and every few years he runs a scriptwriting camp to train the younger generations.

Syu: He’s doin’ it again this year and asked me if I knew of any promising young talent.

Syu: I was actually gonna recommend you, Minagi-sensei, but I decided against it ‘cause I figured you’d be too busy for it.

Tsuzuru: A scriptwriting camp… those actually exist?

Syu: Playwrights who have participated in it in the past have done things like won theater awards overseas and have been selected to work on major dramas, so it’s got a proven track record.

Tsuzuru: I’ve never done anything like that before, so I’m really, really interested.

Tsuzuru: But considering that the results for the first quarter are gonna be announced in three months, I don’t know if I’d have the time for it…

Tsuzuru: (I’m pretty attracted to new challenges, but given the timing, I feel like I’ve gotta hold back on this one.)

Tsuzuru: I’ll definitely want to participate whenever the next one happens.

Syu: Got it. I’ll keep ya posted for when that time comes.

Syu: And like I said before, I think you’re doin’ fine as is, Minagi-sensei.

Syu: If you’re goin’ back to the basics, let your past self teach ya about ‘em within the script for your debut performance.

Syu: Think about what it is you wanna write about. It’s pretty easy to find that sorta thing in your first work.

Syu: Writin’ what you wanna write is one of the upsides to workin’ for a specific theater. This sequel’s somethin’ that only you can create, Minagi-sensei.

Syu: Do what you want whenever ya get the chance. Before it gets to a point where ya wanna read somethin’ but can’t.

Tsuzuru: --.

Tsuzuru: (...Right. He can’t read any more of Hakkaku-san’s sequels.)

Tsuzuru: (And if it weren’t for the changes in the Fleur Award system, we might’ve never brought up the idea of doing sequels to begin with.)

Tsuzuru: (Blindly clinging to the opportunities put in front of me. That’s how I did things back during RomiJuli.)

Tsuzuru: (Thinking it could’ve been both my first and last chance, I was willing to do anything and everything I possibly could.)

Tsuzuru: (That’s why now, I--.)

[ ⇠ Previous Part ] • [ Next Part ⇢ ]

[hareofhrair]

Please tell me if you're a zionist or not. Because the notes on that post of yours are absolutely rancid regarding Palestinian people and I need to know before I submit your url to the zionist block list

No, I am not a zionist. Israel, like any ethnostate, should not exist and what they are doing to the Palestinians is unquestionably genocide. I fully support Palestine and their right to resist in the face of annihilation.

I am also not anti semetic, for the record, and stand with the many Jewish people who support Palestinian liberation.

I also recognize that while Biden or any president is unlikely to ever stop supporting Israel as it’s too critical to colonial and capitalist action in that area, Trump has voiced support for Israel straight up nuking Gaza.

There is unfortunately very little we can meaningfully do with this particular election for the Palestinian people. Continuing to pressure the democrats may mitigate the damage to a degree, but I’m aware how thin a comfort that is to a country currently being massacred.

But we cannot help ANYONE if our democracy is actively overthrown, as Trump has made extremely, unambiguously clear he intends to do. He has every intention of making himself a Putin style dictator, with the full support of Putin himself, who knows he can use Trump as a puppet, in a manner so like the way we’ve overthrown democratic countries and installed puppet dictators in the past that the dramatic irony would be heavy handed were it fictional. We almost deserve it.

But we are a country full of innocent people the same as any other, who don’t deserve to suffer and die to punish the idea of western imperialism, which the vast majority of have zero control over.

The one tiny bit of control we DO have is through voting.

This is not a situation I’m happy with, but this isn’t a situation of trading Palestinian lives for American ones. This is a situation where saving Palestinian lives isn’t even on the table, and refusing to acknowledge that is only going to make the situation worse. We can either save American lives and hope it doesn’t make the situation in Palestine actively worse. Or we can refuse to do anything like petulant children and watch everyone die.

Vote, and then get back to organizing your community, participating in protests and direct action, volunteering and donating to relief and evacuation funds, and voting in local elections so that we can maybe end up with some better options next time!

And if yall ever get the violent revolution off the ground, I’ll be right behind you! But if you tell me you’re not voting because the only moral action is firebombing a Walmart, you’d better firebomb the goddamn Walmart.

And to the assholes in the notes of that post and talking shit in my asks, for the record, I’m a disabled trans lesbian living in goddamn Louisiana, living on less than $1000 a month. Aside from my friends in Florida, no one is getting the ass end of this garbage government more than us. And for the record, yeah, I’m boycotting McDonald’s, and anything else I can. I’d boycott Starbucks too if there was one within 50 miles. I vote in every local election. I organize as much as I can in rural Louisiana. I take direct action whenever I get the chance, which isn’t often given my lack of mobility and remote location, but I’m willing to bet I’ve done more than most of the assholes in the notes.

Let me put it very plainly, TLDR: if you refuse to vote because you think it doesn’t make a difference or you think it’ll make you complicit in this country’s crimes, you are actively putting your personal comfort and moral purity above the lives of the Palestinian people, as well as above every vulnerable person in this country on top of it. If you want to save Palestine, start by not letting our god damn democracy go up in flames.

[typewriter83]

Hi! I've been following your work for some time now, and I think you're such a prolifically skilled writer. I prefer the canon dynamic between Joel and Ellie, and the fact that their relationship has father-daughter themes but isnt purely that, yet also isn't romantic. However, I will dabble in some stories about Joellie and I do find that concept interesting. Just out of curiosity, I was wondering what your thoughts are on one of the OG fics, Flying to Wyoming? I noticed you mentioned it in a previous post listing fics. I know that while it's well-written, it's also considered a rather controversial (and at times, extreme) fic, and for good reason. I'm interested in seeing what other people think.

Oh, hello! First of all, sweet new cub, you’re too kind - I’m so touched that you enjoy my stories. Like sincerely touched. Thank you.

I came into the the TLOU fandom from the show, looking for Joel&Ellie stories, and had no interest in the romantic ship - shh, don’t tell the cubs - but it was fics that drew my attention and curiosity and eventually the brain rot sent in. I’m a fan of the canon dynamics too - minus Ellie’s treatment of Joel in Part 2, but that’s a topic for another day.

But yes, let’s talk about Flying to Wyoming because on the surface, it’s the quintessential Joellie story - discussion below the cut - it’s LONG, so buckle up.

FtW is one of those stories that I should have let lie, should have let it be a one and done, enjoyed it and never gone back. I read the entire 600k word behemoth in less than a week, which means I was speed-reading, skimming and not in great depth and detail. But at the end, those last paragraphs of the final installment, I was crying, like tears flowing down my cheeks and I wandered my house like I’d lost real people in my life. (Am dramatic, didn’t y’all know?)

The basic dynamics of the story are there - a sweeping epic, cross-country survival adventure where a teenaged orphan girl falls in love with her older male protector, one of the first people that’s ever protected her, ever put her first. Much like the canon story, Ellie starts off terrified of Joel and what he might be capable of, and Joel treats Ellie like cargo because he doesn’t want to get close to her and fail yet another that comes into his life. And, honestly, this story could have been a platonic story, 100% it would have worked - even with undertones of a teenager crushing on an older man, it would have worked. But, because of the twist the writer takes, we have a whole different angle that’s being built up to - trust me, guilt-ridden Joel is my bread and butter and there’s a lot of guilt in his inner dialogue. Ellie’s a very curious, horny teenager - which is pretty much on target for the character. I’ve written both these angles, myself, and so have others.

So, what’s my problem with it? It’s a lot. The change in dynamics after the FtW2 - it’s been awhile since I’ve read it, so if I mess up the timeline, that’s on me - Ellie is still 14 when they set out for SLC and the explicit sexual activities ramp up pretty quickly especially at the bed and breakfast. I’m judging here - okay, maybe a little, and I have no place to judge - but that’s a lot for a young teenage girl. My problem with it is simply a matter of opinion - Ellie was so young. Am I a prude? Was I sheltered? Maybe - or maybe it just wasn’t my cup of tea for reading material.

The writer is talented, his depictions of a broken world are brilliantly detailed. His depictions of how states would fight states and the scars left in the earth after battles that took place long before Ellie was born are gorgeously detailed. His descriptions of abandoned and desolate towns along the highways are incredible. Some of my favorite scenes come from their stops along the way, but namely the town at the edge of the Mississippi where they stop for bike repairs - it’s a real bonding moment for Joel & Ellie and the town’s description is vividly painted.

Those are my positive takeaways from the story - the writer draws you in with his depictions of the broken world and it’s part of the draw to the TLOU universe for me as well. The whole idea of two humans walking - or on the back of a bike - across a broken country, it’s just so compelling.

Back to the Joellie aspect of the saga.

It’s made very clear in the final story - which by the way is the best title: The Home at the End of the Road is just a perfect title to describe not only their home once they settle in Jackson, but Jackson itself is their home at the end of their long journey. I could weep - anyway, by the final story, it’s made clear that Ellie is considered an adult by end-of-the-world standards when she turns 16, and Joel is finally ready (at peace?) to give himself completely to her. I didn’t particularly care for the scene itself - it’s not how I would have written it, it’s not what I was looking for or expecting, but we’re not yucking on anyone’s yum here, it just wasn’t it for me.

The story jumps ahead by a good decade and immediately takes a sad, different kind of dark turn - we know Joel is mortal (for some of us, he’s not, but here he is) and the writer spends the last chapter showing that they’ve started a family but Joel’s mortality is this dark cloud over the home at the end of the road.

What I’m about to say next is entirely my opinion - I never had a chance to speak to the writer, he was long gone from ao3 by the time I read this story - this is my opinion. The idea of the war between FEDRA and surrounding communities felt like it was taken straight out of The Walking Dead - I don’t mean that in a bad way, just that it felt out of place for the universe. TWD and TLOU take place in different times beyond the start of their respective outbreaks - TWD is about 15ish years after the outbreak when the show ends and FtW is about 30-35 years after - that’s a big difference. I don’t think there are a lot of big communities out there in the TLOU universe - not like what was depicted in FtW, and an all out war against FEDRA. Again this is just my opinion.

When I set out to write Every Night Has Its Dawn, I wanted the epilogue to be an homage and draw inspiration from the final chapter of Home at the End of the Road. I wanted to show that living at the end of the world could be possible for Joel and Ellie and the family they have together. I was so devastated by FtW ending with not only Ellie losing Joel and one of her children, but then she loses her own life. It was too heartbreaking, and I had another vision.

That’s a lot of fucking rambling to get to the point. The story itself is a good story - the details and the way the Joel/Ellie relationship were written were not my cup of tea and I can see why you say that it’s an extreme example of the forbidden ship. It is. It’s a lot - there’s a lot of graphic descriptions of underage sexual activity, and it’s depraved, a lot of it. Does that make it bad? No, it makes it someone else’s enjoyment. It gives us writers inspiration though - there’s a lot he writes that I strive to write, but there’s a lot that I would change, and maybe did a little to fit into my universe.

Anyway, that’s my long winded take. If you stick around this long, y’all deserve a medal. Drop a line if you wanna add something to this. I would love to discuss more.

🫶🏻

[askgothamshitty]

One of my biggest gripes is the weird romantiziation of non western feminist who are really just terf reactionaries.

One of the core aspects on modern terf indoctrination online is this trauma porn approach where they bombard with horrific stories of women suffering (not even necessarily because of the patriarchy) and they use it as a way to dismiss any other form of commentary. The biggest and most egregious examples are femicide and fgm. They use these very tragic and horrifying stories to scare you into abiding by their policies and blocking any more nuanced discussions.

Non-western feminists are key in getting this done. A lot of it has to do with racism and orientalism. People view the people from these countries and regions as backward and primitive but also raw and natural. The idea is that no one in those countries are educated enough to have legit political beliefs, and they all act on instinct and tradition. They represent a pure form of patriarchy and feminism free of Western liberalism and a lot of western terfs cling to them for their horror stories and indoctrination.

Their activism isn't based on theory but real-world experiences. They don't have time to discuss optics and terminology since they're in the heat of the moment. Why should we, privileged Western liberals, criticize them for not discussing our nonsense niche issues like racism and transphobia? When the 4b movement started picking up steam out of sk there were naturally a lot of calling out the more problematic elements in the supporting ideology but they were immediately shut down because "korean women didn't think about that stuff" and "they have bigger problems".

But the majority of these women aren't educated (in feminist theories) and are just speaking from a position of observation. They notice the trends and harms in specific traditions, but they never really did the work to dig any deeper. They're reactionaries that are being given priority over educated experts in feminism. Their experiences are valuable and but they lack actual contextual analysis. And the excuse that western feminism doesn't include them is bogus when you realise there are normal a lot of well spoken feminist from their countries that co-sign the stuff the privileged Western feminist do even with their lived experiences.

I know what it's like a woman in [retracted for anonymity], but I still think trans people are people, and that class is an important detail to consider when discussing the experiences of women in my region. I am also black, which means I know how race affects women's experiences. These issues are global and should concern feminists globally. The only reason these women don't seem to care isn't because she's too focused on the current situation. It's because they never cared to learn.

Tldr: Stop automatically assuming these women are feminist.

Kinda falling asleep so this is all for now. Enjoy your tomorrow

I think I know what you mean, a common way TERFs dismiss accusations of transphobia is by saying “most TERFs are women in the global south”. Like, one, that’s not even true, they’re just pulling that out of their ass, and two, being of a certain identity or position or class doesn’t suddenly make bigotry excusable.

Some also seem to claim that LGBTQ issues are “first world problems”. While it is true that capitalism is what allowed queer identity to take shape in the global north, that doesn’t mean that gay and trans people don’t exist in other places. They’re just more likely to be in the closet. It’s like TERFs forget that extreme patriarchy also means extreme homophobia and transphobia.

Also - something that happens so often in radtwt is TERFs who claim to be the voices of third word women end up getting outed as part of their country’s comprador class. Like, one time a TERF let it slip that her family employs migrant women as servants. That’s just one example but it happens a lot lol

Love everything you have to say!

[junkiepunkie]

the Scottish hate crime law

[I’ll preface this with the fact I’m Scottish] So... a lot of bigots appear to be having trouble understanding the new Scottish hate crime law. Let me explain.

This law is a massive step forward for Scotland, in my opinion, in the fight for social equality. It criminalizes the targeted abuse/purposeful discrimination of trans and gender non-conforming people, disabled people, as well as some other categories. If a person is reported under the law they can be charged as committing a hate crime -which would be true as that is in fact what that is- and at the very least all reported cases would be investigated, at which point you could be either found not guilty, guilty of non-criminal hate or guilty of a hate crime. Now, to me this is ABSOLUTELY FAIR and COMPLETELY WARRANTED, because I’m not a piece of absolute shit. The only people who could possibly be worried by this law are people who actively commit hate crimes and whom we should therefore have no sympathy for regarding this matter.

But why do I think people don’t understand the law? Well, that’s simple. Some people are angry because Humza Yusaf (first minister and there for leader of the country) and a Tory MP who’s name escapes me right now have both been accused of hate crimes, but only the Tory MP is maybe going to be charged. Now, Humza is being reported over talk that he was racist -to fucking WHITE PEOPLE!! The literal dominant socio-economic race- in a speech made 4 years ago about George Floyd. Spoiler alert: what he said wasn’t racist it just made idiotic white people uncomfortable. The Tory MP, in stark contrast, compared identifying as non-binary to announcing you were a cat. ....People are mad.... that only.... one of these men.... is getting charged....

now, I know what you’re thinking. “Ok sure, that is pretty stupid, but I mean, people have a right under this new law to report what they deem to be hate towards their race and so they weren’t exactly wrong-“

except that this new law doesn’t deal with race, that law was passed years ago. If this comment Humza made was really that bad they could have reported it years ago, but instead a ridiculous amount of white cos people decided to try and play a racism card without even understanding the idiocy of their own actions. Idiots.

in conclusion, I’m proud of Scotland for passing laws to keep up with the times yet I am also deeply dissapointed in my country’s population for taking advantage of a new law to be bigoted.

terfs suck.

trans people are entitled to rights.

white people need to stop calling things that check their privelage attacks.

[backstage-if]

hi! since you said you were looking for an excuse to talk about the families... 👪 for all the ROs? (and Wille and MC too, if you want!)

YOU'RE A LIFE-SAVER. Of course, there will be more... nuance in the actual IF and some of these are spoilers.

👪 FAMILY - what is their family like? what is your ocs relationship to them? does your oc have any siblings?

Under the cut :)

MC They were raised by their mom and she is basically the only family MC knows. I think I said this before but her family cut contact before MC was born, so… no grandparents, no cousins. Their father is out of the picture, too. MC and their mom were basically on their own and all the other had, so they really clinged to each other for most years. They were glued when MC was little. The mom is very supportive and always encouraged MC to pursue arts. I think seeing their mom work so hard to raise them and also being the reason her parents stopped talking to her… can make MC scared to disappoint her? Also some of their abandonment issues come from THIS lack of other relatives. 

I can’t exactly say what their relationship is like now because I plan to leave it to the player, but what I CAN say is that their mom tries to be involved, at least. Also, no siblings. 

Bonus: I talked before about the mom having a close friend group, so, yeah, MC grew up with 3 aunts (!!) who all lived in different parts of the country, but they used to call on their birthday, send gifts and visit sometimes. 

C

A nurse dad (Jaymes), an accountant mom (Sloane) and a teenage sister (Meredith or just Edith). C’s relationship with their parents… used to be better. Things were fine when they were the funny kid who, yeah, sometimes got sent to the principal’s office for whatever reason, but also had the best grades in class year after year, graduated with honors and left for college. C’s parents don’t really understand why they want to be an actor and this really strained their relationship. C figured this out during their college years and just immediately went to San Thérese after graduating, so them and their parents didn't have much time to talk about it. The rest of their time together? Yeah, they get along well. 

C's parents are quite serious people, but they appreciate their child's humor. They like how C knows who they are (even if that's why they're butting heads) and how caring they can be. They really should just meet face to face and talk for a while. 

C gets along well with their sister, very grumpy (Edith) and sunshine (C) sibling dynamic. They talk at least a few times every week and are always sending each other random messages. Edith looks up to her older siblings, even if C doesn't see that.

NEIL

His mom (Cora) was Neil's favorite person, but she unfortunately passed away when he was 19. She just really loved being a mom and, even if she was busy because of her career, she always made time for him. Taking him to the theater, mom-son painting classes, being part of the activities at his school, things like that. Core also tried to make sure the media wasn’t pestering her son until he was old enough to decide if that was the life he wanted. She was the actress, not him. 

Things were different with Neil’s dad (Émile/Edwin). He wanted to be a dad, but didn’t know how to be a good one. Privacy and such were always a sore topic between him and Neil’s mom because too much attention made Neil overwhelmed at a young age and Émile was always using his dad title for good headlines and paparazzi pictures, but he didn’t actually find a way to connect with his son. As Neil got older, he was fine having a very neutral, kind of distant relationship with his dad, but then his mom got sick, his parents got a divorce and Neil finally accepted that his dad isn’t the kind of person he likes to have around. 

I don’t think his dad is an angry man, but Neil is the only one who knows how to get on his nerves.

Also, because Neil’s dad doesn’t really understand how to raise a child and keeps with his acting career, Neil has been basically raising his sister (Laurie, 8) since he turned 19. He makes sure she gets to school on time and she talks his ear off every day after coming back. They go to the park. Neil bakes brownies for her school’s fairs. He tries to be who his mom was to him and they get along well. Neil doesn’t introduce her to anyone he doesn’t consider a close friend.

JOY

Joy’s parents had some issues with their other pregnancies and she was a really wanted, loved baby… and child, teenager and adult. Joy and her parents simply are very close. She is an only child. 

Her dad (Dustin) is a dentist and her mom (Anne) is a historical-fiction writer. They both are interested in arts and it was their idea to introduce her to theater during her middle school years to see if some of her shyness disappeared. They were worried about her social life for a while. It worked, she blossomed. 

There’s nothing much to say aside from the fact that Joy loves her parents very much. She cares about their opinion and she always tries to make time for them, at least weekly. She moved to her aunt’s old apartment to try to be a little more independent and it worked. Their love can be a little suffocating, but they’re trying to listen more to her and spend less time worrying and living their own lifes.

Her aunt (Rey) was Joy’s inspiration when she was growing up. She is a very confident, laid-off woman who likes to spend her time traveling and meeting people. Joy thought she was awesome and she still does. Rey moved from her old apartment a few years ago to live with her wife and left it to her favorite niece. 

Also, Rey was the one who adopted Patroclus for Joy. 

SPENCER An English teacher dad (Corey), a restaurant-owner mom (Natália), an older sister (Helena/Lena, 28) and a younger brother (Jonas, 12). 

Spencer gets along greatly with both of their parents, but especially their mom (and they believe they’re her favorite). A lot of their curiosity and passion for trying new things comes from their parents. Corey likes to research, read and learn every aspect of the thing he sets his mind on. Nat likes to be more practical and simply… try, even if things go wrong at first. They’re very in sync as a couple and Spencer is quietly impressed by that because they’ve been together for a long time and are very stable.

Lena, the oldest, is where Spencer’s perfectionism comes from. Their sister has been a bit obsessed with being always right ever since her teenage years, but, while she got over this idea a while ago, Spencer is still kind of set on being the best. Even if Spencer is a very calm person, their competitiveness appears when it’s against their sister (their parents think it’s because they’re so close in age).

Jonas, the youngest, is a hurricane. He is always going by Spencer’s apartment uninvited, going with his friends to see their sibling at the coffee shop, messing with Spencer’s stuff to see if they get angry. They don’t. Spencer loves his brother and doesn’t care about his tricks, but sometimes pretends to do so he gets happy. 

A

Surgeon mom (Simran), musician dad (Azad) and half-brother (Rohan, 12). 

A lot of A’s selfishness comes from their parents and how they (A) views their divorce. 

They’re quite similar to their mom when it comes to personality, so they understand each other and it makes it easy for them to live together. They don't mess with each other's personal stuff, have a similar taste for food and know where to find the other when they want to talk. 

A small, childhood-constant part of A makes it hard for them to see their dad as absent. He tries not to be, but his career hasn’t yet launched and it takes a lot of his time and has been taking a lot of his time for years by now. It affects both of his children. 

A’s mom isn’t the biggest fan of theater. She watches plays, but doesn't have a passion for it or anything. Still, when her child came to her saying that they wanted to act, she supported it. 

A is close to their little brother, they see each other every month. It could be better, but it isn’t bad. 

WILLE Their parents (Veronica and Albert) have a clothing store together and Wille has twin siblings (Becca and Luke). 

Wille’s parents are pretty much still in love. They’re disgustingly sweet together. 

They wanted Wille to keep taking care of the store later in life, but they believe their parents are more relieved that they didn’t want to. 

Wille studied business at college because of their parents. 

If anyone asked Wille for the name of their siblings, they would have to think about it for at least a minute. 

They don’t really talk to each other and that’s all Wille wants people to know.

[hetastates]

Western Wednesday except posted on a Thursday

How each (Western) state acts when they get the wrong order at the drive through.

Alaska: Pretty sure this guy sources a lot of the food that is served in the drive through to begin with. Despite this, that doesn’t actually have any effect on how he behaves when he clearly ordered an elk burger and you give him a Fillet o Fish. This isn’t even a McDonald's — how and WHY are they giving him a Fillet o Fish? Now, let’s be real here, being that far up North will mess anybody up, and being that far away from the rest of your country means that a lot of hatred and Karenage is stored up and bottled inside oneself. And that’s exactly what Alaska does — he just grumbles and drive away, possibly while the food is still in the employee's hand. Will he say or do anything about it? No. Will he write a one star review on Yelp? Also no. You’d best believe that he’ll hold that grudge forever — and probably mutter something about this is why he doesn’t go to fast food places.

California: People may think that just because she’s rich means she doesn’t really work hard, but this is not the case. When she’s not actively on set, she works in various state parks. She loves animals. This job is very laborious, and when Cali gets off work, she’s famished. Oftentimes she’s too tired to really correct an employee if they pen down the wrong order. It doesn’t stop there, though — of course it doesn’t. California is vocal. California is loud. She will devour the entire wrong meal, not even once questioning how she was served a Fillet o Fish when it clearly is not McDonald’s, and then, after the very last bite, after she’s licked her fingers clean, she will go up to the register and unleash the wrath of a thousand grizzlies about how this was NOT her order. "But you ate the whole thing" has no gravity in this situation. Do you know who California is?! Yeah, she’s annoying, okay, she’ll give you that, but will you be able to function without California? Don’t mess with California. She’s larger than life. And you? You’re just an incompetent speck of dust who gave her a FILLET O FISH!

Colorado: Dude, does he even notice? Pretty sure that altitude sickness got to him. He didn’t even drive himself here. No, he got an Uber. He doesn’t even question the fact that he went to a drive through vegan bakery and they sold him a Fillet o Fish that was purple. He can hardly taste the difference. Despite the way Colorado behaves, he is completely sober, but living on the mountains for so long, well, he’s, by default, high. This is some good food, though. Would you like a free coupon? He collects coupons for things he'll never use. It’s his love language, and he loves you so much. You’re so awesome, did you know that? You’re, like, a star. You’re, like, Vega.

Hawaii: Hawaii is the epitome of someone who is sensible and a normal human being. She knows how to party — oh, she KNOWS HOW to party — but in day to day interactions she is the person we all should be but no one actually is. She is the one who says, "Oh, excuse me but I think you mixed up my order" and she waits there calmly for the issue to be sorted out. How did Hawaii ever get so normal? No wonder she’s slowly drifting away from the chaos empire, a few inches annually.

Idaho: Like Hawaii, Idaho is chill. Idaho's a farmer. Idaho honestly doesn’t have the energy to complain. All food is good food, after all. She’ll eat whatever is given to her. She came here specifically so that she didn’t have to cook tonight — she doesn’t care WHAT you give her. Yeah, so she ordered Mountain Dew but you COULD give her dirty mop water. She won’t complain. Unless. Unless you give her a potato meal. Do you think this is funny? Like some kind of joke? Ha, ha, Idaho is a potato farmer, VERY funny, HILARIOUS, BRAVO, do you realise how you come across when you do that? You know, wise guy, BACK IN HER DAY when people made a stupid practical joke—

Montana: It depends on the nature of the mix up. If what she ordered was more expensive than what she got, she'll go up to the front, stern but not impolite, and fix the mistake. She'll circle that Toyota Tundra into the parking lot and walk into the store and wait. However, this does not apply if she’s getting a discount. Did she pay for chicken nuggets and receive a whole rack of baby back ribs? Well dang, guess it’s her lucky day or something! Maybe she should try the lottery! In the long run, Montana doesn’t care all too much about her food — as long as it’s filling and not made of pure sugar, she’ll be happy. Montana is in it for the money. And she goes out once in awhile so that people stop making fun of how cheap she is. She’s not cheap, dang it, she’s frugal!

Nevada: Nevada is strange. When it’s just him, he’s a very chill guy. When it’s him and literally anyone else, whether it be him and a girlfriend, him and a coworker, him and the guy across the street, he can get really uptight and confrontational in an attempt to impress and to come across as something of a macho man. His love for music, geekiness for cinema, and green thumb (as well as his ability to survive 290 days in the desert on a vegan diet — he would never back down from a dare) are really what make him macho and manly, but for some odd reason Nevada thinks that people will be completely wowed if he screams in a fast food worker's face about how he got the 6 pack and not the 4 pack and how he wanted HONEY MUSTARD WITH HIS CHICKEN NUGGIES >:(. It’s like he’s a completely different person when others are around.

Oregon: …. …. … If you don’t understand why he’s sitting there glaring at you as if he’s trying to activate some magical eyeball lasers to completely disintegrate you, then eventually he’ll just drive away, still coldly staring at you through the side mirror of his car. Oregon has a weird way of expressing his emotions which, for the most part, involves menacing stares. He looks like a guy who thinks he’s in an emotional music video but in reality he just looks like Hannibal Lecter got caught drunk driving during a downpour and doesn’t know how to operate his windshield wipers.

Utah: She doesn’t even tell employees that they mixed up her order; she just asks to confirm the ingredients in the wrong order are okay for her to eat. If she wants chicken nuggets and she’s given a Fillet o Fish, she’ll double check to make sure it was made in non-alcoholic batter and that it doesn’t contain caffeine. She could just say "Excuse me, I think you gave me the wrong order, I ordered chicken nuggets" and it would probably be faster and less burdensome than what she actually does. She doesn’t want to come across as mean — and she doesn’t. She comes across as paranoid.

Washington: WASHINGTON is the kind of guy that would go full Karen at a fast food restaurant. He would pound on the drive thru window — in fact, he would climb through it, get stuck, and require police and fire services to pull him out. He’s done this on multiple occasions. No one is quite sure what goes on in Washington for a man to behave like this, but this man clearly ordered a six piece chicken nugget meal. The amount of bad reviews this guy has given is astronomical — and these are long and detailed, too. Washington doesn’t speak to the manager. Ironically, even the mention of a manager is enough to send him running. He just wants his nuggets, man. Why’d you do him dirty like this?

Wyoming: Another sensible being (rare to find on this planet earth), like Hawaii, Wyoming doesn’t really ever want to cause a scene. She prioritises her time above all, and returning a mixed up order would just be a pain in the rear that she doesn’t want to deal with. Something about the bureaucracy and the red tape — at KFC. Whatever that means. She'll glance at her order, knowing very well that this is not what she wanted, and begrudgingly mutter, "Okay, whatever" before leaving. Whether or not she'll be back is debatable. Wyoming does not like to make a big deal out of things. In fact, one of the things that angers her most is when others make a big deal out of things. Anything that can be okay whatevered SHOULD be okay whatevered.

[neverwritewhatyouknow]

Ok hi respectfully I think your “hypothetical” question on twitter was not the best way to get your point across. This movie is a really big deal for queer Latine folks and treating the reduction of background character’s religion as something worse than a fully white British actor playing an ethnically Latine character was very selfish of you. If Nora’s Jewish identity was more central to her identity in the book it might have made it into the movie but that’s not my point. Alex is a canonically Mexican character being played by TZP who is actually Mexican himself. That doesn’t happen often. Latine characters get played by actors who aren’t from their countries all the fucking time (not that you or any non-latine notice, much less care) and finally that’s not the case with this movie. It makes me really sick how you are trying to overshadow what this means to queer Mexicans, Mixtec and queer Latines. If you want Jewish representation that’s fair but you should fully understand the significance of this first, acknowledge that the method you used to make your point was harmful, and stop making it all about you.

Hi, respectfully

Jewish isn’t just a religion. Judaism is the religion. Jewish people can be followers of Judaism, but you don’t have to be religious to be Jewish.

It’s an ethnicity, a culture, a people, a tribe.

I am in NO way trying to devalue the importance this movie is for Latine people. I’m so fucking happy that they actually cast an actor for Alex who actually fits Alex. That was the first thing I checked when the whole cast was revealed. I literally couldn’t be happier.

I do notice every single time that a minority in anything is played by the wrong minority, so thank you for assuming I don’t. I actively work in the Hollywood industry, I live in LA, and I’m a part of various organizations that fight for the rights of all minorities to have equal and positive representation in media, that always includes Latine people.

The question, in question was to prove that it’s wrong to erase any minority. People, a lot of the time, don’t seem to want to really understand where others come from unless you make a super big and wild example. Do I want a white guy to be Alex? FUCK NO! Literally even when I was typing it, I was like, there’s nobody who would agree with this, it’s fucking insane. (Luckily, it only looks like 2 people agreed and I’d claim those as bots before thinking anyone would agree).

Was it the best comparison? Probably not. But was it effective to get people to understand that canon ethnicities can’t just be erased when the production wants a cool actor? Yes. And it’s not to take away from Alex or his story or anything even related to him, it’s to show that the question is So blindly upsetting, because it is really upsetting when your ethnicity and culture get erased. It’s so painful and upsetting and terrible. No matter who it is. Jewish characters are so rarely played by Jewish actors, non-Jews play them all the fucking time. So yeah, I get it, Anon. We’re fighting the same fight. We both want representation for who we are, and we both deserve that a million times over

Nora also isn’t a background character. She was one of the biggest characters in the book. She was in just about every important scene that wasn’t just Alex and Henry. She’s kinda a big deal (don’t know if they made her smaller in the movie, especially with the whole June thing). Her Jewishness was on every page, it was central to her because it’s who she was. She was smart and awesome and cool, and Jewish. It shouldn’t have to be central to her story to be worthy of representation. Jews don’t have to “play Jewish” to be seen as such. We exist just like you, it’s just a part of who we are. We don’t have to constantly be, what? Eating bagels and talking about pogroms? to be seen as Jewish. We’re normal people. It not being central to her is actually what makes her so different from other Jewish characters, because she’s not a Jewish joke.

Queer Latine people SHOULD celebrate this movie. I’m celebrating with you, for you. But two things can be true at once, Alex is fucking great and obviously should only ever be played by a Latino actor. Not even a question. And, that it was wrong of the movie to erase Nora’s ethnicity too. Because Jews deserve rep.

And honestly, if you want to be mad at anyone for the hypothetical existing at all, blame the production. Not for removing Nora (I mean, yeah, that’s the reason for all of this), but because for the past year I’ve been trying to show them how what they did was wrong and I’ve been educating on Jew-erasure and antisemitism, and informing them on all things everything. And they have remained silent or blocked when questioned at all. I wouldn’t have had to post it, had the movie acknowledged at any point what they did, besides the blocking.

But anyway, welcome to my Tumblr, Anon. Please take a look around. If you have any questions, you know where my Ask box is. I’m way more likely to see messages on here than Twitter.