#and awareness isn't advocacy unless people don't know about something

[lugarn]

Advocacy and Art (PSA)

As somebody who was around during the AIDS crisis, I have a lesson to share. It's very short, and very simple, and very brutal.

Consuming art is just consumerism. Making art is the only real advocacy.

(obviously also advocacy is advocacy, I'm speaking in particular about fandom 'advocacy')

I learned this at museums, watching people discuss so many artists' final pieces of art. I learned this at clinics, when we ran campaigns to try and get support from the public. I learned this at the AIDS quilt, listening to people comment on how pretty some squares were.

Most of all I've learned this from the way I am still treated. If consuming art was advocacy that changed people's minds, then we wouldn't have dealt with the neglect and the active ignoring of the HIV/AIDS while it got worse and worse.

But art is only advocacy if you're making it. Consuming art is not advocacy.

Consuming shows, movies, and art made by others is not advocacy. Awareness is a very limited form of advocacy only needed for things people are actually unaware of beforehand.

Thus, for queers, the only advocacy possible through art is making your own. Consumption is not activism.

[thatdiabolicalfeminist]

Hi, saw one of your reblogs about masking and wanted to ask something. Sorry if you're not the right person to ask, feel free to ignore, I just haven't got anyone irl that even cares anymore. I've been masking daily this entire time ever since the pandemic first started, but I'm beginning to wonder, when are we going to be able to stop masking? Is there anywhere you can recommend where I can inform myself about this, about what our outlook is like re: COVID and other safety precautions and that type of stuff? The government's position in my country is pretty much just "masks are no longer mandatory" (I wasn't even allowed to get a booster this year, they're apparently not recommended for under 60s here unless you're high risk), and there isn't a culture of masking when sick here, so almost no one does, not even doctors. And it's starting to affect me socially as well, you kind of end up socially excluded/ostracized quite a lot when most places you go you're the only one masking (which I realize is not as bad as death or long COVID but I do have to admit it's getting to me). I guess I'm just wondering if there's anything else to look forward to other than masking indefinitely?

I'm really sorry but unless and until there are widespread, systemic safety measures in place, as far as I know masking is gonna continue to be your best option in terms of protecting yourself and others from covid and its complications :(

There are less effective but still useful options, like the covixyl nasal spray and nasal sanitizers, and iota-carageenan nasal spray and/or cpc mouthwash as post exposure prophylaxis—but those are most effective when paired with masking.

If you do at any point decide to stop masking, altogether or in certain situations, I hope you'll consider using some of those preventative tools. They're dramatically better than no protection at all.

Air cleaners like the corsi-rosenthal box can help if you're in a space where you'd be allowed to set that up. Socializing outside helps a little esp if you're spaced out.

But unless systems get put in place to overhaul ventilation systems and quarantine sick people etc the most effective option I'm aware of as an individual is a well-fitting N95/kf94/kn95 mask with no gapping at the cheeks or anywhere else.

It might be worth finding out who in your area is organizing to try to demand or implement better covid safety measures, and see if you can join them. Try disability advocacy groups—even if they don't have a project like that in place they may either know who does or be willing to help you set one up.

Lastly, I'm just repeating info I've taken in (hopefully accurately) from medical journal articles. I'm just an ordinary person, I'm not an epidemiologist or virologist or medical expert of any kind, so please do your own research as well. Make sure any info you accept as for-sure accurate is from peer reviewed medical studies published by credible scientific journals.