#decolonisation or whatever

[autistic-katara]

lmao i’m not allowed to leave my house on friday or saturday for fear of a violent attack, wow i fucking love this situation/s

[scltbvrns]

homogenising something that has always been inherently diverse will kill us all one day.

[rosetta-stoned-bitch]

The argument that Kashmir belongs to India to do to it whatever the fuck the Centre wants just because it was acceded by the then-monarch is hilarious to me because this is their literal thought process

Majority population of Religion A ruled by a monarch of Religion B: the monarch is tyrannical and oppressed the public and never once acted as a beneficiary of the people. The people now deserve to "decolonise".

Majority population of Religion B ruled by a monarch of Religion A: the monarch had the best interests of people and knew what to do, the people are delusional and can't be trusted to know what they actually want. Oh and they are all terrorists so obv we can't listen to what they say now.

Gotta love the hypocrisy and mental gymnastics 🤌

[ceo-draiochta]

It's really interesting how people who claim to have such an interest in Ireland and decolonisation here but yet when the exact same thing that happened to ireland happens in a different country. Happens in a non white majority country suddenly its clam shut. Like if you can hold in your mind the complexities of the ira for all its goods bads and indifferences, why can you not hold these same ideas when the people are not white? Why was Irish resistance an unfortunate consequence of colonisation but the resistance of black and brown people "sadistic"?

Basing your whole brand on Irish culture, Irish mythology, Irish whatever. But when the time to have Irish solidarity with the oppressed it's handwringing. Uafásach.

There was a post a while back from a user on here who claimed to just *love* Ireland but was posting about how much they loved pro Rhodesian propaganda songs. Can you not see the parallels?

[incorrectmahabharatquotes]

History denial (yes we were definitely colonized by the Muslim invaders who broke and looted our temples and forcefully converted and massacred many of our people, taking our temples back is a decolonization movement as pointed out by that other anon). Then Kashmir is an integral part of India denial... how can you even say that.

I'm myself a Hindu and a queer, and reading your views came as an unpleasant surprise. Please go do some reading, and educate yourself about how reclaiming temples isn't about hating other communities. Muslims and other minorities can and have been living in peace with Hindus for centuries. What the invaders did was wrong, and acknowledging that doesn't make Hindus Muslim haters.

You answered that other anon with no reasoning, just that whatever happened, happened before your time. All vibes no research or learning.

Unfollowing. I can make Mahabharat quotes myself.

Tipu Sultan famously destroyed temples as well as donated heavily to temples.

You tell me what to think of that.

Temples have been the site of politics since time immemorial. They were the storehouses of public engagement. And that's why they were attacked. And if we draw this logic to today: Religion is in itself politics. You cannot seperate your celebration of the Ram temple from what it really signifies: The destruction of what is presumed to be a mark of colonization.

Agreed, Muslim rulers did demolish temples. But you take one look at the bulldozer politics of today and tell me: Who is being held accountable here? Are the poor Pasmanda and lower caste muslims, who barely have enough space for themselves to live the descendants of Mahmud of Ghazni? Did they inherit the wealth of whatever was looted from the Somnath temple?

Also tell me one thing: why did the Supreme court not conclude on whether there was a temple structure under the mosque, and still give the go signal? Why was the government assigned priest murdered for stating that the Ram Mandir was purely political? Why were there many 'Ram Janmabhoomi' sites before the Babri Masjid issue? And this is not ancient history, dear anon, this was hardly a generation back.

All I ask of you is to engage critically with the world around you. Yes, celebrate Ram within your house, Mod S and I will not break into your house and laugh at you. But take one look around you as to how your celebrations are actually built on others' misery.

Oh, and by the way: if we as a nation were really decolonising.......why are massive corporations kicking Adivasis of their lands in Aarey, Hasdeo (where our dear Adani is trying to 'develop' coal mines), Gadchiroli, and many many many many places where displacement happens through casteist Panchayat meetings which are held under the supervision of the State (which are not done in the presence of the people actually affected by such projects).

In my head it means one thing: The Ram Mandir is only a carrot waved in front of us to distract us from the real State Violence that goes on. And personally, I think that's a very disrespectful way of using a god. Its actually.....saddening.

Thank you for protecting your peace and unfollowing us, though! I wish you farewell on your internet journey

-Mod G

---------

Hello, Anon-Who-Is Unfollowing-And-Have-Decided-to-Announce-Your-Departure-Because-You-Wanted-Our-Attention,

Well, you have my attention. But it seems like I don't have yours because you have somehow managed to only read one paragraph selectively and completely gloss over everything else.

If you had read what I said clearly, you would have clearly seen the part where I said that the political majority CANNOT claim reclamation because YOU ARE NOT OPPRESSED. YOU HAVE ALL THE POWER. Do you understand this? Or has any hint of nuance completely managed to escape you? YOU, AS A SELF-PROFESSED HINDU, ARE NOT BEING OPPRESSED FOR YOUR HINDU IDENTITY IN THIS COUNTRY. YOU IN NO WAY ARE EVEN A LITTLE BIT HARMED BY A TEMPLE BEING DESTROYED CENTURIES AGO.

You want to talk about decolonisation? Let's talk about how the term "Hindu" that you're so proud of is actually a very recent term and is actually only a thing because the European colonisers just wanted an easy religious box to put us all in. If you're really so gung-ho about decolonisation, please decolonize yourself fully and throw away this term too. While we're at it, let's also examine why your decolonisation efforts are so selective?

"I'm myself a Hindu and a queer". I notice you conveniently skipped over the "dalit" part of my identity that actually might have led to a massive difference in lived experience in this country. I also talked about reparation to the "lower" castes. You skipped that too.

What the invaders did was wrong, and what you're doing is wrong too. Their wrongs don't mean that you are automatically right.

I gave you all my reasoning, told you everything. You skimmed through them and paid attention to the only part that you wanted to focus on.

Thank you for unfollowing, I hope you have a good day.

-Mod S

[rainbowgod666]

Seriously.

Colour me surprised. /S

[soup-mother]

Re: decolonising missionary work. Do you feel the same way about a Muslim Imam who travels to another country to bring converts to Islam? How about a Buddhist Monk who travels to other countries to bring enlightenment to others? What about the Sikhs, who instead of proselytism, they prefer to live by a moral standard (oft times in direct conflict with secular living) that causes non-followers to ask questions and possible want follow Sikhism? How about any other of the over 4,000 different groups/sect (or their 10's of thousands sub-sects) around the world? Or is your aim to stop only Christian missionary work? I honestly want to know.

proselytising is bad regardless of the religion. muslim missionaries are bad, hindu missionaries are bad, Buddhist missionaries are bad, sikh missionaries (which go further than just what you described) are bad etc etc etc. and so many of those listed have played active roles in settlement and opression throughout history.

(i can't remember who it was but there was someone talking about Muslim missionaries in south east asia that was really interesting)

living as an openly religious person is fine it's whatever, but i don't think you should try and make other people religious, people are genuinely fine without it. if it's your "duty" to try and bring in converts you're basically in a spiritual pyramid scheme.

and if you're concerned about smaller minority religions, proselytising and forced conversion is actively harming them (although a lot of people also just...leave their religion/religious communities anyway which is fine and cool)

hopefully that suffices as an answer! Christian missionaries are evil but also not the only missionaries, and missionaries from other religions are also bad.

[pink-lemonadefairy]

no cause the hate chappell roan is getting is actually pissing me the fuck off. people got so upset at her for setting boundaries and going off on fans who disrespect her private time and make her uncomfortable and for what? just because being harassed is “normal” when you’re famous doesn���t mean it can’t bother her? have you ever for like one second thought that maybe things should change and famous people can start receiving the respect and privacy they deserve? people purposefully misconstrue her words and/or don’t listen to watch she’s actually saying. this whole situation with her not wanting to endorse kamala harris as if that immediately makes her a republican. are y’all dense on purpose or just…actually that stupid? where are the critical thinking skills. where are the listening skills. endorsing and voting are two different things, and she IS voting for harris, she just says it’s important to be critical of both parties (IT IS! EVERY POLITICIAN AT THAT MATTER) and the democrats have done shit that isn’t great either. cause they fucking haven’t (giving money to a “country” aka actively helping it commit genocide + also passing a bill that names any critique of said “country” antisemitic). nothing is black and white in politics, many things can be true at the same time and there needs to be room for nuance!!!!!!! chappell said nothing wrong but people still wanna be pissed at her.

if what she said makes you so angry i have no clue how you plan on ANY change whatsoever taking place in the states. decolonisation and dismantling systems that hurt minorities happens from the ground up TOO and one vote of yours in a presidential election isn’t gonna change everything overnight. it’s the START, the step in the right direction. the work doesn’t end there though and half of democrats (cough cough white people cough cough) are not comfortable enough with disruption to do that work. anyways.

& after she cancelled her shows somewhere people are attacking her personally. nothing wrong with being upset about not being able to see her, that’s completely valid, but people need to stop acting like she’s taking a break for no reason. she has severe depression + is constantly under scrutiny, of course she’s gonna need a breather.

and now people are comparing her to taylor swift and saying how taylor is soooo much better than her cause she’s endorsing kamala…she’s friends with a trump supporter you fucking morons and she hasn’t ONCE raised her extremely loud voice about palestine (a feminist issue, too btw!) and other issues. i’ll NEVER forget how she toured certain states and said NOTHING about the bans against drag queens and the violence against trans people. but oh right she’s supposed to be an ally. but i guess the yntcd music video was enough? and people wanna say she’s doing more than chappell roan like actually stop speaking or im gonna set the whole world on fire.

anyways whatever chappell roan they could never ever make me hate you

[hellfiresky]

Hello there!

I’m Finn (they/them). A documentary photographer, writer, graphic designer, and a cultural studies researcher who’s into the topics of youth rebellion and identity, environmental justice, and decolonisation. Follows and likes come from my main blog @neverrrrrrrmind

I love Star Wars, especially its (underworld) politics and been doing my own research on the moral construction and sense of belonging in the galactic underworld. I grew up on prequels - my favourite show is (obviously) The Clone Wars. Followed by Andor, The Mandalorian, The Book of Boba Fett, and The Bad Batch. My favourite clone is actually Boba Fett lol I literally have a shrine for him in my room - man can do no wrong in my eyes. And of course, Rex, Fives, Jesse, Crosshair, and Wolffe.

I cosplay my own Mandalorian OC (currently building the full kit yay!) and write a The Clone Wars fanfic inspired by her. What started as a simple backstory has spiraled into a full-fledged story - and we’re now at Chapter 24 (whoops lol). Eventually, it’ll develop into a Rex/F!OC extremely slow-burn story.

Have a look if you’re interested, and hope you lot enjoy reading them!

Seeing Red:

Ge'tal Solus, an exiled Mandalorian anarchist, has carved out a life in the depths of Coruscant during the Clone Wars. Navigating the galaxy as a bounty hunter, she does whatever it takes to survive in the underworld. Despite her disdain for the forces of the Republic, Ge'tal finds herself drawn into the conflict, ironically aiding the very clones she mistrusts. In a galaxy torn by war, can she reconcile her beliefs with her actions?

[or]

The Clone Wars from the eyes of a "civilian" with their own issues, doubts, and contrasting ideology that doesn't necessarily side with the Republic or the Separatists. Exploring how clone troopers are imagined to be, mostly, in their downtime, presented in a narrative style inspired by Fleabag's fourth-wall-breaking storytelling. This is an OC-focused story. Somewhat political and lots of swearing. Most chapters have connections to canon episodes, comics/books, and legends.

———————————————————————————

I also have some spin offs of the main story. They all fall under the same series and thus the same universe. Both work as standalone:

Red Tides

Fresh off Kamino, the Spectre Squad - Blaze, Quake, Ridge, and Steel are ready to take the galaxy by storm… or so they think. Between mundane duties, oddball assignments, and weird encounters, these shinies quickly learn that life as a clone trooper is anything but glamorous. But hey, at least the caf machine works… sometimes.

(The Clone Wars through the eyes of low-ranking clone troopers and shinies.)

Written in Red

Tavi Drezz, a Coruscant-based investigative journalist and occasional war holographer, gains unprecedented access to the frontlines of the Clone Wars. Embedded alongside the Grand Army of the Republic units and other journalists, she captures not just the battles, but the sentient cost of the conflict. Clones, civilians, and systems caught in the war’s grip.

(The Clone Wars reimagined through the eyes of a frontline journalist. Tavi's journey blends a personal narrative with immersive, in-world journalistic articles that frame events from canon episodes in a new light.)

———————————————————————————

And of course a little playlist as an ode to the Underworld:

[ghelgheli]

Stuff I Read In February 2024

bold indicates favourites

Books

The Mantle of the Prophet, Roy Mottahedeh

Serious Weakness, Porpentine Charity Heartscape

The Traitor Baru Cormorant, Seth Dickinson

Pamphlets, Zines, etc.

Queer Fire: The George Jackson Brigade, Men Against Sexism, and Gay Struggle Against Prison [link]

Reform or Revolution? Rosa Luxemburg

Armed Joy, Alfredo M. Bonanno [link]

Designing Freedom, Stafford Beer [link]

Yuri/GL

Kill Switch, 1172

Immortal Parody, Kim Jong Geon

Her Tale of Shim Chong, Seri & Biwan

There's Weird Voices Coming from the Room Next Door! Suzuki Senpai

An Easy Introduction to Love Triangles (To Pass the Exam!) / Goukaku no Tame no! Yasashii Sankaku Kankei Nyuumon, Canno

Gentle Flutters, One Useless Dogggg

What Does the Fox Say? Gyeomji & Gaji

Our Dreams at Dusk / Shimanami Tasogare, Yuhki Kamatani

There Is No Love Wishing Upon a Star / Kono Koi wo Hoshi ni wa Negawanai, murasakino/Shinoa

Short Fiction

Serious Weakness but with Girls, Porpentine Charity Heartscape [link]

Dirty Wi-Fi, Porpentine Charity Heartscape [link]

Bist-o-chār sā'at dar xāb o bidāri / 24 Restless Hours, Samad Behrangi [link]

Yek hulu o hezār hulu / One Peach and a Thousand Peaches, Samad Behrangi [link]

Palestine

What Does It Mean To Be Palestinian Now? Noura Erakat, Ahmed Moor, Noor Hindi, Mohammed El-Kurd, Laila Al-Arian 01/25/2024 [link]

"If You Say Anything to Anyone, a Zaka Van Will Run You Over", Brad Pearce 10/18/2023 [link]

The Epistemicide of the Palestinians, Abdulla Moaswes 02/02/2024 [link]

Manufacturing Content, Nora Barrows-Friedman & Matt Lieb [link]

Comparison is the Way We Know the World, Masha Gessen 12/19/2023 [link]

The Story Behind the New York Times October 7 Exposé, Jeremy Scahill, Ryan Grim, Daniel Boguslaw 02/28/2024 [link]

Queer &c

Hands off our lives, our stories, and our bodies, AC 06/10/2022 [link]

Trapped in the Wrong Theory: Rethinking Trans Oppression and Resistance, Talia Mae Bettcher [doi]

A Cyborg Manifesto, Donna Haraway

Why Are "Gender Critical" Activists So Fond of Gametes? Julia Serano 02/13/2024 [link]

Pol

Why I Left the PSL… or the DSA or Socialist Alternative or whatever, filler kid 07/20/2021 [link]

Allies Not Accomplices: An Indigenous Perspective & Provocation, 05/02/2014 [link]

Basic Program of the Bureau of Unitary Urbanism, Attila Kotányi & Raoul Vaneigem 1961 [link]

Abolition, Nsámbu Za Suékama 06/06/2020 [link]

The Eye Upon Us Has Turned Upon Them, Nsámbu Za Suékama 07/16/2023 [link]

The Hindu Nationalists Using the Pro-Israel Playbook, Aparna Gopalan 06/28/2023 [link]

Ram Mandir and Hindutva Fascist Myth of Decolonisation, Rida Fathima 02/07/2024 [link]

How the United States Crippled Haiti's Rice Industry, Leslie Mullin [link]

A Talk to Teachers, James Baldwin [link]

Stranger in the Village, James Baldwin [link]

Other

no good alone, Rayne Fisher-Quann 04/03/2021 [link]

Everyone's A Critic, Richard Joseph 01/13/2022 [link]

Neoplatonic kingship in the Islamic world: Akbar’s millennial history, Jos Gommans & Said Reza Huseini [link]

Is `Race Science' Making a Comeback? Angela Saini 07/10/2019 [link]

you’ve been traumatized into hating reading, Ismatu Gwendolyn 02/15/2024 [link]

[edge-oftheworld]

no but i can't get over how actually well done the last few days were. announce a surprise and not 48 hours later we find out that 1) tour movie, the same thing taylor swift did a few months ago and now everyone wants plus we know it's a show they worked super hard on, 2) it's free, excellent for anyone who couldn't afford to go etc (we've all been there) and out literally right now on a (mostly) free platform (the very same one that they got started on but anyway) and perhaps most notably, 3) it's free with the hopes that you might instead of paying for it donate to gaza, and the links are right there.

like they could've charged us $20 each for the show and sent all their profits there themselves (with the hope that we believe they're being honest that it's 100%, for them of course we would but i know others have lied about similar). but instead they gave us autonomy over our donation just like. encouraged it. like cmon who wouldn't listen when ashton tells us to donate to something if we can? (also did anyone else say so, i'm not the best at keeping up with social media so lmk if there's more of them to give credit to here). anyway we gotta talk about it more. how perfectly this was done: we get a gift!! be it for christmas if you celebrate or just in general, that we expected we'd have to pay for. now we get asked, hey, if you have any money could you send it to these people who Really Need It So Badly if you can? I know not all of you do so we won't stop you from watching the movie if you don't but

also this is a really clever way to show their support for gaza. like they are (deliberately i think) trying not to be leaders in an area that they aren't experts in, and there has been a lot of misinformation around, a lot of misunderstanding, like yes they did stand up for ukraine last year but the media was a lot more black and white for that one (or should i say blue and yellow) but when it comes down to it they're not stupid and they're not fooled by whatever the country they currently live in is pushing and they've actually taken their time to not say shit to save face prematurely but actually do something that's, even if not big or dramatic, gonna be impactful? they've not put themselves out there campaigning for a ceasefire, yes, but they've posted links that are. they've not guilted us into donating but please tell me you're not at least feeling some obligation to. it's simple, it's actionable, it's right there in the caption and takes like 20 seconds. and if any of us in the fandom (global family or whatever they're building) are leading in the ceasefire decolonisation space we have our little encouragement to see that yes, these musicians we love aren't gonna sit there and do nothing. it's not monumental, but it's something.

and tbh i wouldn't be surprised if this was all planned like a week ago in a zoom call between australia and the usa when ryan texted to say that the film was done. like it was in their random spontanous lightheated style. i also think we can learn something from the fact that it's okay to not jump on everything the minute it comes out but actually every lasting impact is a long-haul effort that you've gotta sustain yourself for by doing what you love as well. and also sometimes the right opportunity to do something about what we care about comes and you just take it, don't think too hard, don't wait either if you don't need to, if there is a cause that needs your effort whenever you get an opportunity to give it will always be the right time. hopefully they've set a precedent for something--i have no idea if any artist has done similar but i'm really proud of them.

and that's why i don't get the fact that we've been talking about how horrific this genocide is and then going right to which songs they cut or kept. like i would like a live version of you don't go to parties! but i would like an entire fandom to donate to aid for gaza even more and be thinking about why we need a ceasefire and maybe doing something about it even more. i've been unwell yes and under financial and other stress yes but i'm not starving or freezing to death and so i'll take that L and i won't go home. i won't stop talking about what's important. i'm starting to find my voice again and this has been a big inspiration for it between all the discouragement.

have we not figured it out? they're not just dumbasses sometimes they do something towards a cause we really care about so let's give them credit for that. heck they even filmed bad omens in ukraine in 2022 have we forgotten about that? they don't put themselves out there as influential figures in any way but that's sometimes the best way to humanise the people we care about (and i think honestly they just do this naturally because when you're not chasing clout and you're trained to recognise talent and potential talent in even the worst situations, you'll automatically think like that). it's small in the face of everything going on, yes. so am i! and if i learned anything over the last 24 hours it's that small things can be meaningful. this has been to me and i don't doubt to the recipients of the donations of (i hope) an entire fandom.

(also if you don't mind the tag @littledrummerangie i know you were talking along a similar vein a few weeks back and i'm keen to hear if you want to, if you found this as satisfying as me)

[radlymona]

Defining all violence as decolonisation and thus valid as resistance, sidesteps that sexual violence is never an act of resistance. Sexual violence doesn’t aim to reclaim homes, doesn’t aim to reclaim land, the nation. It doesn’t aim to gain political representation or punish genocidal leaders. A man who rapes a woman of an oppressor group gains nothing but the satisifcation of enacting violence.

What the ethnic conflicts of the 1990s (Yugoslav and Rwanda wars) showed was that sexual violence of women was a way of acting revenge against the male opposition. Women weren’t seen as actual combatants or enforcers of the opposing regimes but as the women belonging to the Bosnian or Tutsi men. It was about defiling the wives, daughters, mothers and sisters of the men they hated.

Moreover, women are targeted with rape in ethnic conflicts specifically as a way of “breeding out” the other ethnic population. With rape comes forced impregnation, increased female infertility, and overall psychological trauma. In the eyes of men this will led to the opposing ethnicity being “bred out”, because it is the man’s “seed” that prevails over the female’s “incubation”.

Cindy Snyder in “On the Battleground of Women’a Bodies: Mass Rape: in Bosnia-Herzegovina”, explains that enacting sexual violence against women has long been considered as symbolic of the “rape of a nation” in conflicts. In Bosnia, because women were predominantly valued for their reproductive capabilities, they were particularly vulnerable to sexual violence as “the potential repositories of future soldier-sons, symbols of the nation, yet the property of the nation.”

The half-Serbian children born to raped Bosnian women, were wholly Serbian in the eyes of both groups. The women who were raped faced added social ostracization from their own communities, because they had been “defiled” by the opposing ethnic group.

In the wider context of the Israeli-Palestine conflict this takes on a specific meaning with the need to “out-populate” the opposing ethnic group. And you may be thinking that because Israelis are the oppressor group, it’s illogical to compare it to the Serbian rape of Bosnian women. But we also saw the inverse when the historically oppressed majority Hutu enacted mass sexual violence against the historically oppressor Tutsi minority in Rwanda. Thus, in both the Bosnian and Rwandan wars, women were targeted with sexual violence as a way of enacting patriachy-influenced genocide. Its why we have to consider sexual violence as completely divorced from other acts of violence (often born from desperation), because it’s purpose is completely removed from that of actual resistance. This isn’t to say Israel have not and will not utilise rape as a tool of ethnic cleansing against Palestinians, they have and will, and it will be equally abhorrent.

The overall point is that the way men wage war on whatever side they are, leads to sexual violence because women are considered only in relation to men. They aren’t considered actual people, just vessels to enact male hatred and violence.

Further Reading:

1. Campbell, K. (2003) ‘Rape as a ‘crime against humanity’: trauma, law and justice in the ICTY’, Journal of Human Rights.

2. Clark, J.N. (2017) ‘Untangling a rape Causation and the Importance of the Micro Level: Elucidating the Use of Mass Rape during the Bosnian War’, Ethnopolitics.

3. Farewell, N. (2004) ‘War Rape: New Conceptualisations and Resolutions’, AFFLIA.

4. Reid-Cunningham, A.R. (2006) ‘Rape as a weapon of genocide’, Genocide Studies.

5. Schmitt, R.M. (2011) ‘War rape, Natalie’s and genocide’, Journal of Genocide Research.

6. Snyder, C.S. (2006) ‘On the Battleground of Women’s Bodies of Mass Rape in Bosnia-Hezergovina’, Journal of Women and Social Work.

[flukewarm]

still on black paladin allura

and also i will never leave her behind. i know the production timeline of this show was a mess and whatever but it still annoys me that a show with 70% poc in the main cast managed to be. That Way.

you are going to look me in the eyes, and tell me that this character, whose father poured his soul into building these machines, whose father was taken advantage of by someone he trusted, whose people were exploited and wiped out because of the Big Bad’s Greed, DOESN’T get to take the lead on taking the oppressor down?

was there no greater message in allura inheriting zarkon’s old lion, inheriting her father’s title, his creations and his fight to reclaim and/or revenge literally everything else that once belonged to her, that some asshole who Thought He Had The Right took away. to stop that from happening to anyone else. over ���hmm big brother told me i was destined for More”

the shows over now yeah but my point is (for me and everyone who didn’t like how it went) fiction is important, especially if it tackles the topic of rebellion, ESPECIALLY if that rebellion is against an Empire. regardless of whether it is a children’s show, you AS SOMEONE TELLING A STORY, should be aware of how these narratives can unavoidably be contextualised in real life. you Are making a statement, whether you think anyone will catch it or not.

having a story about an oppressive empire featuring characters who are explicitly from REAL cultures that are still dealing with colonialism, white supremacy and their effects, and then shunting them off to the side in favour of their lighter counterparts’ stories Says Something. in voltron’s case, they (at best) didn’t have time to properly say anything worthwile about any of these topics or, (at worst) were too scared to do so.

if you (as an audience, or as a creator) are going to engage with fictional narratives of decolonisation, narratives of fighting the oppressor, don’t be scared to Apply the story, that’s what its there for. fiction is an escape from reality. it can be gripe water, it can be a tool to send messages under the guise of make-believe.

[waterfall-ambience]

assorted strawberry shortcake headcanons where i imagine them as chronically online, gen z ish young adults, but the information i'm drawing on is from the wiki, my mother's interpretations of the characters, and my vague recollection of the cartoons and playing with my mother's dolls

strawberry shortcake runs a baking-focused social media account and is the proud owner of several dozen pinterest boards with an ungodly amount of pins. she crochets her own clothes and liked the lirika matoshi strawberry dress before it was cool (she cannot afford it and would not have a good opportunity to wear it, but she dreams nevertheless). she plays minecraft with all the mizuno 16 packs. actually goes outside.

blueberry muffin is a book smart 'honors student' type, and is well-versed in classic literature. she also stays up way too late on ao3. she got onto the internet when she was way too young and was the type to very innocently warn her friends not to search up whatever horrors she saw (only for them to search up the horrors). she's spent way too much money on gacha games, but she tends to her garden to 'touch grass' and balance that out. she also thinks about stealing her neighbour's fruit, but don't tell anyone about that.

orange blossom got into art because she was super obsessed with minecraft animations as a kid and learned how to draw in the hopes of becoming an animator one day. she holds very strong opinions about bevelled minecraft character rigs, and is mildly tired of people irl constantly referring to her art as 'anime'. she travelled around europe in her early childhood but remembers absolutely nothing of it (this makes her so sad. she wants to go back one day to appreciate the art museums and architecture). she taught strawberry how to crochet and is a huge fan of sustainable fashion. she dabbles in pottery.

angel cake comes across as a rather straight-laced and sensible young lady- she sleeps at a reasonable time, does yoga, balances her duties and social life, stays hydrated, and performs well academically (she likes math). however she is hopelessly addicted to online drama. she doesn't necessarily participate unless she's feeling particularly spicy, and while her heart is in the right place, she is often overcome with the very human desire to Dunk. she follows the conversation intensely and knows all the who-did-whats and who-you-should-avoids.

plum puddin is genderfluid (she/they/he) and a biochem/genetics/microbio stem girlie. she's mildly snarky and 100% down to play the part of the mad scientist with wildly flexible morals. she likes to dance and watch video essays about queer sociology and feminist theory. they're online friends with tn honey but when they talk about her irl they refer to her as their 'overseas colleague'. they taught blueberry how pirate stuff off the internet when they were younger and she used that power to make anime amvs. he could probably stand to pop a multivitamin.

lemon meringue is a mildly successful fashion blogger who uses her platform for political activism- queer rights, climate justice, decolonisation, etc. most of her clothes are thrifted or handmade and she is disgusted at quite a few of her private school peers who buy things from shein. she's dating her childhood friend raspberry torte and has the privilege of being passenger princess when she misses her train.

rapid fire headcanons go: lime chiffon is plays a lot of video games and is addicted to monster energy drinks. she's an absolute beast at rhythm games like taiko no tatsujin, project sekai, and ddr, as well as claw machines. between lemon and raspberry, lemon is more outwardly sweet and raspberry is a can come across as a little unfriendly at times, but lemon is the one who holds grudges while raspberry is more forgiving. huckleberry pie is trans and did taekwondo alongside raspberry and strawberry for a couple years. apple dumplin is in elementary school and is a big fan of a series of unfortunate events (blueberry is so proud), but has only read the ones the library had available. purple pieman and sour grapes bully eight year olds in minecraft in their spare time.

[gayleviticus]

okay I think I’ve got a pretty convincing argument that Jesus’ second coming or the end/rebirth of the world or whatever isn’t gonna happen til we’ve fixed the whole Christianity being a western thing and especially oppressive and colonial like as much as we work to call it to account and decolonise and undo harmful power structures and all its not gonna be in our lifetime (could be just me getting pissed off at the people who try to use it to evoke fear but genuinely I think I’ve got theology behind this). Like we gotta stop being elite entitled assholes and just get to work making hope something for the people who need it the most and not an excuse the way it’s an excuse for just about everything except perfectly normal sex these days

tell me more!! i don't have a deeply thought out stance on this i think but i do definitely vibe w this

i know 'the second coming as a culmination of people working towards good things on earth' was a take that peaked in the 1900s and then kinda died with world war 2 which is reasonable and certainly a strike against uncritical optimism that history will inherently tend towards getting better with no effort or without significantly revolutionising how we do things.

but also 'the second coming will magically fix all our problems so let's just wait for that' is a total dead end, and there is certainly much ample space for us to be doing good throughout the world - Jesus did liken the Kingdom of God to a mustard tree that takes time to grow from the smallest of seeds after all, and we are the Body of Christ on earth.

also side note but on this general topic i like this bit from one of the vatican II documents (bolded the most relevant part):

But we are sure that God is preparing a new dwelling place and a new earth. In this new earth righteousness is to make its home, and happiness will satisfy, and more than satisfy, all the yearnings for peace that arise in human hearts. On that day, when death is conquered, the sons of God will be raised up in Christ; what was sown as something weak and perishable will be clothed in incorruption. Love and the fruits of love will remain, and the whole of creation, made by God for man, will be set free from the frustration that enslaves it. We are warned indeed that a man gains nothing if he wins the whole world at the cost of himself. Yet our hope in a new earth should not weaken, but rather stimulate our concern for developing this earth, for on it there is growing up the body of a new human family, a body even now able to provide some foreshadowing of the new age. Hence, though earthly progress is to be carefully distinguished from the growth of Christ’s kingdom, yet in so far as it can help toward the better ordering of human society it is of great importance to the kingdom of God. - https://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/media/articles/this-world-and-the-next-world-vatican-ii/

[alias-milamber]

Ace Week

It's Ace Week, which used to be International Asexuality Awareness Week, but is now an entire week of Ace Awareness, which seems like a trick, to be honest. An exhausting trick.

Asexuality is a broad term under which huddle asexuals, aromantics and various other forms of bodily and non-bodily horror. Occasionally this feels a little "misc", and I personally find myself swinging between "If this new label under Asexuality means you find comfort, then welcome friend" and "No, there's a whole other letter for that, quit it". I err on the side of not being a dick to anyone who didn't start it.

These days my personal description is that I am a Straight* Asexual† Cis Male‡

Some of this is undoubtably medically induced. In that I would have described myself more as grey-ace before I was on antidepressants, but definitively black & white afterwards. Since I don't see spontaneous remission from chronic depression on my 202X bingo card, and even if it did the situational depression would fill the space like a river into a crater, I don't think that's changing any time soon.

It took me a long time to get as far as "Ace". I had no idea the term existed until I saw the phrase "grey ace" in a friend's twitter bio, looking it up, and filing that information in my brain as "That seems just how attraction works?"

Reader: This was a clue, and I missed it.

I pottered along for a while in my normal depressed lifestyle, not really understanding a whole load of mass media stuff, and assuming my absolute lack of any kind of sex drive was part of the whole "Depressed, broken, unneeded" package. Discovered polyamory, had some extremely disappointing (for them) experiences, found joy in giving, etc.

Then I finally hoisted the stones necessary to go to the doctor about the facts that a) My pillows smelt of honey and b) The world was a horrific landscape in dark monochrome that was devouring my soul in tiny painful bites. I was diagnosed with depression and type-two diabetes, though not in list order.

My world was not magically improved by antidepressants, but it upped the brightness, downed the contrast, and brought saturation back to my worldview. I rediscovered the concept of asexuality via friends, and it clicked a lot more. I experimented with the new label in the traditional method of my people: I created a LARP character who identified with it (A Watcher at a Buffy LARP), and explored how it filtered my worldview. Which it didn't. So I was obviously doing it wrong.

To make a long post less colours-of-the-sky, it took me a long time to come to asexuality. A lot of it was tied up in my views of what I "should" be, and what "normal" is. I still don't know where the edges of it are. Is any lack of attraction a form of asexuality? Are "sapiosexuals" asexual because they aren't attracted to (people they assume are) stupid? Is saying they can't have a bit of this space gatekeeping? (I saw an asexuality label that described women who were attracted to men and not at all to other women, and I felt guilty for my initial reaction requesting decolonisation of my lawn).

But I find it a handy label for my desire to stay out of anyone's pants save my own, and a remarkably chill community to be a part of.

So yes, I am Aquarion (or alias milamber, or whatever) and I'm Ace. This is my week. You can see me.

Feetneat follow

* BWIM my attraction has hithertofor been almost entirely towards people who my brain parses as "not male" with a certain amount of software-correction if lizard-brain is misgendering people.

† Specifically asexual and not aromantic, but very much of the "sure sex is nice, but have you ever slid into a bath that was the perfect temperature?" school.

‡ Not that I've ever really been comfortable in "male" spaces, but it's the thing that fits rounded to the nearest label. Anyone who believes my enjoyment of skirts and uses the phrase "egg" near to it will be subjected to a small rant about gender stereotypes.

§ I didn't get this far, but thanks for your interest