#equity world

[stewykablooey]

ok but stewy being canonically bi really makes everything about his relationship with kendall so much funnier like imagine being a beautiful bisexual stallion and your fate is to become best friends with and develop a 30 year crush on logan ‘homophobia’ roy’s prodigal son like. imagine having to do deal with kendall’s ‘no homo but my tongue is down your throat’ repressed bullshit for 30 years whilst also dodging the beam of mixed flavor racism homophobia his father directs at you every time he sees you within 5 feet of said prodigal son but also you feel a strange solidarity with this old man because he at least has also accurately clocked and acknowledges that his prodigal son is queer

[causalityparadoxes]

[Full Tweet by Streamr: Russell T Davies discussing Susan Twist's appearances in #DoctorWho Season 1:

"We ran out of actors actually, genuinely, there was a shortage at Equity. So we keep using Susan Twist for a lot of things just because we like her. and that's the simple reason why - there's nothing behind it. No mystery, no nothing [...] Yes, she keeps cropping up faithful viewers. Yes, we've noticed, and yes you've noticed. /end Tweet]

I need to know that everyone knows how ridiculous of a statment this is. How absolutely farcical.

The UK has thousands of actors. The majority of whom are in Equity because that's the UK's Actors Union. Equity has 50 thousand members. Granted not all performers are screen actors and even less are older women. But thats still A LOT OF ACTORS.

Yes the UK has like 20 actors with star power and 50 who get all the big roles. But there are so many people here trying to make a living off their art. Many of whom would kill to have a small role on Doctor Who or similar.

There are lots of actors who would fit the description of all of Susan Twist's characters. Especially considering most are small parts with minimal screen time/lines.

Doctor who is not short on actors. They are not isolated. They have experienced casting crew with lots and lots and LOTS of connections. There will be dozens of agencies scrambling to get their actors into auditions for every role made available!

The idea they couldn't find 4 different older women to play roles with only a few lines is absolutely, hilariously, patently false.

This is possibly the funniest excuse he could have EVER made okay. I need everyone to appreciate that. This isn't "haha probably a lie but possibly believable". This is the bold faced lie of a guy who isn't telling anyone SHIT.

Only 5 actors in the entirety of the uk indeed, lmao

[philsmeatylegss]

“If you think Palestinians should be given most/all of their land back, then you must think all Native Americans deserve most/all of American land back?”

Yes! Precisely! Thanks for clearing that up!!

[uncanny-tranny]

I think it's a mistake to assume that computer generation (so-called AI) is the only manifestation of the exploitation that workers (especially in artistic fields that are already considered lesser) experience. The problems that they experience are, I think, exasperated by computer generation, but it isn't like there were no problems with compensation, theft, or other forms of exploitation.

The problem is the exploitation, and I think sometimes, people lose sight of that in these conversations.

[dykesynthezoid]

I think when it comes to studying Jewish history it’s really important to remember that, especially when looking at the medieval and early modern age, regions that were “tolerant” of Jews were not just doing it out of the kindness of their own hearts. Framing it like that is both just sort of fundamentally nonsensical and generally detached from reality. Jews were, for the most part, only ever being “tolerated” because of an economic incentive. It’s because they were actively bolstering the economy and therefore the people in power were materially benefiting from Jewish labor. Tolerance wasn’t a gift, it was an inequitable social contract that could be voided by the social majority at any time they wished, for whatever reason, with very little warning.

[waterflowing-under-ground]

“Progress,” he said with reverence, “will lighten up the gloom, for that is what progress is for, as—if you’ll pardon me—the arsehole is for shitting. It will be brighter and brighter, and we shall fear less and less the darkness and the Evil hidden in it. And a day will come, perhaps, when we shall stop believing at all that something is lurking in the darkness. We shall laugh at such fears. Call them childish. Be ashamed of them! But darkness will always, always exist. And there will always be Evil in the darkness, always be fangs and claws, death and blood in the darkness. And witchers will always be needed.”

- Andrzej Sapkowski, The Lady of the Lake (book 5 of The Witcher pentology)

[skullhaver]

For those of you who enjoyed my reblog earlier about gender equality in household chores, you might enjoy this also. One great tactic for getting your progressive male partner(s)/roommates(s)/friends(s) to help you do housework is to just print this poster and stick it on your fridge.

[leveloneandup]

frameworkfitz she’s beauty. she’s grace.

[torgawl]

i'm so in love with wrio. that man is the embodiment of mercy and compassion. he is so... human. despite the deep disdain for atrocious acts that hurt others, especially acts that remind him of his own pain and traumas, he is able to keep himself in check and hold on to his values. despite being so proactive in fixing the wrongdoings of people that actively harm those under his care and assuring that everyone is supported in the best way possible; despite knowing he could have not controlled other people's hearts once they were in too deep in their own sins, he still feels helpless and incompetent. he recognises he cannot fully empathise with those who have been hurt for he has not experienced what they have and he understands that some wounds might not be able to heal even with all the attention and efforts, or at least not that easily. and it pains him. his whole life he's been trying to protect others. all his hard work during his time at the fortress and taking over it's administration has granted him the power and resources to actually change lives in a more restorative way, with a bigger amplitude than just the people who he's close to. yet he's only human. and not everyone wishes to be saved. and he doesn't hold back from breaking his own rules if means he is guaranteeing the best outcome for the greater good, for the well being of all of those he's sworn to protect. and although he earned himself a respectable title and even got used to being referred to in that way, he doesn't see people at the fortress as innmates but as equals. he never stopped being the little boy that was sentenced to live over a decade of his life there. and he is so good at what he does and he is so successful at restoring people's hopes in life, at giving them a second chance to become who they want to be, that there's people who actually want to stay there. he is the literal personification of turning your own pain into goodness, into love. love for community and love for others. he found meaning in making the world a better place and i just think that's really fucking beautiful.

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

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By: Leo Shane III

Published: Feb 5, 2024

Veterans Affairs Secretary Denis McDonough is overruling plans to ban the famous Times Square kiss photo marking the end of World War II from all department health care facilities, a move criticized as political correctness run amok.

The ban was announced internally at VA medical facilities late last month in a memo from RimaAnn Nelson, the Veterans Health Administration’s top operations official. Employees were instructed to “promptly” remove any depictions of the famous photo and replace it with imagery deemed more appropriate.

“The photograph, which depicts a non-consensual act, is inconsistent with the VA’s no-tolerance policy towards sexual harassment and assault,” the memo stated.

“To foster a more trauma-informed environment that promotes the psychological safety of our employees and the veterans we serve, photographs depicting the ‘V-J Day in Times Square’ should be removed from all Veterans Health Administration facilities.”

The memo garnered public scrutiny after it was posted online by the X account EndWokeness on Tuesday.

Just hours later, McDonough took to social media to reverse the memo.

“This image is not banned from VA facilities — and we will keep it in VA facilities,” said a post from his official X account. Department officials echoed in a separate statement that “VA will NOT be banning this photo from VA facilities.”

Officials said the memo should not have been sent out and was formally rescinded on Tuesday. They did not provide details of whether senior leaders were consulted on the matter ahead of Nelson’s memo.

The photograph was taken by journalist Alfred Eisenstaedt in New York City on Aug. 14, 1945, as Americans celebrated Japan’s surrender at the end of World War II. Other journalists, including military reporters, also captured the moment.

The shot shows a U.S. sailor grabbing and kissing a woman he did not know amid a joyous, party atmosphere in Times Square. The identities of the individuals in the photo have been disputed over the years.

In her memo, Nelson noted that use of the photo in VA facilities “was initially intended to celebrate and commemorate the end of World War II and the triumphant return of American soldiers. However, perspectives on historical events and their representations evolve.”

Nelson wrote that the non-consensual nature of the kiss and “debates on consent and the appropriateness of celebrating such images” led to the decision. Senior leaders did not provide an explanation for the reversal.

VA officials could not provide details on how many facilities are currently displaying the photo and whether veterans have complained about use of the image.

McDonough has made veterans outreach and inclusion key priorities for the department over the last three years, including rewriting the VA motto with gender-neutral language.

==

Activists always take it upon themselves to make themselves the center of any issue. If they feel offended, then everyone else must feel offended as well. Even - and usually especially - if the activist feels offended on someone else's behalf.

You don't get to pretend you're more offended than the people who were actually there and were actually involved.

[justinssportscorner]

Liza Monroy for Assigned Media:

Sasha Jane Lowerson, the only publicly known trans-woman competing in professional surfing, is the first trans-woman to win a female longboarding competition—which also means she has solely borne the brunt of online hatred from trolls who follow the surf world, as well as anti-trans industry figureheads like Bethany Hamilton.  Hamilton, the devout Christian champion surfer famed for losing her arm in a shark attack age 13, has been making anti-trans comments publicly since the World Surf League adopted  a policy requiring trans-female athletes to maintain a testosterone level of less than five nmol/L for at least 12 months in order to compete in the women’s division. Most recently, Hamilton and swimmer Riley Gaines embarked on a tour to promote their agenda. For a brief moment, a possibility of change flickered: international surf corporation Rip Curl, purveyor of wetsuits, apparel, and swimwear, released a documentary ad featuring Lowerson in the 2024 “Summer Looks Good on You” campaign, a long-running Rip Curl Womens series. 

Rip Curl also sponsored Hamilton, at the time. “I didn’t want anything to do with a company that supported someone like that,” Lowerson says of when they first approached her. In thinking about it further, though, she reconsidered. The fact that they had approached her could mean “they’re distancing themselves from those attitudes and that stigma, from misinformation and the spread of hate. So I said yes.”  Lowerson has spent over thirty-five years in the industry as a longboarder, including as a sponsored surfer. Longboarding uses a board typically longer than 9 feet where the sport is more about style, flow, and grace and allows for more of a platform for the dance than the fast, highly maneuverable shortboards typically seen in pro-surfing. She’s currently an Ambassador for Athlete Ally, an organization working for LGBTQI+ inclusion in sport, and to end transphobia and homophobia. 

In her video, the phenomenal longboarder discusses how surfing has influenced her life and the joy she finds in riding waves. “I believe it’s the only sport where we get to perform on a changing platform, a moving dance floor,” she says. The video, an artful mini-documentary focused on Lowerson’s love of her sport, appeared online on January 24th of this year.  On January 29th, Hamilton tweeted  “Male-bodied athletes should not be competing in female sports,” targeting Lowerson. Then, on January 31st, six days after Lowerson’s ad was posted, Rip Curl pulled the ad, appeasing the anti-trans side. They released this statement soon after their decision:

[...]

The head of the campaign, Lowerson says, “told me, ‘we’re removing the post for your safety, Sasha.’ And I turned around and said to him, ‘that’s bullshit, you’re doing this for brand protection.’ I’m not stupid; my safety’s not a consideration. I’m so disappointed for believing that a major corporation as big as Rip Curl would stick by this sort of campaign with someone of a diverse gender. It was stupid to think they cared. I feel so hurt from that.” Rip Curl made a decision not to support and stand behind the athlete. Lowerson points out other situations that have included trans-women in previously only cis- woman spaces - the modeling industry in particular, she says, “Victoria’s Secret - they were the first to put trans women on the catwalk. Their response to backlash was after having one trans woman on the catwalk, the next time there were three and the time after that, five. There’s trans women on more catwalks than ever in fashion shows these days.” The affair left Lowerson with unanswered questions. Why didn’t the surf industry respond more like the modeling industry? Why didn’t Rip Curl double down, start featuring more trans-surfers?  “I have not had a financial sponsor in so many years,” Lowerson says.

Brennan of Surf Equity is concerned that the trend towards “prohibiting trans athletes from competition has been growing.” She senses “frustration across all these different sports that at some points things were moving in a more positive direction, and now it's just really awful. There's a lot of anger, frustration, and heartbreak, and people coming together on the question of what to do. Activists and lawyers who work in that space are just running into so many roadblocks. I tried to understand the psychology of why we are in this situation. There's a fear of getting involved in the politics of it because that can result in death, frankly. Pretty severe consequences to activists being public. There are just so many considerations.”  In the aftermath of the ad’s removal, Lowerson traveled to California and connected with surfboard shaper Mando, owner of Mando Surf Co in the Monterey Bay area, who is nonbinary. They’re launching two key collaborations: releasing a Sasha Jane signature model surfboard under the Mando label, and working on the soon-to-be nonprofit, GNDR Surf. 

Trans female surfer Sasha Jane Lowerson was all set to do an ad for Rip Curl… only for it to be scuppered, thanks to anti-trans extremists such as Bethany Hamilton and Riley Gaines.

[lil-oreo-crumbles]

You know back when the AU was a comic, I was able to gloss over so much of the politics of Mewni Creek I was not well equipped to handle and focus instead on the relationships and bonds that were important to the story going forward and explain the new governmental system of this combined world after it had been established and the masses calmed long down.

But now? Now that it’s a fic? Now that I have to essentially re-start the Ovelia establishment and better flesh out her blossoming friendships and connections to the main cast?

I’ve really gotta buckle down and write the politics and post-Cleaved chaos don’t I.

Man…

[betterworldinitiative]

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C_VN_VBxSZz/?igsh=dGoyaHN2aWthcTVl

The deadass scoop on anarchy, aka anarchism. Know the difference between anarchy and hierarchy.

[thoughtportal]

France and Africa

[raffaellopalandri]

World Health Day 2024: My Health, My Right

Every year on April 7th, the World Health Organization (WHO) celebrates World Health Day, a global event dedicated to raising awareness of a specific health issue. This year’s theme, “My health, my right”, shines a light on the fundamental principle that everyone, regardless of background or circumstance, deserves access to good health. Why is Health Essential? Our health is one of the…

[newsbites]

Private equity has been rapidly growing its share of the housing market, taking advantage of a housing crisis and in some cases exacerbating it. But as large corporate landlords grow in power, tenants are increasingly rallying together and finding creative ways to hit them in their pockets.