#i hope i get to see the liberation of palestine in my life time

[lemedstudent2021]

One day, we'll be able to eat stawberries from Palestine, and enjoy the ambience of the market place, filled with sellers advertising their wares and children laughing as they walk home from school.

One day, we will pray every salah in Masjid Al-Aqsa and roam the old city, drink mint tea with the locals and listen to their stories of youthful mischief.

One day, we will sit down on small wooden tables with people from all walks of life and savour the earthy tones of freshly squeezed Zait (olive oil) and the tang of Zatar (dried thyme with sumac and sesame seeds) as we discuss the most mundane of things like the weather.

One day, Palestine will be free and returned to it previous glory, and the world will realise how much they were missing out.

Saw a TikTok talking about how it's supposed to be Strawberry season in Palestine, apparently they taste so sweet they call them red gold. There was this sweet picture of an elderly lady holding strawberries, i had to draw her.

[i-eat-nail-polish]

Hey I’m gonna probably post more serious stuff because I need to have discussions with people about Palestine. For one I live in an area and am surrounded by people who aren’t pro Palestinian. They don’t take anything surround boycotts or information in general about the genocide serious at all because it doesnt effect them. It’s starting to wear on me because there’s no one to cope (idk if that’s the right word) with what I see online on a daily basis. Ever since mid October or so? (When the tik tok algorithm caught up with the time) I’ve seen countless atrocities that I’ve only ever seen in video games or movies played out in real life against real people. I learned what real bombs sound like both far away and up close because of these videos. Lately I’ve also started to dream about being trapped in Gaza with that feeling of death looming. It sounds dramatic but it’s true. Every day I’m thankful that I’m constantly shown information about Palestine and surrounding Arab countries and I’m also in shock. I’m in shock for a few reasons. 1: I’ve watched for months now, a country, a land and it’s people go through something worse than hell and nobody around feels the same sadness and basic human empathy. No one cares to take in that there’s a massive loss of life and culture and future for whatever reason. It’s gut renching to think about it. 2: I can’t help beyond witnessing and documenting. It seems stupid and corny to think that we’re privileged to have phones but documenting this horrible event through a phone camera is so incredible for history. It just feels almost insulting that that’s all I can do as a poor college student in America. Yes, I can call my representatives which thankfully where I live do support a free and liberated Palestine, but others won’t even do much as think about their constituents. It’s hard because it feels like we’re trying to move a volcano with plastic beach shovels. So all we can do is sit and save videos before social media giants take them down. 3: coming to terms that nobody looks out for each other on a large scale. Because I follow now many journalists from various sectors ranging from on the ground in Gaza to political scientists giving me lessons on the United Nations history, I’m shocked at how all of it is fake. Nothing makes sense anymore. You’re telling me because 2 countries won’t vote on a ceasefire but 98% do we can’t move on with it? Why does the US get privileges that to my limited knowledge no one else has the same power leverage as. How has nobody else stepped in when MANY war crimes are being committed. Why do they even exist if countries are never seriously prosecuted? Why even have rules if you can’t follow them? It’s disheartening to watch but I can’t give up hope. I’m not giving up hope because that’s all we have. I may not have direct ties to Palestine but as if needless suffering is enough for me to care, I care especially for the queer family in Gaza. They are as much apart of the queer family as my roommates are. I don’t know if and when we lose LGBTQ+ people in Gaza but I know it’s happening so I cry for the loss of our family. I need to see an end to this. I need to. I don’t know how to process any of what I’ve witnessed or feel right now or even what else I can do to help stop a genocide. I need to talk to people so please may you strike up conversation. Correct me in any place, tell me about the latest boycotts, show me protests. Please converse we have to keep hope alive.

[sol-sketches]

YOU HEARD THAT RIGHT! BIRTHDAY TIME!!!

to celebrate, i'm doing a commissions sale! all commissions 20% off for a week, until november 10th!! i need to save up some funds for next semester + perhaps would like to get myself a little treat :') so if you like what you see, message me here (@sol-sketches) or on discord at sol_shines before proceeding to my ko-fi!! all my normal conditions and limits apply. slots go uhhhh until i get overwhelmed!

additionally, in support of palestinian liberation, i'm offering free icons with any donation of $5 or more benefiting palestine! if you can't afford my regular rates or or would just rather put your money towards an incredibly worthy cause, please please please consider supporting the palestinian resistance!! i will also be donating 10% of any commissions profits to Medical Aid for Palestinians!

once we've discussed commission details either here or on discord (or in case you just feel like supporting me, in which case: thank you i owe you my life), here's my ko-fi:

and if you can't do any of those things, a rb would really help to spread the word :') but whether you do or not, i hope you have a lovely day / night / whenever! 💛

[jew-flexive]

Izzy Hands was the abuser, actually. And Izzy Hands wasn't poor or working class (but Ed was). And Izzy Hands sold people out to the cops. And Izzy Hands was homophobic and femmephobic. And you would know all of that if you had watched the show, instead of listening to a bunch of izcels talk about a character they did not understand using traits, plots, and quotes that they literally stole from other, usually POC characters. But I see you're a zionist. So I'm not surprised you're a stupid piece of shit.

....Whose kid is this? Why are they in my backyard?

Anyway, yeah, let's get into it! Edward Teach historically owned and sold slaves and engaged in broad-scale corruption by bribing public officials (including early modern police forces). He also murdered hundreds of people, and was generally an all around Certified Bad Dude. In OFMD canon, from what I understand, he physically mutilated Izzy multiple times and psychologically and physically abused People of Color, on top of the regular list of Pirate Crimes. So your fav, just like everyone's favs, is also problematic.

But Izzy Hands is also...not my fav? I don't watch OFMD? I made a tiny text post because a lot of my mutuals were upset, and I wanted to comfort them because I know what it's like to dedicate a lot of time/effort to a show and feel let down. It wasn't that deep. As I said in my properly tagged post, I don't watch OFMD because I wasn't able to separate the historical figures of Stede Bonnet and Edward Teach from the characters in the show, who were both very bad people in real life. That was a personal choice, and I don't judge anyone who watches OFMD--not even you, Anon!

(I judge you for other reasons!)

(Also, I could make a point about how because you like the character of Edward Teach, you're a supporter of slavery and a racist piece of shit, but I'm not going to do that because I have media literacy and also I'm not going to try to derive someone's political beliefs based on which characters they like in a TV show and nothing else. Because doing that is stupid. And childish. And pathetic.

Sound like anyone we know?)

I could dig into your whole "Izcel" comment and how you are ascribing onto a majority queer audience a term that has caused that community tremendous harm, thereby undercutting whatever progressive values you are trying to promote by attacking fans of a character you personally don't like, but if you aren't brave enough to come off anon to send me hate, you aren't worth my time of educating you. I encourage you to read some actual queer theory, and not just watch the TikTok summaries. I am more than happy to send you a reading list if you DM me!

Finally, I want to address your final point. I guarantee I have done more work to ensure Palestinian sovereignty than you have. I donate regularly to Palestinian NGOs and peace projects in Israel and Palestine. I attend rallies and protests, uplift the voices of Palestinian activists, organize in my community, and support organizers in the region itself. I am, as the majority of American Jews are, extremely anti-Bibi. I'm in charge of the office pool for the Palestinian Red Crescent, and I helped register voters for municipal elections in Israel to promote shared cities and a greater public voice for Arab citizens of Israel. I am committed to the cause of Palestinian liberation and self-determination because I am committed to the cause of Jewish liberation and self-determination. All liberation is connected, and I have spent five years dedicating myself to promoting a shared vision of hope, peace, and safety in the Levant. You have no idea what kind of Zionist I am, or if I even identify with that word. All you saw was that I made posts decrying the violence of Hamas and the hateful response by the rest of the world. All you saw is that my handle has the word "Jew" in it.

I don't know what you wanted to accomplish by sending this ask, Anon. Did you want me to recant my previous post and send a big "Fuck You!" to my mutuals who liked Izzy Hands as a character? Not going to happen. Did you want me to watch OFMD and start liking Edward Teach? Also not going to happen. Did you want to make me look like "a stupid piece of shit"? I assure you, I'm not the one who looks stupid right now.

Did it make you feel big? Did it make you feel powerful? Did it give you catharsis to send hate to a Jewish person, knowing there is no way for you to be truly held accountable? Does the idea of me reading this message excite you? Are you giddy at the idea that you might upset me? That you might scare me? I've had groups of grown men follow me out of work threatening to rape and kill me because I'm Jewish. I promise you, Anon, you don't scare me. You make me laugh. Imagine caring so much about a mediocre TV show you just have to harass a Jew about it.

Fuck you, you cowardly and antisemitic prick. You, like everyone else who hides behind anon to send hate, are so fucking small.

[diabolicalcunt]

I feel the need to pin this cause I’ve always been notorious for people loving me when they first meet me, and then finding out that my political views are not extremely liberal. So here’s all the reasons you will hate me once you get to know me. Or not. I honestly don’t care I’m just sick of the ‘You aren’t who I made you out be in my head!’ conversations.

So my unpopular opinions in no order-

1. They/them is something that’s being encouraged by big brother to see yourself as non or less human.

2. DID isn’t real and you just disassociate a specific way. I look like I’ve been drugged cause I fall down ‘inside’ myself like a well and have no reaction time and can barely speak. I’m like a sloth. You pretend to be a anime character. It’s just coping.

3. The concept of trans genocide is fear mongering by big brother and means to keep boundaries between social groups.

4. To build off 3, the push to medically transition underage children is a move by big pharmaceutical companies to create a permanent customer. Because whether you decide to stay transitioned or de transition, you’re going to be on medication for the rest of your life whether you like it or not. There’s also the whole issue with child exploitation. You’ll be judgmental against Dance Moms, but you won’t say anything about a mom who transitioned her child when they were two years old and made them a social media star.

5. Trans men and women who have been charged with a crime belong in LGBT prison wings. Because we have created a culture where male rapists can put on its dress and be rewarded with a permanent stay in the hen house where they can victimize more women and the system will just cry transphobia and call the victims liars. You got a problem with that? I have never seen a trans man pushing to get put in men’s prison. I wonder why… 😐

6. Blair White is queen.

7. I will fight Henry Cavill on sight. I don’t give a shit how bad you want motorboat him. He’s a fucking pedophile.

8. Same goes for David Bowie. When I get to the afterlife I’m gonna make him wish he could die again. Ask me if you want my full on sight list. 😂

9. I stand with Palestine. Yes I think Islam is a horrible religion that is anti woman. I still don’t think kids should die for the grievances of adults and I think it’s fucked up Israel is doing the same shit Nazis did to them and expect us to nod and smile!

10. Qu**r is just as much of a slur as f*g*t or n*gg*r. I don’t use it and if you do I will block you no questions asked. Say gay! Say lesbian! Say…bisexual! 😱

11. Butch women are valid as fuck and I adore y’all . They aren’t trans men, fuck your lesbian phobia.

12. To build off 11, the new LGBT movement has been infected by woke homophobia and the new trans movement is nothing but conversion therapy in a mask.

13 . Radical feminists are women’s last hope.

14. Marvel movies always sucked, we were just kids and ate up the pretty colors.

15. Dune is a white male savior story.

16. Your fave is not autistic, trans, gay or whatever. You just need validation cause you have no confidence.

17. The Boys should have never cast Jensen Ackles and the Supernatural fandom needs psychological help.

18. Too many of y’all try to primp and posture as the gods of your fandom and yes I say that as someone who did the same and stepped away when I realized how cringe I was. Lording over autistic adults and actual children is pathetic. Get therapy and a real hobby.

19. While gender neutral fanfiction has its place. The trend that all fanfiction needs to be gender neutral is literally killing the creativity and frankly the spice to fanfiction. I hate this trend where piece of media needs to be sterilized so it can be consumed by anyone, even people just passing by. It goes against the concept of creating at its core. Sometimes things are made for specific groups. Sometimes it’s made just for you. The things you create do not need to be sanitized to the point there’s no substance, just a hollow consumption. Think of it this way. Would you rather have a hot pizza of your preference or would you prefer to just drink a bowl of water because someone on the other side of the world might not like pizza?

20. The WWE Divas belt was iconic. I get the whole take women wrestlers seriously movement and I agree! But god damn it, it’s a Bratz belt!!! Gimme!!!!!

21. I fucking HATE koalas. They literally only exist because humans have dumped millions of dollars and keeping them alive. If natural selection were allowed to take his course, they would’ve died off 100 years ago. The food they consume has so little nutrition that they have evolved to have the smallest brain to cranium capacity of any animal to create a built in helmet!! Why? Cause they are so stupid they literally fall out of trees and drop their infants!!! They shit on their young and have permanent diarrhea due to the 0 nutrition thing. They carry chlamydia. They’re so fucking stupid they can’t fuck and have to be artificially inseminated to continue the population. If I couldn’t get laid on my own, the government would not drop millions of dollars into making sure I do!! So why did koalas get it? Literally a waste of resources that could be going to feed thousands of hungry children and instead we’re keeping a fucking retarded (I’m on the spectrum fuck you) animal alive who should have gone extinct hundreds of years ago cause it’s supposedly ‘cute’!! God! I hate koalas!

[comrademidnighty]

My first blog

Just a young Canadian who is a big fan of history, socialism, and cats

Hello my friends, it is yours truly... Midnight!

This blog is going to detail stuff in my life, the date is August 23, 2024 and I turned 18 a few days ago. This blog will detail parts of my life as I head onto university, not all of it because that would be impossible and not very desirable.

Unfortunately, during the pandemic I never really made any good hobbies that lasted (Piano, chess, cooking, etc.), but perhaps the worst of all of them did stick, and those are history and politics.

I like history but it is not a profitable hobby and is pretty high risk if you seek to be employed through it, and I "like" politics but more so just want to have some sort of understanding of how the world works outside this small box I call life.

I hope that by the time I can say that these blogs are finished that we can see some improvement in world, whether that is in form of combating the climate crisis, or perhaps a second 1917, it feels like without such things humanity is doomed to being wage slave (without any possibility to survive outside of capitalism) or a climate crisis destroys much of life as it is doing right now, or both. Don't get me started on the fascistic movements that are rising which were only countered by decades old labour movement which no longer exist thanks to neo-liberalism (Defunding of welfare, increased policing, and a belief in the supremacy of competition in everyday life with state intervention serving to further that goal).

On final notes for this thing... man the last part of pretty long, I suppose I just wanted to dump it somewhere, but until then.

Free Palestine! Democracy to Sudan! Safety to all minorities! Death to America! Long live international solidarity!

[thethiefandtheairbender]

So, I feel hopeful for the PJO series (haven't the premiere yet, I'm waiting for my off day) but then as I was searching stuff about it, I ended up finding the whole debacle about Uncle Rick being a zionist? I couldn't find many sources that weren't a bunch of hearsay and calls for boycott of the series, do you happen to know what that's about? (Sorry if this is wierd, you don't have to answer if you don't want to)

So this is why it's good to go back to the original source to make up your own mind (I've linked it here for your convenience). For posterity's sake I've provided by own thoughts on it down below, as well as some additionally needed context:

Disney+ is one of many companies that people have called a boycott for (alongside ones like Starbucks) due to BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions is a Palestinian-led movement promoting boycotts, divestments, and economic sanctions against Israel). Disney+'s status in the boycott exists separately from claims about Rick Riordan (I haven't seen much backlash about people watching "Wish" or any other disney project recently, by comparison.) I can't comment since I don't actually have Disney+ myself, but have access to it through my technical in-laws who I barely speak to, let alone am going to have honest political conversations with. (I have also, for comparison, gone to Starbucks perhaps 5 times in my 24 years of life out of preference, so like. yeah.)

As for Rick Riordan's statement: he's not a Zionist. The main point of his statement is to express sympathy for the violence affecting both sides of the conflict. Which is true! Civilian hostages were taken and have died, thousands of civilians on the Palestinian side have died, and I've also seen stories of pro-Palestinian Israeli people being harassed and beaten by the IDF. The Hamas have also inflicted harm on the people of Gaza for quite some time.

He also acknowledges that "the Israeli government’s brutal retaliation against the entire population of Gaza has reached genocidal proportions. This is not only an atrocity. It is folly" and how that kind of violence will only create more pain, unstability, and suffering.

He goes on to say "The only real solution is treating each other like equally worthy human beings, and negotiating a peace that allows all parties a chance to live in security and dignity, with hopes for a future that does not include bombs and rockets and gunfire. This means security and support for Israel, yes. It also means a secure Palestine which is allowed to get the international aid and recognition it needs to build a viable state."

So bare minimum, he's a two state solution person. Which isn't that crazy given the context; personally (in my white, previously Christian, Canadian perspective, so grain of salt) I think the easiest path to Progress is 1) defunding Israel's military to enforce 2) a more permanent ceasefire so that 3) a two state solution can be hammered out. That is not a perfect solution and while I hope that eventually Palestine would have total liberation, I'm also trying to look at the situation realistically as a series of steps (not ultimatum endgames) forward to minimize damage and death from getting any worse than it already has.

I also don't think focusing on the dangers of dehumanization is a 'Bad' stance either, given Riordan's context as a close to 60 year old white man American born and raised in Texas, or indeed within the general political climate in America. There are definitely people who are way too pro-Israel (often times because of being unable to see past their emotional trauma) and there are also, likewise, people who refuse to watch themselves for their Antisemitism or Islamophobia (the rise in hate crimes directed at particularly Jewish, but also Muslim, individuals in Canada and the USA). Neither people's lives, anywhere other than people enlisted in active military service, are worthy collateral damage, tbh, because nobody else signed up for this (and the IDF's conscription is an interesting grey room). You shouldn't be cheering over anyone dying, and that's exactly what some people are doing or are trying to inflict. If you're cheering for any and all Jewish civilian deaths in Israel or any other country, or you're cheering for the death of civilian Palestinian people, you are a shit head. Full stop

I think his statement is likely written to both 1) express how he personally feels and 2) written as a response to the deep polarization of the issue at hand. If you can get a wedge in and have people consider, briefly, the propaganda they may be taking without question (particularly for Americans, who are raised on a whole prominent host of pro-Israel sentiment), then it's worthwhile taking the 'neutral' road to me.

I've expressed it before in this post, but Neutral -- genuinely neutral, not "I don't have an opinion bc I'm not informed but my not informed opinion errs on the side of the oppressors because why would kids need to transition lolol?" -- opinions are not a bad thing. It means that, for an ultimately pro-Palestinian person like myself, he's not in my way. Neutral people are not in your way. And that means you can jump over them, and work on combatting the people who are actively hostile and opposed to you (supposedly 'neutral' people included) because that's where the work actually is.

Anyway, that's my two cents. Read the thing, take your time, draw from the people around you that you trust if that's an option for you, figure out how you feel, and make up your own mind about it and what to do about it. Applicability > emotionality and all that. Hope this helped

[daffodilhorizon]

i've always been outspoken about equal rights. It started with posts about mental illness stigma. Since being traumatized as a child, i've struggled with depression and anxiety. I opened up about this, in hopes others would feel inspired to share their stories. There's every reason why suffering from mental illness should not happen alone. Then i started talking about gay rights and biphobia and feminism and #metoo and the patriarchy. I tirelessly educated on rape culture and mansplaining. I went hard on telling people to vote (haha) for the most liberal option available. I told people about the wealth gap and classism. I educated myself and read both anarchist and communist theory, and then i started criticizing colonialism and exploitation itself. I advocated for unions, i told people to never cross a picket line and to support strikes. I was already ACAB before Ferguson, but after that i spent years reading antiracist theory and seeking out black revolutionaries. I had to tell an extended family member "all lives don't matter until black lives do". I did not shy from my work in attempting to gently radicalize the people in my life. I attempted to educate others on why we need prison and cop abolition and the alternatives. I got pretty far, even with people i don't consider leftists! Like anyone else, i of course, advocated for environmentalism. I myself do not own a car and go to great lengths to use fully renewable energy. I re-use before recycling. I avoid plastic when i can. In my veganism self-education, i learned about disability rights. This was enforced further during covid. I stopped using ableist language or comparisons. I have successfully eradicated using comparisons to intelligence in my daily life and gently correct people around me when they use them to use a better word. None of this lost me any friends. Until i brought up animal rights. Even the tamest "i'm vegan" had acquaintances putting distance between us. My entire family turned on me, simply for saying stuff like "you are a good person, you just don't see the difference between your cat and a pig because of defense mechanisms, but you would be upset if your cat went through what animals at those places do." or saying killing a turkey is wrong. Then i started losing friends and being ostracized. From people who said nothing even when i pointed out war crimes against Palestine and are full anti-capitalists. People who are open minded, and generally kind to others. People's environmentalism evaporated when i pointed out that methane from cows is x28 as heating as CO2 in the short term, that we can't stay under 2c without people being plant based, or that the majority of plastic in the ocean is from fishing nets, or that fishing is killing way more sea turtles and other "cute" animals than straws. Even just mentioning animal victims a few times every now and then is enough to make people uncomfortable. Definitely not a sign of their own guilt or anything! How painful must the reminder be, to have to completely block out not only the victims at every meal, but humans who remind them of the suffering they are inflicting as well. So it's very jarring to me now, to see other people advocating for other causes saying much more extreme things and not getting any negative social feedback. Straight up mainposting things like "you are a bad person for voting wrong" is becoming more normal with the election season coming up. But vegans get shut down simply for bringing up animal abuse, because carnists know deep down it's wrong to hurt animals and objectify them into commodities. That's why they care so much about animals they view as "cute" "pets" or value (at least on the surface) animals they admire for being free and wild such as Elephants, pretty birds, and whales.

[iwanttobeheard1]

Whether you support Israel or Palestine. I want to share the life of those who are living in today, October 7th, Saturday.

I decided to go to sleep at 5 am, not a smart choice, especially not when my mom called me at 6:30 am and told me, to wake my sister up, we’re at war

At first, I thought—- oh, it’s okay but not really.

We had seen this before, not our first rodeo.

Not the first time we wake up to a siren with a rocket above our head, not the first time we have the news on 24/7, not the first time the only sound aside from the TV is the war planes going over our house. We’re used to this.

We are used to the house shaking, we are used to the sounds of booms above our roofs, to hear a name we don’t know declared dead as a causality. We’ve seen it all before. The smoke, the collapsed building.

But today, Saturday, is different. Today I woke up to my Instagram feed full of people asking others to share their posts— not for likes Or follows, because a friend or two has gone missing.

And then, four friends, maybe five or 10. To slowly entire families, children, parents, sister and brothers, even grandparents. My friend’s mom doesn’t answer the phone, she’s in the south, and my cousin is hiding in the trees, away from gunshots.

And when we open tiktok, we see videos and photos of loved ones being taken hostage, their clothes bloodied and dirty, torn away and discarded. A lot of families find out about death or kidnapping of a loved one this way. By accidentally clicking on a video, not thinking they’ll see someone they share blood with.

With a weapon to their head, if they have a head, at all.

Selfies, of deceased men and women, children and elderly are sent to those families, selfies of their killer with the deceased.

And then videos, of countless men attacking an unalived body, another mother found out about her kids passing like that.

And then entire villages, 50 people kidnapped within hours, taken into enemy territory in the name of liberation, of resistance.

And I had always advocated for peace, I had always believed in seeing a good in a person, even if we don’t share the same views.

But to those who support that behavior, to those who do not condemn these actions— i can only pray you realize that the ‘goodness’ in your heart is a horror by itself, as it picks and chooses who deserves to live, and who deserves to suffer by the color of their skin, their god and the language they speak.

I cannot unsee the way men mutate a corpse, or the way a man tells a child to enter a bathroom, knowing he won’t ever get out of it.

But I hope I can see a future where a life’s worth is a life’s worth. No matter who’s.

I’m sending prayers to every human on earth.

[solarpunk-0possum]

finding the balance between being understanding and sensitive to the fact that everyone is doing the best they can with what they have and also holding people accountable and to a higher standard of sustainability has been a challenge for me.

like i know blaming the consumer is a way to take the blame off the large corporations doing the damage. but as consumers we are complicit in this, even if we don't have a choice otherwise. We have fallen for the allure of convenience at the cost of humans rights and the world we live in. We get to live a cushy life filled with conveniences like delivered meal kits that take any sense of place, identity or locality out of food that produce tons of waste, or we get to buy beautiful healing crystals mined by children we'll never meet or even see evidence of unless we look for it. we get cheap clothes made by people who will never be properly compensated. people whose names we will never know die for our luxury every day and we just... carry on.

but then i understand we're all just trying to fucking survive and we're doing our best. i get it. i do unsustainable shit too. i smoke carts and throw away the packaging, i don't recycle, i drive an oldass car, etc etc etc, but i also try not to be too hard on myself because I know if I could change it, I would. But I wonder if not everyone feels that way... some people seem really attached to their simple conveniences and easy life, and they're happy to ignore the consequences. i don't blame them. They say ignorance is bliss, and I agree. There's a part of me that would love to live in a world where I can be blissfully unaware of the horrific injustices going on in places I will likely never visit. As a white middle class american I might even have the privilege to not care if I played my cards right.

But I'm reminded of the quote- ignorance is bliss, but it doesn't lead to liberation. i will choose liberation over bliss. but i have a hard time understanding people who choose bliss.

really this post says a lot more about my own extreme self-criticism. it's striking to me when others aren't so hard on themselves, but I also think a lot of us have some room to hold ourselves to higher standards in terms of our consumptive habits. especially those of us with disposable income.

Capitalism makes money the ultimate power... so spending your money somewhere is in some way, a transfer of power. We have no choice but to spend our money at unethical places but we should at least attempt to give a fuck. i like to look at it from a harm reduction standpoint but that's a different post.

so yeah. there's two wolves in me: one sees and even honors the imperfections of all humans. we are are struggling under a brutal system. the other wolf wants to hold others to a higher standard in spite of that. both have good points. the ideal behavior is some nuanced balance between the two that I haven't quite found.

hope ya'lls holiday has been restful. free palestine. the most ethical consumption is not consuming at all.

[blackswallowtailbutterfly]

i dont see how criticizing men for procreating under dismal conditions exonerates israel from its genocidal behavior. as a future parent, the life conditions your child would endure have to be considered far above facts such as how much you want to get your dick wet, and yes, ahead of the 'but if i don't breed my people will disappear :(' kind of populism. none of this is blaming the women... i just dont see why this is ok if men are oppressed enough. they never NEED to put a baby in a woman.

You know, it's interesting. My mom used to say that people in Ethiopia suffering famine shouldn't be having children. My mom was a seventeen-year-old stripper when she got pregnant with me. Abortion was fully legal in my country at the time, as it is now. Contraceptives were available too, but she had never used them. And many would argue she shouldn't have had children in the circumstances she was in, and in fact I would agree it was a poor choice--she wasn't a very good parent.

But she didn't see it that way. To her the situation was normal. To her, as long she didn't treat her kids as badly as she was treated, she was doing okay. And that's the point. It's easy to look back and say, hey, having kids in that situation wasn't a good idea. But everyone normalizes their own situation in the moment. Everyone hopes things will get better.

Should men take more responsibility and not coerce women into pregnancies they don't want? Yes. They should do that period. In the most ideal, most peaceful circumstances that have ever or could ever occur in our species' existence they should be still be doing that. Women should have 100% reproductive autonomy at all times.

That is not the reason zionists are saying people in Palestine shouldn't have children. It's not why conservatives say people on welfare shouldn't have children. It's not why my mom said people in Ethiopia shouldn't have children. It's racism and classism--and yes, misogyny too.

If you think no women ever desire to have children in less than ideal circumstances, you should consider that no woman anywhere knows what a truly liberated society for women is like. None of us have lived it. And people normalize their situations if they have nothing tangible or accessible to compare it to. An average woman growing up in a highly misogynistic, isolated village with only rumours, if even that, of a better place for women probably isn't going to think consciously that that's a terrible place to bring a baby into. Hell, even if a bad situation has gone on long enough. You either think, this will get better eventually, or that, hey, I've survived this long, it's not so bad.

Now, some people indeed think no one should reproduce; that our species should just die out and "let nature heal" as it were. I think that's a fine choice to make for yourself. I fully support people not having kids (for men that means vasectomy or no pro-creative sex) if they don't want them. But you don't get to make that choice for others--especially for people in the middle of a genocide.

Palestinian women who got pregnant a few months ago (some will have been coerced, of course, men do that everywhere, but others won't have) didn't know this attack was coming at this time. And even in the midst of this attack? I promise you many women who have lost babies, sick with grief, will be looking to have more children. That may not make sense to you, who is not in that circumstance, but it doesn't have to. Palestinian men are not worse than other men.

There is a genocide happening, and people need to stop buying into genocidal logic, whether under the guise of feminism or otherwise.

[outerspace-castaway]

since this shit was put on my dash...

excerpts Noah's original statement highlighted in blue

I am truly heartbroken to see the brutal murders of innocent children, women and soldiers fighting to defend themselves. I, like others, want peace for both Palestinians and Israelis. Let’s stop the rhetoric and choosing sides. Instead we must recognize that we are all on the side of the fight against terrorism. Choose humanity over violence.”

“I just reposted a beautiful picture of a young innocent girl whose life was taken by Hamas at a music festival,” Schanpp wrote. “I was met with comments reading ‘no one cares free Palestine’ and ‘She deserves that, and every Israeli terrorist deserves that – Free Palestine.’ I am outraged by the justification and celebration of the death of a young girls life. Have people lost their minds??? STOP!”

“I hope we can agree that Hamas are a recognized terrorist organization: they don’t represent the Palestinian people when they value murdering Israelis more than protecting their own,” Schnapp wrote. “You either stand with Israel or you stand with terrorism. It shouldn’t be a difficult choice. Shame on you.”

While you justify the murders and torture of our loved ones, we will hope and pray for safety, justice, liberation, and self determination in Palestine,”

taken from Variety as noah has deleted his original post

in noah's original post he did NOT advocate for the killing of Palestinians and yes he was being ignorant to the history of Israel attacking Palestine. and yall chose to treat him like a demon instead of educating him.

it sad that this needs to be said but visiting Israel or loving the country does NOT mean you support Neteyahu or Israel's occupation of Palestine.

the Israeli people are NOT their government

thats like saying if you came to america between 2003 and 2023 you supported the killings of innocent people in the middle east from the war on terror but no one in their right mind would say that.

Lastly the "zionism is sexy" stickers

yall claimed he was saying genocide is sexy and you should be really fucking ashamed for lying like that.

Zionism- nationalistic movement

-from britannica.com

Zionism:

a movement for (originally) the re-establishment and (now) the development and protection of a Jewish nation in what is now Israel. It was established as a political organization in 1897 under Theodor Herzl, and was later led by Chaim Weizmann.

 (in southern Africa) a religious movement represented by a group of independent Churches which practise a form of Christianity incorporating elements of traditional African beliefs. 

the beliefs and practices of the African Zionist movement. 

anyway i know yall dont like the truth and someone will likely accuse me of being teenage fan girl or bootlicker or some other stupid shit so this is really for anyone who stumbles across it and actually cares about the TRUTH & FACTS.

side note: the next time any person, famous or not, is being loud and ignorant try to educate them instead of cancelling them. and also know some times it takes more than one time before information gets through.

Noah Schnapp trying to apologise by saying his words have been misconstrued. You were gleefully videoing your friends as they were proudly showing off stickers that read “Zionism is sexy” you posted misinformation and uplifted hateful voices of your peers. You were silent for far too long and conveniently come back when your show is being publicly boycotted on social media because of you and likeminded cast members. Nothing was misconstrued you just regret that there are consequences.

[nguyen-le-hong-minh]

CTS B Wk 12: Compulsory question 2

The first draft of my artistic vision was career-centric and skill-centric and quite vaguely stated, which was pointed out by my classmates. They noted that I lacked explanation of what made up my artistic identity, like my inspirations and drive to produce work and the areas I would like to specialize in.

With the comments in mind, I wrote the second draft mentioning more of my future goals and what I would be doing to achieve them now. It was sufficient in the aspiration and action aspects, but my drive and passion behind my works were still not clearly shown. Furthermore, I could have chosen a more full-bodied project that better represented my skillset and what I stand for.

My project "Apathy" is a strong choice for all of the points previously stated.

"Apathy" is my Image module assignment. Still, I see it being partly a passion project as it holds my and my mutuals' personal thoughts about the modern world, about how we are making hyper-individualism a trend and its consequences (Lishara). Our society is getting more competitive than ever in all aspects, and our system sets up children for a pressured high-stakes life from a young age: either get in a good stream or spend more time making it work (Poh). Hence the mindset of "staying ahead of the competition" is more apparent, further encouraging individualism and apathy. Apathy has already led us to a society where people who speak up against problems will be considered "wasting their own time". Through my images, I want to show that caring should not be shamed, as ignorance has done too much damage.

While this project is still ongoing, and it has been quite challenging to articulate it into images, I am really proud that I chose to do about a societal issue. I hope it reaches the public and creates conversations about closed-off emotions.

I think art and design can be a powerful tool to speak up for the unheard. An example of that is the symbol of resistance amidst the brutal genocide of the Palestinians - the Kufiya. Kufiya (or Kuffiya or Keffiyeh) is a Palestinian scarf whose patterns and colors reflect the beautiful aspects of their country, from the landmarks to the vegetation and crafts (like olive trees and fish nets) (Hirbawi Kufiya). Throughout Palestine's history, it has been worn by the resistance force tracing back to the 1930s and has become a political and cultural statement since (Qamar).

As the Western world is disregarding the Palestine genocide and Palestine as a country, many people have been fined and shied away from wearing the Kufiya, some have even been physically harassed and targeted by people with anti-Palestine and Islamophobic idealism (Sottile). Regardless, Kufiya still stands strong as a witness to the beauty and rich history of Palestine and is being worn by their allies and supporters, fighting beside their citizens for liberation from the Israeli occupation.

In conclusion, with the space and means to speak up for the ones who have no voice, I think it is our responsibility to do so. As for my aspirations, I want to be seen as "a multi-hyphened designer who voices out the unseen aspects of society".

(495 words)

References:

TM, Lishara. “Apathy Will Consume Us If We Let It: How Hyper-Individualism and End-Stage Capitalism Shun Empathy.” Medium, Medium, 10 Oct. 2024, medium.com/@lisharachan/apathy-will-consume-us-if-we-let-it-how-hyper-individualism-and-end-stage-capitalism-shun-empathy-15d7150789b8.

Poh, Brian. “Commentary: A Hyper-Competitive Culture Is Breeding Severe Test Anxiety among Many Students.” CNA, www.channelnewsasia.com/commentary/hyper-competitive-culture-breeding-severe-test-anxiety-among-799076. Accessed 20 Oct. 2024.

“Our Story.” Hirbawi Kufiya, 22 Aug. 2024, kufiya.org/our-story/.

Sottile, Zoe. “The Palestinian Keffiyeh Explained: How This Scarf Became a National Symbol.” CNN, Cable News Network, 28 Nov. 2023, edition.cnn.com/2023/11/28/style/style-palestinian-keffiyeh-explained/index.html.

Qamar, Aysha. “Breaking down the Symbols of Palestinian Resistance and Strength.” Al, 22 Oct. 2024, www.al.com/reckon/2024/10/breaking-down-the-symbols-of-palestinian-resistance-and-strength.html.

[sulevinen]

apparently people are mourning the israeli victims on the anniversary of this genocide across the globe, and not a single word has been spoken about palestinians, because for some reason (we all know what) the 1000 victims a year ago are more important than the 100 000 victims of a YEAR, or the many many more of the last 75 years. here’s two gofundmes i wish you would consider donating to.

i have been following Rasha’s gfm for months now, they need 190k to get her 11 family members from Gaza to Canada. they’re currently at 138,454CAD, with 9 of her family members already in Toronto, including her parents, brother, his wife and their 2 under 2 year old kids, as well as her three sisters. but her other sister Feryal, her husband, and 2 year old daughter Ayla are still trapped in Gaza. they also need extra support to help the family get the necessities they need as they start completely from scratch. even 5 dollars helps, the exchange rate from US to CAD is 1USD=1,36CAD, and i just donated 10 euros, if you could match that or donate anything you can spare, it’d be a big help.

another fundraiser is Haya’s, who was evacuated with her family to Egypt in the spring before the assault on Rafah, and is now in Cairo, where they’re trying to rebuild their life. they’re currently at 64,719USD from their 70k goal. the funds needed will go to rent, food and other necessities. the last donation was made 2 days ago, and i just donated 10 euros, if anyone could match that that would be great.

Palestinians also need e-sims to connect to the world, and if buying e-sims is not possible for you, you can donate to Crips for e-sims for Gaza, who will use your donation to do so.

if all else is impossible for you, you can click daily for Palestine.

it’s been a year of horrid bloodshed, and nothing has been done by countries and their politicians, so it’s up to us, the people, to carry the responsibility of the entire world. even if it’s been a year, i hope you haven’t lost hope, because it’s only a matter of time until we see liberated Palestine.

🇵🇸From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free🇵🇸

[mc-tummy-blur]

https://www.gofundme.com/f/ne9gzx-help-them-to-survive?utm_campaign=p_lico+share-sheet-first-launch&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=customer

Dear Friends,

I hope this message finds you well. I am writing to share an urgent plea for help. Due to the ongoing conflict in Gaza, my family and I have been forced to flee our home and seek refuge in Khan Younis. My mother, who is pregnant, is in critical need of assistance to ensure her safety and the safety of her unborn child.

We are facing severe hardships and are struggling to provide her with the necessary medical care and basic necessities. I have launched a campaign to raise funds for my mother's survival during this perilous time.

Your support in sharing our campaign on social media could make a life-saving difference. Please help us spread the word and gather the support we desperately need.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Sincerely,

Please help us by sharing the post on your page so that we can collect donations and get out of the war. You are our hope. I will be very grateful to you . ❤️🙏🏼 

"this fundraiser is vetted by nabulsi, fallahifag, el-shab-hussein, ibtisams, sayruq"

Hello, I'm sorry I didn't answer this right away. I was skeptical as just recently someone sent me an ask to share/donate to help them while they are in Palestine, but they turned out to be a scam. It's a shame what people will do

But, looking over, I do trust that you are in need and not somebody that's scamming. It's disgusting that I would have to second guess people's intentions, and it's a shame you have to put a disclaimer saying how your gofundme has been verified by multiple people

I wish I could donate myself, but I don't have money to spare. Hopefully, I can come back to this and donate when I do. In the meantime, I'll be sharing this so that others can see

I hope you get to your goal quickly and that your mother has a safe delivery and the baby grows in a liberated Palestine. I'll be praying for your whole family.

[hexalt]

[ID: a tweet by @/gazanotice that reads, “Palestinian journalist Bisan Owda: so here is my message:

‘Dear brothers and sisters in humanity, we are living in a dirty, ugly unfortunate world and in its worst era, I have never seen all of you or hear your stories, life struggles and hopes but I truly believe that standing for Gaza - Palestine is also standing for your lives and families, the devil is the same, capitalism and capitals.. colonialism and colonisers and their belief that they own us and our world.. and that it's ok to plan everything related to us and our children years before we find out the disaster (NAKBA) we are all in!!! Hhhh when the real designers die then the next colonisers start apologising and condemning, and continue to fool us.. Colonisers are not creative.

They told us that there is no Palestine and it's only Israeli defending itself! And that Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen, Sudan, Libya and much more countries need liberation, they gave themselves the credit to kill us or to support our killers and to destroy our lands, BUT after years, what happened? No liberation, freedom, welfare, life or even peace! They are getting richer and building empires over our bodies, after stealing our wealths then making sure that there is no unity to stop them!

Brothers and sisters we have a historical chance and maybe the last one to change our future and take over the role of our countries and our lives! To become a united nations (real not the lie of 🇺🇳), Gaza awakened the world, but how many times a genocide must be committed to awaken us!

Why I am saying this? Because they are also controlling what should we and shouldn't tell or post, they can let nudity and drugs out but they will never let the truth out because it is more dangerous."

Keep pushing we must destroy centuries of lies.

Long live Palestine, Long live Gaza, Long live our martyrs.’”

There is a photo of Bisan sitting in a car under the text. She is a young light skinned Palestinian woman with a large watermelon pin in her thick curly ponytail. Her head is turned right so we see her profile. She’s wearing a red button down shirt.]