#if i left out a category for your 'invisible' disability

[secondwhisper]

Love and solidarity to people with less-spoken-of "invisible" disabilities.

Disabilities of breathing, eating, and drinking. Disabilities of language, speech, signing, reading, and writing. Disabilities of digestion and toileting. Disabilities of sleep. Disabilities of thermoregulation. Disabilities of sexual function. Disabilities of navigation, balance, and motor control. Disabilities of taste and smell.

"Invisible" disabilities with obvious causes, and "invisible" disabilities with unknown causes. "Invisible" disabilities with treatments, those with helpful adaptive technologies, those with experimental approaches, those with social or infrastructural accommodations, those with nothing that really helps. "Invisible" disabilities that go unspoken even in spaces meant for those of us who have "invisible" disabilities. "Invisible" disabilities that have yet to be named.

"Invisible" disabilities that wouldn't be so invisible if others would just look at us and how we live.

[the-feminist-philosopher]

Kimberelé Crenshaw literally disagrees with you.

“Intersectionality is an analytic sensibility, a way of thinking about identity and its relationship to power. Originally articulated on behalf of black women, the term brought to light the invisibility of many constituents within groups that claim them as members, but often fail to represent them.  Intersectional erasures are not exclusive to black women. People of color within LGBTQ movements; girls of color in the fight against the school-to-prison pipeline; women within immigration movements; trans women within feminist movements; and people with disabilities fighting police abuse — all face vulnerabilities that reflect the intersections of racism, sexism, class oppression, transphobia, able-ism and more. Intersectionality has given many advocates a way to frame their circumstances and to fight for their visibility and inclusion.” -Kimberlé Crenshaw

Transphobia 🎶 🎵

Feminism is a movement to uplift and empower and liberate women, That includes trans women. It's not a costume. They're quite literally women. They go about life being women, treated like women, experiencing the same oppressive forces of sexualization and fetishization and a lack of bodily autonomy and the demonization of femininity and womanhood and assault and harassment as most cis women. In fact, trans women are at a higher risk of violence, harassment, and assault than cis women. They understand the nuances perfectly well, you've just never spoken to a real life trans woman before. The only trans woman that exists is the caricature in your mind.

Never mind that trans women are literally out there fighting for bodily autonomy and the right to love and the dismantling patriarchy's tendency to arbitrarily gender things and assign them to a specific sex and writing about and speaking about how to empower and liberate women and championing legislation and movements for exactly this. You just refuse to listen to them because you hate that their existence makes you anxious; makes you question the foundations of your ideology and the social structure upon which you were raised.

You can say you're a communist all you want dear, the only allies you have and people who agree with you are Christo-fascists and religious fundamentalists. Those are who are championing your ideology. Those are the people Radical Feminists have gone and allied with.

You're literally already aligned with fascists.

(Also, for a supposed communist, you really do not understand the meaning of class.)

I think you like to think you're on the "left" because it allows you to feel more comfortable about your hate. Admitting that you are not working with any actual communists would means admitting you are not working on the side of history that will be remembered fondly.

It's likely a sunk-cost fallacy for you. You have gone so far down this road that you feel there is no incentive to turn back. You dedicated all this time to hate, so you feel the need to make that time worthy by convincing yourself you're fighting for women and against the patriarchy. The cost of admitting that you're surrounded on all sides by snakes in your mind is much greater than hate you can continue to spew if you continue ahead.

Meanwhile, Incels are lauding your efforts. They need you. They cannot destroy feminism without women and they have found the perfect wedge to drive you from it and inspire you to take a sledge hammer to a liberation movement. They cannot get feminism to fail without people like you.

You aren't "turn[ing] in[]to a fascist," you already are working with them, already uplifting them, already campaigning for them.

As for your insistence upon "definitions":

[M]ale dominant society has long striven to define "woman" as a discrete biological category: female, with the purpose of stripping certain people of personhood can really challenge so much of the pro-gender/sex binary bull we are all fed from childhood.

We can no longer ignore how biology, biological discourse, and the terms and words we use to refer to our material reality are structured by historic and current social and political views. A biological reality becomes cognitively significant through this discourse and these terms we use and concepts we engage with. So, defining 'women' as 'females' -- and thus emphasizing a label that is ascribed to all at birth along patriarchal standards of 'correct' genitalia and 'best' fertility -- is itself a political choice influenced by one’s socialization rather than one that can claim to neutrally reflect what the world is 'really' and 'materially' like.

The fact society already defines 'women' as ova producers and child bearers (i.e. the very definition of human female; the sex that has the ability or potential to bear offspring or produce eggs) or even as vagina havers and uterus havers (i.e. the insistence that, 'only someone with a uterus or vagina is a woman') is a result of socialization in a male dominant society that has striven to define 'woman' as a discrete biological class, female.

Even radical feminist Catharine MacKinnon (an actual radical feminist, and she supports trans women) understood that to be defined as female is to be an object. You do not get to consent to yourself; to your femaleness. It has been defined and ascribed to you and for you. Because male dominant society must see to it that female is a woman and "clearly" a woman, opposite that of "man." It must see to it that women are women and men are men and that the two ought be separate because this allows said society to prescribe certain bounds to each group.

Certain bounds of behavior. Certain bounds of public life. Certain bounds of private life. Certain bounds of presentation.

And this all helps foster the reification of gendered associations that decrease the perception of women as empowered agents and even human. These bounds of behavior assign to men the role of Aggressor and to women the role of passive Recipient, helping to reproduce sexual violence against women by decreasing their agency. These social prescriptions encourage men to act on behalf of women from making financial or relationship decisions, to deciding when and where and how a woman has sex, to the definition and social prescription of 'female,' and to the reproductive alienation of those assigned female.

Thus, 'female' is far from a neutral scientific observation and 'woman' is far from a scientific category. It was defined by the patriarchy and the white supremacist power structure and it was designed to strip certain people of their agency and humanity. It is a classification that popped up during the period of post-enlightenment rationality as the European colonial system controlled the world. Enlightenment rationality brought to Europeans a renewed fascination with analyzing and categorizing the world, most especially its people. The enlightenment fascination with categorization was the justification for the colonization of and dominance over non-white, non-European people.

But from the enlightenment also emerged the idea that a 'natural law' governed all people; that we were subject to a natural hierarchy; that there were some individuals more human than others. The modern definitions of "male" and "female" evolved alongside our creation of the definitions for "black" and "white" and alongside our definitions of and prescriptions of personhood.

'In the United States, the man known as the father of gynecology, J. Marion Sims, built the field in the antebellum South, operating on enslaved women in his backyard, often without anesthesia—or, of course, consent. As C. Riley Snorton has recently documented, the distinction between biological females and women as a social category, far from a neutral scientific observation, developed precisely in order for the captive black woman to be recognized as female—making Sims’s research applicable to his women patients in polite white society—without being granted the status of social and legal personhood. Sex was produced, in other words, precisely at the juncture where gender was denied. In this sense, a female has always been less than a person.'

The insistence upon one standard definition for the female-experience, is laughable, at best. And not just because definitions are inherently imprecise and inadequately encompass the entirety of our lived experienced and the material world. But also because the definitions of words are literally socially constructed. They were created and have since been defined and influenced by oppressive structures like the patriarchy and white supremacy and colonialism. This defining of human experiences is influenced by cissexism, intersexism, heterosexism, and sexism.

There isn't a single property that makes 'femaleness.' And that's pretty widely accepted. There's no single thing that single-handedly makes for 'womanhood' or 'female.' It's not like after a certain number or configuration of properties converging at a particular time, you get 'female.' There should never be some one standard against which all bodies are compared or measured for the correct amount of 'femaleness.'

So, when people want to create a standard measure for 'femaleness,' we need to ask WHO gets to set these standards or properties of 'femaleness' and WHY they're the authority. In any claim about which measures or properties are adequately 'female-enough' are assumptions about power and authority. Who has the power and authority in our society to decide who is 'female-enough?'" X

First, "Transgenderism" does not exist. Trans people exist. But there is no trans ideology. It's just trans people living and letting live.

Second, intersectional feminism- which you're actually critiquing as it is the one ideology or paradigm which consistently advocates for trans inclusion and liberation of *all* women- is notoriously not a white movement. It was literally coined by a black woman and seeks to decolonize sex relations.

The issue with modern feminism you have is simply it's inclusion of trans women. Because you cannot stand their existence, that much is clear. You clearly find them disgusting and reprehensible and abominations of the gender binary.

Well, that's... wildly incorrect. Although, black and brown trans people do face more violence than white trans people. Most trans people and all intersectional feminists agree with that.

And what sort of wild conspiracy are you spewing here? You know the majority of trans people work low wage jobs, right? They're not working in the Tech industry. They face staggering rates of poverty.

I do believe trans women are women. They are completely and totally women. I accept them in my feminism because I am an intersectional feminist and I understand the intersection of sex and cisgendered status and how they play off each other.

I treat no one with misogyny. Because I have a deep understanding of the benevolent sexism they brain wash people into accepting, something which you have yet to address in yourself. Unlike you, I also do not demonize or shit on anything people associate with women. There is no such thing as "inferior" or "superior."

I also understand that the patriarchy has a stake in maintaining gender differentiation and the gender-sex binary.

A trans woman made you your coffee the other day. She handed it to you. You are none the wiser that her trans hand touched that same coup you drank out of. A trans woman packaged your latest Amazon shipment. She's not allowed to use the bathroom; has to use bottles to pee in. A trans woman answered the phone when you called customer service, and you were none the wiser. A trans woman sorted and packaged the food you eat-- from those chips you enjoy to that drink you really like to the cereal you eat, and the tea you buy.

She helped make the chips for the computer or smart phone you're using to harass me and hate her.

Me: "Many of those pussy hats and pins and t-shirts with catchy slogans you all love are made in sweatshops. The women making them make cents on the dollar and get raped by the foreman, daily. Because the patriarchy is trying to sell you your empowerment; convince you that buying from these billionaires is "liberating" because the billionaires happen to be women."

You: "This is oppression!"

Die mad about how you're supporting sweatshops in the global south every time you buy one of those shirts.

[uncommon-etc]

In my job I provide support to a lot of people who have recently become disabled, mostly during middle age (one in three of us will have a disability in our lifetimes, after all) the one line I hear over and over again is 'I never thought it would happen to me' and it's usually said as though being disabled is a dreadful burden

I was born with my disabilities and have always felt empowered by the perspective they give me, and the creativity I've acquired from having to find complex ways around otherwise ordinary situations, but for people who have gone through life able-bodied and never had to think about what it's like on the other side of the coin it can be so much more difficult, and it doesn't need to be.

I know how to advocate for myself at work, because I've always had to, and I know which organisations will help me, whether it's speaking to my union rep or ACAS about an employment issue, requesting support from an advocacy service, or knowing which benefits to apply for. This stuff is second-nature to me now, but because we treat disabled people like an invisible sub-section of society, no-one teaches it to you. And how can anyone empower themselves without knowledge?

If all children were taught that they could become disabled one day, and how to adapt if they did, it would indeed reshape society to allow everyone to play a part in it, but in order to do so we need to address the difference in attitudes among disabled people themselves.

Chances are if you've made it into early middle-age, you've spent at least 10-15 years participating in the workforce, you've likely had a few serious inter-personal relationships (romantic or otherwise) and you may even have children (sometimes grandchildren if you had children young) so you probably think you know how the world works.

Suddenly you're left with a life-changing injury, or the ramifications of cancer-treatment, or you develop a chronic condition, or your musculoskeletal issues that for years you put down as a 'bad back' turn into something much more serious, and you have to learn not only a new way to live, and new standards of living, but that society no longer views you the way it did before.

I used to think it was silly that those who became disabled seemed to exist in a separate category to those of us who were born disabled, as though they were newly arrived immigrants to a country the rest of us knew well, but having a 'before' and 'after' to the moment you began to be discrimminated against, marginalised, and ignored is a very different experience to gradually realising that you're 'different' from the other kids at your school.

Many people who are born disabled, especially those with sensory issues, congenital limb differences, neurological differences, and learning disabilities have no desire to be 'fixed'. They have healthy bodies which over time will often find ways of doing all the same things their abled peers do, whether it's with the support of adaptive devices, or (if funding for such devices isn't available) their own instinctive knack for figuring things out. My partner didn't initially believe me when I pointed out many paralympic athletes would beat able-bodied athletes in the same sport, but it's a fact, you really think you can outrun a guy with carbon-fibre blades and a lifetime of knowing how to sprint without legs on your scrawny sprainable ones?

The recently-disabled, by contrast, may have long-term, complex health conditions which they learn to associate with being disabled even if they're secondary to the disability itself. A fifty-something with COPD and mobility issues from damaged lungs is not 'healthy' in the same way a 20-something with coclear implants who goes running on weekends, or a lifelong wheelchair user who undertakes regular physio is.

And because those who become disabled are so much more prone to depression, it's from them that we get these myths that disabled bodies are automatically unhealthy and undesireable, that being disabled is worse than being able-bodied, and that disability is some sort of curse you have to endure as punishment for driving recklessly or working on building sites without the right safety equipment.

I try to tread a fine line between being compassionate and empathetic to those who have become disabled and are feeling pretty down about it, and reminding them that their experiences are not universal, lest them continue to define how able-bodied people view us and perceive our experiences. It's a line that society would also do well to learn how to tread.

Next time someone tells you they miss being able to go into town on their own, or take regular showers, or eat in restaurants, instead of saying 'that must be so difficult for you...' try saying 'what can I do to make it easier?' if you can't directly help a friend or family member with a disability (i.e. by giving them lifts, helping out at home, or buying them that pair of noise-cancelling headphones for christmas so train journeys are no longer hell, you can still campaign for better accessibility, and greater equity of service. After all, it absolutely could be you, at any time. You're not invincible. And that's okay, as long as we smash abelism before it comes for you too.

I think one reason ableism is so prevalent is because it requires able bodied people to ditch the invincibility complex that acts as their security blanket. Anyone can become disabled at any time. No one is immune to the possibility. Letting yourself truly understand means facing your own mortality, which makes people extremely uncomfortable. But it is absolutely necessary in the fight for accessibility. Discomfort fuels change, and we need change.

[peppersonironi]

Duke Thomas VS The "Good Child" Stereotype Chapter 2

Next chapter for my Duke Thomas Big Bang fic is up!

(Once again, a hearty thank you to my betas @queerbutstillhereand @theycallme-ook)

Read On Ao3

It was four am on a Friday morning, a week after Duke had decided he’d had enough of Bruce’s - and the other’s - incorrect opinion of him.

It was so early in the morning, that the main group of bats had been trickling back from patrol over the past hour or so. Stephanie and Cassandra had arrived first, followed by Jason ten minutes later. Then Tim had gotten back from his route with Harper, and Kate and Bette had stopped by for a bit (but eventually left for their own homes). Dick came home next, and Bruce had returned last with Damian.

Everyone was in varying states of winding down, with Stephanie at one end of the spectrum wearing silk pajamas, a fluffy robe which Duke was sixty-seven percent sure was Bruce’s, and bright pink bunny slippers Duke was positive were Dick’s. On the other side, Bruce hadn’t even pulled off his cowl, and was sitting down in front of the Batcomputer to work on a case.

Though Duke thought that Tim deserved his own category, dressed in a strange combination of disco track suit and kevlar body armor, and was hunched over three cans of energy drinks and a quart jug filled with espresso shots.

Duke leaned down to double check that his boots were laced up - one time he hadn’t, and had then proceeded to trip and fall into a garbage pile. Not. Fun.

He looked up, however, when Bruce clicked open a case file. So did everyone else, as if drawn by some invisible force.

They all clearly saw as Bruce hovered his mouse over a link which had been typed in sometime while the big bat had been away. The only hint to what it could be was the note reading “New Evidence.”

Bruce grunted in what for anyone else would be an exclamation of curiosity and went to click the link.

Which clearly went to YouTube.

In unison, all the bats’ eyes widened in realization. You see, in a family such as this one, pranks abounded. So they all had painstakingly memorized that series of letters and numbers.

They all knew what it meant.

Suddenly, the Batcave lit up with the dancing form of one Rick Astley. It was everywhere. On the several large monitors that made up the Batcomputer. The various screens spread across the caves. Everyone’s phones somehow were affected. As well as the X-Ray machine in the med bay, which was showing a skeleton dancing.

Bruce jumped up, rage full on his face. “Who did this? Make it stop!”

No one answered, all too frozen in shock at what had happened.

“Who…” Dick whispered from beside Jason, “Who would be that brave?”

“Yeah,” Jason whispered back, “Rick Rolls were banned at the 2015 family reunion after you played it two hundred and thirteen times in a row.”

Dick grinned, “those were good times.”

The two eldest boys began to bicker, Jason complaining that Rick Rolls were a part of the war crimes banned by the Geneva Convention, and Dick saying he “liked it: so there.”

Meanwhile, the song was reaching the chorus, and the other bats finally began to react. The three girls were dancing on top of exercise equipment, popping bottles of sparkling cider - or was that champagne? For their own sakes, they should hope it’s the former - they had pulled out of what seemed to be thin air.

Damian was in the corner, trying to get Titus to dance to the music - though he glanced around every so often to make sure that no one was noticing his moment of fun.

Tim was still nursing his collection of drinks like an alcoholic nursed a bottle.

Bruce was practically foaming at the mouth by that point.

“This is NOT FUNNY!”

That, of course, made everyone just start laughing harder. In the corner, Steph started to do the macarena completely off-tempo from the music. Cass seemed to be chugging the cider that Harper was pouring into her mouth.

Just then the holographic training simulations lit up, and Rick Astly began making his way across the cave, dancing all the way.

Bruce glared up at the semi transparent form of the singer, as if trying to force him into submission.

“T-pose to assert dominance!” Jason called, cupping his hands around his mouth.

“Yeah, that’ll totally work, B! Trust us!” Dick called as well.

Bruce took a moment to turn his head and glare at the two former Robins, who only smiled like the angels they clearly thought they were.

The image was not aided by the two giant stuffed swordfish just pulled from Jason’s utility belt.

“En guarde!” He cried, and tossed the one in his left hand at Damian, who had been trying to reassure his dog that the giant man wasn’t real.

The thirteen year old screeched, but caught the four foot long fish by its fin.

“This is animal abuse!” He cried.

“It’s not abuse if it’s dead!” Jason countered, and attacked the youngest bat with a passion.

As the duel progressed, Cassandra tried to raise her hand and gurgle out a bet on who would win, but began to choke on the liquid.

Harper cursed as she tossed away the sixth bottle of cider and tried to give Cass the heimlich maneuver.

Dick, meanwhile, pressed a button on one of the many consoles spread around the cave, and several stripper poles came out of hidden storage via hydraulics. He grabbed the nearest one, and began to dance.

“I THOUGHT I DISABLED THOSE?!” Bruce bellowed, as Dick began a twirl.

Stephanie, however, didn’t seem nearly as dismayed at the sight of the poles. She herself smacked a button next to her, and several disco balls dropped down from among the stalactites to join the fun. She then began to morph her macarena into an epic macarena. A few flips here, and a few pantomiming choking your enemies there. And a whole lot of randomly throwing glitter bombs at, well, everywhere.

But especially at the nearest authority figure.

Damian tripped over a bucket during his fight - apparently left over from Alfred’s earlier cleaning spree - and the soapy liquid spilled across the floor.

But, of course, them being the bats, Alfred didn’t use normal soap.

Huge bubbles began to farm from the liquid, the longest almost three feet in diameter, and rise up to the cave’s ceiling. The suds spread around, eagerly began to mingle with Stephanie’s glitter.

A solitary bubble, relatively small, floated over to Bruce’s head, and popped on one of his cowl’s ears. He was not amused.

*****

Five minutes later, everyone was lined up next to the Batcomputer with heads bowed in either shame or disappointment.

Bruce walked up and down the row, the perfect imitation of a drill sergeant. His glare matched as well.

“This is an outrageous breach of protocol,” he was saying, “the Batcomputer is not a toy, nor something to use for your own amusement. It is a serious tool-”

“Then why’s it called the Batcomputer?”

Bruce froze and whirled on Dick, who had chosen that inopportune moment to speak up.

“Because you were nine years old and saying no to you would have gotten me a meltdown.”

“It seems to me, Bossman,” Stephanie began, tenting her fingers in an attempt to act serious (the effect was strange combined with her bathrobe and slippers) “That you are perfectly happy to let Dick get away with things. But in this situation, with women present, you are strangely cold. This shows blatant sexism on your part and in this essay I will-”

“That’s enough, Stephanie.” Bruce cut off as a round of snorts and giggle erupted from the group of bats.

“You do realise that no one here is going to speak, right?” Jason asked, “You did teach us to resist torture. And - pardon my french, Alfred - but you are no fucking way close to the level of torture I’ve gone through. Namely waking up to Batcow sitting on top of me.”

“Are you commenting on her weight?” Damian demanded, glaring daggers at Jason.

“I said no such thing.”

“ Boys .” Bruce demanded, rubbing his temples. “Jason is right - not about Batcow’s weight - but I’m not going to get any of you to talk willingly.” He paused and made eye contact with every single bat present, trying to reach into their souls.

“Therefore,” he continued slowly, “I’m giving you one last chance. Otherwise: No one gets cookies from Alfred for two months. ”

The shock was immediate. Alfred’s cookies, of all kinds, were worth more than gold in the Manor. The ability to not have them? And for two months? Bruce truly was a cruel hearted tyrant if he was willing to go to such lengths.

Duke gulped.

“Fine, then.” Bruce said simply when no one answered. “I guess we’ll just have to check the security footage of the Cave.”

Why didn’t Bruce think of that earlier? He clearly wasn’t trying to give the kids an easy way out.

Bruce stalked over to the computer and began to furiously type at the keys, pulling up the footage for the past few days. The group watched in a tense silence as Bruce rifled through the multiple recordings, searching for the culprit.

“AHA!” Bruce grunted, upon finding a specific time stamp. There was a figure emerging from the shadows. He paused and then slowed down the video so they could all see who it was.

There were several gasps as the figure came into the light, looked around, and made his way to the computer. They had shown their face, not even bothering to hide.

Everyone whirled to Duke, then back to the screen.

“No way,” Harper whispered under her breath.

Because the person on the footage, who was now adding the link to the case file and hooking up bluetooth speakers, was Duke Thomas himself.

Bruce’s eye twitched.

There was a general consensus among the resident vigilantes in the cave at that time: Duke wasn’t going to live to tell the tale.

Duke felt uneasy under their scrutiny, unsure of what to do. This was his plan, after all. To be seen differently. But so far the lack of accusations or uproarious debate was disconcerting.

He looked up at Bruce, awaiting his reaction. Bruce didn’t meet Duke’s eyes.

“Hrn,” he grumbled angrily instead and whirled on Tim. Said teenager was barely standing up straight - well, he was leaning on Steph heavily - and blinked wearily around the cave. He didn’t seem to understand what was going on.

Bruce’s eyes narrowed for a long moment before he whipped around and furiously began to mess with the playback settings on the footage. Everyone stood still, not daring to move while Bruce grumbled under his breath.

Finally Bruce straightened and pointed dramatically toward the screen.

“There,” he grunted out, and everyone subconsciously leaned a little bit forward.

They didn’t see anything different from before, though Bruce’s finger did bring their attention to one of the bats that flew across the upper left hand corner. A few seconds of footage later, and yet another bat flew across in a similar pattern. Not exactly the same, so it wasn’t really out of the ordinary. Lord knows the bats would randomly fly out and into their hair much more than necessary.

“Note how the figure is disturbed when each bat flies across the screen,” Bruce said in the same voice he used when talking about a case - cold, impersonal, and yet like he was giving a college lecture.

No one spoke, not really sure what to say. I mean, what was the correct course of action when your father figure suddenly refuses to accept reality, and is grasping at the most unlikely of straws?

“I know this technique anywhere,” Bruce said more to himself than the line of vigilantes. He turned, completely passing over Duke, and set his sights on Tim.

“Timothy Jackson Drake,” Bruce growled, stalking forward, “What possessed you to doctor this footage?”

Tim didn’t respond, only mumbled incoherently and leaned onto Steph some more.

Bruce was furious, bearing his teeth as he spat out his response: “Now is not the time to use the anti-torture training I’ve given you.”

Tim nodded slowly and draped his arm on top of Stephanie’s head.

“You should know better than this,” Bruce began, “pranks are strictly forbidden in the cave, as you very well know. And in addition, I taught you better at framing than this. You choose a victim that could actually be considered as a suspect. Trying to pin the blame on Duke was your undoing - he would never do something like this.”

Duke cringed slightly, as the rest of the bats glanced Duke’s way. All were a mix of confusion and awe.

This … was not how this was supposed to go. No, screw that. That was an outrageous understatement. Things ‘not going according to plan’ would have been Jason randomly blaming Harper for the mess on no grounds - or maybe Bruce not bothering to check the cameras, opting instead to just ground everyone.

But blatantly ignoring evidence and then lecturing someone completely unrelated? No, this was too much. It couldn’t be real. This was some kind of scare-tactic wasn’t it? Duke was too much of an adrenaline junkie to be bothered by the usual ‘hanging upside down over a busy road’ schtick.

But then Bruce moves on to possible culprits Tim could have chosen instead - did he seriously think that Ra’s Al Ghul would Rick Roll them?! - and Duke lost hope.

“Uhh, Bruce?” Duke asked after the ten minute mark.

The Dark Knight turned and faced Duke.

Duke scratched the back of his neck. “Do you think I could head out for patrol now? It’s getting light out, and since you’ve clearly got this covered… I thought I could scoot out?”

Bruce was nodding before the end of Duke’s request. “Yes, go. I’ll deal with Tim. You don’t need to worry - you won’t be blamed. It clearly wasn’t your fault.”

Duke nodded slowly, and covered his disappointment with a small smirk. “Thanks, B.”

He jogged over to the edge of the platform and dropped down beside his Signal-Cycle. A routine mounting, a quick putting on of his helmet, and he was off.

Duke was scowling as he left, wondering what on earth had gone wrong.

*****

“Did you see that smirk?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“Did he blame Tim on purpose?”

“How, though? To make such a tactical move -”

“It would have taken a shit ton of planning.”

“Can we get back on the fact that Bruce was fooled?”

“Or who fooled him?!”

[outrunningthedark]

Hi! I have cerebral palsy too and I just wanted to say I agree with everything you’re saying. Discussion of invisible disabilities, chronic illnesses, and neurodivergency is so important but within the uptick of those conversations, physical disabled people are being left behind in a very strange and uncomfortable way. I am constantly on the fence about talking about my cp on social media for fear of not being believed, being ignored, or just being excluded all together. I love that disabled people are finally being heard, but very specific groups are being left out, and that’s really not okay

Hello, love! Thank you for sharing your feelings with me. :) Thank you, also, for understanding where I'm coming from! It's a very...awkward topic of conversation because we don't want to sound like we're invalidating anybody else's experience. Sometimes you just want to scream "What about the rest of us?!" - We technically fall under the category of "neurodivergent", yet venture into that tag and it's as if the only disabilities which people are willing to recognize are ADHD and autism.  - People with chronic illness/chronic pain or another form of "invisible disability" absolutely despise having to prove that they are allowed to call themselves disabled, meanwhile when you have CP it's like "Imagine a stranger seeing YOU and not your disability? Sounds fake, but okay." - There's this EXTREMELY misguided assumption that having a visible disability gives us an advantage because we're "more easily believed". Ummm...no? I wasn't *allowed* to get an MRI on my spine for 10 years and by then it was similar to that of an elderly woman's (my doctor's actual words). I was twenty years old. (: It took 18 years for a doctor to figure out my bladder function required surgical intervention, even though my pediatrician knew I struggled with emptying my bladder "on command" and I'd been to the ER multiple times to deal with infection. Never mind that I had to find the "right doctor" who would prescribe me overactive bladder medication rather than assume it wouldn't change anything. I have terrible circulation (in summer my skin gets hot and itchy, in winter it turns bluish purple and hurts) and my doctors throughout the year are like "Well, this is to be expected when you have CP..." Okay and??? I shouldn't be taking Benadryl routinely when I'm itchy and adding an extra layer or two to combat the cold is NOT helping. I think a big thing that gets lost when comparing chronic illness/pain versus our situation is that...we don't really have treatment options? I see all these posts about taking several medications everyday just to function and, uh, we don't have that choice. We go to PT/OT (and once insurance cuts us off, we're fucked), we get Botox injections for our spasticity, we only get surgery when it's absolutely necessary... the most we (usually) get prescribed is a low-dose muscle relaxer. Doctors are not signing off on opioids or other pain-management options because we're supposed to be used to it, we're supposed to learn how to work around it, use it to our advantage. (Can't get TOO much Botox in your tightest muscles because it may actually backfire! Your body won't know how to function with limbs that are "too loose" after years of forcing yourself to push through the pain.) And then there's the way those of us who have been (negatively) impacted by our disability from the start get erased from the conversation. It seems to always revolve around people whose disability got worse as they aged, even if they didn't know what the problem was. Feeling like something isn't right and not having a name for it is frustrating as hell and I've been there (didn't know what dystonia was until my late teens, for instance - no wonder my head and neck tilts to the left, lmao), but when you have CP, your limitations as a child are what you deal with as an teenager, and then as an adult. We have the added bonus of aging just like the able-bodied. The older I get, the more easily exhausted I am, hence the power chair versus pushing myself or asking someone else to do it because I know it's not good for their back. We don't have a "pre" and "post" disability timeline. We've always been this.

[aspire-to-the-light]

Micro-disability

I cannot follow pointer fingers, or rotate objects in my head. If you point at an object on a table of objects, I usually can't pick out the one you're talking about unless you get close enough to almost touch it; I just can't draw that invisible line in space and select the object you're trying to indicate. If you're giving me directions, you can't point to a house and say "turn left there" - all I'll do is look puzzled and repeatedly ask where you mean until you clarify with a description.

I knew someone once with an old shoulder injury that meant he couldn't lift one arm directly above his head. He could lift it most of the way, but not the whole way, so his reach was just a little less than others might have assumed, and sometimes he got odd looks if he had to ask for help reaching a high shelf.

A partner of mine can't be in rooms where too many conversations are happening at once. His brain can't filter out the ones he isn't listening to from the one he is, so he quickly gets overwhelmed and distressed and needs to leave.

I can't walk quickly without it taking up my entire concentration and becoming tiring very fast. I walk at an astonishingly slow pace naturally, and if I consciously speed up my steps then they subconsciously get smaller, and if I consciously lengthen my steps then they subconsciously get slower. Something about going faster is just very rapidly physically and psychologically exhausting, and I don't know precisely what it is. I can run forever without dropping at my comfortably mid-speed loping pace, but I can't go much faster than it.

None of these things fit the criteria to be disabilities, under the 'standard' definition. We aren't incapable of holding jobs or having fulfilling home lives because of these limitations. We don't need paid carers, or the government to give us benefits because we can't work, and it probably isn't worth medical help to fix the problem.

At the same time, a huge amount of the discourse around disability rights is valid and useful for discussing these problems. My partner ought to be able to say that a room is overwhelming because of the number of conversations happening, and people ought to respect that by taking him elsewhere to continue their own conversation. He shouldn't be judged for it, or have people assume he just isn't trying hard enough, or be shamed. He certainly shouldn't be fired for it; accommodations should be made.

Like with 'full' disabilities, micro-disabilities can become more disabling when there's an intersection of them. I also have auditory processing disorder; I struggle to hear people if there's background noise, or if they're looking away from me and not projecting towards me. In other words, if you're walking in front of me, I can't hear you - and because I walk slowly, I'm almost always trailing behind the back of the group. It makes me feel constantly excluded and dismissed from conversations while I'm walking with people, like nobody values me enough to slow down so that I can hear them.

The concept illustrates some aspects of how we think about providing accommodations, asking for evidence, and validating disabilities. Often, the policy of institutions is to require evidence of a disability before they will accommodate it. You can't get free medical treatment unless a doctor certifies you actually have the disease, or you can't get extra time on tests unless you fail some other tests, or you can't sue your employer for firing you unless you can demonstrate it's actually your disability that's making you late all the time. The thing about micro-disabilities is that almost nobody will ever be able to prove that they have one, because it simply isn't worth diagnosing. I can't go to a doctor and get a certificate that says I get nauseous if I wake up too early, or I struggle to follow pointer fingers, or I have to keep my hair short because I find it painful to hit a tangle when I'm brushing my hair, or I get stomach bugs more often because of my hopeless addiction to biting my nails.

My doctor simply does not have the time or inclination to measure my ability to understand finger-pointing, decide whether it falls below some threshold, and issue a certificate that says I am now Officially Disabled and my employer will be in Big Trouble if they fire me for being unable to follow pointer fingers. So if I want this to be accommodated - if I want people to give me descriptive directions rather than assuming I can see what they're gesturing at - I have to simply ask them to trust that I really am trying my hardest, I just can't do this.

How you treat micro-disability is, I think, a good lens into whether you truly respect the needs of disabled people. If you'll grudgingly provide accommodations to those who can prove they are really disabled, that's one thing. But people with micro-disabilities aren't really disabled. They're just... a little bit disabled. So do we accommodate them? Do we respect them when they say 'hey, I can't do this' or do we raise our eyebrows and ask them to try harder? Do we listen when they say things are harder for them than for others, or do we look at them oddly and tell them we've never heard of that disability before?

It's a more complicated question than it might seem, I think. Because we accommodate all sorts of micro-disabilities all the time - the ones that are ordinary enough that we don't even think of them as disabilities. Being too short to reach high shelves, or too weak of grip to open jars, or too broad-shouldered for a small-size jacket; these are things we accommodate all the time.

We don't think of someone as disabled for needing reading glasses, but neither do we think that they're faking because they only need the glasses sometimes.

The micro-disabilities people doubt are the odd ones, the ones we struggle to explain and understand. Neither I nor doctors understand why I walk slowly, and it isn't a common problem to have, and that's precisely why people assume I could just try harder and keep up.

Which is awkward when micro-disabilities are so often just tiny, rarely-reported or lesser-known symptoms of "official" disabilities. I have a diagnosis of ADHD, and the common perception is that that means that I can't concentrate or sit down. But it actually affects so much more than that. How many of my tiny mental symptoms are my ADHD expressing itself in ways nobody knows are associated with ADHD? Who knows.

It is meant to illustrate that disability is a spectrum. We cannot draw a line, anywhere in the progression from 'gets tired easily when walking' to 'walks with a limp' to 'can only walk with a cane' to 'can't walk and uses a wheelchair', and say with confidence that people on one side of the line are really fully disabled and those on the other side aren't. 'Micro-disability' merely points at the existence of some centre place between fully abled and being so disabled that it majorly impairs your ability to have an ordinary life; it's still a fuzzy category, with boundaries that almost make less sense the more you think about them.

It's a more inclusive view of disability, certainly. Almost everyone has some kind of micro-disability, whether it's slow reading or a food sensitivity or a chronically infected toenail that hurts when stepped on. Disabled people aren't some odd group of cripples hidden away in hospitals that you'll never meet; disabled people are everyone who can't do certain things that others can do, for reasons that aren't their fault. Some of us may need more or less help and support than others, but all of us just deserve people to listen to us about what we need.

It took a long time, but I ended up reframing a lot of my little difficulties in this way, and I think it makes my life better. I don't force myself to just try harder to navigate any more; I just take my phone everywhere and use Google Maps, rotating the screen for every turn I take because I can't do it in my head. It's... a thing worth introspecting about.

[pynchbookclub]

so i decided to do 2017 book diversity bingo a year late and did it in 2018 instead, but i ended up reading a ton of great books and i made a much more conscious effort to pick out more diverse stories and i made a list of them all!! these are not all the books i read this year, but i made a list of the ones that fit a category in diversity bingo,, so i hope you enjoy some diverse books!! Here are books with :

Trans MC: Lily and Dunkin, The Art of Being Normal, Queen of Air and Darkness, Anger is a Gift

Non-Binary MC: Anger is a Gift

Sci-Fi Fantasy with disabled MC: Six of Crows, Obsidio

Jewish MC: Call Me By Your Name, Leah on the Offbeat, Lily and Dunkin, Angels in America, What If It’s Us, Dear Evan Hansen, Together at Midnight, Queen of Air and Darkness

Indian MC: Mara Dyer Series, A Little Life, Puddin, You’re Welcome Universe, Queen of Air and Darkness

Displaced MC: Six of Crows, The You I’ve Never Known, A Map of Days

MC with an underrepresented body: Nowhere Girls, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, Leah on the Offbeat, The Miseducation and Cameron Post, Six of Crows, A Little Life, Puddin, All For the Game series, You’re Welcome Universe, The Art of Being Normal, Queen of Air and Darkness, Anger is a Gift

Neurodiverse MC: Queens of Geek, History is All You Left Me, Mara Dyer series, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, Together at Midnight, What If It’s Us, The Secret History, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime, Queen of Air and Darkness, Four Weeks Five People, Anger is a Gift

LGBTQIA MC: Call Me By Your Name, Girls on Fire, History is All You Left Me, The Raven Cycle series, I’ll Give You the Sun, All For the Game series, Song of Achilles, I Have Lost My Way, Poet X, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, Six of Crows, Obsidio, Leah on the Offbeat, Porcupine of Truth, A Little Life, Burning Maze, Puddin, You Know Me Well, Lily and Dunkin, Angels in America, The You I’ve Never Known, Let’s Talk About Love, Maurice, What If It’s Us, The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, Dear Evan Hansen, The Secret History, The Art of Being Normal, Queen of Air and Darkness,  Anger is a Gift

Bisexual MC: Let’s Talk About Love, Maurice, Dear Evan Hansen, Queen of Air and Darkness, Anger is a Gift

MC with invisible disability: You’re Welcome Universe, The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, The Secret History, Anger is a Gift

MC with anaphylactic allergy: One of Us is Lying, The Raven Cycle series

MC of colour in Sci-Fi Fantasy: Six of Crows, Obsidio, Queen of Air and Darkness

Latinx MC: More Happy Than Not, The Closest I’ve Come, All For the Game series, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, Poet X, Puddin, The You I’ve Never Known, Angels in America, Queen of Air and Darkness, What If It’s Us, Anger is a Gift

Non-Western setting: Song of Achilles, Six of Crows, Obsidio, Queen of Air and Darkness

MC with chronic pain: Six of Crows, A Little Life, Anger is a Gift

West Asian setting: Crazy Rich Asians, The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy

Arab MC: The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, A Very Large Expanse of Sea

MC with a wheelchair: Obsidio, A Little Life, Anger is a Gift

Book by author of colour: More Happy Than Not, History is All You Left Me, The Closest I’ve Come, The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, Poet X, A Little Life, Crazy Rich Asians, Let’s Talk About Love, What If It’s Us, A Very Large Expanse of Sea, Four Weeks Five People, Anger is a Gift

Biracial MC: Mara Dyer series, I Have Lost My Way, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, Six of Crows, Leah On the Offbeat, A Little Life, The Burning Maze, Puddin, All For the Game series, Queen of Air and Darkness

Pansexual MC: Burning Maze, Dear Evan Hansen

Black MC: The Closest I’ve Come, I Have Lost My Way, Six of Crows, Poet X, Leah on the Offbeat, A Little Life, Save the Date, Angels in America, Let’s Talk About Love, The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, Dear Evan Hansen, The Art of Being Normal, Queen of Air and Darkness, Anger is a Gift

Ace MC: A Little Life, Puddin, All For the Game series, The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, Let’s Talk About Love, Anger is a Gift

LGBT MC of colour: Porcupine of Truth, More Happy Than Not, Mara Dyer series, All For the Game series, I Have Lost My Way, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, Six of Crows, Obsidio, Leah on the Offbeat, A Little Life, Puddin, The You I’ve Never Known, Angels in America, The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, Let’s Talk About Love, What If It’s Us, Queen of Air and Darkness, Anger is a Gift

Visually Impaired MC: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, I Have Lost My Way, Poet X

Arranged Marriage--Queen of Air and Darkness

Indigenous MC: The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, The Miseducation of Cameron Post, The Burning Maze

Diverse non-fiction: Stonewall, Queer There and Everywhere, Boy Erased, Our Stories Our Voices

POC on the cover: The Closest I’ve Come, Poet X, I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter, Puddin, Crazy Rich Asians, Let’s Talk About Love, You’re Welcome Universe, What If It’s Us, Four Weeks Five People, Anger is a Gift

Immigrant MC: Poet X, Crazy Rich Asians, Queen of Air and Darkness, Anger is a Gift

Deaf MC: The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, You’re Welcome Universe

Hijabi MC: The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy, A Very Large Expanse of Sea, Anger is a Gift

[badmousestuff-blog]

Caela’s Report

The Reactionary Nightmare of the CPGB-ML

Prelude: A Flawed Declaration

MOTION 8: “Identity politics are anti-Marxian and a harmful diversion from the class struggle”

Motion 8, passed by the CPGB-ML, is thoroughly anti-materialist and profoundly reactionary. In this, the party dogwhistles at “LGBT ideology” being harmful to the working class, who are nebulously defined. This motion says nothing but declares loudly a lack of solidarity with struggles of gender and sexuality, alienating not only those oppressed on those grounds but those who are allied with them. The party seems unconcerned with allying with those masses concerned with the wellbeing of LGBT people, instead using the language of conservatism (“identity politics”) to signal this message:

There Are No Gays In The USSR!

“Why gay rights is not a class issue”

If we are to believe the party, the question of gay rights is not only “not a class question”, but also solvable by the communist revolution in itself. When class antagonism ends, the line goes, then LGBT people will be liberated by proxy. These two statements, however, carry an internal contradiction: if LGBT people are not an oppressed class, as people of colour and women are, then the antagonism towards them will not be resolved by revolution. If they are an oppressed class, then the CPGB-ML is failing in its duty to support all classes oppressed by capitalism, and is thus not only failing tactically but theoretically.

However, this contradiction is not resolved with self-criticism, or improvement of the party line, but through dismissal and ignorance – the worst failure of any communist party. Instead, the party chides LGBT people, and the activists supporting their rights, not merely as reactionaries (as they continue to go on later), but are contrasted against the ultimately nebulous term “ordinary people” - the framing of this implying that abnormality and difference is in itself harmful – consciously or not, the party has taken the conservative line of ignorance and repulsion. This does nothing to improve the lives of LGBT people, many of whom are working class precisely because they are discriminated against by capitalists, many, especially trans people, taking up sex work as the only available option. To stand in solidarity with all oppressed classes means to stand for LGBT rights and liberation, and if one ignores the problem it does not go away. “There are no invalids in the USSR!” means nothing to those disabled people specifically oppressed by bad, exclusionary and anti-materialist policy.

The Root of Left Reaction: The Worker as Biotruth

“The reactionary nightmare of ‘gender fluidity’”

Here we find the largest flaw in CPGB-ML’s ideology, in fact, the one from which myriad other flaws originate – the worker, “ordinary”, is not allowed to be corrupted by the outsider, the abnormal. This takes the class status of the worker and turns it into a crude biopolitics, in which the body of the worker, not their status, is at the forefront. In that sense, though they take some token stand against racism, their assertion that “class is the primary struggle” (said directly to a person of colour asking about racial oppression) makes sense. To the CPGB-ML, all oppression consists of class oppression, and everything else is a corruption, a “harmful distraction.” There is a preference for immediate physicality over psychology – which is why, in part, the party denounces trans people.

In this article, the party demonstrates a fundamental lack of understanding of the material conditons not only of LGBT people, but all those who are not oppressed strictly along economic lines. There is a preference given to immediate physicality – the worker’s arm over the worker’s mind. Ultimately, the line on which the CPGB-ML stand is “the worker”, those who are producing in some capacity. Placing the ability to work at the forefront of one’s politics, especially in an age where so many cannot work, is a privilege only the able-bodied can afford. A Communist revolution, without a plan for those most marginalised by capital and thus the least likely to work, is doomed to fail. A politics that does not take into account the mental health of the masses is a rejection of materialism and thus counter- revolutionary in one of its core ideas. Disregarding the importance of mental health, the article states:

There is even a movement termed ‘ableism’ or ‘trans-ableism’. There exist people who say: “I look as if I’ve got two arms and two legs, but actually in reality, I feel like I was born disabled.”

The writer simply cannot comprehend that there exist invisible disabilities, and things that prevent work that aren’t removed limbs. To the party, the worker is thus conceived as machinery – something whose value lies in working at peak efficiency. This is capitalist logic and should be stamped out of any revolutionary theory, instead valuing people inherently as members of a communist society.

On gender, the writer of this article uses vague truisms to point to what may seem like intuitive answers – however, in simplifying the argument so much, it becomes easy to rebut. Geometry and biology are entirely seperate fields, let alone geometry and psychology – the attempt to say “why can’t a circle self-identify as a square” falls flat, because a circle is not an organism. Thus, the question of “is there a material reality” is a thinly-veiled attempt to get the reader to agree to their conception of reality, and what is material. The hammer does not operate without an arm to drive it, and the arm does not operate without a mind to will it. Creating a staw opponent who argues that “there is no material reality” is a fundamental failure in understanding anything outside of the writer’s experience. In that sense, the writer, and by proxy the party, places the individual conception of reality above the masses – they are not following the research, not conducting their own, and thus relying solely on prejudice. Again, this returns to the hand and the mind – both need each other, and the party disregards one, failing to see an entire side of the process. The article proceeds not dialectically, but via assertion – though the writer brags about being an adherent to the dialectical process, they do not practice it. Similarly, just as the party states their anti-racism, their members cannot avoid white chauvinism and pushing people of colour away from the party. For example, this excerpt:

It’s very useful not to trust muslims or not to trust Pakistanis or not to trust Afro-Americans, or “I don’t really like that Nigerian who lives next door to me, they’re a bit different aren’t they?” Well, if people rub along with each other, they get over that don’t they?

The writer goes on to assert that race itself is a construction of the bourgoisie, and should thus be disregarded in revolutionary movements for a unified class line. However, if one were to conceive of capital itself in the same way, then the logic becomes apparently flawed; constructions of the bourgeoisie need to be acknowledged and worked through, not discarded on the altar of progress. Every time a movement fails to acknowledge this, it fails the masses.

Thus, onto gender, a construction of the modern era. Countless examples of non-binary genders have existed in pre- modern societies, especially outside of Europe and its empire; I need not list them here, but examples include Two- Spirit people of First Nations descent, the Waria of Indonesia, the Hirja of India, etc. - all of these conceptions arose independently of one another, long before capital established itself. If we are searching for material reality, the gender binary seems to fly in the face of it – it arises as the Other of the dominant class (men). Gender is a historically contingent category, and is a process of becoming (as Simone de Beauvoir describes) a gender, rather than being born it. Even the sex binary is fundamentally flawed and ideological, as intersex people are routinely violated at birth to enforce it. This binary is purely in the realm of ideas, and as such is anti-materialist. To embrace gender divergence, even gender fluidity, as the title of the article states but does not elaborate on, aligns perfectly with a historically materialist conception of history. The writer accuses trans people of being purely idealist – I have demonstrated that it is in fact the opposite – enforcing the gender and sex binaries are firmly anti-materialist. The division of the working class is not in the removal of these binaries, they are those binaries.

So, I ask, when you routinely ask why women and people of colour do not come to your side, and when you’re constantly accused of queerphobia, do you not perform the self-criticism necessary to grow, and realise that your policies are alienating the masses? Why do you meet the idea of the number of trans people being ten percent, not with engagement, but with rejection and incredulity, inventing some narrative that trans people are telling gay people that they are trans?

There are two answers to this question: one, that your party is ignorant of the facts, and has not done the research necessary to engage with this issue, and has regardless written an article and held a party congress on the issue. The other option is that your party holds a resentment to queer people (thinly veiled over with empty statements of acceptance) many of whom are working-class specifically by modes of capitalist oppression. Both of these solutions render the CPGB-ML unable to represent the masses, and thus unfit to call itself a party of the proletariat.

[cazort]

this comment articulates something deep i’ve been feeling for a number of years and struggled to express.

when i was growing up, 80′s and 90′s, the world was a lot more conservative in a lot of ways, especially hostile to LGBTQ people. as a kid who wanted to be gender-non-conforming, and was neurodivergent as well, it was hard.

but there was one thing from back then which was much, much better than nowadays, which is that “weird” people with very different identities stuck together and we generally saw ourselves as united in our weirdness against a conformist mainstream culture. we weren’t all weird in the same way, but we all embraced being weird and supported each other in it. some of us were queer, some of us were neurodivergent, some of us had major cultural differences from our family backgrounds, and some of us didn’t fit cleanly into any of these categories but were just somehow different.

nowadays, left-wing activism has become more mainstream, which has been good in some ways for advancing LGBTQ rights and some other specific issues, but the activism has also splintered into a million different identities, and people often end up enforcing “in-group/out-group” dynamics.

we see things like groups of women excluding men, LGBTQ groups excluding cishet people, groups for POC excluding white people.

and i hate this. for multiple reasons. one is that, sometimes, I’m “on the fence” about whether or not I belong in a group. for example, I’m nonbinary, which places me in a gray area between women and men. I’m also kinda in a gray area between autistic and not autistic.

another is that people with “invisible identities” get erased, excluded, or even targeted with negativity. people who “present” as cishet (including all closeted queer people) get read as cishet and excluded or targeted with negativity. i’ve seen people of various backgrounds usually considered under the POC umbrella labeled as “white” because they “looked white”, i.e. too light-skinned and/or too conforming to “white” social norms (which is an awful double-jeopardy because society puts pressure on people to “look white” and “act white”.)

yet another reason though that i hate all of this is that there is strength in numbers. if you’re only concerned with the issues of people who have the exact same identities as you, the more and more identities you hone in on, the tinier your group of activists (or friends) gets.

and all this stuff starts reinforcing a lot of terrible, unhealthy ways of thinking. people are taught that no one will ever understand them unless they have the exact same experience, which is patently false, and that belief ends up stopping people from understanding each other before they even try.

and also it reinforces that you really need to advocate for your own issues, which of course screws over any group of people that is so small or rare that there are few of them. a lot of disabled people get totally screwed by this process.

instead, when you take a broad umbrella approach, based on inclusion, it solves all of these problems at once. people who have very different identities can work together to work on all of their issues. they can find commonalities in their experience, learn to understand each other, empathize, support each other. “closeted” people, “on the fence” people, and people with invisible identities are welcomed in. privileged people are welcomed in too, and as a result, activist groups and friend groups end up with the power and privilege that these people have at their disposal, and more gets done. white people start listening to people of other races, about their experience, and then go out into their communities and start breaking down racism. cishet people start understanding the experiences of queer people and have difficult conversations with others voicing homophobia or transphobia in their communities. people whose struggles are not yet “named” or do not fit into a neat box, still find people to listen to them, empathize with them, and do something about the issues affecting them.

so yeah, i really want us to bring back this broad, inclusive, umbrella approach. identities are great for helping people understand themselves and each other, and they are great for helping people to connect with others like them.

but they are not useful if they become a measuring-stick used to exclude (or even bully) others, and they are especially dangerous if they lead to the splintering of groups and to us-vs-them dynamics between different groups.

staying unified is not always easy. sometimes issues like racism, homophobia, transphobia, sexism, ableism, or other forms of bigotry, negative biases or stereotyping, or other forms of negative misunderstanding rear their ugly heads. in order for the “big umbrella” approach to stay stable, people need strength and often patience. people need to listen to each other and patiently work to break down and overcome these forms of bigotry, without resorting to personal attacks or exclusion on the basis of identity.

but i ultimately am committed to this approach and i will choose it any day over the ultra-fragmented identity-based approach of most contemporary activism. to me, it is the only approach i have seen that leads us to good places in the long-run.

turning into the joker due to the tumblr brainrot that led to some coder colouring the #gay tag like turquoise and lavender to reference a 3 month old flag that no gay person who isn't terminally online will have ever seen before because Gilbert Baker's rainbow flag specifically designed for gay liberation has been around for half a century and weirdly segregating us off is literally the opposite of what we should be doing

[pumpkinqueen-bonecollector]

14 Computer Tricks You Wish You Learned Sooner

New Post has been published on https://computercoolingstore.com/14-computer-tricks-you-wish-you-learned-sooner/

14 Computer Tricks You Wish You Learned Sooner

There are 3 types of computer users: the ones who use their mouse, those who use their keyboard, and those who prefer talking to Cortana or Siri. No matter which category you fall into, you can’t deny the immense usefulness of certain shortcuts and hacks that reveal the unknown possibilities your computer always had. These smart tricks improve your everyday computer experience and give an absolute boost in your productivity and in your security.

We collected 14 computer hacks that will be massively helpful to anyone using their computer for fun or business.

TIMESTAMPS: 1. Ctrl + T opens a new tab 0:54 2. Ask Google about any problem you’re facing before going to a PC expert 1:24 3. For currency conversions, use the Google search bar instead of a calculator 1:57 4. A laptop battery charges faster when in airplane mode 2:27 5. Download any Google image automatically by pressing Alt and clicking on it 2:57 6. Hide your IP address so that nobody sees what you’re doing 3:29 7. Download “f.lux” to make your computer’s screen brightness adjust automatically to its surroundings 3:57 8. A clean desktop means a faster computer 4:35 9. Find out who’s stealing your Wi-Fi 5:04 10. You can recover deleted files even if you’ve emptied the recycle bin 5:37 11. If you notice these signs, your computer has been hacked 6:14 12. Windows + C enables you to start talking to Cortana 6:49 13. Ctrl + Q quits your web browser 7:30 14. Ctrl + I turns the text style into italics 7:55

#hotkeys #computerhacks #computertricks

Music by Epidemic Sound

SUMMARY: – Opening new tabs is an action that you do countless times during the day. Instead of doing it manually with your mouse, you can simply press “ctrl” and the letter T and a new tab will open. – You can type your problem into the Google search bar and read what Microsoft or the various tech forums have to tell you. – If you’re traveling abroad and you need to see how much money you will get with the exchange, you can simply write down the amount of money and the currencies of the country where you’re traveling. – When your laptop is on airplane mode it means that many features, like your Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, are disabled. This takes some pressure off your battery and allows it to charge faster than if operating normally. – You can simply push “alt” and then left click on an image and it will be automatically saved on your computer in your Downloads folder. – There are various ways that can hide your IP address and make your browsing invisible. You need to install a good VPN on your internet browser so that it changes your real location. – Most computers have the night shift mode, which adjusts the brightness during the night. – If you are having problems with your computer’s speed, it might be the fact that your desktop is full of icons. Instead of having a folder for every little thing on your desktop, you can create one folder and organize everything in there. – If you don’t just want to change your password, but also find out who the thief (or thieves) are, then you can download Who Is on My Wi-Fi and maybe go confront them. – Deleting files and then emptying the recycling bin can prove to be very frustrating. What you can do is download Recuva, which is the top program to recover permanently deleted files. -Millions of people get hacked every day and you might be one of them at some point. Seeing your antivirus being turned off is one of the first serious signs. – Another tremendously useful shortcut is the one that exits your web browser. In this case, you press “ctrl” and then the letter Q. – When combining the “ctrl” key and the letter I there are various things that can happen in a total of 147 different programs. However, the most ordinary and common use of the combo is to turn text in Word and other text editing programs from normal style into italics.

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9 Of the Best Things About Being Disabled

In a world where negativity too often rules, I decided to try and find some positive things about being disabled. You know, ‘look for the silver lining’ and all that.

Of course, I have to make clear that I am relating everything in this post to my own personal level of disability. There are a huge number of disabilities, both physical and mental and emotional. Some are visible and some are invisible. This is not a competition. Every disability is important to the person in it directly affects, and to those around them.

I can’t use my legs or my left hand. Yes, it really sucks, but that’s for another post, another day. This one is for finding some good things to say about my disability.

 1.     No shoveling snow.

 I live on Long Island, in New York, where snowfall is an expected part of the winter season every year. If you want to see just how much we typically get, check out this chart:

(from https://www.currentresults.com/Weather/New-York/Places/long-island-snowfall-totals-snow-accumulation-averages.php).

 So, the snow has to get shoveled. One would assume that with three kids it would not be a problem to find willing hands to shovel. If you have teenagers though, you probably know that required activities are rarely met with exuberant cooperation. And rousing them early enough to have time to shovel then warm up in the shower and get ready to catch a 7 AM bus to school is about as much fun as knocking over a hornets’ nest. But they cannot argue with the fact that I cannot do it myself.  When the kids don’t shovel, I have to pay somebody to do it.

 2.     No taking out the trash (And its companion benefit, no putting the garbage pails away).

  I read an article recently about a couple on Long Island who take out the garbage three times a year. Three. Times. A. Year.  According to the article I read, the couple has aimed for a “zero waste” lifestyle. They avoid throwing anything into local landfills by reusing and repurposing items, and by buying products made of all-natural materials which are therefore biodegradable.

At my house we put out garbage three times a week. 3 times a week times 52 weeks a year equals 156 times, minus about 4 for holidays that fall on garbage pickup days and that equals 152 opportunities to be grateful that I do not have to put out the garbage pails myself. My disability spars me an equal number of times from dragging the gross garbage pails back to the side of the house. Before anybody tells me that garbage pails don’t have to be gross, I must point out that they inevitably get that way. I have our pails replaced just about every year, they are occasionally rinsed clean, and we always use trash bags, so trash doesn’t directly go into the pails. But they still get gross. Wherever you are, sanitation workers are woefully under appreciated.

If you’d like to read about empowering environmentalist couple I make reference to, you can check their story out here: https://www.newsday.com/long-island/zero-waste-lifestyle-1.19860468.

 3.     No cleaning your house or apartment.

This is a big one. In a house with three kids and three dogs (plus the Guinea pig and the fish of course), there is always a mess of some sort. Always. If I could possibly clean up after them, I would undoubtedly exhaust myself doing it. But since being disabled makes it impossible for me to physically handle that, instead I have to resort to getting other people to handle it. MS has made my muscle misbehave, but simultaneously it has really strengthened my ‘nagging’ muscles.

  4.     No doing dishes.

 This would seem to fall under the benefit in number 3, but it is really its own special category. I have three kids and none of them want to do the dishes any more than they want to clean the house.  So, we use a lot of paper goods even though I hate it. I had two different sets of regular dishes. I still have Christmas china and regular china for special occasions. Yet we mostly use paper plates because at least that results in there being fewer dishes to argue about.

 I should mention that we have the luxury of a dishwasher. Unfortunately, it often gets loaded incorrectly so that things fill with water instead of rinsing clean. And then even if it’s done correctly nobody wants to be the one who has to unload it and put the dishes away.

 5.     No running around on endless errands.

It’s very common to hear people complain about having to go to the supermarket, the drug store, the dry cleaner, and myriad other errand destinations. Parents often gripe about having to be at the soccer field at daybreak, pick up from sports practices after school, drop teenagers at the mall, coordinate get together at friends’ houses … you get the picture. Being unable to drive eliminates all of that very effectively.

 6.     Mandatory attendance at (anything … just fill in the blank) is not required

No obligatory attendance at social events or other things I don’t want to go to. (Obviously this one is a double-edged sword because I also can’t attend social events or things that I do want to go to). But for the purpose of this particular post I’m going to look at it as a plus.

 7.     You know who your real friends are

 Being the friend of a person with a disability can require some extra effort. I can’t meet at a restaurant for dinner, go to somebody’s house, grab a coffee at Dunkin’ for Starbucks. It isn’t easy for people to take time out of their day to visit me at my place. I totally get that. It leads to rather quick ejection from social circles because I can’t join the group wherever they’re going to get together.

 When you have a disability, it can quickly become apparent who one’s truest friends really are, and sometimes it can be surprising who is really willing to make the time and who is not. It’s perfectly OK to have friends on all different levels of the friendship scale, but it’s a good thing to know who is there no matter what.

 8.     Being disabled shows you depths of your character that you otherwise probably never would have known you have. Humility. Patience. Resourcefulness. Fortitude. Resilience. Increased empathy. Deeper Introspection. Greater focus on priorities. Philosophical thoughts.

All our lives are very busy. They are also filled with a lot of modern chaos and noise of all types, auditory noise that we hear and mental noise that can clutter our thoughts. A disability can filter that noise in different ways and shine clarity on unexpected parts of ourselves.

9.  The best part about being disabled is that I have found that through it all, I am still Me. Regardless of external abilities and appearances, I am still myself underneath it all and beyond it all. I still enjoy my roses and I can still enjoy my life. It's not the same as it was, but it still matters.

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2018 Top 10 Patient Leader Blogs https://ift.tt/2WhmZrL

There are thousands of Patient Leaders working day in and day out to educate, raise awareness and support their patient community. The WEGO Health Awards give us the chance to recognize Patient Leaders across all condition areas and platforms, to ultimately find the top Patient Leaders in each space.

To recognize the Patient Leaders community members endorsed, we’ve compiled the Top 10 Patient Leaders in each category.

Perhaps you’re looking to start a blog, create a new strategy or maybe you just need some inspiration, these ten bloggers are the ones to watch in the online health community! 

    Ronny Allan

Neuroendocrine Cancer Patient Leader

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

Ronny Allan was diagnosed with incurable Metastatic Neuroendocrine Cancer in July 2010 after presenting with weight loss, symptoms of iron deficiency and facial flushing (Carcinoid Syndrome). He is an internationally known advocate for Neuroendocrine Cancer using his ‘Patients Included’ accredited blog site to spread awareness about this unusual, less common and complex disease. Ronny wants to inspire his community by putting a positive spin on life whilst retaining an element of both sympathy and empathy. He is very passionate about moving Neuroendocrine Cancer into mainstream knowledge circles by finding brand new audiences. Connect with Ronny, 2018 Best in Show: Blog winner.

    Nadia Fuad

Crohn’s Patient Leader

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

“I began crocheting to pass the time during all my numerous hospital stays I had endured through my journey with Crohn’s disease. Soon this hobby took on a life of its own and I began to crochet as a form of therapy. I love to pick up a hook and start creating. Creating things helps me feel accomplished. I started a mini shop, called YARNutopia, to sell some of my crocheted creations in 2012. A portion of each sale is donated to research to find a cure for inflammatory bowel diseases, a disease that has affected me personally. I feel that out of something negative, I needed to turn it into something positive, and for me to not allow this disease to take from me more than it already has.” Learn more about Nadia’s blog.

    Evie Shallom

Cancer Patient Leader

Twitter

“My name is Evie and I am a survivor of Hodgkin’s lymphoma cancer. I was diagnosed on the 3rd of March 2014 and although I am officially cancer free, I am still suffering today. I made a blog while I was going through my treatments, I saw a lot of people made YouTube videos and blogs but I never really saw a cancer blogger. I am sure there were many, but I never found one. So I set my own little blog up and I posted what I was going through and how it affected me. Since then I have grown a blog that many cancer sufferers read and enjoy! I have worked really hard on this blog and I love having distractions and things to focus on!” Get inspired by Evie.

  Rebecca Lombardo

Mental Health Patient Leader

Facebook | Twitter

“At 19 I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. I’ve battled mental illness on many levels most of my life. In 2013, I nearly died by suicide. When I left the hospital, I knew I had to make a change. I started a blog detailing my struggles and before long I was hearing from all over the world. Eventually, I turned my blog into a book that is available on Amazon now. I still have my blog and I also write for The Huffington Post. Most recently, my husband and I began hosting our own mental health podcast called Voices for Change. Every day I speak with someone that feels my book helped them or someone that needs advice. I’ve been happily married 15 years and I’m incredibly grateful I’m still here.” Follow Rebecca and more about her advocacy.

    Kirsten Schultz

Arthritis Patient Leader

Facebook | Twitter

“I’m a genderqueer disabled writer and activist – and proud of it! I live with Systemic Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, mental health conditions, and a long laundry list of other stuff. On Not Standing Still’s Disease, I focus mainly on disease-/illness-/disability-specific issues, becoming your own advocate, product reviews, and changing the world of medicine. I address issues like sex, intimacy, relationships, and self-esteem with illness and disability on Chronic Sex. There, I also focus on LGBTQIA+ issues, reproductive health, and intersectional thinking. Join us Thursday nights at 8 pm Eastern for #chronicsex chat on Twitter! My motto: do no harm but take no sh*t.” Connect with Kirsten.

  Jen Campisano

Breast Cancer Patient Leader

Facebook | Twitter

“I write to share my story of being (mis)diagnosed with terminal cancer, facing my mortality with a toddler in tow, the sometimes messy reality of recovery, and life with a baby and an autoimmune disease after cancer. I think our stories have the power to connect us, and make our experiences a little less lonely / terrifying. I also believe our voices have the power to enact positive change in our healthcare system because no one understands what’s lacking better than the patients who are trying to navigate through these murky waters.” Learn more about Jen’s blog and how she’s helping others.  

      Bruna Rocha Silveira 

MS Patient Leader

Facebook

“I have Multiple Sclerosis since I was 14 years old. In 2009 I started writing a blog about living with MS because I wanted to find younger, like me, who have the same experiences, which suffered the same fears. The blog grew and today I talk every day to hundreds of people who have been diagnosed and do not know what to do. It is not easy to know that you will have a disease for the rest of your life when your life has just begun. I write and share my experience to encourage people to live a happy life with MS. I believe that the more awareness you have about the disease itself, more mechanisms to facilitate your life you develop. I work for it.” Check out Bruna’s blog to learn more about her journey.

  Bukky Adeyokunnu

Sickle Cell Patient Leader

Instagram | Twitter

“I wanted to capture how it’s an invisible illness. You see me and I look completely normal –  I go to work, I work out , and chill just like everyone else. When I go ghost due to crisis pain, I often hear ‘but you don’t look sick’, which is exactly how I want to live my life. I’ve never let it define who I was and what I was capable of doing.” Explore Bukky’s captivating blog!

      Maria Thomas

Hyperhidrosis Patient Leader

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

“Hyperhidrosis (excessive sweating) affects five percent of the global population, but I bet this statistic is actually much greater. The problem? Too many people are ashamed of the skin they’re in and don’t speak up or seek help. It’s time to end the stigma. I’ve lived with hyperhidrosis all of my life and offer a unique perspective on this condition that can be mentally, socially and professionally debilitating. I’m creating hyperhidrosis hope and awareness one drop at a time, living my truth and letting others know they are not alone. My story is your story.” Connect with Maria to learn more.

      The Invisible Hypothyroidism 

Thyroid Patient Leader

Instagram | Facebook | Twitter

“I started advocating with one hope: to reassure other thyroid patients every single day that they are not alone. 750 million people worldwide have thyroid disease, but no one talks about it openly and a lot struggle in silence; desperate for someone to listen and understand. My writing comes from a deeply authentic and honest perspective as I not only share what I learn from researching while on my own journey back to good health, but also my own completely honest experiences that resonate with many. I’m on a mission to reach as many thyroid patients in need of support as possible and challenge the severe lack of knowledge about hypothyroidism. I know this is my purpose in life.” Click to learn more about this Patient Leader!

          Have you ever heard the saying “laughter is the best medicine”? Check out 4 reasons why you should be using more humor in your advocacy work.

  Check out the photos from the live #WEGOHealthAwards ceremony. See the full event recap for pictures, interviews, a live stream & more!

The post 2018 Top 10 Patient Leader Blogs appeared first on WEGO Health.

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Here’s an argument that we see from ace tumblr on a regular basis. It’s the argument that people not knowing about your identity or believing that it’s real is, in and of itself, a form of oppression (often phrased as “at least people know you exist”). This argument is being used in someone’s blog post to prove a certain point.

[T]here is one more term which I must define, namely that which I call "oppression by omission." By this, I don't simply mean the invisibility of minorities (either "invisibility" in the larger society, or as "invisibility" within minority spaces, such as this blog post about the invisibility of Native/Indigenous people in spaces for people of color). There are countless ways in which minorities of various kinds, and those positions of relatively less social power, are not taken into account, left out of decision-making processes that have an impact on them, etc. Oppression by omission is not "you are so marginalized we do not have to consider how this will impact you," although that plays a role in it. What I am mainly talking about here is the experience of minority groups about whom the master-narrative is "this group does not and cannot exist at all," and when one of the central ways by which oppression is occurring is through society's repeated (even ubiquitous) assertion that people like this do not and cannot exist, and that people who "claim" to be this way are mentally ill, frauds, or are otherwise incapable of accurately relating their own experiences. In some cases, anyone who even accepts the experiences of these people is considered deserving of ridicule. When oppression by omission is occurring, the people impacted by it are very unlikely to "come out" about their experiences, not because there are explicit statutes on the books about people like them, but because the social ostracism, or perceived threat of such, is immense. In subtle and not subtle ways, most of us are taught at an early age that there is something different, or scary, or not OK about our experiences. This ostracism, or perceived threat of such, is almost always also invisible to those who do not see these minorities in the first place. The invisibility begets invisibility; with few to no positive role-models, few to no positive and empowering stories to identify with, and relentless negative messaging (in some cases through spec fic), invisibility can become the only "safe" world we know, and we can be hesitant to challenge it. Oppression by omission can take place on a small scale or a large one, within the larger social framework or within minority spaces, alone or in conjunction with other forms of oppression. It is different from what is usually recognized as "oppression," the more overt and visible forms. But it is not without often profound impact on the people who are thus erased. There have been efforts aimed at challenging invisibility, even challening the oppression by omission, in certain communities. The Asexuality Visibility and Education Network has been doing this work for a decade, and recently a documentary has been made about asexuality and asexual people. Yes, asexuals face considerable oppression by omission: check out the lovely videos made by swankivy, such as here, where you can watch videos she made about her "Asexuality Top Ten." ("You can't really be asexual, you must be...")

What do you think the context of this is? What point is the author trying to make? Take a guess before you read the rest.

This comes from the blog critpsitheory, which aims to combat the oppression of people with psychic powers. The entries date from 2011 to 2013.

It has a long list of bingo cards, a list of how to evaluate media for anti-psi bias, a list of common microaggressions against psi, and more. This is the post the quote came from, and the author goes on to say:

The concept of oppression by omission is also helpful for understanding the invisibility faced by more esoteric minorities, such as Otherkin, therians, psi/sang vampyres, or even what it's like to be part of a multiple system. To some degree, transgender people also face oppression by omission, such as "genderqueer people do not exist," "transmen are really butch lesbians who took it too far," or "trans women are all cross-dressers who want to colonize women's identities and bodies." Bisexual/pansexual people also face it. The list goes on. Now all of these experiences (and many more) are very different, and very diverse within each category. The only parallel I am drawing is that in each instance, the social master-narrative is, at least at times, one of "non-existence," and so each and every time someone tries to come forward with a counter-narrative and express his/her/hir experience of the world, for whatever reason, he/she/ze has to deal with that master-narrative in some way. It might be because someone else is shutting them down or putting them down. It might be because they have to couch their experience in other terms in order to get through someone's filters. It might be because they have to, in some sense, "test out" all the people they talk to about this aspect of their lives to see if they can accept it. It might be that they choose never to tell others, because they know that telling others is fundamentally emotionally, socially or even physically unsafe. (See this video, for example.) What does psi omission look like? It really takes many forms. It can be that psi experiences are omitted from the biographies of famous people, even when these people wrote extensively about their experiences -- such as Mark Twain (for example here, and the several articles linked here) or Konstantin Tsiolkovsky. It can be the dearth, or even total lack, of non-sensationlistic non-fiction produced about the subject. It can be discourse or study that focuses exclusively on whether or not the "claims" are "real," with little to no attention paid to the narratives of the people living with these experiences (except when the purpose is sensationalism, or the entertainment of non-psi people). It exists in the lack of realistic characters, with experiences like ours, present in "realistic fiction" on television, in books and movies, etc. -- characters who are full people (not two dimensional plot devices), characters whose role in the story is not to "do psi things" every week (or simply to be scary, or to stand there and look sexy), characters who exhibit self-determination, characters who can serve as positive role-models. It exists in the complete lack of serious support groups (in the US, anyway) for young people trying to understand their experiences in a world that denies, stigmatizes and ridicules them. It exists in "othering" language and the use of us as rhetorical sarcasm (which I will cover in more depth on this blog).

Now, whatever your personal beliefs on the existence of psychic powers, I hope we can all agree that people with psychic powers are not an oppressed group. The author lists bi and trans people as also suffering from this “oppression by omission,” and I hope we can all agree that bi and trans people actually are oppressed.

What does this tell us? It tells us that this argument is a bad one, and can be used to “prove” the oppression of any identity whatsoever as long as it’s less well known.

This blog came out of the heady days of roughly 2009-2012, when some sectors of the internet collectively discovered social justice in the aftermath of RaceFail. In the naive enthusiasm of those days, many people started creating privilege checklists, bingo cards, etc. for every identity they could possibly think of that faced societal stigma or invisibility or was not considered the norm. 

There was one popular social justice blogger at that time who argued that being able to not drive drunk was a privilege, not being a necrophiliac was a privilege, and not being attracted to your siblings was a privilege similar to straight privilege. This blogger also endorsed monosexual privilege and binary privilege (the word “allosexual” hadn’t been invented yet, but I believe she also endorsed “sexual privilege”). (I’m not going to name her because she no longer endorses those ideas as far as I know.)

There were bloggers, some of them trolls but not all (and plenty of earnest people reblogged and supported the trolls’ ideas), who endorsed the ideas of “transethnic” and “transabled” oppression, which meant that people who identified as a different ethnicity than they were, or who identified as having a disability that they did not have, were oppressed. 

Take a look at this list of personal privileges and oppressions, and “some of the oppressions and systems that kyriarchy is composed of.” (Warning: the author admits to committing sexual abuse.) I think this person was later revealed to be a troll, but they were satirizing a very real and common way of thinking.

The word “queerplatonic” came out of that time, and is representative of the ideas of that time.

“Privilege Denying X” was a popular meme at that time, and in response to the ace discourse - which was going on then and has never stopped - someone created the blog “Privilege Denying Asexuals,” which responds to ace tumblr’s rhetoric with many of the same arguments we are still using. (It’s an interesting exercise to see what’s changed and what hasn’t.)

In roughly 2013, tumblr slowly began changing courses to say that not all forms of societal stigma, discrimination, and lack of visibility were actually examples of a privilege/oppression dynamic. Materialist analysis slowly began gaining the upper hand, and now you’d be hard pressed to find someone on tumblr who thought that drunk drivers, necrophiliacs, “transabled” people, goths, furries, “vampyres,” people with dyed green hair, etc. are oppressed. In most cases where groups like this are concerned, it is no longer common for people to equate the forms of discrimination and invisibility described in this psi post to oppression.

Ace discourse is simply one of the last holdouts of this kind of rhetoric. 

I do not mean to say that asexuals are like drunk drivers in that they are harmful, or like “psychic vampyres” in that the experiences they describe don’t exist. Some of the groups that people claimed were oppressed then are real, some are not; some face real difficulty in society that should be respected, some do not; some are not inherently harmful to others, and some are. People who don’t experience sexual attraction are real, often do face difficulty, and their lack of sexual attraction is harmless to others, but that does not make them an oppressed group, and it certainly doesn’t make them oppressed under homophobia and transphobia, the systems of oppression that the LGBT coalition exists to fight.

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Top 10 | Best Kept Secret

The 2019 WEGO Health Awards turned out to be our biggest celebration yet! With over 6k nominations and 130k endorsements, we were able to celebrate more Patient Leaders than ever before.

The program celebrates the top 5 finalists in each of the 15 WEGO Health Awards categories, but with so many nominations, it’s nearly impossible to shine a bright light on all these deserving nominees! In hopes of recognizing even more nominees, we’ve compiled the Top 10 Patient Leaders in each category based on community endorsements.

WEGO Health Awards Best Kept Secret Award

The Internet is a vast place, making it nearly impossible to find all of the amazing content that exists. For the Best Kept Secret category, we turn to the Patient Leader Network for recommendations of who we should be following in hopes of shining a light on the hidden gems of the online health community. Take a moment to follow these inspirational leaders and you’ll quickly realize why they’re a Top 10 Best Kept Secret…

Natasha Tracy | Mental Health Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Winner

Natasha Tracy is an author, speaker and consultant who lives with bipolar disorder. She is considered a subject matter expert in depression and bipolar disorder and has written the acclaimed book: “Lost Marbles: Insights into My Life with Depression and Bipolar.” Natasha believes that quality, trustworthy, evidence-based information is critical for successful treatment decision-making and better outcomes.

Be sure to follow the 2019 WEGO Health Award winner on social.

Rebranding Autism  | Autism Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

“I have autism. My story of being an advocate began after I left the Judge Rotenberg Center in 2009, advocating against electric skin shock to punish the behaviors of those with disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, which I myself endured for 7 years. I have spoken at several disability conferences and panels to inform professionals on the pain and mental anguish that myself and others endured because of the skin shock treatment. I began my online presence by posting videos to YouTube of my piano interpretations of popular songs. I was shy and did not want to talk much in my videos because I was afraid of being teased. But in 2017, my confidence had improved enough for me to start my YouTube channel, Rebranding Autism where I try to inspire my viewers to have confidence, get out of their comfort zone and try new things.”

Follow Jen’s journey as she advocates for autism.

Double Baggin’ It | Ostomy and Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patient Leaders

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

Danielle Gulden and Joe Teeters are IBD warriors and permanent ileostomates. They’re comedians, speakers, advocates and Two Best Friends without Buttholes! Danielle and Joe use their humor, wisdom, and stories to connect with and support other people living with ostomies and Inflammatory Bowel Disease! They believe in the power of humor, advocacy and awareness!

Laugh along with Danielle and Joe as they educate and build awareness.

LeAnna Headley | Pediatric Cancer Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

“In 2014, as a mere fourteen year old, I created an instagram page to follow along some stories of kids fighting cancer, who I had found on my personal page. I knew very little about pediatric cancer but Our Amazing Fighters was born. Through following along these kid’s journeys, I began to learn the devastating reality that children fighting cancer face everyday. I decided I wanted to do something more tangible for these kids so I began sending and delivering care packages all across the US to kids fighting. I have had the absolute privilege of meeting these families and seeing the heartache first hand. I have heard the cries, seen the pain and lack of treatment options and it has only made me more passionate about the cause. I wholeheartedly believe I am the luckiest human alive, that I get to do this everyday. I love these kiddos so so much. They are without a doubt my heroes!”

Learn more about LeAnna’s inspiring efforts to help children fighting cancer.

Jeniece Stewart | Special Needs Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

Jeniece Stewart is a passionate Special Needs Advocate, Consultant and Speaker who provides resources and tools to assist special needs families and the community. She is the Founder of Special Needs Siblings, Inc. a unique non-profit with a global mission committed to raising awareness, resources, and support for the siblings of disabled individuals. Her mission is to serve as a voice for the specials needs community and ensure special needs families never go at it alone and always feel supported.

Find out how to follow Jeniece and her non-profit Special Needs Siblings, Inc.

PodcastDX | Rare Disease Patient Leader

PodcastDX is a weekly interview based podcast series. Patients provide experience based medical insight, in a peer to peer format. Many Americans turn to friends and family for support and advice when they have a health problem. Since people’s networks are expanding to include online peers, particularly in the crucible of rare disease, we decided to implement a podcast series to interview and discuss various diagnoses with actual patients. Health professionals remain the central source of information for most Americans, but “peer-to-peer healthcare” is a significant supplement.

Follow PodcastDX as they continue to interview patients and share insights.

Kait Bovard | Breast Cancer Patient Leader

Kait is a breast cancer warrior who shares her story to encourage and support others on their own cancer journeys. Diagnosed as a 21-year-old newlywed, she hasn’t let the lifechanging diagnosis stop her. Her motivational blog and social media posts offer both practical tips and hope.

Follow Kait on social!

Aliana Fichera | Rare Disease Patient Leader

As a child living with CVID & CRPS, Aliana has been committed to giving back from a young age. From spending her birthday each year using sidewalk chalk to create something for children in the hospital to look out and see to raising funds and awareness, Aliana is making a big impact.

Follow along as Aliana works to make kids smile. 

Jenna Green | Multiple Sclerosis Patient Leader

Since Jenna’s Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis in 2016, she has committed herself to bring awareness, support, education, and community to those who suffer from MS, invisible illnesses, chronic pain, and fatigue. She shares her own personal health journey while fundraising for the MS Society and speaking about how she copes with her autoimmune illness as a self-employed small business owner. She connects with her community on social media with her stories about real life including all the ups and downs of living with MS, running a business, and having an invisible illness ‘when you still look so good’.

Want to see where Jenna’s journey takes her? Click here.

Trevor Romain | Mental Health Patient Leader

Trevor has been speaking to children and working with children for over 30 years. He realized he had a natural ability to connect with children when he volunteered to visit terminally ill children at Brackenridge Hospital in Austin. He quickly became known as the Doctor of Mischief, meaning he drove the kids crazy with his jokes and pranks, but at the same time giving them a trusting ear and hope for the future, whatever the future held. It was during these hospital visits that Trevor realized that adults sometimes tell children what they think they need to hear, instead of listening to what they are asking for. It was with this knowledge that Trevor wrote his series of best-selling self-help children’s books.

Learn how to follow Trevor here.

  Don’t let these amazing Patient Leaders stay secrets any longer. Add them to your feed!

  The post Top 10 | Best Kept Secret appeared first on WEGO Health.

Top 10 | Best Kept Secret published first on https://brightendentalhouston.weebly.com/

[jesseneufeld]

Top 10 | Best Kept Secret

The 2019 WEGO Health Awards turned out to be our biggest celebration yet! With over 6k nominations and 130k endorsements, we were able to celebrate more Patient Leaders than ever before.

The program celebrates the top 5 finalists in each of the 15 WEGO Health Awards categories, but with so many nominations, it’s nearly impossible to shine a bright light on all these deserving nominees! In hopes of recognizing even more nominees, we’ve compiled the Top 10 Patient Leaders in each category based on community endorsements.

WEGO Health Awards Best Kept Secret Award

The Internet is a vast place, making it nearly impossible to find all of the amazing content that exists. For the Best Kept Secret category, we turn to the Patient Leader Network for recommendations of who we should be following in hopes of shining a light on the hidden gems of the online health community. Take a moment to follow these inspirational leaders and you’ll quickly realize why they’re a Top 10 Best Kept Secret…

Natasha Tracy | Mental Health Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Winner

Natasha Tracy is an author, speaker and consultant who lives with bipolar disorder. She is considered a subject matter expert in depression and bipolar disorder and has written the acclaimed book: “Lost Marbles: Insights into My Life with Depression and Bipolar.” Natasha believes that quality, trustworthy, evidence-based information is critical for successful treatment decision-making and better outcomes.

Be sure to follow the 2019 WEGO Health Award winner on social.

Rebranding Autism  | Autism Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

“I have autism. My story of being an advocate began after I left the Judge Rotenberg Center in 2009, advocating against electric skin shock to punish the behaviors of those with disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, which I myself endured for 7 years. I have spoken at several disability conferences and panels to inform professionals on the pain and mental anguish that myself and others endured because of the skin shock treatment. I began my online presence by posting videos to YouTube of my piano interpretations of popular songs. I was shy and did not want to talk much in my videos because I was afraid of being teased. But in 2017, my confidence had improved enough for me to start my YouTube channel, Rebranding Autism where I try to inspire my viewers to have confidence, get out of their comfort zone and try new things.”

Follow Jen’s journey as she advocates for autism.

Double Baggin’ It | Ostomy and Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patient Leaders

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

Danielle Gulden and Joe Teeters are IBD warriors and permanent ileostomates. They’re comedians, speakers, advocates and Two Best Friends without Buttholes! Danielle and Joe use their humor, wisdom, and stories to connect with and support other people living with ostomies and Inflammatory Bowel Disease! They believe in the power of humor, advocacy and awareness!

Laugh along with Danielle and Joe as they educate and build awareness.

LeAnna Headley | Pediatric Cancer Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

“In 2014, as a mere fourteen year old, I created an instagram page to follow along some stories of kids fighting cancer, who I had found on my personal page. I knew very little about pediatric cancer but Our Amazing Fighters was born. Through following along these kid’s journeys, I began to learn the devastating reality that children fighting cancer face everyday. I decided I wanted to do something more tangible for these kids so I began sending and delivering care packages all across the US to kids fighting. I have had the absolute privilege of meeting these families and seeing the heartache first hand. I have heard the cries, seen the pain and lack of treatment options and it has only made me more passionate about the cause. I wholeheartedly believe I am the luckiest human alive, that I get to do this everyday. I love these kiddos so so much. They are without a doubt my heroes!”

Learn more about LeAnna’s inspiring efforts to help children fighting cancer.

Jeniece Stewart | Special Needs Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

Jeniece Stewart is a passionate Special Needs Advocate, Consultant and Speaker who provides resources and tools to assist special needs families and the community. She is the Founder of Special Needs Siblings, Inc. a unique non-profit with a global mission committed to raising awareness, resources, and support for the siblings of disabled individuals. Her mission is to serve as a voice for the specials needs community and ensure special needs families never go at it alone and always feel supported.

Find out how to follow Jeniece and her non-profit Special Needs Siblings, Inc.

PodcastDX | Rare Disease Patient Leader

PodcastDX is a weekly interview based podcast series. Patients provide experience based medical insight, in a peer to peer format. Many Americans turn to friends and family for support and advice when they have a health problem. Since people’s networks are expanding to include online peers, particularly in the crucible of rare disease, we decided to implement a podcast series to interview and discuss various diagnoses with actual patients. Health professionals remain the central source of information for most Americans, but “peer-to-peer healthcare” is a significant supplement.

Follow PodcastDX as they continue to interview patients and share insights.

Kait Bovard | Breast Cancer Patient Leader

Kait is a breast cancer warrior who shares her story to encourage and support others on their own cancer journeys. Diagnosed as a 21-year-old newlywed, she hasn’t let the lifechanging diagnosis stop her. Her motivational blog and social media posts offer both practical tips and hope.

Follow Kait on social!

Aliana Fichera | Rare Disease Patient Leader

As a child living with CVID & CRPS, Aliana has been committed to giving back from a young age. From spending her birthday each year using sidewalk chalk to create something for children in the hospital to look out and see to raising funds and awareness, Aliana is making a big impact.

Follow along as Aliana works to make kids smile. 

Jenna Green | Multiple Sclerosis Patient Leader

Since Jenna’s Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis in 2016, she has committed herself to bring awareness, support, education, and community to those who suffer from MS, invisible illnesses, chronic pain, and fatigue. She shares her own personal health journey while fundraising for the MS Society and speaking about how she copes with her autoimmune illness as a self-employed small business owner. She connects with her community on social media with her stories about real life including all the ups and downs of living with MS, running a business, and having an invisible illness ‘when you still look so good’.

Want to see where Jenna’s journey takes her? Click here.

Trevor Romain | Mental Health Patient Leader

Trevor has been speaking to children and working with children for over 30 years. He realized he had a natural ability to connect with children when he volunteered to visit terminally ill children at Brackenridge Hospital in Austin. He quickly became known as the Doctor of Mischief, meaning he drove the kids crazy with his jokes and pranks, but at the same time giving them a trusting ear and hope for the future, whatever the future held. It was during these hospital visits that Trevor realized that adults sometimes tell children what they think they need to hear, instead of listening to what they are asking for. It was with this knowledge that Trevor wrote his series of best-selling self-help children’s books.

Learn how to follow Trevor here.

  Don’t let these amazing Patient Leaders stay secrets any longer. Add them to your feed!

  The post Top 10 | Best Kept Secret appeared first on WEGO Health.

Top 10 | Best Kept Secret published first on https://drugaddictionsrehab.tumblr.com/

[lauramalchowblog]

Top 10 | Best Kept Secret

The 2019 WEGO Health Awards turned out to be our biggest celebration yet! With over 6k nominations and 130k endorsements, we were able to celebrate more Patient Leaders than ever before.

The program celebrates the top 5 finalists in each of the 15 WEGO Health Awards categories, but with so many nominations, it’s nearly impossible to shine a bright light on all these deserving nominees! In hopes of recognizing even more nominees, we’ve compiled the Top 10 Patient Leaders in each category based on community endorsements.

WEGO Health Awards Best Kept Secret Award

The Internet is a vast place, making it nearly impossible to find all of the amazing content that exists. For the Best Kept Secret category, we turn to the Patient Leader Network for recommendations of who we should be following in hopes of shining a light on the hidden gems of the online health community. Take a moment to follow these inspirational leaders and you’ll quickly realize why they’re a Top 10 Best Kept Secret…

Natasha Tracy | Mental Health Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Winner

Natasha Tracy is an author, speaker and consultant who lives with bipolar disorder. She is considered a subject matter expert in depression and bipolar disorder and has written the acclaimed book: “Lost Marbles: Insights into My Life with Depression and Bipolar.” Natasha believes that quality, trustworthy, evidence-based information is critical for successful treatment decision-making and better outcomes.

Be sure to follow the 2019 WEGO Health Award winner on social.

Rebranding Autism  | Autism Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

“I have autism. My story of being an advocate began after I left the Judge Rotenberg Center in 2009, advocating against electric skin shock to punish the behaviors of those with disabilities such as Autism Spectrum Disorder, which I myself endured for 7 years. I have spoken at several disability conferences and panels to inform professionals on the pain and mental anguish that myself and others endured because of the skin shock treatment. I began my online presence by posting videos to YouTube of my piano interpretations of popular songs. I was shy and did not want to talk much in my videos because I was afraid of being teased. But in 2017, my confidence had improved enough for me to start my YouTube channel, Rebranding Autism where I try to inspire my viewers to have confidence, get out of their comfort zone and try new things.”

Follow Jen’s journey as she advocates for autism.

Double Baggin’ It | Ostomy and Inflammatory Bowel Disease Patient Leaders

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

Danielle Gulden and Joe Teeters are IBD warriors and permanent ileostomates. They’re comedians, speakers, advocates and Two Best Friends without Buttholes! Danielle and Joe use their humor, wisdom, and stories to connect with and support other people living with ostomies and Inflammatory Bowel Disease! They believe in the power of humor, advocacy and awareness!

Laugh along with Danielle and Joe as they educate and build awareness.

LeAnna Headley | Pediatric Cancer Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

“In 2014, as a mere fourteen year old, I created an instagram page to follow along some stories of kids fighting cancer, who I had found on my personal page. I knew very little about pediatric cancer but Our Amazing Fighters was born. Through following along these kid’s journeys, I began to learn the devastating reality that children fighting cancer face everyday. I decided I wanted to do something more tangible for these kids so I began sending and delivering care packages all across the US to kids fighting. I have had the absolute privilege of meeting these families and seeing the heartache first hand. I have heard the cries, seen the pain and lack of treatment options and it has only made me more passionate about the cause. I wholeheartedly believe I am the luckiest human alive, that I get to do this everyday. I love these kiddos so so much. They are without a doubt my heroes!”

Learn more about LeAnna’s inspiring efforts to help children fighting cancer.

Jeniece Stewart | Special Needs Patient Leader

2019 Best Kept Secret Finalist

Jeniece Stewart is a passionate Special Needs Advocate, Consultant and Speaker who provides resources and tools to assist special needs families and the community. She is the Founder of Special Needs Siblings, Inc. a unique non-profit with a global mission committed to raising awareness, resources, and support for the siblings of disabled individuals. Her mission is to serve as a voice for the specials needs community and ensure special needs families never go at it alone and always feel supported.

Find out how to follow Jeniece and her non-profit Special Needs Siblings, Inc.

PodcastDX | Rare Disease Patient Leader

PodcastDX is a weekly interview based podcast series. Patients provide experience based medical insight, in a peer to peer format. Many Americans turn to friends and family for support and advice when they have a health problem. Since people’s networks are expanding to include online peers, particularly in the crucible of rare disease, we decided to implement a podcast series to interview and discuss various diagnoses with actual patients. Health professionals remain the central source of information for most Americans, but “peer-to-peer healthcare” is a significant supplement.

Follow PodcastDX as they continue to interview patients and share insights.

Kait Bovard | Breast Cancer Patient Leader

Kait is a breast cancer warrior who shares her story to encourage and support others on their own cancer journeys. Diagnosed as a 21-year-old newlywed, she hasn’t let the lifechanging diagnosis stop her. Her motivational blog and social media posts offer both practical tips and hope.

Follow Kait on social!

Aliana Fichera | Rare Disease Patient Leader

As a child living with CVID & CRPS, Aliana has been committed to giving back from a young age. From spending her birthday each year using sidewalk chalk to create something for children in the hospital to look out and see to raising funds and awareness, Aliana is making a big impact.

Follow along as Aliana works to make kids smile. 

Jenna Green | Multiple Sclerosis Patient Leader

Since Jenna’s Multiple Sclerosis diagnosis in 2016, she has committed herself to bring awareness, support, education, and community to those who suffer from MS, invisible illnesses, chronic pain, and fatigue. She shares her own personal health journey while fundraising for the MS Society and speaking about how she copes with her autoimmune illness as a self-employed small business owner. She connects with her community on social media with her stories about real life including all the ups and downs of living with MS, running a business, and having an invisible illness ‘when you still look so good’.

Want to see where Jenna’s journey takes her? Click here.

Trevor Romain | Mental Health Patient Leader

Trevor has been speaking to children and working with children for over 30 years. He realized he had a natural ability to connect with children when he volunteered to visit terminally ill children at Brackenridge Hospital in Austin. He quickly became known as the Doctor of Mischief, meaning he drove the kids crazy with his jokes and pranks, but at the same time giving them a trusting ear and hope for the future, whatever the future held. It was during these hospital visits that Trevor realized that adults sometimes tell children what they think they need to hear, instead of listening to what they are asking for. It was with this knowledge that Trevor wrote his series of best-selling self-help children’s books.

Learn how to follow Trevor here.

  Don’t let these amazing Patient Leaders stay secrets any longer. Add them to your feed!

  The post Top 10 | Best Kept Secret appeared first on WEGO Health.

Top 10 | Best Kept Secret published first on https://venabeahan.tumblr.com