#interracial friendship

[dontmeantobepoliticalbut]

Considering how rapidly the right's "war on woke" is expanding, it was perhaps inevitable: Self-identified "mama bears" on a Texas school board are angry that a classroom had a poster showing people of different races holding hands. Last week, the school board in Conroe, Texas, a small city north of Houston, turned the right-wing mania for censorship into a dark parody of itself. At issue? A poster that seemed to imply that interracial friendship is possible.

According to ABC 13 Eyewitness News in Houston, things started when school trustee Melissa Dungan declared that she had spoken to parents who were upset about "displays of personal ideologies in classrooms." When pressed for an example, according to the news report, "Dungan referred to a first grade student whose parent claimed they were so upset by a poster showing hands of people of different races, that they transferred classrooms."

"I wish I was shocked," Dungan said of the poster. "I am aware these trends have been happening for many years."

Some other members of the school board did, in fact, argue that there was nothing objectionable about such a poster. But Dungan was backed up by another trustee, Misty Odenweller, who insisted that the depiction of uh, race-mixing was in some way a "violation of the law." The two women are part of "Mama Bears Rising," a secretive far-right group fueling the book-banning mania in Conroe and the surrounding area. At least 59 books have been banned due to their efforts.

When another trustee asked Dungan if she personally objected to an illustration of cross-racial friendship, she demurred, simply declaring that she was just trying to avoid "situations like that." Situations like what, exactly? She didn't say.

Dungan's behavior is a perfect illustration of the "anti-woke" tap dance. The person alleging nefarious wokeness never admits to their own bigotry, instead pretending that they're reacting to "woke" people who are "pushing" an agenda, in this case through innocuous poster art.

Of course, the entire premise of the argument is rooted in bigotry, as this example shows. It presumes that the feelings of real or imagined bigots who might take umbrage at such an image are of paramount importance, and that everyone else's freedoms must be curtailed to appease them.

It's tempting to shrug it off as one-off weirdness from Nowheresville, Texas. But while this was an especially ham-fisted example, it's part of a well-funded nationwide effort, led by a group of interlocking far-right groups, aimed at destroying modernity, undermining democracy and imposing authoritarian government against the will of most Americans.

Donald Trump sucks up most of the oxygen in the discussion about rising American fascism, but even without him, this movement is powerful and widespread, and it's using these local culture-war skirmishes battles to seize even more power. And old-fashioned racism, the kind on display in Conroe, is very much at the center of it all.

Last week, the New Republic published a lengthy and terrifying investigative article by Katherine Stewart about the Claremont Institute, once a vaguely respectable conservative think tank and now among the leading right-wing organizations pushing the anti-education and anti-democratic agenda below the surface of the Conroe incident.

One of the many Claremont alumni Stewart profiles is Christopher Rufo, who spearheaded the recent hysteria over "critical race theory" in education. In reality, critical race theory was an approach used in law schools and other graduate-level academic spaces, and had basically nothing to do with public schools.

Rufo's ingenious idea was to turn it into a catch-all scare term that could be used to demonize any and all forms of anti-racist education, even something as previously noncontroversial as a poster depicting interracial friendship.

The far-right, anti-democratic politics of the Claremont Institute are so grotesque that many readers will dismiss them as preposterous, but it's all carefully documented and disturbingly real. As Stewart chronicles, Claremont has promoted the work of Costin Alamariu, who holds a PhD in philosophy from Yale and writes under the name "Bronze Age Pervert." He has declared that the "liberation of women" is an "infection" that requires "the most terrible convulsions and the most thorough purgative measures."

A frequent contributor to Claremont's online journal, who writes under the name "Raw Egg Nationalist," argues that "men and women shouldn't work together in the same spaces" and describes the Black Lives Matter protesters of 2020 as "hideously ugly, malformed people." Claremont-associated blogger Curtis Yarvin argues (in Stewart's words) that "America needs a king, a dictator with total military power." Claremont's most famous associate is board member and former law professor John Eastman, now known as "Co-Conspirator 2" in the indictment against Donald Trump for attempting to overthrow the U.S. government.

Because of their tight link to the book-banning efforts, the relatively new but suspiciously wealthy group Moms for Liberty has received massive media attention in the past couple of years. Even so, the group's radical ideology has not really been covered in most mainstream news coverage, which tends to portray the Moms as a bunch of overzealous church ladies. As Flux editor Matthew Sheffield, Media Matters vice president Julie Millican and researcher Olivia Little explained in a recent "Theory of Change" podcast, however, underneath the facade of "Christian moms" is some startling far-right radicalism.

For instance, while it was widely reported that a Moms for Liberty pamphlet from one branch was caught quoting Adolf Hitler, the group was able to spin that as a misunderstanding and a mistake. But at their summit a few days later, speaker Tiffany Justice yelled, "I stand with that mom" — the one who quoted Hitler — while the audience whooped its approval.

Moms for Liberty has heavily promoted trainings for conservative activists on how to take over school boards, which ought to make clear how we should understand stories like this one, which just sound like a racist tantrum in a Texas suburb. These aren't random or isolated events — they're part of a large, well-organized and well-financed attack on public education across the country.

Mama Bears Rising, the group that fueled the Conroe school board takeover, in unsurprisingly discreet about its connections to the larger national movement for censorship. But screenshots of online communications by local anti-censorship activists suggests that it's no coincidence that the books targeted for censorship in Conroe are the same ones that show up on book-ban lists across the country. Mama Bears Rising is drawing on the same playbook that's being disseminated nationwide through a well-funded network of Christian nationalist activists.

These days, it's almost never just one nutty lady at a school board meeting. It's about a movement with a committed ideology, that has deep connections to Donald Trump's campaign to end democracy.

[egsoon]

التاريخ الأمريكي إكس

يحكي الفيلم عن الأخ الأكبر (ديريك) ذو النزعات العدوانية الشديدة تجاه من هم غير أمريكيين من المهاجرين وبالخصوص أصحاب البشرة السوداء، وصراعه الدائم معهم إلى أن ينتهي به الحال في السجن بعد جريمةِ بشعة قام بها تجاه أحدهم والتغير الجذري ﻷفكاره داخل السجن.

[ashleyfableblack]

Be like Fluttershy. Be tiny but fierce, big-pegasus-style and stake that claim.

"It is a common practice among modern pegasi- and it is thought, alicorns- to express interest in a potential romantic partner through an ancient act known as 'feather-marking'. In this, the pegasus slowly passes by their chosen partner, ruffling their wings. This ruffling of their feathers releases tiny magical particulate from glands along the radius and ulna. These 'scent-markers' are easily detectable by other pegasi and indicate the pegasus' claim upon the potential mate. This act is followed up with a sharp smack across their target's flanks, giving them a concentrated dose of their scent to ward off any potential rivals."

-Sir Attenbirdo, 'The Gryphonia Royal Guide To Avian Equine"

[miiissslouuueee]

[writingtheother]

Online Class: Crafting Diverse Relationships Family and Friends, Lovers and Life Partners

Relationships between characters are key to character development and plot progression in every genre, not just romance. Family bonds, friendships, and lifelong partnerships create support networks around characters in every narrative. Writers often struggle to represent the connections and bonds between people that are outside their experience.

In this class, authors Piper J. Drake, Lauren Jankowski, and Jae Koyanagi will discuss family and found family, platonic relationships and friendships, poly and interracial relationships, and how to recognize and challenge the Love Hierarchy.

When: July 1 – 23, 2023 Where: Asynchronous Online Classroom — Available everywhere and at your own pace Price: $250 | Scholarships Are Available!

Learn More & Register

[rubywolf0201]

Ok why is the convo much sadder than his Support with Fogado?

I swear this interracial childhood friendship has killed me emotionally becuz of the angst in it and how Fogado just missed his bestie so badly is just 🥺

[someplace-that-is-else]

'For Want of a Muse: Tips for Moving on Between Writing Projects'

I couldn’t believe it.

After all of this time. After all of these YEARS really. After the starts and finishes, it was done.

HOW THE OTHER HALF LIVES was published. At last. It could be found at ( https://www.amazon.com/Other-Half-Lives-LaTorre-Mays-ebook/dp/B0D59R5X3Y).

The adventures of Shaun Jones and friends were finally out there for all to see. The novel explored a different African American experience. It also explored black friendships and themes of interracial dating. And it had been quite the journey to get to now.

Part of that journey had involved a case of mirroring. As much as I tried to keep to what I wanted the plot to be for Shaun, there had been some echoes from my present life. What I saw as messiness in Shaun, well…could be said about his creator.

Still…I made it through. But I felt a bigger question coming into my head with the novel published.

What’s next?

SLUMP

What I was expecting was a break of some kind and then it was off to my next project.

What I was not expecting was to feel like Pierce Brown putting off one of his Red Rising books.

I had Book 4 in my Darkened series to work on. It had been years since I published the last book in the series Darkened Tabula. Daniel and Eli (SPOILER ALERT) were still in futuristic Japan. Ebony was captured. And there was still the threat of Ursula over everything. Not to mention that the humans of my dystopian world now knew that all supernatural beings existed. I knew some of my readers wanted to see what’s next.

And yet? My mind was not there. Yet. Part of it was the many stories popping up in my own head, begging to be worked on. The other part of the reason was…I was pretty adamant about two other Darkenverse projects.

Darkened Soul: The Ryn was a little novelette that I’ve been working on for years. It was the conclusion to some short stories I’ve been doing on my Darkened Facebook page (www.facebook.com/darkenverse) for years. The short stories centered on the villains the Forryn. An interesting case of worldbuilding for them since I introduced them in Darkchilde (Book 2 in my Darkened series and can be found at https://www.amazon.com/Darkchilde-Darkened-2-LaTorre-Mays-ebook/dp/B01JGQ3ISE ). The Ryn also centered on the character of Eli and his backstory.

Darkened Soul: The Breaking of Circles was a short story collection in the same vein as my collection Darkened Soul: Pieces of a Darkened Puzzle. This time around the focus was on the history/backstory of some of my Nosferatu characters. They littered my series as supporting characters, but I had hinted at the history. Like POADP, it also gave some worldbuilding in terms of how the Nosferatu circles came to be. And due to one character in particular, I wanted it to be released before Book 4 in my Darkened series.

But yet…I had no drive.

At first I thought it might just be because I’ve put all my energy into HOW THE OTHER HALF LIVES. Okay, fine. Usually, an author should take a bit of a break between projects to refresh himself. And I did. Finally I sat down to write and edit.

Crickets.

Okay, fine. At first. But watching the time since I finished my latest book stretch out before me grow longer, worry set in.

Had I lost my fire? I did not feel like it. But nothing grabbed me, either.

Could it be my lack of muse?

WHAT OF A MUSE?

I guess it went back to the mirroring.

I had mentioned in the processing of writing HOW THE OTHER HALF LIVES, that I felt Shaun was the messiest protagonist that I’ve ever had written. He was such an intelligent guy, but he had no problem doing things that would make the reader shake him. Just like his creator.

Over the last two years, this creator has had to deal with some not-nice interactions. And that changed my perspective quite a bit as I worked to recover from the fallout. And I knew that showed in my writing of HOW THE OTHER HALF LIVES. From Shaun having a situationship to his relationships with his friends in the novel. But now with it done, it appeared that my inspiration was a little…dry.

Or worse…stuck.

Anytime I tried to write, doubts would crowd in. Or questions about if I should be working on Book 4 or that YA sci-fi book that’s been on my mind? Or that seed of a horror story peeking out of my head…should I pursue it? Or it just felt…dry.

I tried to write. But usually when I attempted it, my mind went back. And by went back, it would go back to being inspired by last year’s mess. No bueno. I was done with it so time to be inspired by something else.

But how?

MOVE ON

Well, it was possible. There were ways to get past that feeling so you can get a good writing flow and inspired anew. To get to work onto the next book. 3 Tips that have helped me have been…

Well for one…touch some grass. And by that, I meant go and live a little. For some people, that could be just being outdoors, walking, exploring. Or take in a concert. One of my favorite pastime when I have time…dancing. It was a matter of thinking of what allowed a person to ground/center themselves. And it was easy to do that by allowing your mind to not think for a while.

For another…if taking a break to escape a past muse doesn’t work…try channeling your energy into something new. For me when I was between projects, it was not unusual to just work on something. ANYTHING. Usually for me, it was different than the project that I was working. Just fiddling and not focused on it at all. At first. Usually my imagination will run off with itself. Once that creative energy…is redirected…the story flows. My horror WIP was a case of this. So was the WIP I just finished having to do with my Forryn. And quite a few of my now self-published novels.

Another way to move on…affirmations. It might be a bit cliché, but a person will be surprised how your mindset changes when you trust in the power of belief. It could be as simple as ‘I will write a sentence today’ to something like ‘I know I can do this.’  Of course, YOU as a person CAN. Especially when you remember how many books you already did without that particular muse. And if you are going to write that one sentence. DO IT. That feeling of satisfaction will be like your favorite ice cream. Trust.

All a person has to have was focus. And those tips has always helped me regain mine. And then it was off to the races to my next book or project. Yes as much as I disliked it from time to time, a person also had to have patience. Like a destination…that flow will come.

Now excuse me…I have to go and plan my writing schedule for DARKENED SOUL: THE BREAKING OF CIRCLES.

#writing #africanamerican #blackmen #friendships #blackfriendships #relationships #interracialrelationships #piecebrown #mirroring #blog #inspiration #dancing #WIP

[housediva]

Lake Effect (Original Work)

Summary: Nick Webster has had it. After a very public meltdown on a national talk show promoting his latest film, he leaves Hollywood to take up a friend's offer to stay at a house on the shore of Lake Michigan. His quest for peace and quiet leads him to places he never expected.

Marcus Smith is going through the longest dry spell on record...artistic or otherwise. While acting as caretaker for a gallery owner's summer house, an unexpected guest arrives to shake up his world...possibly ending his dry spell in more ways than one.

[danniswrites]

My Life Upside Down - Copyright & Acknowledgements (on Wattpad) https://www.wattpad.com/1165739333-my-life-upside-down-copyright-acknowledgements?utm_source=web&utm_medium=tumblr&utm_content=share_reading&wp_uname=DannisWrites 

This book was so good it made me cry! Check it out! I started it and couldn’t stop til I finished! I feel like the MC and her friends are my friends, too. I better stop before I start throwing out spoilers. Have fun!

 ||YA ROMANCE Book of the Month August 2023|| YOUNG ADULT ROMANCE! Aurora "Rori" Callaway is starting her senior year in a new town, at a new high school. After all, after what happened at the beginning of her summer, a fresh start was the only way forward. Upon arriving at Cherrygrove High, Andrew Weiczenkowski, her new locker mate, quickly sets about trying to befriend her. There's only one problem; he's the popular cornerback of the high school's football team, a celebrity on campus, and Rori just wants to be invisible. But it's hard to ignore his attempts to get to know her, even with her new friend Terra's help. Andrew's charm, wit, and warm personality make him hard to resist and Rori finds herself looking for excuses to spend time with him. Unfortunately, their connection is not lost on his ex-girlfriend Tawnya who vows to make Rori's life at Cherrygrove hard. To further complicate matters, the crushing guilt Rori feels only grows worse with each moment she becomes closer to Andrew. From the author who brought you The Watty's 2021 shortlisted novel For the Love of Art, comes a new romance about overcoming hardships to get to beautiful moments.

[whitearyankindred]

Interracial is Not desire at all it is Rape and Genocide of Whites and it is The Most Racist thing there is and is Evil plus these are Not real couples at all they are Nothing but complete incompatible strangers and they can never make a Real family just a bunch of Out of Place Things Forced To Be In One Place By The Evil Jews Pushing this White Genocide Garbage. Stop This Nonsense Now Or Else.

[egsoon]

إصلاحية شاوشانك

الفيلم يحكي قصة ” آندي دوفرين ” مصرفي ذكي و ناجح تم اتهـامه بقتل زوجته و عشيقها .. و مع إنكـاره للجريمة و إصراره على أنه بريء من التهمة إلا أن المحكمة كـان لها رأي ثاني و حكمت عليه بـ السجن المؤبد

[ashleyfableblack]

When you're already in quite a mood because you're gravid... AGAIN... and your beloved precious little pony wife is SO happy about that but her friends are insolent twits who are also kinda racist...

...and if you obliterate them she'll probably be a little upset about that. Sometimes even a Big Mama Bughorse has to relax her spiracles and count to ten... or twenty. 👭💜💚💜😆

[miiissslouuueee]

[mlbullsportfolio]

Novel Blurb:

A tragic accident . . . A severe brain injury . . . A wife's test of love and temptation . . .

Wedding bells rang seven years ago―then tragedy struck. ​ Thirty-three-year-old Eva Rose Lucas has the perfect home, a good husband, and an endearing, little boy, but her married life quickly changes when her husband Andre gets into a terrible car accident and suffers a severe brain injury. Now her once hardworking, self-reliant husband is a disabled, touchy handicap who doesn't remember her and cannot move his limbs. Stress and resentment build upon Eva's shoulders as she helps take care of her husband, their son, and her students at Sunrise Christian Daycare. ​ Her family's finances shrink, the emotional strain becomes all too much, and Eva prays for a miracle. Months pass, but Andre makes little improvement, and after attending her class reunion for a chance break, her old, high school crush, Caleb Williams, challenges her love and commitment to God and her husband. Will Eva remain faithful toward them? Or will she forsake her most precious vows?

AVAILABLE NOW!

Link: Eva's Promise: A Novel (books2read.com)

[whitearyankindred]

Exactly this is The Truth and The smallest punishment they deserve for being Evil Racist Traitors to the Only Ones that Actually Loved them and Held out their hand to them, Their White Aryan Kindred.

[teambyler]

Questions to ask if ever you have Byler doubt:

Do people seriously think that a show centered on nerds and social outcasts...

... shows how awful the popular kids can be...

... villainizes anti-gay bullies...

... sides against abusers...

... supports LGBT+ people...

... has interracial romance...

... embraces being different...

... turns an expected hetero romance into a beautiful platonic friendship...

... criticizes moral panic/evangelism...

... makes the "town freak" our hero...

... shows that love can overcome hate...

... and whose characters don't want to recreate the nuclear family...

... do we really think that show will let a suffering, traumatized gay boy's love be the device for a conventional white hetero couple to be the show's "main relationship"?

Has the show even set-up Mike and El, who met through trauma and circumstance while they were children and have repeatedly lied to each other, for a lifelong commitment?

Who's actually delusional?

And who sees this show for what it is? And what it's clearly setting up?

-teambyler

(This is a companion to "How the Duffers have set Will up for a happy ending in Season 5")