#it's classic self recognition through the other (derogatory)

[definitely-not-a-wasp]

Y’know what? I think there should have been MORE Fang Ari rivalry.

Because Ari knows that he and Max are siblings from the beginning. He never makes much of an effort to hide that. And he also knows, between himself and Max, Jeb will always pick Max. He doesn’t understand why, and he doesn’t understand that Jeb’s version of love is going to hurt no matter what, but he knows that Jeb loves Max more than him. That’s fine, because it has to be fine, because he’s not allowed to be angry at Jeb.

But the flip side of knowing Max is his sister is knowing that he’s her brother. And knowing that he’s not her only brother. And knowing that, between himself and her siblings— this specific sibling, more often than not, because Max and Fang have always depended on each other— she will pick her sibling every. Single. Time. Jeb picking Max is fine, he’s okay with that, but there’s no way in hell that Max should be allowed to pick this asshole over her flesh and blood brother.

(Max does not know that Ari is her brother. Ari is seven, so this fact is irrelevant.)

So yeah. He can be mad at his sister all he wants, and he is, he’s always angry, but he hates Fang. This person who got to spend a whole lifetime with his sister, who keeps turning her against her family, who she so obviously loves more than she loves her father or her real brother. Things would be a lot better for all of them if Fang didn’t exist, and if Fang is alone and in pain and terrified when they die? Well, that’s just a bonus.

And on Fang’s side... this seven-year-old with sharp teeth keeps trying to kill them. They try not to think about how they nearly fell out of the sky, or their hospital stay, or how their body still hurts and will never be the same, but it creeps up on them at night, like bile in their throat, and Ari doesn’t stop trying to kill them. Once is a coincidence, twice is a pattern, three times is a vendetta, and Fang is not going to lay down and die. Maybe killing Ari will finally let them sleep at night.

Max treats them like a monster when they try to hurt Ari. Truly hurt him, not just to incapacitate, because she knows Ari’s name and that means he’s more important than all of the other Erasers they put in the ground. Never mind that all of them were also kids, and that this specific kid keeps trying to kill Fang. And he can’t be mad at Max, because they need them and Max to be okay, they need to stick together, so that’s all the more reason to get their would-be-murderer out of the picture.

So they keep trying to kill each other, until Max (finally, finally, Ari knew it could happen) sides with Ari, and Fang leaves. Ari always knew that he could only be Max’s favorite if Fang was out of the picture, and Fang only now realizes that they’re playing for favorites, and they’re not a seven-year-old, they know that’s not how the world works, but—

But they know that they can’t both live under the same roof. Knows that Ari has a date on the back of his neck that marks him for death, and that Fang has been dancing around death for so long that it’s going to come to collect eventually, so it’s just a matter of who cracks first.

Fang leaves, because they were never good at dealing with conflict. If Max has decided that blood means more than they do, then that’s her choice.

Ari dies. Not too long after, Fang dies, and apparently neither are allowed to rest because the next time they see each other, they’re both breathing, even if neither would call each other alive. Neither would call themselves alive, but if they say that out loud then they have to admit that something’s wrong, so it’s a whole lot easier to look at the other and call them a ghost that needs to be put down.

They keep trying to kill each other. They somehow get more violent, more bloody, because neither really remember how to fear death anymore. They’re both on borrowed time, and there’s no point in being precious with it. And if one of them gets a good enough shot in and puts the other in the ground, then that means one of their bodies will be put right.

(It feels like some divine joke, or perhaps a punishment for a sin neither of them committed, that the one person who would understand what it feels like— that they’re moving and speaking but never actually came back, that something pulled them out of their broken bodies and shoved them back in all wrong— would be the same person who they hate.)

[lewis-winters]

Ok, but like. It's very subtle in that scene, maybe because it wasn't totally intended, but Nix swings his head toward Buck Compton and makes quick eye contact with him when he uses the American accent mockingly, and seeing as irl Buck and Nix HATED each other, I like to think Nix did that not only to show off his fancy and pretentious ass but also to call Buck stupid. But like. Subtly.

i love the fact nix makes it a point to pronounce the french location names correctly and then pronounces them with the american acccent for clarity while rolling his eyes to show he’s not one of you uncouth americans. he is so the american who studied abroad for a semester and came back over pronouncing croissants as lay cwehsahn

[alangdorf]

A couple various Magolor outfits (Clash cause I realized I only had half finished sketches of that outfit and also Yukari Yakumo from Touhou cosplay for fun) and also Oh hey yeah that thing!

Ummm let’s see, words are hard right now but I should probably give my explaining myself spiel and I’ve already been putting off this post for like a month and a half. Clash outfit was fairly self-evident; I thought it looked good with the red added (apple colors hehe) and I of course couldn’t resist throwing some classic lolita in there. Unlike his usual outfit there’s not space for his wings to stretch out in the back bc Clash is like. Theoretically it’s chill but they’ve got a lotta post-traumatic stress/paranoia/insecurity that morphs into weird tension with the main gang back in the usual universe and then doesn’t fully start getting resolved until after Star Allies (I have other sketches of this outfit - and just other Magolor doodles in general; particularly I’ve been trying to figure out digitigrade leg posing - but I don’t feel like posting them here so I guess you can find them at um. Kirby live radio wiki community feed)

Yukari outfit I had the idea for cause I was thinking abt qi lolita again. Not much to say aside from I figured out why they don’t ever give her the parasol with this dress; it is a distressing amount of light pink to deal with and between that and the pose and parasol shape I sweated my way through most of this piece lol

Aaand Magolor Epilogue a.k.a. self-recognition through the other (derogatory) ….. TWO!! I had the idea for Master Crown boss to bear an uncanny resemblance to 2nd phase Magolor/Magolor Soul a long time ago but like. Turns out it was scarily close already; I just had to add a head and a couple fingers.

Ok that’s it see you in a half hour byeee

[compellsme]

90s cult classic T4T terrorists spectrum

Trinity x neo = recognition through the other (affectionate)

Narrator x Marla = recognition through the other (derogatory)

Or like, fuck nasty as an act of symbolic worship and self-acceptance vs fuck nasty as an act of existential & personal hatred and self-destruction

Don’t interact with this I’m just putting my ideas down somewhere lol

[redrobin-detective]

It's so funny seeing people react to the quiz with how did I get [character] instead of [other character] when I'm just sitting here like self recognition through the other (derogatory) like I got Dick which I agree with but I always found him too similar to myself to get into him because of this why are you me I'm me situation

Both Jay and I like to dramatically quote works of classic literature at random so like recognizes like. Also rip on your eldest daughter syndrome.

[uwmadarchives]

Exploring Jewish On-Campus Political Action & Cultivating a Personal, Intersectional Historical Practice

I’m at the stage in my work at the archives when I’m about to start writing up my research proposal. I’ve spent the last couple weeks sifting through materials related to SDS, the Black Student Strike, the TA strike, and other student movements. The 1967 “A Student Handbook” produced by SDS has been a really wonderful and applicable guide to the type of political energy on campus at that time (cover shown above).

However, as I’ve been looking through the materials, I’ve also been asking whose voices are present and whose aren’t. The materials in the UW archives are largely white and male, and while many of the SDS materials pay lip service to antiracist ideas, the collections and activism itself is not particularly intersectional.

My main subject(s) of inquiry for my research at the archives follow these questions:

Who was organizing on campus from 1954 to 1976? 

What identities, geographical backgrounds, and ideologies were present in political action at UW during this era?

Whose voices were present but their materials largely absent within archival collections?

What groups had large student membership and what were the relationships between these political groups like? What tensions and affinities existed between these active students?

What happened to the political energy on campus after the Vietnam war ended? 

What issues were students dealing during this era which continue on today? What is “campus continuity” with such a transient population? I.e., what is the relevance of this for students today and what can we learn from the struggles of our predecessors?

An overarching theme of my research is about relationships between student groups with special interest with regards to racial dynamics in organizing. For example, how did SDS interact with local chapters of the Black Panthers? Was “Concerned Black People” an SDS-run group or just affiliated? How did certain groups support or hinder the establishment of the African-American studies department? 

I wrote previously about the contradictions and tensions inherent to investigating black history as a white student historian. Not only might I miss crucial meanings, my whiteness in this work may actually perpetuate the same harms that I want to help repair, and good intentions do not alone mitigate damaging impact. Additionally, I worry about my interest in black student organizing being voyeuristic -- that I may be interested in them for motives that are more centered around my whiteness, projecting the white gaze onto the research. Yet, just because it is harder (socially, emotionally, politically) for me to be researching black student history on this campus doesn’t mean I shouldn’t engage in this kind of study. So, how can I research these topics from a genuine, honest, and reparative place while acknowledging how my own identities factor into the work?

A few days ago I realized that I hadn’t read a lot of significant discourse about Jewish students’ organizing on campus. As a Jewish student, I’m interested in this history -- on a personal level I know how much representation matters. I’ve been paging through “University of Wisconsin: A History” by E. David Cronon and John Jenkins and found mentions of Daily Cardinal Editor-in-Cheif ‘70-’71 Rena Steinzor, and New Year’s Gang members Leo Burt and David Fine. I went to the Wisconsin Historical Society and looked through the Alan Stein papers. The more I read into historical campus activist figures, the more I thought to myself, “There are a lot of pretty Jewish-sounding names.” 

I’m clearly profiling my own people here, but there’s something to that sense of recognition. I’m not entirely sure that Sterling Hall Bombers are really the kind of representation I’m looking for, but I’m still curious: how many Jews were organizing at this time and what (if anything) did their identity as Jews mean to them?

Since I’ve only been thinking about this for a little while, I haven’t looked that deeply into the collections regarding Jewish organizing. Though I don’t know how many materials exist in the archives, I have a hunch that there weren’t very many (if any) groups which explicitly called themselves Jewish political organizations. It makes sense -- things would get antisemitic really fast. It follows a classic derogatory trope: Jews have historically been accused of “meddling” in political affairs and having too much power and influence. Practically speaking, most Jews involved in that era of leftist organizing probably wouldn’t want to advertise their identity. And it’s possible that many secular Jews engaged in UW Vietnam War-era activism didn’t really see their Judaism as a primary or motivating factor in their work. Yet, there’s a thru-line and history of political action within the Jewish community -- and a pretty radical streak at that. My Jewish identity is a strong, powerful basis for my politics. As a way of finding myself in the work and centering my work in my lived reality, I’d love to explore how era-Jews were engaged in campus activism. What did that identity mean to them? Were they affiliated with any Jewish organizations? Did their identity as Jews impact their relationships to other student organizers, i.e, black, latinx, and asian organizers? Investigating my own assumptions, are the people I’ve listed above even Jewish?

I believe that it’s important to know yourself and your own community as preparation for interacting with the greater community. Then, when you’re finally sitting at the table with others, also strong with their own self-knowledge and introspection, the conversation becomes more mutually meaningful. 

Returning to my questions about how my whiteness may impact my work, maybe more seriously researching white identity and Jewish identity and white Jewish identity (p.s., not all Jews are white) on campus at this time, alongside my other inquiries might be a more mutually respectful way to approach any research about black, latinx, and asian student organizing on campus. Ultimately, I think the experience of learning about “myself” through my own identities as a way of learning about the work of others will be fruitful. This practice can help me see my own “skin in the game,” or my direct connection to the stakes of what I’m researching and better prepare to engage in restorative justice through my research here at the archives. 

– Rena Yehuda Newman (They/Them), Student Historian

#UWStudentHistory

[blackkudos]

Camille Cosby

Camille Cosby (born Camille Olivia Hanks; March 20, 1944) is an American television producer, author, philanthropist, and the wife of comedian Bill Cosby. The character of Clair Huxtable from The Cosby Show was based on her.

Early life

Camille was born Camille Olivia Hanks on March 20, 1944, in Washington D.C., to Guy A. Hanks, Sr. and Catherine C. Hanks (b. 1922). She grew up in Norbeck, Maryland, just outside Washington. She is the oldest of four children and is a distant cousin of Nancy Hanks Lincoln, mother of United States President Abraham Lincoln. Cosby's father was a chemist at Walter Reed General Hospital and her mother worked at a nursery. Both of Cosby's parents had college educations, with her father earning a graduate degree from Fisk University and her mother earning an undergraduate degree from Howard University.

Cosby attended private Catholic schools. First, she attended St. Cyprian’s, followed by St. Cecilia’s Academy. After high school, Cosby studied psychology at the University of Maryland. While a student there, she went on a blind date during her sophomore year with Bill Cosby. Engaged shortly after they started dating, the pair married on January 25, 1964.

Following their marriage, Cosby and her husband had five children: Erika (born April 8, 1965), Erinn, Ennis (April 15, 1969 – January 16, 1997), Ensa, and Evin. Ennis was murdered in 1997 at age 27.

Career and education

Cosby acts as manager for her husband and has been depicted as a "shrewd businesswoman." During an interview with Ebony Magazine, Bill Cosby stated, "People would rather deal with me than with Camille. She's rough to deal with when it comes to my business." She also "helps in the development of her husband's material", including suggestions for The Cosby Show, suggesting the Huxtable family be middle- rather than working-class.

Cosby has been a supporter of African American literature, writing forewords for several authors. In 1993, she wrote the foreword for Thelma Williams' Our Family Table: Recipes And Food Memories From African-american Life Models. In 2009, Cosby wrote the foreword for Dear Success Seeker: Wisdom from Outstanding Women by Dr. Michele R. Wright. In 2014, she did the foreword for The Man from Essence: Creating a Magazine for Black Women, a book by Edward Lewis of Essence.

In 1994, Cosby released Television's Imageable Influences: The Self-Perception of Young African-Americans, a book that "dramatically charts the damaging impact of derogatory images of African Americans produced in our media establishments." The book was originally intended to be the subject of her thesis for her doctorate degree.

In 2001, Cosby worked with David C. Driskell for his book The Other Side of Color: African American Art in the Collection of Camille O. and William H. Cosby Jr., which focused on the Cosby's art collection.

Together, Cosby and Renee Poussaint edited A Wealth of Wisdom: Legendary African American Elders Speak in 2004.

Cosby was co-producer for the Broadway play Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years, based on the book Having Our Say: The Delany Sisters' First 100 Years by Sarah "Sadie" L. Delany and A. Elizabeth "Bessie" Delany with Amy Hill Hearth. Following the success of the show, Cosby acquired the film, stage and television rights to the story and later acted as executive producer for the 1999 made-for-television movie of the same name.

In June 1987, Howard University in Washington, D.C., presented Cosby with a Doctor of Humane Letters, an honorary doctoral degree.

In 1990, Cosby earned a master's degree from the University of Massachusetts, followed by a Ph.D. in 1992. In an interview with Oprah Winfrey, Cosby stated, "I became keenly aware of myself in my mid-thirties. I went through a transition. I decided to go back to school, because I had dropped out of college to marry Bill when I was 19. I had five children, and I decided to go back. I didn't feel fulfilled educationally. I dropped out of school at the end of my sophomore year. So I went back, and when I did, my self-esteem grew. I got my master's, then decided to get my doctoral degree. Education helped me to come out of myself."

Philanthropy

Cosby's history of philanthropy includes donations to schools and educational foundations. Her philanthropic memberships include Operation PUSH, The United Negro College Fund, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the National Council of Negro Women, and Jesse Jackson's National Rainbow Coalition. Beginning in the early 1980s, Cosby and her husband donated $100,000 to Central State University, a historically black university in Ohio, with a gift of $325,000 following in 1987. In 1989, CSU held the "Camille and Bill Cosby Cleveland Football Classic" in honor of their contributions to the school.

In January 1987, the Cosbys donated $1.3 million to Fisk University. In November 1988, they donated $20 million to Atlanta's Spelman College, a women's college with a predominantly Black enrollment. According to The New York Times, the gift was the largest donation to a black college in American history. The college has since named the five-story 92,000 square foot Camille Olivia Hanks Cosby Academic Center after Cosby.

A few months after the Spellman donation, Cosby and her husband donated $800,000 to Meharry Medical College as well as $750,000 to Bethune-Cookman University.

In July 1992, during an gala held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the National Coalition of 100 Black Women awarded Cosby the Candace Award, a recognition of minority women that have made valuable contributions to their communities.

In 2005, Cosby donated $2 million to Saint Frances Academy of Baltimore High School. Because of the donation, the school was able to endow 16 scholarships in Cosby's name.

Bill Cosby sexual assault allegations

Cosby has defended her husband against accusations that he has sexually assaulted women over his career. While acknowledging he has cheated, she denies that he is a rapist. In 2014, Cosby released a statement saying that her husband had been the victim of unvetted accusations: "The man I met, and fell in love with, and whom I continue to love, is the man you all knew through his work. He is a kind man... and a wonderful husband, father and friend."

In the 2016 deposition, Cosby invoked spousal privilege when asked whether Bill had been faithful to her.

Wikipedia