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the only places I see political signs in my city neighborhoods are streets where there are several houses in a row with signs, almost half and half split Harris vs Trump. like it's only the friction that makes people engage
#politics#my city is a microcosm of broader statewide politics i think#urban vs rural whites#segregated unequal neighborhoods#huge progressive strides making inroads!! but so much left to do#not Atlanta lol not metropolitan but still not rural
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I want to say sorry. I sent a nasty message after your tradwife post. I read it as you excusing rich white privileged women but after reading the tags and your replies I am starting to understand what you meant and I am seeing that the group is bigger than I thought. Sorry for being an asshole.
Tbh I have an inbox full of people pissed about that post, so it’s 50/50 whether I even saw/read/processed that message! Thank you for apologising, and thank you for being open to other points of view ❤️
I’m glad if I can make people expand their thought process about this group and how we perceive them. I really do think we need to talk more about the specifics, and how while trad influencer circles tend to be the group you mentioned, we also have women in that group we very specifically need to reach out to:
• Tradwives who aren’t white. I’ve met quite a few, and they suffer even more under that hierarchy. The “passport bro” phenomenon is also notable, and it isn’t new: I have met a number of “mail order brides” who are brought to Western countries at 18-20, married to men who are incredibly older and established, and expected to fulfil this role.
• Rural vs urban. I’ve met a lot less rural tradwives than urban, and there’s actually a reason for this: rural tradwives are expected to take on even more a workload, to the point you rarely see most of them outside their house/property. The effects of the additional free labour and the isolation are considerable.
• Disability. Many, many people forget this one. Pregnancy can be debilitating, and childbirth can very easy disable someone permanently. 18-24 months is considered the ideal standard between children - I’ve read studies that suggest that the body does not have the chance to fully recoup until at least 2.5 years post-partum. These women are encouraged to have children back to back, kept from birth control, and many, many I have talked to are pushed into sex before they’ve even healed from birth (which is a whole other topic to tackle about the level of consent and safety in these relationships). I don’t think it’s coincidental that many of these women overlap with the almond mom/wellness guru grift. I think it’s notable many of them quote exhaustion, pain, frequent illness, connective tissue issues…etc. Childbirth expectations + managing children and the household with low to no input from a partner + being part of a group that tends to shy from modern medicine? I very heavily suspect that if given correct care, a lot of these women would end up classified as disabled to some degree.
Honestly, I nearly turned the notes off that post because I didn’t want to deal with it. And then I saw people in the tag commenting how they have “tradwives” in their community that are often undernoticed/talked about (I specifically noticed people from latam talking about this). If I have to get annoyed every now and then to encourage + platform minority women to discuss how this affects them and their communities, then I’m happy to take that hit.
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14. Even more happenings of the 1880s
continuation from update #12 about why the 1880s are an interesting decade. It’s been a difficult last little while. feeling distant from myself and tried to get back in touch to some things that help steady me. like info dumps. this was gathering dust in my drafts and I decided to tidy her up tonight why not.
Child labour in the U.S. climbing in numbers (all the way until the 1920s!!) a lot in farming, mining, textile industry. In most families, children breadwinners because lots of opportunities for them to be exploited work
By this time already, we got some familiar names and reputations established. Active and/or died 1870s~1880s: Jesse James, Sam Bass, Billy the Kid, Calamity Jane, Doc Holliday, Wyatt Earp, Wild Bill
By late-post Reconstruction era, state penitentiaries unhinged, physically and administratively deteriorating. Summarized as: cruel torture practices, immigration, eugenics, and ‘prisons as laboratories’; incarcerated would rather hurt themselves than be subject to brutal prison punishment
Continuation on the racial violence: the Jim Crow laws that began in the previous decade grew more violent, severe, and widespread. Legalized racial segregation and dodgy enforcement of laws. nadir of American race relations: anti-black violence and racism would he the most prominent than in any period in American history
Continuation on the rise of ragtime via African American musicians: emergence of white minstrel performances that put racist, dehumanizing, derogatory lyrics over the music ☠️
Gilded Age: “Historians saw late 19th-century economic expansion as a time of materialistic excesses marked by widespread political corruption”; Industry boom invents the capitalist barons, wealth disparity, exploitation, labour unions, workers strikes… ✨ socialism
gaelic culture revival in Ireland, continued unrest against the British and revolutionary activities
Texas Rangers already a thing but locales started to organize more of their own “law enforcement” police. Crush political unrest, legalize violence against Indigenous and black populations
1850s through to the start of the turn of the century, “Anglo-Japanese style” in fashion, architecture, art, design. Result of the “opening up” of Japan to Europe, which led to more flow of capital between Japan and Europe. Trade, culture, art moved back and forth. Trendy among elites who could afford the fancy imports. fetishization and commodification and essentializatiom of Japanese culture. Fascination of the “far east”
In the face of scientific discovery and change, spiritualism movement was one of the ways for people to cope and explore their fears, aspirations, fantasies, beliefs. started in the mid 1800s. Grief and mourning culture. Speaking with the dead, ghosts, mediums, publications, séances. Entwined with gender politics and roles. See, The American phantasmagoria: The rise of spiritualism in nineteenth-century America by Daniel Bowlin
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood of Great Renown in Nottinghamshire is published in 1883 by America’s Howard Pyle, sparking an interest in literature featuring the heroic rogue
Oscar Wilding out
it’s been some time since the first 1880s world history dump. I forgot I left myself a little (to be continued) list. crossing off what I got here let’s see hmmm
prison industry / spiritualism / opium epidemic / irregular and uneven “modernizations” in rural vs. urban areas / class and poverty gaps / morality scares, checks, comparisons, gaps / new businesses and gadgets, products, tech to help with anything / fascination of the (colonial) Other; side shows, “freak shows” and other human zoos
#update#update: research#writing research#1880s#1800s#victorian era#1870s#american history#world history#ref: research#ref: black history#ref: poc history#torture cw#reconstruction era#history#cowboy#cowboy history#outlaw
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“backgrounds are hard” is a pretty common sentiment among artists but tbh, even though i too am guilty of sometimes leaving my characters in a white void with nothing to entertain them, i’ve found that they can be quite fun as well!! i love blending different colours together to create a beautiful sunset, and thinking about what types of buildings would suit the environment (e.g. tall urban skyscrapers vs small rural cottages), and trying to depict all the seasons and the feelings that come with them.
plus, whether i’m creating my own background or examining what someone else has made, it helps me appreciate the things people tend to view as mundane; occasionally it gives me a better understanding of how something works! beauty and knowledge can be found anywhere within a piece of art, and i think that’s awesome :)
#obviously that last part about beauty within art isn’t a “one size fits all” thing bc not all art has the same purpose#for example some of it is meant to make you uncomfortable or shock you or serve as a critique of some aspect of society#but yeah i just wanted to make a background appreciation post (which started and ended in two completely different places lol never mind)#artist things#artist thoughts#artists on tumblr#pfb talks
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I just reblogged that post about east coast vs west coast US hiking and almost added a long-ass addition to explain, but I figured I'd make it short there and write my spiel on my own post to not be obnoxious.
So, as someone who has been on trail crews both in the west and the east and is very interested in the history of trails, I can kind of explain why east coast trails are Like That.
Before the 19th century, recreational hiking wasn't really a thing. Most trails were made just to get from one place to another as quickly as possible and, as a result, often took pretty steep routes, especially if they weren't meant for horses. For most people living in rural areas, the general philosophy was that the wilderness* wasn't necessarily something to appreciate for what it is, but rather something either to fear or to conquer.
In the 1800s, however, as industrialization brought more people into cities to live and work, rich city folk on the east coast who wanted to get away from the smog and pollution and crowds of the urban sprawl would often catch a train up to the white mountains in New Hampshire for some fresh air. Mt. Washington in particular was (and still is) a hotspot for tourism. All these tourists needed something to do and they found it in hiking trails.
It makes sense. Hiking is a great way to get outside, be active, and enjoy the natural beauty of your location, which is especially important if you're usually stuck in the city. Thanks to the likes of Thoreau and Muir, American thought on wilderness was also changing from the wilderness being a desolate wasteland to it being a place to enjoy nature's beauty uninterrupted by civilization. Thus, the concept of hiking for recreation became more popular creating a demand for trails to be built across the mountains, usually by private entities such as hotels, mountain clubs, and even business-savvy individuals like the Crawfords (who I could also talk about for a long time but alas. I want to keep this as streamlined as possible).
When it came to what hiking was supposed to be, however, there were two primary camps. One of those camps proposed that hiking trails should be easy, leisurely walks up the mountains that were meticulously constructed to avoid scrambles. There are some trails in the white mountains that were built this way and they hold up really well.
As anyone who has hiked the white mountains or in most of the northeast can guess, though, this was not the camp that won the great debate. The camp that won was a group of rugged victorian outdoorsmen who believed that hiking should be an adventure through the wilderness and that those adventures should be hard. They believed that trails should preserve these wild places the best they could and that over-engineering the paths would just take away from the experience. Their trails proliferated across the white mountains and the rest of the northeast.
All of these trails were also built before we really knew (or cared) about the effects of erosion on hiking trails and the environment. To a modern trail-builder, these trails suck. Water flows right down them, just widening and deepening the paths which creates a greater impact on the surrounding environment. When the trails are difficult, people tend to walk off the trail, again, impacting the surrounding environment. They're just generally not sustainable. They erode way faster than a switchback.
But it also costs a LOT of money and takes a lot of time and energy to reroute these trails, so we're kind of stuck with just managing erosion on the trails we already have: crotchety old trails built by 150-year old outdoorsmen who wanted to make life harder for everyone. And you know what? They succeeded.
*I have a lot of thoughts about the concept of wilderness that I won't get into here, but I just want to say that when I talk about wilderness in this I'm mainly talking about historical USAmerican conceptions of wilderness.
#me.txt#long post#sorry for the dash disruption everyone i just had to talk about this#if you're interested in the history of trails in the northeast especially the white mountains I would recommend reading forest and crag#and if you're interested in the concept of trails in general I would reccomend reading On Trails by Robert Moor
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Week 10 | SDL
The Urbanisation of Nature in New Zealand - Writing/Notes
New Zealand is experiencing urbanisation, with over 86% of all of the population now living in an urban area(Stats NZ, 2021). This fast growth, seen often in cities like Auckland, has led to extreme challenges, particularly for the natural landscapes.
Impact on Natural Landscapes Urbanisation creates massive problems for nature and especially to our wildlife and plants. Flora and fauna are even more under threat than before as urbanism continues to grow and destroy green spaces. E.G Auckland, (population of around 1.7m) has actually lost nearly 70% of its own vegetation in the past 100 years due to development (Auckland Council, 2020). This loss of habitat not only destryoes our wildlife but also the overall look of New Zealand's environment.
The Importance of Green Spaces Green spaces in urban environments are extremely important in these times. Research shows that access to simple things such as parks and nature can help with well-being, and can contribute to mental health (Hassall, 2020). Places like Christchurch and Wellington have changed in some ways, including some green spaces in their urbanism. For example, Wellington's "Greening the City" is trying to bring more urban nature while also improving quality of life. (Wellington City Council, 2021)
The pressures of urbanisation can also create extreme environmental challenges. Obviously, these include increased pollution and habitat destruction. Some studies show that urban areas are becoming 'hotter and harder,' pushed by climate change (University of Auckland, 2021). The urban heat effect can lead to higher temperatures in almost all cities compared to rural areas, which will in the end work against both human and ecological health.
Loss of Color and Freedom One of the main things that I found from my research as well was that there is a huge loss in "life" in urban locations. I really want to continue to push in my design with the black and white vs colour. I find it important to underscore the loss and sadness in an urban environment compared to the colour of nature.
References (to be used in 500-word statement)
Stats NZ. (2021). New Zealand's population: 2021 Census. Retrieved from Stats NZ
Auckland Council. (2020). Auckland's urban development report. Retrieved from Auckland Council
Hassall, T. (2020). The benefits of urban green spaces. Retrieved from Hassall
Wellington City Council. (2021). Greening the City Initiative. Retrieved from Wellington City Council
University of Auckland. (2021). Harder, Hotter Cities Report. Retrieved from University of Auckland
Idea for Context - Exhibition
I want this series to be shown as en exhibition that is placed inside of the city. This exhibition will start with more landscape than urbanism. Over the pieces, the colour will fade more and the urban ideas will be shown more. This loss of colour will continue until the end. Once it ends, the viewer will leave the exhibition and enter a cityscape with the same muted greys as they saw. Hopefully this idea will also bring more impact to the viewer and realise how sad where they are actually is.
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Interior Design Bangladesh: Transforming Spaces with Local Charm
Interior design in Bangladesh is more than just arranging furniture; it’s about blending functionality with cultural aesthetics to create harmonious spaces. With its unique fusion of traditional and modern elements, interior design in this region reflects the country’s rich heritage and evolving tastes. Whether you're designing a home, office, or commercial space, understanding the key principles of interior design in Bangladesh can help you achieve the perfect balance between beauty and practicality.
Why Interior Design Matters in Bangladesh
Bangladesh is known for its vibrant culture, which is deeply embedded in its art, architecture, and interior design. As cities grow and lifestyles change, there's a growing need for spaces that are not only visually appealing but also functional and adaptable to modern life. Interior design plays a crucial role in improving the quality of life, optimizing space, and making a strong aesthetic statement.
The Evolution of Interior Design in Bangladesh
Interior design Bangladesh has come a long way from its traditional roots. While old Bengali homes were often characterized by wooden furniture, vibrant textiles, and intricate patterns, contemporary homes now embrace a minimalist approach with sleek designs and neutral tones. However, the charm of traditional motifs, local crafts, and natural materials is still prevalent.
1. Traditional vs. Modern Styles
In Bangladesh, interior design often merges the old with the new. Many homeowners opt for a contemporary look while incorporating traditional Bengali elements such as handwoven fabrics, brass artifacts, and wood carvings. The result is a beautiful blend that respects heritage while embracing modernity.
2. Sustainable and Eco-Friendly Designs
With increasing awareness of sustainability, more interior designers in Bangladesh are adopting eco-friendly practices. From using recycled materials to incorporating energy-efficient lighting and natural ventilation, sustainability is becoming a significant trend in the design world here. Bamboo, jute, and cane are popular materials used in eco-conscious design.
Key Elements of Interior Design in Bangladesh
1. Color Palette Choices
Colors play a pivotal role in setting the tone for any space. In Bangladesh, vibrant colors like red, green, and gold are often seen in traditional designs. However, modern homes may feature more muted tones like beige, white, and grey, creating a calm and serene environment.
2. Furniture Design and Placement
Furniture in Bangladesh is often crafted from locally sourced wood, such as mahogany and teak. Hand-carved furniture pieces are popular for their intricate details. Modern furniture tends to be simpler, with clean lines and functional designs that maximize space. Proper furniture placement is key to ensuring a room feels spacious and comfortable.
3. Textiles and Fabrics
Textiles are integral to interior design in Bangladesh. From silk cushions to cotton curtains, the use of local fabrics can add texture and depth to any room. Traditional Kantha quilts, for instance, are often used as bed covers or wall hangings to add a touch of history and artistry.
Popular Interior Design Styles in Bangladesh
1. Minimalist Interior Design
Minimalism is becoming a popular choice among urban dwellers in Bangladesh. The minimalist approach focuses on simplicity, functionality, and decluttered spaces. It often features neutral colors, sleek furniture, and minimal accessories.
2. Rustic Bengali Style
Rustic design celebrates the natural beauty of raw materials and earthy tones. In Bangladesh, this style often incorporates jute rugs, wooden furniture, and handcrafted décor items. This approach brings the essence of rural life into modern urban homes.
3. Contemporary Design
Contemporary design in Bangladesh combines clean lines with innovative materials. It emphasizes open spaces, large windows for natural light, and a neutral color scheme. Metal and glass are often used to give spaces a sleek and modern look.
Top Interior Design Trends in Bangladesh
1. Open Floor Plans
Open floor plans have become increasingly popular in Bangladesh, especially in apartment settings. By eliminating unnecessary walls, spaces feel more expansive and allow for better flow and communication between rooms.
2. Smart Home Integration
The rise of technology has brought smart home features into interior design. From automated lighting and temperature control to smart security systems, these tech-savvy solutions are becoming more accessible to homeowners in Bangladesh.
3. Use of Natural Materials
Natural materials like stone, wood, and clay are often incorporated into designs to bring warmth and authenticity to spaces. These materials are not only aesthetically pleasing but also environmentally sustainable.
Interior Design Tips for Different Spaces
1. Living Room Design
The living room is often the focal point of any home. In Bangladesh, it's common to have a mix of traditional and modern elements. To create a welcoming atmosphere, consider adding local artwork, comfortable seating, and proper lighting.
2. Bedroom Interior Design
A well-designed bedroom should be a sanctuary. In Bangladesh, many bedrooms feature hand-carved wooden beds, soft textiles, and ambient lighting to create a peaceful retreat. Incorporating personal touches like family photos or meaningful artifacts can make the space more intimate.
3. Kitchen and Dining Area
The kitchen and dining areas are often the heart of the home in Bangladesh. Open shelving, locally sourced wood, and vibrant tiles can give these spaces a rustic charm. Functional layout and ample storage are essential for a practical kitchen.
The Role of Interior Designers in Bangladesh
1. Hiring a Professional Interior Designer
An interior designer can help bring your vision to life while optimizing the functionality of your space. In Bangladesh, many designers are experienced in blending traditional elements with modern trends, making it easier to achieve a personalized and harmonious look.
Conclusion
Interior design in Bangladesh is a dynamic blend of tradition and modernity. Whether you're drawn to minimalist styles, rustic designs, or contemporary trends, there are endless possibilities for creating beautiful and functional spaces. By understanding local materials, design principles, and cultural influences, you can transform any room into a reflection of your personal style.
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https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/31/opinion/sonya-massey.html
-- Sonya Massey’s Killing Is Black America’s Sorrow --
How horrifying is it that the police response to encountering mental illness is so often a bullet? Time and time again, people who needed medical assistance were murdered by cops who did not know how, or did not bother, to try to deescalate. This is pathological, infecting departments across the country, urban, rural, and suburban. Some officers truly do seem to be looking for an excuse to open fire, especially on nonwhite individuals.
A start would be to embed mental health professionals with the officers on mental health checks, with the officers following the expert's orders. No family should experience the tragedy of calling 9-1-1 for a loved on in crisis, only for the police to arrive and execute someone who needed help. But that would only be a start.
Passing the Justice in Policing Act (something only possible with a Democratic sweep in November) would also help: creating a national registry that makes the "bad apples" unhirable would prevent them from ruining more batches. But the biggest change has to come in training at academy: eliminate the "thin blue line", the confrontational us-vs.-them mentality that results in so many officers thinking of themselves more as an occupying army than as public servants - an attitude exacerbated when policing black and brown neighborhoods and people.
We have evidence that, per level of confrontation, there is no discrepancy between police-on-white and police-on-black shootings. This indicates that the problem is that cops more readily contribute to a cycle of escalation when interacting with black civilians when they could and should be calm and professional. Police then use their Tasers when they should use their words, and their guns when they should use their Tasers. The mindset behind this must change, which would mean nothing less than a nationwide purge of academy instructors and veterans, schooled in the bad old ways of policing and transmitting those abusive methods to the next generations of officers.
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You know what? I'm actually fine with fish pictures. It shows you have a hobby, that you can take joy in your accomplishments, and that you probably have friends willing to spend hours with you on a boat.
I feel like we all decided those pictures were bad in the same way that enjoying pumpkin spice lattes is bad. It's basic and common and normal(derogatory) and like so fuckin what?
I guess it's also associated with blue collar men and rednecks, but that just makes it classism which is worse. The rural/poor/bigoted vs urban/cultured/rich story is encouraged by the right wing to separate people who actually have common political cause. That bigotry is often driven by cops, politicians, and business owners. Look at any right wing riot and you'll see people who could afford body armor and five guns and a nice truck and gas to drive all over the country. No, that isn't the whole movement. I'm still trying to figure out just how the numbers shake out (gee thanks study that classifies anyone without a degree as working class) but still. I am more afraid of white suburbanites with five guns than a rural person with a hunting rifle.
Ahem. Anyway. Men with fish.
I like fishing too. It's pleasant and contemplative. It allows you to build a skill and share social time. It gets you out in nature and like all examples of hunting or gathering your own food it counteracts the alienation of the massive industrialized production machine that gives us everything in plastic.
Look all I'm saying is the stereotypical trappings of a bad political ideology are not proof of that ideology. Fishing is good. Men sharing their hobbies is good. I'd rather date a simple, basic man than a man who's "not like other guys".
#in defense of the basic#accidental anti-classism rant#yes i know poor provincial towns can be dangerous for minorities#i live a couple hours from thunder bay#let people enjoy things#god forbid men do anything#if someone is sharing their joy intheir hobby and you mock them for it you are the asshole
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School libraries have become a key battleground in contemporary culture wars over public education. In the 2021-22 school year, PEN America reported a record-setting 2,532 book challenges affecting 1,648 different titles in 138 school districts. Many of the challenged titles contain content related to LGBTQ+ issues or race/racism, topics that have also been the concern of state legislative efforts.
For a new study, I assembled data on hundreds of titles in public school libraries across the country. I collected this data by first curating book lists in several areas, including best-sellers, award-winners, and books that deal with controversial content including LGBTQ titles and books on race/racism or abortion, and then searching publicly accessible school library catalogs in the spring of 2022 for books on those lists. The list of titles across controversial topics includes both fictionalized stories and nonfiction titles. I also estimated the total number of books in the library and the library acquisitions rate (the share of books recently added to the library’s collection).
My school library sample consists of 5,240 elementary/middle and 1,391 high schools in 48 states. This sample includes schools in rural and urban areas, schools in counties with conservative and liberal political leanings, and schools that serve students of very different backgrounds. I use these data to identify patterns in library resources and content, especially as they relate to political preferences, state laws, and book bans.
Here, I describe some of the main findings from that work.
Finding #1: Libraries in low-income areas have lower staffing levels and less up-to-date collections.
First, I consider how library resources and collections quality vary for different types of schools. Schools with larger shares of white students, schools located in high-income areas, and schools in non-rural areas have better-resourced libraries and/or more up-to-date collections than their counterparts. The gaps are especially large between schools in low- and high-income communities (community income measured using the school neighborhood income-to-poverty ratio per the 2018-19 NCES EDGE school neighborhood poverty estimates). Compared to school libraries in low-income areas, school libraries in high-income areas have higher book acquisition rates (2.05 vs. 1.40) and employ more full-time equivalent librarians (1.12 vs. 0.80 per school). School libraries in high-income neighborhoods also have nearly twice as many recent best-sellers in their catalogues for young adults (18.58 vs. 9.44 titles) and middle grades (8.43 vs. 4.02 titles).
Finding #2: Access to controversial content is related to local political environments.
Next, I examine whether the prevalence of books with controversial content is related to local political environments and state laws. Figure 1 shows the number of books from each list of controversial titles in school libraries in more and less conservative communities, which I define based on the margin that voted for Donald Trump over Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election. School libraries in the most conservative areas have fewer LGBTQ+ titles and fewer books that deal with race/racism or abortion than libraries in the most liberal areas. Libraries in conservative areas also have more Christian fiction titles and more Dr. Seuss titles that were discontinued from publication in 2021 because of racist imagery.
Similar patterns appear even after controlling for the number of books in the library, the acquisitions rate, and student enrollment at the school. These estimates indicate that a one standard deviation increase in community conservatism decreases the probability of finding a title from my list of books on race/racism by 3.2 percentage points (a 20% reduction relative to the sample mean of 16%) and decreases the probability of finding an LGBTQ+ title by 4.0 percentage points (12.9%) in high schools. In elementary/middle schools, a one standard deviation increase in local conservatism decreases the probability of finding an LGBTQ+ title by 1.9 percentage points (21%).
Controversial content is also associated with state laws that restrict curricular content. Libraries in states with anti-CRT laws are 3.5 percentage points (46%) less likely to have The 1619 Project, a particularly contentious publication that reframes American history around slavery and its legacy. Elementary/middle school libraries in states that have recently passed laws to restrict how schools talk about gender/sexuality are 3.6 percentage points (40%) less likely to have an LGBTQ+ title. These relationships control for local political preferences.
I note that despite these relationships, most schools in my sample have at least some controversial titles. Figure 2 presents the share of libraries that have at least one book from each list of controversial titles by quartile conservativism. At least 96% of libraries had at least one title from each of the LGBTQ+, race/racism, and abortion book lists. Even in the most conservative areas, the share of libraries with at least one book from each list of controversial titles was high (94%+). More than three quarters (78%) of elementary/middle schools in my sample had at least one title from the LGBTQ+ book list, including 70% of schools in the most conservative counties.
Finding #3: Book challenges may have chilling effects on the acquisition of LGBTQ+ content.
Finally, I consider whether the meteoric rise in book challenges in the 2021-22 school year has affected the type of content librarians are selecting for their collections. To do this, in October 2022 I searched high schools in my sample for 65 recently published LGBTQ+ young adult titles. I merged this to district-level data on book challenges from two datasets maintained by PEN America and the researcher Tasslyn Magnusson. My sample includes 82 schools in 43 school districts that were subject to book challenges in the past school year. I then estimated the relationship between being in a school district that was subject to a book challenge in 2021-22 and the probability of having one of these recently published LGBTQ+ titles. Importantly, I control in these estimates for the number of LGBTQ+ titles from the list of 100 older titles I searched for in the spring of 2022. Controlling for the number of titles found in the spring allows me to adjust for the library’s baseline preferences for LGBTQ+ content.
I find that schools in districts that were subject to book challenges over the last school year were less likely to have added recently published LGBTQ+ titles this fall. Specifically, libraries in districts subject to challenges were 0.55 percentage points less likely to have a recent LGBTQ+ title, a 55% decrease relative to the sample mean. I interpret this as suggestive evidence that book challenges are having “chilling effects” on the acquisition of LGBTQ+ content, leading librarians to avoid purchasing content that parents or politicians could find objectionable.
Conclusions
The recent flurry of political activity aimed at public school libraries has drawn attention to this relatively understudied school resource. My study points to reasons for concern, optimism, and continued attention on the state of school libraries.
The gaps I find in library resources between schools in low- and high-income communities is one area of concern. While research on the causal relationship between library resources and student outcomes is limited, a number of studies suggest a link between school library programs and student achievement. Moreover, these gaps imply differences in access to reading materials that may affect students in ways not reflected in test scores, including by exposing children to stories that expand their horizons or affirm their lived experiences.
I also find that access to books with controversial or ideological content differs for communities across the political spectrum. In the United States, local school districts exercise substantial autonomy over what students are taught and how. Given this, it is not surprising that school librarians tailor their selections to match the preferences, priorities, and (perhaps) biases of their local communities. More surprising is the finding that books with controversial content are still widely available on library shelves, at least to some extent. If one goal of school library programs is to facilitate access to diverse and challenging material, this finding suggests that many libraries are meeting that goal.
Most relevant to policymakers are my findings on state laws that restrict curricular content and book challenges. Anti-CRT and anti-LGBTQ laws are negatively associated with the availability of certain kinds of race/racism and LGBTQ+ books even after controlling for local political preferences. While these findings express correlational (not causal) relationships, they are consistent with the interpretation that state laws shape school library selections above and beyond what local communities would prefer. More compelling is the evidence I present on the “chilling effects” of book challenges on the acquisition of new LGBTQ+ titles. While more research is needed to confirm these findings over time, these chilling effects may have much larger effects on the type of content available to students in public school libraries than the removal or imposition of additional restrictions on individual titles implicated in book challenges.
School libraries have become contested spaces in public school buildings. Only time will tell whether the political battles that have erupted over the content that students encounter at school will have lasting impact on students or the types of ideas and stories they find on library shelves.
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I saw a post a while ago expressing confusion about why some people consider owning a horse to be a marker of wealth and I wanted to explain that because the person who made the post was from a rural area and just did not understand where that perception came from.
The people who have a conception of "horse ownership = rich" are not rural, they are urbanites, and the reason is that there is a difference between horse ownership in rural areas vs cities. In rural areas the horse owner takes care of the horse. They are responsible for grooming and feeding it, they are responsible for looking after its veterinary upkeep, they are responsible for making sure that it has a clean safe healthy place to sleep, they are responsible for the day-to-day care and keeping of that horse and they do all that themselves. That horse also probably lives on or near the family's property, contributes to the family in some way in a working capacity, and is loved and well taken care of because it is a member of the family. That horse is essential.
For urban horse owners, that horse is a luxury item. Its purpose is to look pretty and to be ridden for leisure. That's it. Its day-to-day care and upkeep is done by someone else who is paid by the owner to do those things. The property that the horse lives on is some significant distance outside of the city, which the owner either owns or rents to keep their horse there. It is not used in a working capacity, and the owner is not the one responsible for actually taking care of it, they just pay for that. It is a ridiculous monetary investment, for the purpose of leisure activity that is not regularly used (weekends, maybe once or twice a month).
TL;DR: Rural horse ownership is a working part of everyday life that contributes to the family, who deal with its care and keeping. Urban horse ownership is a way for rich people to say "look, I can afford this massive financial commitment for a leisure activity and I don't even take care of it myself."
#am i insufficiently kinglike?#classism#urban vs rural culture clash#also equestrian sports are a leisure not a work activity#ranchers and farmers use horses for Working#rich white urbanites use horses to go 'look i'm rich'
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It really is. I really like nature and being outdoors, at times (as well as spatious areas), but I also like cityscapes and there are many stores and restaurants compared to being out in the wild, which has limited resources. Also, living in rural areas can make us susceptible to rabies and other diseases that are not common in urban and suburban areas.
However, while many urban areas do have plants, big cities tend to have very few plants, if none at all (which would explain some higher pollution and lower oxygen levels); fortunately, as science and technology march on, more plants are being incorporated so we will not have to live in near-uninhabitable cities and towns.
Maybe there does not have to be any absolutes; maybe we can have a rural area with some urban elements like a few skyscrapers, stores and restaurants, a library, and advanced technology while having farms, grassy areas, and better views at the same time.
I am certain there are areas like this; plenty of nature, while having plenty of buildings, as well.
#pontiac firebird trans am#firebird trans am#pontiac trans am#trans am#trans am cannot choose between urban or rural areas#trans am likes both (maybe at the same time)#rural vs. urban#rural areas vs. urban areas#some people prefer urban areas while others prefer rural areas#that is a tough question indeed#that is a tough question#must everything always be black and white though?#car meme#cars and areas#what do you prefer?
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A few reminders as we head into what was an inevitable “Long Election” of 2020:
It’s not over until all the votes are counted, and that might take days. Pennsylvania, for instance, has only reported 64% of the votes cast. Repeating Trump’s false rhetoric that it is, even in despair, is dangerous and enabling.
Just as in 2016, the majority of us voted against fascism. By several million votes. A republican president has only won the popular vote 2 times since 1988 (and one of those was George W., who’d lost the popular vote in his first election). The problem is that most of us are suppressed by a voting system designed over 200 years ago intended to give disproportionate weight to (white) rural voters.
And on that note: the political divide in the US is not easily regional and cannot be simply outlined on a map. It is rural vs urban. Georgia isn’t leaning Democrat right now because it suddenly “flipped” but because voters in cities like Atlanta pushed through voter suppression enough to battle the rest of the state. It’s not easy to geographically untangle the divide in American politics.
Related: “red” states are full of people opposed to those states’ policies. Look at Texas. Over 5 million people there voted against Trump, and he only leads by 700,000 votes. Condemning all of the people in whole states misses the real story.
Wait, be patient, continue to demand that all votes are counted. Trump’s coup/power grab strategy at this point will be to continue to claim that mail-in votes are somehow illegitimate. That’s the fight we’re facing.
Most of us Did. Not. Want. This.
#election 2020#politics and election#sorry to put this on my fandom blog#but if you're going to be angry at this result don't be despairingly angry that people voted for him#yeah they did#but MORE OF US DIDN'T#be angry about how that doesn't matter#most of the country doesn't want this#but the minority are enabled to push us off a cliff anyway
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Also, don't fall for what I call Blood and Soil Progressivism. Yes, cultural appropriation is a thing, but it's not what some people claim. You can be from one ethnic background and be part of the culture from a different group of people, because you lived with those other people. Example: I'm half Dutch, I've never been to the Netherlands, I know nothing about Dutch culture, and because of where I grew up, I am culturally Burqueno.
From Wikipedia: Blood and Soil is a nationalist slogan expressing Nazi Germany's ideal of a racially defined national body united with a settlement area. By it, rural and farm life forms are idealized as a counterweight to urban ones.
Maybe stop with the nonsense that to remain pure, people should go with the idea that ethnic background, culture, what you eat, and where you currently live ALL must be tied to the same place. People move - sometimes they take their ancestor's culture with them and sometimes they pick up the culture from where they live/lived.
And this doesn't just apply to cultures from different countries. This very much includes rural vs. urban culture, as part of that ideology stated that rural was better, cities were degeneracy, and it was all because 'the Jews control the cities'. We need rural area, because we need farms, we need food, but don't let that turn into 'small towns are superior' and 'small towns defend their own' (cue POC getting the shit beat out of them by rural white people when they 'took too long' docking a boat and the POC getting locked up for it).
hey if i make the funny garfield medic will you guys look at it
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SW Suddenly-Omegaverse AU: Country Dyke
Context: Original Post, Chrono
Things I'm unnecessarily invested in: The ways in which Omegas are expected to "conform" are different in the core and outer rim, but the core isn't actually as progressive as they like to claim they are, and the omega equivalent of a butch or dyke is going to be different in both areas. This is, in my mind, a reflection of IRL rural vs. city GNC folk.
The kind of butch dyke you can expect to run into at a Kansas truck stop vs the kind of butch dyke you can expect to run into at a gay bar in NYC. Both are gender non-conforming, and they have similarities, but there are major differences influenced by growing up, or at least existing, in a rural backwater vs a major urban center. Anakin doesn't act like a city dyke. He acts like a country dyke. People know he's Outer Rim because he acts that way, even though he doesn't realize he acts like an outer rim dynamic-non-conforming omega.
TBH I just keep thinking about how Coruscant prides itself on being Progressive but people still give Anakin 'advice' on how to comport himself, etc. It's very "upper-class rich white lady" sexism in vibe.
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if you buy into the idea of the wealthy urban elite vs the rural poverty you are a goddamn mark
like white rural wealth of this country is truly blind to these people they straight up pretend they can’t see it why ignoring the ruthless urban poverty that gives children life long respiratory issues in the bronx
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