#which only THEN only make me want to participate and do stereotypical girly things less UNLESS THEY ARE DONE THROUGH THIS VEIL OF IRONY

[fromalltononeandback]

i think something that’s really hard for me to like put into words is like the idea that my gender presentation everything about it every aspect i choose to DO WITH IT is INHERENTLY QUEER

like like it shouldn’t be hard to get but it’s like

okay okay like fucking when i’m putting on nail polish wearing “feminine” colors fucking participating SOCIETAL PERCEIVED acts of just like womanly/feminine-ness as a AFAB person people will just think i’m just acting in line with my PERCEIVED GENDER

BUT TO ME TO ME THIS SHIT IS CAMP IM DOING THIS THROUGH A QUEER LENSE I AM PAINTING MY NAILS GAYLY I AM NOT ACTING WITHIN MY GENDER AT ALL

and not in a “oh this feels wrong why am i doing this” way but in a the way i feel and present is most of the time very masc and/or there’s no gender attached to me at all i’m just me im just vibing

and it’s like cuz i’m gender fluid on those days, hours, moments were i DO feel feminine and i do dress act present more feminine there’s this portion of people in my life and just society as a whole who just see me as like a “girl” finally acting the way i “should” BUT NO BECAUSE THIS PRESENTATION??? THIS SHOW??? WAKE UP FUCKERS THIS IS ALSO GAY AS FUCK TOO THIS IS ALSO TRANS AS FUCK TOO

I AM PERFORMING AT GENDER AT EVERY SINGLE INSTANCE OF MY LIFE GENDER IS IM MY OPINION A FEELING A MOMENT A BLANK FUCKING CANVAS AND I ME AM JUST THROWING WHATEVER THE HELL I WANT ON IT WHEN I FEEL LIKE IT AND EVERY SINGLE THING I DO WITH IT IS GAY AS SHIT

[spleelover06]

Why I prefer Yo-Kai Watch over Pokémon

I have mentioned before that I prefer Yo-Kai Watch over Pokémon, and if you're interested in knowing why, here are the reasons why I do:

1: It's interesting how the YKW anime doesn't always just focus on the main protagonist as it also focuses on what some of the other characters and Yo-Kai do more. Pokemon pretty much focused too much on Ash Ketchum for over two decades despite having different friends from different regions. We mostly never get to see what Ash's friends are up to.

2: The side characters in Yo-Kai Watch don't get replaced every couple of years, and it feels like the crew behind the franchise actually gives a damn about their characters, unlike the Pokemon franchise, where they constantly and commonly introduce new characters and rivals and then replace them with new ones every now and then, which I did find pretty cool at first, but now it's gotten old and annoying, and I just wish they'd stop with that.

3: I find the Yo-Kai Watch fanbase to be more sane and less toxic, and it isn't around the same level of how toxic and annoying the Pokemon fanbase is, which is why I left it and also kinda regret being in it. The shippings in Yo-Kai Watch aren't really taken as seriously as the shippings in Pokemon, and there isn't really any shipping wars happening in the Yo-Kai Watch fandom, at least from what I've seen. Plus the fanbase behind the YKW games doesn't seem as bad either.

4: Yo-Kai have more personality and can make more noises and say far more than just their name, which makes it easier for me to know what each Yo-Kai is individually like.

5: The episodes in the YKW anime feel more of my style as I have always personally preferred episodic shows over shows with a lot of ongoing storylines and with the whole to be continued thing which I can find really annoying.

6: The Yo-Kai Watch games, to me, are more enjoyable than the Pokemon games are because there's more exploration to do, there's lots of content in both before and after finishing the game, the cutscenes don't really take up space during my time playing it and they are at least more interesting (especially since there are ones where they speak with voices), and the graphics, soundtracks and settings looks great to me.

7: The storylines in the games and anime are better, plus I find Nate to be a better protagonist than Ash. Nate acts more like a person in the real world with actual personality and it's interesting to see how he can see creatures that other people can't in a non forced way. This goes for Hailey Anne as well because both characters are quite relatable for people in the real world. Ash on the other hand just travels through participates in Pokemon leagues over and over again, and the show can mainly suffer from having him as the main character since it's mostly through his perspective, and the plots mostly involve him and even have him there even if he's just there not doing much (what's the point of even doing that?).

8: There aren't as much gender stereotypes used in Yo-Kai Watch as there is in Pokemon. What I mean by that is the fact that Ash's female come out as either girly girls that participate in stuff that makes them wear dresses and do elegant/graceful stuff with their stuff, or tomboys that want to accomplish something strongly just like Ash. Not only that but all of Ash's' companion's personalities and traits in Pokemon can blend into one-another, resulting in them lacking true individual personalities. Meanwhile in Yo-Kai Watch almost every character is shown to have their own personalities even if they share some traits with each other, showing that there are no gender stereotypes overused.

9: Yo-Kai Watch isn't afraid to leave the status quo like how Pokemon mostly is because we get to see Nate go through different challenges and plots as the series continues, while before season 25, the Pokemon series was too afraid of leaving the status quo to the point where they had to keep Ash going to different regions while keeping him at the age of 10 with Team Rocket stalking him. There are no excuses why they had to keep on doing that other than being afraid to leave the status quo.

10: There's no overuse of clichés in YKW, like Nate having feelings for Katie does not become so forced for example as well as how not every episode plot has the good ending we'd all sorta expect to happen. Heck, the premise seemed pretty original to me also. While in Pokemon, it's about a new trainer becoming a champion and/or Pokemon master overtime and encountering/defeating evil teams in every single region, and this is one of the reasons why I left the fandom. The whole premise just seemed really clichéd to me and it's something that the Pokemon anime was too afraid to change it up more until the horizons series came (I'd say it's more tolerable than the original anime).

And that's me done with explaining things out about why I think this way. I've tried to think the opposite of this when I was younger but I fully failed to do so and went back to my original thoughts on the two franchises. There's just too many Pokemon, games, seasons/episodes, movies, altered storylines and characters from the Pokemon franchise for me to give a damn about them while Yo-Kai Watch gives out all of that stuff in a way where they're not overdoing it and that makes the series more interesting. If you think the other way around, then I can handle that opinion of yours. This pretty concludes what I wanted to say here and I hope y'all understand what I felt like saying here. If you do, thanks.

[hm418]

Inequality in Women's Sports

Introduction

Sports has been a historic form of entertainment for decades. The variety of activities are dominated by men and are often encouraged on young boys. The same cannot be said for young girls as they are seen as generally weaker and less inclined to participate. Girls who display the tomboyish behaviors of athleticism and competitiveness are looked down on. Sometimes there are the unfortunate circumstances where parents believe that they have failed their daughters when they show their competitiveness in sports. As for the women who have decided to make a career out of the sport of their choice, they do not receive the amount of payment that their male counterpart would make. Is it due to double standards, or does the issue run deep within the organization of women's athletics?

Gender Pay Gap

A common complaint from western feminists is the gender pay gap. Many point to the pay gap between the United States Men's National Soccer Team compared to the women's team. The women's National Soccer Team has seen greater success than the men's National Soccer Team on the world scale winning 4 FIFA Women's World Cups. Despite the success, they were not paid as much as the men's team. While many can point the blame on the United States favoring the men's team, the blame should also be on FIFA (International Association Football Federation) for not doing much to create excitement for women's soccer.

Hype for Women's Sports

One of the most exciting things about sports is the joy you feel after a victory or an outstanding performance. Whether it is basketball players celebrating a slam dunk or baseball players celebrating a home run via a bat flip, celebrations help to create hype for the game. There are double standards in women's sports. After players celebrate, they are often ridiculed and accused of wanting to act like men. The most recent example of this is LSU basketball player Angel Reese celebrating her big victory against Iowa. Many in the sports media called Reese out on her celebration calling her unsportsmanlike and rude. To me, this is a blatant example of the double standards in sports. Why is there so much criticism whenever women get excited for their victories?

Even in sports, women still must have the girly stereotypes. Women must act in an elegant way, and if they do not then they are just like men. Yet people complain that women's sports particularly basketball and soccer are boring. The main way to make it not boring is by eliminating what is considered societal norms and let the women celebrate a victory or exciting play.

More Opportunity

Stacie de Armas wrote an article titled, On Different Playing Fields: The Case for Gender Equity in Sports. One of the main issues she brings up is the lack of attention to women's sports on television. She mentions how Title XI grants women equal opportunities to play sports, but it also mandates equal treatment in terms of publicity, which Title XI has failed to uphold. In recent years, there has been a change in how women's sports have been broadcasted. The NCAA Women's basketball tournament set records for the most watched women's basketball series. Despite the controversies of celebrations, it gave a glimpse into the excitement of women's basketball. If we can apply the same type of coverage for other women's sports, the questions of inequality in women's sports can potentially die out.

Conclusion

There are many directions to go around the topic of inequality in Women's Sports. The only way for this to change is if we change our perceptions of societal norms. If given the same opportunities and coverage, women's sports can be just as entertaining as men's sports.

Works Cited

Gender equality: Women empowerment in sports and science. UNESCO.org. (n.d.). Retrieved April 25, 2023, from https://www.unesco.org/en/gender-equality-women-empowerment-sports-and-science

Title IX’s next frontiers in the fight for gender equality. (n.d.). Retrieved April 20, 2023, from https://www.si.com/college/2022/06/23/title-ix-next-frontiers-gender-equality-womens-sports

How equal pay in sports is an uphill battle - insight: By balance now. Insight. (2022, September 9). Retrieved April 20, 2023, from https://insight.balancenow.co/how-equal-pay-in-sports-is-an-uphill-battle/?gclid=CjwKCAjw9J2iBhBPEiwAErwpeciUrFYlkzHe95UeiJiQ8iJfKx6Ano0XbFbWVftvjdYMRnjTcq068xoCi04QAvD_BwE

The case for gender equity in sports. Nielsen. (2022, September 1). Retrieved April 21, 2023, from https://www.nielsen.com/insights/2021/on-different-playing-fields-the-case-for-gender-equity-in-sports/

[dangan-happy]

Alexa, tell Monokuma that a body has been discovered. To Izuru, Kiyo and/or Taichi. [CW: Questioning masculinity] So I’m a trans guy and lately I’ve been wondering if I’m manly enough? Like. I feel like what I do isn’t manly enough?? Like I should be stronger, try doing sports and y’know. I love drawing and photography, which are things that ppl have told me are “girly” so I start feeling bad about liking them, I dunno man-- Some advice or comfort would be cool. A hug or head pat would be nice--

Hello anon, I do find it interesting that you requested me for this ask, since I'm not exactly the stereotypical picture of masculinity, but I will try my best to help you regardless. Gender is a social construct, it isn't something that's "natural" in terms of animals, meaning that there is no specific "right" or "wrong" way to be masculine. I believe the idea of having to do sports or be physically strong to be masculine falls under the idea of toxic masculinity. I know both cis and trans men who have no interest in sports or working out, and that doesn't make them any less masculine in the least. So by no means do you need to have certain interests to consider yourself masculine. Again, that's a fairly toxic viewpoint that those that hold it need to change, you don't need to change anything for them.

Oh? That's very interesting. Most people I know usually do art or photography, not both. That's incredibly fascinating and impressive, I'm pleased to hear that you have two hobbies and talents you enjoy. I'm curious to how people think those activities are "girly". Many well known artists in history are male, and in every National Geographic magazine I happen to pick up, there's usually a picture of a male photographer, crediting him for his pictures. I don't believe activities can be defined with gendered terms. If they were supposed to be gendered, then only masculine people would be good at some things, and feminine people would be good at others with no overlap. However, that's not the case. Masculinity or femininity has no impact on activities, talents, or hobbies and I find it ridiculous that so many people are insistent on labeling things and keeping them in said labels.

Your activities have no impact on how masculine you are. You are masculine regardless of any interests you have. You gain enjoyment out of them, and thus you should never feel bad about what you love. Enjoy your passions, you're obviously a talented person capable of a lot. You are masculine, and you will always be masculine no matter what your interests you are. You are valid, and an amazing individual member of humanity. I am truly pleased to have had the chance to speak to you. I would be happy to give you both a hug and a head pat if you would like. It is up to you.

~~

While that long-haired guy with the zipper face mask is... r-rather intimidating, I-I gotta agree with everything that he said. H-He really is intelligent; he knows exactly wh-what he's saying. Anyway, I'm a bit surprised that you would come to me. I'm just some average, d-decent-looking programmer. I-I'm really flattered though, kiddo, really! I-I hope I can do my best here, especially since that masked kiddo did a r-really good job at helping you out there...

I-I may not be the strongest code in the computer system, b-but I'm still aware of things s-such as toxic masculinity and such. I-I can understand how you feel with feeling like you should be 'more manly', a-and how you feel like you should do things that'll make you 'more manly'. If anything, I can relate to that on a personal level, a-as when I was a kiddo myself, I would get bullied for programming instead o-of playing sports with the others. Plus, I also know people of a-all gender identities, a-and more specifically, cisgender men and transgender men who have little to no interest in sports or anything like it. B-But I won't let the focus slip completely; I-I just wanted to let you know that you're not alone in this. Regardless, j-just because you don't participate in sports or anything li-like it doesn't mean you're not 'manly enough'. Sports or not, y-you're still very much a man who's strong and amazing i-in his own way.

I-I honestly think it's both c-cool and impressive for you to be into both drawing and photography! I-It take a skilled hand and some skilled, um, skills for both of those h-hobbies, believe me. I know a few kiddos who are into one or the other, o-or both even. I-I fail to understand why people are calling those hobbies 'girly' though, when there's really no such thing a-as a loved, cherished hobby being 'girly' or 'manly'. Besides, like the kiddo said, there's plenty of artists and photographers who are men, and heck, there's some who are also trans men or even a different gender identity! S-So while this is probably easier s-said than done, d-don't feel bad for liking those type of things. Th-They don't strip away your masculinity or anything like that at a-all. A-As long as they genuinely m-make you happy and smile, th-then that's what should truly matter the most, kiddo.

I-I guess to put it simply: Y-You're a valid man with valid masculinity, a-and you always will be a skilled, valid man. Do what you love, a-and continue to show others j-just how strong you truly are. I-I'll happily give you both a headpat a-and a hug, kiddo. You deserve it for your hard work and for having the courage to come here, to which, takes a lot of courage and strength.

These two men have summed up the issue quite adequately, so allow me to deliver the closing statements. We cannot allow stereotypes to control our world. It is a plague on us and we need to learn to step away from them and show ourselves how we can in our own manner.  

Not everyone can succeed in photography or drawing. One cannot possess all talents. That lies to me only. But you must take pride in your identity as well as your hobby. Continue to forge your desired path in life without the judgement of others. You’ll find your dedication to be well rewarded...

[recklessrex]

Jellicle-ho did this and now I also want to rank my favorite Cats. So I wrote this instead of writing about Sullivan.

Long Post Warning

To start with I don't hate/dislike any of them. The ones toward the bottom of the list tend to be ones I just think about less often, or don't feel like I connect to as well. Based on 1998 for simplicity's sake.

1) Munkustrap

My baby. Munk's always been my favorite from the very start. It's not just the hero thing, it's not just that Michael Gruber's a handsome mf, it's how he interacts with the others. He's so loving and protective, but at the same time so done with everyone's bullshit (when bullshittery occurs). And then there's the underlying anxiety issues we're all pretty sure he deals with that makes me just want to hug him. He just so clearly wants everyone to be happy and safe. It melts my heart how much joy he gets from seeing his tribe happy. Watch when Deuteronomy shows up in 1998, after he greets him himself (before which he steps aside so others can greet him first cuz he's a sweetheart), he spends most of the walk to the stairs soaking in how happy all the others are and being utterly overjoyed. Add to that his deep, devoted love for his father and how diligently he looks after him, his clear affection for his little brother Tugger despite being more done with his bullshit than anyone else's (Tugger don't touch the bagpip. Tugger no), his strong, tender bond with Alonzo and how smoothly they work together in a crisis, and his sometimes subtle, sometimes not-so-subtle crush on Demeter (notice that she's the only one other than Alonzo that HE approaches right before the Gumbie Cat and the only one he uses both hands to reach out to during that). Also his snark and sass, when he lets it out, is an utter joy. And I love the way he can assert his dominance with just a glance if the situation calls for it (watch him with Cassandra in Grizabella's first scene), but still rarely ever pulls rank like that. Overall he's a really fun character to watch for me, as well as to think about and (if I get around to it) write about.

2) Demeter

My other baby. (I'm so happy my two babies love each other). She's such a complex character. Her backstory of abuse and her current dealings with PTSD as a result are only the jumping off point. I love her moments of bravery, like jumping on Mac to protect the tribe despite everything she's been through. Courage isn't about not being afraid, it's about doing what needs to be done despite your fears. She's the most courageous member of the tribe and I love her so much. As for her relationships with the others, she has a much less subtle crush on Munk than he does on her, but she's so shy about it (and he's so damn polite) I doubt they'd ever get off the ground without a little help. She's so adorable in the way she looks at him, in 1998 she has a particular smile different from her other smiles that seems to be just for him. I also love her connection with Bomba, I feel like if she and Munk ever got off the ground it would be with Bomba's encouragement. Bomba is always there to hold her up when she feels small. While Munk makes her feel safe, Bomba makes her feel strong. So this is why Demelustrap is my OT3 thank you for coming to my TED talk.

3) Mungojerrie

Acts like a dumbass, is actually a genius. (Fight me). I love characters like this. Contradictions. Like brave strong Munk who is actually more emotionally vulnerable than he lets on, or nervous timid Demeter who bravely confronted the person she fears most. Mungo seems fundamentally clueless in most situations but I think he's just a carefree goofball, at least when the stakes are low. He and Teazer are both clever enough to get away with all sorts of mischief, and I don't think it's a "Teazer is the smart one" situation. I mean Teazer is probably smarter, but they need smarts on both sides. I also love how smoothly they work together as a team. Mungo ranks higher for those adorable "clueless" moments and for being a lovable goof.

4) Rumpleteazer

Acts like a bimbo, is actually a genius. To a lesser extent than Mungo in that she acts way less clueless than he does, and her antics are usually more obviously silliness rather than dumbassery. Would be higher but I just like Mungo's goofy aesthetic a bit more. I'd also like to take this time to note I do NOT think they are siblings. (Fight me. Again)

5) Mistoffolees

Another of those contradictions I love. He's simultaneously shy and showy, bold and insecure. He doesn't quite know who he is yet, but he knows who he wants to be. He's also adorable to watch, with his little hops and poses. His relationship with Tugger is adorable, whether you see them as mates or BFFs (both? both. both is good), and his obvious crush on Victoria is equally adorable (more NOT siblings!). The way he melts when she smiles at him toward the beginning of 1998 *sigh* so cute

6) Alonzo

Sorry @jellicle-ho I do love him lots, but he doesn't make the top five simply because I feel closer to Misto and the Chaos Twins (just an expression, not siblings!) on a spiritual level. He's still one of the best characters. He has his "contradiction" element of being cocky but somewhat insecure, and I especially love that he's just as serious as he is playful. He's also a slinky, sassy bastard and a blast to watch on stage.

7) Victoria

Woo boy. Okay first of all, since it seems to be a major factor, the contradiction element. She seems like a shy, reserved, almost demure young lady at first, but she's actually that quietly sassy serene girl at the Alpha bitch's lunch table, the one that's actually nice and doesn't participate in putting down the weird kid no one likes. But she's still gonna judge you. I love every moment of Victoria-sideeye in the 1998 video. And of course there's her whole side plot which basically revolves around her being extremely DTF, which is quite the opposite of "demure." Also her obvious crush on Misto is also adorable, the way she smiles at him, ugh like the only reason she danced with Plato instead is because Misto was too shy to approach her (also Plato has much better upper body strength so hey ho, hey hue, let's go Pas de Deux). She's also so very graceful and elegent and then there's her "omg why!?" flexibility which make her fascinating to watch.

8) Pouncival

Precious child. Precious little jackass brat. No but really I love him so much he's such a brat but also like he's tiny? And he wants to be cool sooo bad! The way he runs in for his "and bright!" all excited, I just can't. He has this sort of quiet, but enthusiastic demeaner of someone that knows he's not the star, but hopes to be, and he's bursting with energy in a pseudo-controlled way that I find more compelling than Etcetera's brand of enthusiasm. I love his acrobatics, whether they're super smooth, adorably clumsy, or straight up pratfalls. I love how 14-years-old he is. You can see him getting bored in that teenage "okay grampa you've told this story forty times already" kind of way during part of Gus's song. I love how adorably menacing he looks during the Naming of Cats. I just love the baby. He is very baby.

9) Bombalurina

She's beauty. She's grace. She'll smack you in the face. She's sexy and she knows it. She's such a confident, strong woman, and while she's the most overtly sexualized character, I kind of find it's even more empowering, you know? Like the idea that a woman can be both sexy and strong, she doesn't have to pick one. Bomba is walking proof that being strong, bold, and tough is not inherently "masculine," nor is protecting others. Don't get me wrong, I love strong female characters of all varieties, I'm not here to knock the tomboy trope, but when a strong female character is also sexually liberated it's just a different level of empowerment. Not just the deconstruction of "masculine/feminine" lines, but also in the "my body, my life, my choice" kind of way. Further, I absolutely love her relationship with Demeter. I personally support the mates, bffs, and siblings hcs because they honestly work so well as any of these (but as mentioned above, Demelustrap is my OT3, despite not always getting strong Bombastrap vibes). Her protectiveness and desire to comfort Demeter is so beautiful. Maybe it's the contradiction thing that I love so much. Strong, bold Bomba has her most tender moments when looking after Demeter. Idk. Moving on!

10) Rum Tum Tugger

He's beauty. He's… grace? He probably won't smack you in the face. He's sexy and he SO knows it. Tugger is walking proof that certain stereotyped "feminine" traits aren't inherently feminine, or to put it another way, he breaks down what it means to be "masculine." Think about it. Cares about his looks, beautiful luxurious long hair, wiggles his hips, wiggles his hips more, wiggles his hips when he walks, struts like a model on a runway, shakes his chest to be sexy, idolizes a cute boy, fashionable clothes (knee-bandana ftw!), all stereotypical "girly" traits, but would anyone describe Tugger as "girly"? Anyway, that's not even what I love most about him. I actually used to dislike him as a kid, but these days I can't get enough of him. Most of the time he just oozes positive vibes in one way or another, be it party vibes or laid back vibes. Most of his screentime in 1998 is such a good time because of that. He has such an energy and ferocity to him during his dance numbers, especially the second half of the Jellicle Ball in 1998. And then there's his quiet moments, especially the affection he shares with Munk while singing about their dad (omg the respect and affection he feels for both of them, coming from such a self-loving bastard it just ahhhhhh), and then after Deuteronomy comes back I just can't he's so sweet omg. Not to mention his whole relationship with Misto. Aside from the whole idolizing thing, which is adorable, he also is so supportive and encouraging. He just naturally bleeds confidence and good vibes, but he deliberately offers that confidence to Misto when he needs it. It's so beautiful and I'm gonna cry. I used to ship him with Bomba, but these days I hc them as friends with occasional benefits that like to place bets on how far interactions between Munk and Deme will go before one of them chickens out or gets awkward, and on which one will be the awkward chicken this time.

Wow I talked a lot about Tugger and he's only #10. Okay well, you folks ready to get controversial?

11) Macavity

I know I know, hear me out. I know most people interpret him as a total bastard with no redeeming qualities but like, I don't read him that way? Anyway I have complicated feelings about Mac but I'll get more into it in another post. As a character in the show I do really like him as a villain, I love his laugh, I love his "no look guys it's okay I brought him back see he's over there heheheh" gesture before he shows up in disguise, I love how show-boaty and "totally hyped for this" he is when he reveals himself, I love his "no wait please don't hurt me it's cool I'm leaving" gesture at Alonzo after the Jellicles start ganging up on him, he's just a blast of a character really, whether he's redemable or not.

12) Old Deuteronomy

Sweetest man you'll ever know. His compassion for the entire tribe is so sweet it hurts. He even feels love and understanding for Griz, and (futiley) tries to persuade the others to accept her, even subtley scolding them after the first "Memory" with his "Moments of Happiness." He loves his sons especially, and I adore every moment he interacts with either of them. He also can bring the sass, see his 'chin up' posture before Tugger bows to him, which I always read as them playfully teasing each other, or his little eye-roll when Munk gets a bit extra talking about the fire brigade. On that note, how into Munk's little play he is, even though it's going wrong. He keeps making encouraging gestures at Munk and reacting with surprise at the right moments (when Munk is looking at least lol). Anyway he's great moving on.

13) Jennyanydots

Jenny is that cool aunt that hangs out and has fun but also won't put up with your nonsense. She's so great I love her so much. She's honestly just a blast all the time I love her so much what can I say? I hc her as teaching Tumblebrutus how to sew. I don't know why.

14) Electra

Ah the "quiet" kitten. I read her as the tough tomboyish one of the girl kittens, and I hc her as sort of in training as a protector, and that's why she's more serious than the others. In 1998 she seems to look up to Munk, being the first to greet him before Gumbie Cat, and nuzzling him during Old Deuteronomy. 1998 Electra also has a lot of little adorable motions like licking her paws during Old Deuteronomy and retrieving the Peke paw from the middle of stage and than posing/playing with it during the Pekes and the Pollicles. I also love her freckles and her pink arm warmer. Massively underrated character.

15) Tumblebrutus

SPINNY. BALLET. BOI. Nuff said. But I'm gonna say more. He keeps up with Misto in ballet and exceeds Pounce in acrobatics, and as such is fascinating to watch. Also Brutus's struggle between his playful instincts and his desire to impress his elders is so adorable.

16) Admetus/George

First of all I first knew him as Admetus long long ago, and he will always be Admetus to me. Sorry. Second, omg this lovely, happy, wonderfully expressive boi. His face at literally any point in 1998 is such a gem.

17) Jemima

Speaking of great expressions, how bout Jemima? She's so cute and sweet! I love her whole deal of understanding Griz's pain and trying to get the rest of the tribe to understand. The only reason she's not higher up is because I somehow don't emotionally connect with her like I do some of the other kittens.

18) Coricopat

The more laid-back and playful half of the mystic twins. The twins in general are cool af, but Corico ranks higher for being more relatable.

19) Skimbleshanks

BUBBLY. TRAIN. DAD. Nuff said. Buttttt I'm gonna say more! Skimble is your best friend's dad that is always chaperoning on field trips but that's okay because he's actually pretty fun to be around most of the time. I love his cheerful expressions and his little jigs. His song is so much fun. And I love the relationship between him and Spara in 1998. More on that below

20) Asparagus

Okay so Spara is your other best friend's dad (or your best friend's other dad) who sometimes tries too hard to be cool and connect with the kids but that's okay because he's so nice and besides it's kind of adorable? What I find most adorable about Spara though is how hard he's crushing on Skimble. Like even if you hc them as already in a relationship, he really just can't get enough of Train Dad. Look at how Spara smiles at Skimble ALL THE DAMN TIME. He's practically blushing at multiple points during Skimble's song. And Skimble tends to gravitate towards Spara quite a bit, and omg that big grin he gives him during the line "sleeping car exprrrrreeesss!" I'm dead. In conclusion I need more Asparashanks content thank you for coming to my TED talk

21) Cassandra

I WANT to like Cassandra better than I do. I really really want to. But I feel like she's just so hard to get to know. I do enjoy her on stage, but as a character with backstory and motives she's a bit hard to work with. That being said she's by no means a flat character. I do hc her as one of the deputy protectors along with Alonzo, and more recently as part of the BFF power trio of her, Alonzo, and Munk, since Alonzo and much more subtley Munk are the only ones she shows any physical affection toward, aside from occasionally hanging out with T-brutus but we'll shelve that for now. I do really enjoy watching her though, she has some really interesting movements and expressions. And she does radiate a sort of "try me, I fucking dare you" vibe that I love a lot.

22) Tantomile

I have the same problem with Tanto that I do with Cass. I just don't feel like I know her very well. She is cool as a mystical psychic character, but that's part of what makes the twins in general cool. So far I haven't been able to connect to her as an individual without her brother, otherwise she would be much higher on this list. She's still cool though.

22) Plato

*Deep breath* okay. I don't dislike Plato. I just.. okay look out of the male kittens/young adults, he's my least favorite. He does have qualities that I really like, like how he's a shy reserved boy on the outside and a fiery passionate soul on the inside. That's cool. Also those intense expressions are pretty cool I guess. I guess I might have less positive feelings about him because everyone assumes Victoria's magically in love now because of the Pas de Deux even though they barely interact otherwise. Which is unfair of me to feel that way. I hc him as struggling with internalized anger and anxiety and having difficulty expressing himself.

23) Etcetera

I'll be honest, I used to find her annoying. This one's pretty much entirely on me, because she has a superficially similar demeanor to a girl that used to bully me in school. But since graduating Cety's grown on me a lot, not in small part due to her wonderful enthusiasm for literally everything. While less compelling to me than Pounce's quieter, more controlled flavor of energetic enthusiasm, her bouncy jubilance still makes me grin and giggle along with her, so that's a major plus.

24) Jellylorum

Jelly is your other cool aunt that worries too much about your safety but also has cool stories to tell and is always doing like art and stuff in her garage. I hc her as the tribe nurse. Would be higher if not for slight Karen-ness.

25) Gus

Only on stage for a short time but he shines. The way he starts out all helpless looking like he doesn't even know where he is and slowly blossoms into singing about his old days with enthusiasm, and then breaking down into tears. He's a great character for the scene that he's in, but unfortunately there's not a lot else to him, so he gets a low spot on the list

26) Grizabella

Oof. Okay so. I get it. She messed up. My hc is… well, complicated, but short version is she never planned on being a mom and has no idea how to be a mom, and so she just let Deut raise Munk and visited occasionally (ahem rarely), but she does end up later spending some time as his primary caregiver, and she fucks up royally, like massive neglect and mild emotional manipulation, and ends up emotionally damaging Munk more than if she'd left him alone. SO with this hc in mind, is she redemable? Idk. But the tribe forgave her so that's what matters. Do I feel sorry for her? Yes. Do I believe she honestly regrets her past actions? …kind of? Yes. Let's go with yes. Does any of this make her my favorite character? Not by a long shot. I have mixed feelings about Grizabella. I don't dislike her I just… don't know how to feel about her.

27) Bustopher Jones

Walking fat joke, but a pleasant walking fat joke. Wish we could have got to know him better than "that cultured fat guy all the toms want to impress." He's fun though. I love his expressions throughout his song, and that toodle-pip! is so adorable.

28) Exotica

Oh Exotica. Who even are you. We don't know you at all. I do like the moment in Old D's song when she's reaching from the outside of the crowd hoping to get to touch him, and he reaches out so she can, and immediately after touching him she drops her hand and backs away, which I read as shy fangirl overload flee the scene omg he touched me omgomgomg. So that was cute. Ummm. I wish she'd stop changing colors every three seconds so I could keep track of her. Other than that, I don't dislike her, I just don't know her well enough to like her.

Omg I made it to the end. Did I forget anybody? I don't think so... Phew, that was so hard! Thanks for reading if you made it this far! :)

[onlyfansstan]

The end to sl*t sh*ming

Don’t hate the worker when you consume the product 

They don’t call it the oldest profession for no reason. Sex work has been around for ages and with time has now evolved, the stigma behind it has not so evolved.  Sex work can include naked pictures for sale, stripping, any form of revenue that can come from the body, and porn. Men will never be able to fully imagine what women go through on a daily basis, from being judged and taught these manners. They don’t have to live up to any standard like trying to be sexy but not slutty or being judged between a girly girl or a tomboy and these are just some small standards. Certain rules and things women aren’t allowed to do because of their safety, extra precautions because of the world which makes us fragile and vulnerable. This is all because of our sexual organs. Crazy to think how men will pay, rape, and even kill for one thing. With this much at stake, why shouldn’t women use their body to their advantage? Only Fans has been around since 2016 but has recently sky rocketed and has changed the game for sex work. Only fans is a cite which lets creators monetize their influence, but has taken over with naked content. Women are now more than able to have and take full control of the kind of sex work they are working in.  Platforms like OnlyFans allow women to have control and ownership over their own bodies, to make decisions about what they do with their bodies and who these actions are for. They are in full control and know to what extent they want to provide their service. It isn’t fair that women get slut shamed for this or lose their jobs. What is “Slut shaming” you may ask, "Slut shaming." The urban dictionary defines the term as "An unfortunate phenomenon in which people degrade or mock a woman because she enjoys having sex, has sex a lot, or may even just be rumored to participate in sexual activity." Men love to be the first ones in saying how women are "whores" or "sluts" for selling their body, but still watch FREE porn. Men are the reason there is a demand, they are the reason why sex work exists. They create an industry and when women take over and want to benefit from it, they give them backlash. With cites like these (Only Fans) women get control of who sees their body and kind of keep track of how many people have access to it. It gives them a safe place to  do their work without feeling shady. Even if a women did do porn, not all the money made from the video is to the actors. Most porn stars don’t even make a lot of money which is another stereotype they have. Only fans gives sex workers the full creativity and capabality to be their own boss and create the content they want. How famous or popular one is all really is up to the creator as well. With times like this, in pandemic and all people are just trying to swing by and make ends meet there should be no shame about it. It is very much empowering because women are taking over and doing something for their benefit. . In the words of Joe Biden: "There is never, never, never cultural justification for dehumanizing another human being." This issue is important to me because I am sick of hearing and reading about all this slander when women should be able to make money how they want. This does not affect men nor women which is why I don't see why people have big issues with it. Sometimes this is the only way of income that they have and are able to make. Participating in this type of work not and should not make a women/men any less of a “human”, this is work a job. A job does not define a type of person. Maybe if people made a good living wage they would not have to resort in sex work. Sex work is usually not a first choice and the fact that people want to dehumanize a person for the type of work they participate in needs to stop. This will not happen overnight which is why it starts with you! 

If the roles were reversed, men would not be slut shamed. Men don’t get slut shamed for having a lot of sexual partners but women who sell their photos online for money are “Whores/sluts” and can lose jobs. Internalized misogyny is a fancy phrase that can be interrupted  to women being exposed to men's misogynistic rhetoric and behavior to the point where they start to believe that it's true and it gets embedded to their mind which then leads to other women slut shaming women. The majority of the shaming comes from the male population, but that does not mean that women don’t put other women down as well. At the end of the day, it is on both parties and neither should be doing it. Males should not be doing so because they created the market and demand for such “job”. Women should be empowering other women and motivating them, it is hard enough to be a woman and yet we make it harder on ourselves by meaning to one another and hating one another. I want to say it is mostly the fault of men because they are the same ones who judge a woman because they sell their body online and yet are the ones who watch adult content for free. Ending the stigma starts from home, the topic of sex should not be so taboo. It seems as if men see sex as something they do to a women and not with a women. 

[beeinmybonnet]

The Trouble With Women in Tech (hint: it's not biological)

There is disproportionate representation of women in tech and yes, it is a problem.

Advocates of the devil will ask questions such as: Why is it a problem? If women and girls don’t gravitate towards STEM (science, technology, engineering, maths) why force the issue? Well, when the global population is increasingly reliant on technology, from a grass root level through to government, military, education, law, it is important that the 3.5bn female humans on the planet are represented. If the only tech inventors, scientists and luminaries of a generation are boys and men, then women and girls will be at a constant disadvantage in every aspect of life. Using literacy as an example, there is undisputed correlation between a child who can read and write faring better in life than one who can’t. ‘Success’ is subjective and personal, but life is easier for the literate person – and now we need to consider technological literacy as vital alongside reading, writing and numeracy. London School of Economics MSc student Marie Misund-Bringslid puts it beautifully:

“So why should women work in tech? To me the answer is quite obvious. After all, we make up half the users of technology. Tech is all too often designed for great big man bodies, and not for women. This includes vital inventions such as the air bag, artificial hearts and mobile phones. As we are becoming more and more dependent on technology, it makes up an increasingly important part of our everyday lives. It is obvious that women should be as influential in development and creation as men.”

Men and women are different; but they should also be equal in terms of representation in, and benefitting from the outputs of, STEM fields.

Why are girls not as drawn to STEM subjects as boys? Why are there fewer women in STEM careers? What puts women off working in the tech sector? How do we fix the problem?

Many leaders in STEM do appreciate the benefits of a diverse workforce and would gladly hire more women, but they are finding that only 5% of applications for tech positions come from women. Tech sector recruiters concur – not enough women are putting themselves forward in the first place.

This leads to the ultimate question: what do only girl children experience that steers them away from science, tech, engineering and mathematics?

Let’s put ourselves in a girl’s shoes from the very beginning and take a hypothetical journey with her. This should go some way towards highlighting the hurdles and obstacles that she may be forced to navigate in order to become a successful female leader in a STEM field. We are hypothesising and empathising – this is absolutely not a description of every woman’s experience; there are countless differences, factor combinations, levels of privilege, nuances. But all these experiences are going on, in the developed world, right now, to girls and women.

First steps

In the US in particular it’s increasingly common for parents to find out a baby’s gender months before her birth. Whilst not completely mainstream, gender reveal parties are a growing trend – cakes are sliced, balloons are released, powder crackers are pulled with the resulting pink or blue emerging to much excitement from all involved. Unconsciously, and certainly without malice, parents build up certain expectations and ideas about their unborn child based on the result of this ‘revelation’. Even before such celebrations were invented, the first question on anyone’s lips on the arrival of a new baby is “boy or girl?”. This stuff is given real meaning.

There are so many assumptions and unchallenged beliefs based purely on a child’s gender that it is be nigh on impossible to raise a child without any gender bias; those who do try are widely lambasted and mocked. Sugar and spice / slugs and snails. Princesses / superheroes. Beauty / brawn. Of course, many boys and girls fit comfortably into their assigned roles, and many are none the worse for it.

But what of the girl child who asks too many difficult questions, thinks critically, shuns her ‘cute’ toys in order to explore and build and dismantle? She gravitates towards “boy’s” toys, books, games, TV shows and pursuits which are so often based on bravery, discovery, adventure, strength, heroics, risk taking, problem solving and competing. At the very least she is labelled a ‘tomboy’, which serves to let her know she is different, not a ‘normal’ girly girl. She may even be forced to comply, to play the girly girl role, and is denied the chance to follow the interests that lie outside of these parameters. Of course there are the 'girly’ engineers, the super-feminine scientists, but they exist because their environment has allowed them to nurture all sides of their character rather than just one, and they are even more in the minority. Chances are there are few, if any, realistic female role models who she can emulate and look up to. And all this before she even starts school.

School days

Already carrying the weight of feeling “different” from her peers, our inquisitive and scientifically-minded girl child joins the education system. We can now add to the passive, unconscious gender expectations, with some more active gender stereotyping by those around her. Teachers are unwittingly deterring female students from taking maths and science subjects by implying that they are more difficult than other subjects, according to a report published in 2015. Gender stereotyping is a broader issue in schools and the problems associated with gender bias affect boys as well as girls - in some cases secondary school pupils are deterred from choosing subjects traditionally associated with the opposite gender because they feared homophobic bullying. This is particularly an issue for girls in maths, physics and engineering, and for boys in modern foreign languages.

A large number of pupils, both male and female, reported living with a daily barrage of sexist “banter”. These pupils “were aware that some of their behaviours and subject choices are heavily gendered, and often driven by peer pressure”. 

Peer pressure can be a minefield, most children want to feel ‘normal’, no teen enjoys having their differences pointed out. It will be even tougher if a school girl is relatively uninterested in all the pursuits that are expected and even encouraged amongst her female peers – such as beauty / appearance, female-dominated subjects, and being popular / sociable. She may start to quieten her voice, withdraw into herself, and feel less brave when it comes to participation in her science, technology or maths lessons. She may feel all too conspicuous – school years are hard enough when one does blend in to the crowd and stick with the mainstream.

Dame Mary Archer, chair of the Science Museum Group, explained “Girls switch off from maths and science around the age of 14… Young role models between the ages of 14 and 16 are really important in showing girls that science and maths are for people like them." 

In addition to this she is subjected to the usual deeply ingrained mainstream misogyny, along with all her female peers; she is expected to be aesthetically pleasing, to take up as little space as possible, to be accommodating and apologetic, to avoid being 'bossy’, to take responsibility for any affect she has on her male peers, to behave well, and to not question rules or authority. The aforementioned report also highlighted “casual sexism in class, such as cat-calling, sexist jokes and derogatory language. Often senior leaders would assert that there was no problem with sexist language at their school but students would report it as an “everyday reality”. In extreme cases this language 'verged on bullying’.”

Higher education

So, our young female protagonist has stuck with her STEM interests thus far. She now carries passive, unconscious, preconceived expectations, active stereotyping, gender bias and peer pressure, few relatable real-life STEM role models, a magnified self-consciousness, and she looks to the STEM community for inspiration on what to do next. She is bright, she is still inquisitive and diligent, and she is all the more resolute and resilient having taken a trickier path than many through school. But her proverbial voice is not as loud as it could be, and certainly not as confident as the majority of male voices around her – there is not necessarily a correlation between their volume and the skills and talent behind them.

Indeed, bright girls are much quicker to doubt their ability, to lose confidence and to become less effective learners as a result. As explained by Heidi Grant Halvorson, Ph.D in her 2011 article The Trouble With Bright Girls:

“Successful women know only too well that in any male-dominated profession, we often find ourselves at a distinct disadvantage. We are routinely underestimated, underutilized and even underpaid. Studies show that women need to perform at extraordinarily high levels, just to appear moderately competent compared to our male coworkers.”

Workforce

She overcomes unconscious (and conscious) bias in the hiring process and joins the workforce in a STEM field. She knows that she is at least as skilled as her male co-workers but she watches as those with the loudest voices are progressed and promoted. She is in the minority, and fellow female colleagues are noticeable in their absence. The culture is often competitive, ego-centric and sometimes aggressive. She is none of those things (although she does know some young women who are, and they are labelled unfavourably too). But she is ambitious, and brave. The majority of female friends she has made along the way were dissuaded from even considering a career in STEM, despite their great skill and qualifications, by the reputation that preceded it. Or perhaps they dipped their toe in the water and decided that no, it would take too much extra emotional – and literal – labour to be a woman in STEM.

The Elephant in the Valley was a collaborative effort between seven women in Silicon Valley with backgrounds including venture capital, academia and entrepreneurship. They compiled a list of several hundred senior level women from their collective contact lists and invited them to participate in a survey about gender in Silicon Valley between April and May 2015. 100% of respondents were women, and 100% with at least ten years of experience; 25% of whom were at CXO level, and 22% were venture capitalists or company founders / entrepreneurs.

The results are alarming. 84% of women in tech have been told they are ‘too aggressive’, almost half have been asked to carry out lower-level tasks that male colleagues are not asked to do, two-thirds have felt excluded from key social / networking opportunities, 59% have not had the same opportunities as their male counterparts and an astonishing 90% have witnessed sexist behaviour at company events or industry conferences. When it comes to unconscious bias, 88% of women in tech have had clients / colleagues address questions to male peers that should have been addressed to them, 87% have been on the receiving end of demeaning comments from male colleagues and 60% have experienced unwanted sexual advances - 65% of these were from a superior, and half were repeat offences.

As Bethanye Blount’s and Susan Wu’s examples show in Liz Mundy’s infamous piece in The Atlantic, “succeeding in tech as a woman requires something more treacherous than the old adage about Ginger Rogers doing everything Fred Astaire did, only backwards and in high heels. It’s more like doing everything backwards and in heels while some guy is trying to yank at your dress, and another is telling you that a woman can’t dance as well as a man, oh, and could you stop dancing for a moment and bring him something to drink?”

So, are women in tech doing anything to help themselves? The answer is yes, but of the women who do report sexual harassment, 60% are dissatisfied with the subsequent course of action. 40% don’t report at all because they believe it will negatively impact their career, with a further 30% keeping quiet in order to forget presumably traumatic or at the very least unpleasant experiences. Women in lower paid positions fare worse still as their ability to ‘fight back’ legally is limited financially.

Glass ceilings

Our young woman continues on her journey. She now carries the weight of a lifetime of passive, unconscious, preconceived expectations, active stereotyping, gender bias and peer pressure, few relatable real-life STEM role models, a magnified self-consciousness, the effort of treading a fine line in terms of character traits (she can’t be perceived as too hard OR too soft), casual and recurring sexual harassment or unwanted advances happening to her or around her or both, and the effort required to ensure she cannot be seen to invite it, discrimination (both assumed and literal) around childbearing and family, and prevalent unconscious biases at every level from entry to C suite… and she navigates the casual sexism that ripples throughout in every industry, but is magnified still in STEM.

Sexist conversations infiltrate her consciousness and undermine her confidence. Harassment and discrimination suits abound, and these are just the tip of an iceberg of all the incidences that go unreported or are settled privately in non-disparagement agreements.

She draws on the resilience and resolve that got her through the tough school years, and she ‘leans in’. She collaborates with like-minded and diverse counterparts. She studies, networks, learns and absorbs, seeks inspirational mentors – male and female – and she aims high. She is judged on her appearance more than any male counterpart. There is a perception that she has less gravitas. She has to continually break through the threads of old boy’s networks. She endures and overlooks gender-based (and often patronising) labels such as ‘mumpreneur’ (‘dadpreneur’?), ‘girl’ (no male tech leader is ever called ‘boy’), ‘bossy’ (that old chestnut), ‘feisty’, ‘ball-breaker’, or the classic ‘bitch’. She dreams of the day she is only ever referred to in terms that are applied to both men and women.

Role model

She is accomplished and successful not just because of her natural strengths, interests and conspicuousness, but also in spite of them.

She is a board member or a thought leader or a tech evangelist or a CTO or a luminary or a key note speaker – a celebrated Woman In Tech. She becomes the role model that she needed. And the unborn girl babies will have one more role model to look to for strength and inspiration as they deflect all the outside forces that work to discourage or distract them from their STEM destinies.

In her Fortune interview back in January 2015, hugely influential tech venture capitalist Eileen Burbridge displayed the balanced, logical and inspiring attitude that STEM needs more of:

“I actively seek out strong entrepreneurs – regardless of gender or demographic. For obvious reasons, I take a great interest in women entrepreneurs in particular. Therefore, I try to make myself available to anyone who is interested in connecting, getting feedback – or pitching. Over the years I’ve seen more women entrepreneurs emerging and I look forward to this trend continuing.”

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, she and her VC partners refuse to invest in “jerks”, a business policy that would go a long way towards eradicating the objectionable behaviour that’s disproportionately rife in STEM, but such progressive and outlandish business practices are unsurprisingly rare.

The future

We’ve not even touched on the can of worms that is the gender pay gap, nor examined the extra discrimination experienced by non-white women and men. These are hugely important issues in and of themselves – only when we achieve equal pay for equal work and eradicate racial bias and under-representation can we even begin to congratulate ourselves.

In the meantime, let’s celebrate the ones who have made it, acknowledge all that it took to get there, and work to remove the obstacles that we’ve historically put in girls’ paths to STEM success for those who wish to follow in our hypothetical heroine’s footsteps.

[voltronramblings]

okay but can we just take a moment to imagine Team Voltron+ in high school and parkour

- Coran is the quirky teacher who wears weird clothes to school but is really chill? Makes up the best assignments and makes his classes actually interesting and makes the students actually want to participate. Still pushes his students to be the best that they can, and is always open to students who want to talk to him about anything, problems, concerns, doubts, everything. Has probably made something explode (it doesn’t matter the class). He’s that one teacher who’s too young to be their dad figure, but too old to be their “friend”.

- Shiro is a senior and was the star of the basketball team until he got in a motorcycle accident which resulted in him losing his left arm and needing a prosthetic, and having a scar running across his nose. Good grades, good kid, but just hasn’t been the same since the time of his accident. Lots of rumors about this kid, but honestly, he’s just stressed. Doesn’t really talk to anyone, but the people he does talk to are the people that others tend to avoid. He accepts them and they appreciate him so much.

- Keith is the “emo” sophomore. At least, that’s what everyone at school thinks. In all actuality, he gets one of the best, if not the best, grades in his grade. He just has some disciplinary issues, so he ends up in detention a lot, labeling him as a delinquent. There are so many rumors about this kid that even the teachers have some, but no, he’s just clueless. Still a dork tbh, because nothing could ever change that. He just has troubles expressing his emotions sometimes.

- Lance is a sophomore and seems like one of those popular people, but in reality is kind of in the background. Works hard at everything, only to find out that he’s not the best. Loved by the freshmen and sophomores, and teachers, like he’s Coran’s favorite. Flirts with all of the cheerleaders, but they’ve all turned him down. Known as the class clown, but still trying to find his place in his school.

- Hunk is also a sophomore and kinda gets picked on for being “a girly crybaby” (if someone actually said this about Hunk, I am fine with going to prison. Just saying). IS SUCH A SWEETHEART STILL like he brings his friends these homemade meals and stuff, and he shares his notes with whoever asks and I mean, they’re so helpful. Needs a little more self-confidence! Brings snacks everywhere and ends up sharing the people sitting around him. 

- Pidge is a freshman who takes approximately 0 crap from anyone. She’s actually gotten pretty famous for correcting the teacher in the middle of class, especially when they’re rude to her, and she is the top of her grade, so she’s kinda intimidating. Has actually gotten into fights with administration and upperclassmen before, and hacks into the school system. Loves her brother with all of her heart, and handles all of her brother’s bullies.

- Matt is a junior who kinda blended into the background until his sister joined his high school, at which point he became known as the only person who could calm her down. Also exceptionally bright, but sometimes gets picked on because of this. Doesn’t really want to be involved with anything, including most people, because science is better anyway. An awkward sweetheart.

- Shay is a freshman who’s really sweet and always open to helping people. Really shy at first, but doesn’t discriminate against anyone. Understanding, accepting. No one can actually hate her because she sees too much good in everyone. She sometimes doesn’t understand concepts, but she actually asks her teachers for help so they love her. Slowly gaining confidence.

- Allura being the beautiful, popular junior that all the girls want to be and all the guys have had a crush on at one point or another. Kind, strong, smart, basically perfect. A cheerleader, but not like one of those stereotypical rude ones that are in all of the movies. Talks to everyone and makes sure everyone is included to the best of her abilities. She’s the girl who knows literally everything because everyone goes to her to talk about their problems, and she loves helping. 

- except no one talks. No one even knows each other. Except Allura. Allura remembers everything that they went through because this is simply an affect of one of the planets they landed on and they’re still fighting the Galra, but they’re under this spell that has confused their concept of what’s reality, and it’s up to Allura to help them all remember each other and their mission. But can you just imagine the pain Allura would go through as she watched her beloved teammates, her family never even speak while she remembered everything? I live for angst. But I feel as though Allura may have some sort of ability to cancels any effects of magic/time warps/alternate realities. Maybe it’s that thing that seemed like magic at the end of season two???

- I never said this was an AU.

- So as she’s trying to get everyone back together, the team don’t actually get along because their personalities clash so much? Especially Lance and Keith, because it was the same last time too, and Allura is too done to have to get them to get along all over again oh my word save her.

- But one night, they all ended up at Keith’s little hang out area which has been overrun by a group of kids their age and upon arrival, the team voltron+ kids were kinda awkward and stiff. but Allura is trying her best to get them to relax and have fun, but these other jerks start making crude comments about Allura, Pidge, and Shay. 

- And I swear it’s like a switch goes on. Everyone goes to protect Allura, like Keith is actually prepared to beat the living crap out of them and Pidge is right behind him, plus that is no way to talk to her or any other lady for that matter. Shiro goes deadly silent and gives them his worst glare, because boy does he look the part. Lance and Hunk are less physical about it, but they are fully prepare to go. And Coran has already started lecturing them, but seeing their bad attitudes has resorted to turning a blind eye to whatever happens to them after that. Matt may not be the strongest, but no one talks to his sister like that. And Shay is in that same place, although she really just doesn’t want anyone to get hurt, and doesn’t want to fight anyone. And Allura is just so proud and happy, because even though they themselves weren’t all on good terms, they would still protect her...! But I mean, this girl probably throws the first punch because “SCREW YOU BUCKOS I AM A LADY”

- They legitimately chase them out of the park and everyone just kinda acknowledges everyone else’s athletic abilities and Keith mentions this being his area to practice parkour stunts and Allura exclaims “We should make this a thing!” and poor Shay just says, “I don’t think it would be a good idea to have to deal with those kind of people again” and Allura smiles and explains the idea of being some sort of parkour group.

- Coran is against the idea until they get into a sort of parkour battle with some other kids (not the same guys from before) and they make fun of him, and Coran literally just jumps right in there with the rest of his students (which is kinda awkward to him, but oh well), and they’re like “okay whoa” and yeah, now he’s kinda invested.

- And thus, Team Voltron was born again. Except this time... in parkour.

- This started with me liking the au of them being in school (high school, or college, really) and then I found the dance AU and as much as I love the diversity of the dances, I just... I love parkour...? I can’t do it to save my life probably because, I mean, I barely even work out. But I admire it so much? Either parkour or some kind of street-dancing/hip-hop they got going on.

[buinhathahuong]

The Problems Within The Lesbian Community in Vietnam

I first awared that I liked girls when I was 11. Unlike most lesbians’ experience when they first found out, I was not confused or felt bad about myself. Instead, I went to find people who were like me, attracted to girls, right away. Internet was my bestfriend. It was something I totally relied on, I trusted people who shared the same experience with me online rather than my own family. Of course I admitted that it was not a wise thing to do for me or any other 11 year old girls who has not yet gone through anything serious in life. But I was like the others, feeling alone and disconnected to “normal” people around us. Internet was a great thing to me, it brought me so much new information and details that I could never find in school or the enviroment that I lived in, especially with the lgbt themed films, writings, and art. I was really into an anime genre called “Yuri”, it focuses on the relationship between 2 females and I got to make new friends in the Yuri’s fandom. As I grew up, I was terrified to think whether my attraction was legitimate or I was just affected by the images I watched from those films. And I concluded I was not misconcepted about myself, but instead those animations helped me realized that my feelings were real, and that those kind of relationships do exist.

My parents eventually found I was active on a anime forum when I was 12. They were mad, they called me names, hit me, and banned me from using computer. I was upset and started to experience depression from then up until now, even I have officially come out to them and been accepted by my parents. But an other part of me felt grateful for what they did and thought they made the right choice to me even it was brutal. Being isolated was terrible, but I was having all the time in the world to reflect and understand myself better. There was nothing to influence me but myself alone. So at 14, I was able to access the internet thanks to my cousin’s Ipod that was given to me. I went back to all the forums that I spent my times on and feeling exciting to finally meet “my people” again. Instead of the joyful reunion that I imagined, I was like a foreigner wandering around the community that I was supposed to feel related the most.

Before the 2000s, there were not much information about the LGBT community in Vietnam. Then the internet happened. LGBT people who lived overseas or able to understand English started to translate any news they came across about the community and uploaded to forums so people could read about it. More people started to understand more about sexualities, new terms were met and applied to people from the community. I came across the terms identifying different types of lesbian when I was 11. Two notable words that are still not frequently used by lesbians are “soft butch” and “femme”. A “soft butch” is a homosexual female who likes to express her appearance more masculine and tend to dress male’s clothes. “Femme” in the other hand is a “normal” feminine girl who just happens to attract to females. Those terms would be fine and only used to describes the appearance of homosexual females if they were not used to determinate the individual’s role in a relationship, and even affacted the value a human being. Now, I have nothing against if a woman feels comfortable being boyish for I used to be one myself, and there is nothing wrong with that in the first place. I believe people should be allowed to dress and express themselves in anyway they want. The root of the problem is the Vietnamese culture and its views on gender identity.

Since Vietnam is heavily influenced by Confucianism, we still view sexes and genders as black and white. If you’re a man or a woman, you must dress in a certain social accepted way, act in certain ways, interest in certain things. If you just show a small sign related to the opposite gender to yours that is not what the society expecting from your gender, you will be view as less of a man or a woman. Vietnamese lesbians are still deeply depended on this cutural participate, therefore when one shows a sign of being more dominate than her significant, she will immediate think is her job to become “the man” in the relationship. She will cut her hair short, dress boyish, and act aggressively. She will also try to show her emotions less since “men should not show their emotions”. Since femmes still fits the idea of a feminine woman, they play the role of the woman in the relationship and they are expected to be submissive to the soft butch or the other more dominating lesbian. This makes women are not only being oppressed by men in Eastern culture, but also by other women. Some can argue that if this way may works for their relationship or just for themselves personally then there is nothing to criticize. Why I agree that I am in no place to tell others what to do with their relationship. But this does not stay in a personal level, this problem has been affecting the whole community for a long time and it has made it way to become what considers the standard of a lesbian relationship. These standards are harmful especially for young lesbians who just start to discover themselves, this makes them instead of trying to understand what they want, they lock themsselves in the stereotype boxes.

When I was just starting to learn more about my community, I knew that I disliked to be told what to do by others and wanted to control my ownself. I also did not feel comfortable wearing dresses and having long hair was annoying. I then assumpted those signs meaned that I was a soft butch and then tried to fit the stereotype of the soft butch image back then. It was until I hit 13, I realized I was too “girly” to be a soft butch, I stopped trying to be one. I still kept my short hair and dressing tomboyish up until 18. The more I grew, the more I felt the comfy from my femininity. But not many lesbians experienced the same way as I did. When I went through some fanpages on Facebook for lesbians recently, I have seen some butch lesbians trying to tell others what is the right way to be “a man”, how to treat your “woman” right. Physical and emotional abuse exists among the lesbian relatioships, soft butches abuse and hit their feminine girlfriends to show their domination. They consider the numbers of the girl they sleep with as their pride. The more girls they have slept with, the more valuable they are. Soft butches criticize other soft butches for being to girly. Femmes laugh at soft butches who are not the dominant one in their relationship. It was and is still a mess. You can easily find these people at shopping mall in district 5 and 3, walking together as groups, and the securities watching them cautionly fearing they might steal something from the stores. I remembered hanging out with my cousin when she was going to study abroad. A shop keeper used a male pronounce to call me, when I told them I am a girl, they were surprised. Vietnamese lesbians also feel that the concept of a “soft butch-soft butch” couple or a “femme-femme” couple are weird, and they came up with ridiculous terms such as “soft butch gay” or “femles” to describe those people. But isn’t lesbian is about a realtionship between 2 homosexual females? Aren’t soft butches and femmes females? Why are we imprisoned ourselves and reinforce the gender role stereotypes instead of trying to break free from it? This misconception is not just within the lesbian community. Society view those “standards” as what a lesbian is supposed to be, other GBT community view those standards as what lesbians are supposed to be. You can easily see those lesbian stereotypes in news about lesbian. Even in literature such as “Bóng”, an biography by Hoang Nguyen, in which he describes a butch lesbian as “a sloppy, dirty, misbehave man in a woman’s body”. Or in a fiction book called “Les-Thế Giới Không Có Đàn Ông”, roughly translated to “Les-A World Without Man” by writer Bùi Anh Tấn, it still portrayed a gender role based lesbian couple. It is like a circle, we keep wandering around and around, and will never find the way out. And it is not just me, many lesbians I know and talked with also find this mindset is problematic.

Moving on to 2011, a new era of lesbianism started with the rise of a new literature genre called Bách Hợp. Bách Hợp means relationship occurs between 2 females who are not necessary lesbians. They can be lesbian, bisexual, or even pansexual as long as they are in a same sex relationship. The upside in this era is femininity started to be more appreaciated. Homosexual women were being encourage to be feminine rather than forcing the image of a man to themselves, and that was the only good thing. Being feminine does not stop the mind set of applying gender role into the relationship. Gender roles are not as visible like in the soft butch-femme era, but it is still heavily influenced. The people who have “Bách Hợp” mindset like to criticize any lesbian that looks to much like a man, they hate the heterosexual pronounce in the romance relationship, but yet they still believe in dominant and submissive roles. New terms were adapted, “Công” is used for someone who is for someone who is more dominate in the relationship, “Thụ” is used for the passive one. Sounds familiar, doesn’t it? Yes, it is still the same stuffs just with longer hair. “Công” is always preffered by others since they are the active one in bed rather than the one who just lie their on their back and “enjoy” everything. The lesbian’s value is now being measured based on what a person’s position on bed. And like the mainstream lesbian culture, they can never comprehense how can 2 Công or 2 Thụ can be together. There is nothing progressive in this new era nor it contributes anything good to the community.

The mainstream lesbians and Bách Hợp lesbians think they are different, but actually they are the same. They both still views feminity or woman’s role as a sign of weakness, and only with masculinity or man’s trait is considered strong. While I may sound like I’m blaming everything on men, it is not like that. Like I have mentioned about how Vietnamese culture is influenced heavily by Confucianism and gender roles, Vietnamese women or Asian women in general tend to be looked down by society. Lesbians, like any other people, were raised with conservative mindset by our parents. Maculinity was always being held higher by society compares to feminity, and no one likes to be considered weak. This also happens in the gay community as well, where masculine gay men are always get more respected by not just heterosexual people but also the gays themselves. And it is not just gay and lesbian, straight males, straight women are all being affacted. It is not only men’s fault but women’s as well, it is our fault to keep participate to this misogynist culture.

Things got better when organization like ICS or Hanoi Queer appeared. The people who run and work for these organization are well informed by progressive thoughts and mindsets. They are the most active one to raise awareness about sexuality and gender identities to the community, also pointing out the gender stereotypes that exists within the Vietnamese LGBT culture. They held events, talkshow, discussion events. They created other organization such as Rainbow School, focus on creating club and a safe enviroment for LGBT students. For the first time, lesbians have some places to go to meet and exchange opinions to eachother. Of course not all lesbians have the privillege to come to those events, but it is a great start for lesbian community. Liberal lesbians started to be more active and raised their voices about lesbian’s issues. They advocate on breaking stereotypes and gender roles, while still being respectful to other people’s choice of relationship and identity. But as much as I appreciate their work, as I have volunteered to some of their events, I still see some problems in their ideology when it comes to lesbian identity and LGBT community in general. As liberal and pro-choice, they seems to be accepting to every new ideaology just a bit too quick. I got a chat with 20 year old lesbian when she said that “lesbians can still enjoy having sex with men”. Her reason was “All humans l enjoy sex. If you blindfold someone and let a person simulated sexual act on their body without the blindfoled person knowing what gender the other is, that person will get turned on, therefore they enjoy it”. I pointed out to her that of course that person will get turned on, it is like when you get hit and you feel hurt, it is body’s reaction. And when that person was blindfolded, he or she already lost their consciousness about the enviroment about them, they will get turned on if being simulated. But when you take the blindfold away, that person will gain back their awareness. When they see the person who just praticed sex act on them is someone they are not sexually attracted to, they will immidiately feel uncomfortable and violated. That is how sexuality works, it is the awareness of who you find attracted to. And even if that person is someone they are sexually attracted to, they will still feel violated because that person acts without their consent. Her example was awful. As we talked more, she went on and blamed on all the labels and thought they should not be exists. Ironically, she labeled herself as a lesbian. What she did not realize, it was not the labels’ fault but the person who chose to use those labels. There were a lot of conflicts in what she said in her debate, I could write another 3000 words just to analyze them. It would have not been a big problem if she was irrelevant to the LGBT community, but she was an active member and contributor to the Hanoi Queer, the biggest LGBT organization in the North. This frightened me in many levels, I wondered what have they taught to their members and other LGBT people. How many unreliable informations were spread?

But that girl was not the one who made me become skeptic to these organization. ICS was the first thing that made me realized I could not just trust anything that this organization said. But this one is more subjective to my own opinion than the other one and it is sensitive to today’s issues. Beside from not agreeing with them for the not accept but not against incest, I do not believe in transgenderism, and in no way approve that a transwoman who attracted to women should be consider lesbian. But I support that they deserve to have human rights since I can never get what they have gone through. Even I have some transgender friends in real life, but I have to admit it does not make me less of a transphobe. Just when it comes to my own identity, I do not want it to be taken away from me. Liberal lesbians’ arguement was simple, a transwoman is a woman due to her gender identity, therefore when she’s attracted to other women, it makes her a lesbian. Some would go far enough to call any lesbians who refuse to date transwomen even if they look like a real woman a.k.a feminine, “transphobe”. But lesbians are homosexual females, they are romantically and sexually attracted to same sex people. Transwomen’s gender might be women, but their biological sex are not. Feminity does not make a woman, her womanhood and experiences in life is. Using gender expression to determinate someone’s gender identity is nothing but reinforcing gender stereotypes which we are trying to break. Why hijacking lesbian’s identity after we have invented nearly a dozens of sexualilties? The problems with liberal lesbians are the most dangerous to lesbianism even if they have been sugarcoated by what the contributed to the community. They are changing and erasing lesbian’s identity. I would willing to support making a new terms for homosexual females just to stay true to our identity. All the phases and eras we have been through, we are just taking one step foward but two steps back. We have been skipping to many steps instead trying to make things right from the start.

After 3 years exposing to feminism and comprehensing opinions from liberal views when I was 18. At the age of 21, my mindset is set back to when I did not know about feminism. I am now considering myself as a moderate but leaning just a bit to the right. Some of my other liberal queer friends called me “conservative” due to my view on transgenderism. But if being conservative means sticking to my own ideas and still willingly to listen to other ideologies and see if I can shift my view to be more open-minded, then I’m happy to be one. I am not alone, there are actually a lot of lesbians like me out there, but they prefer to stay silence. But as the development of social network, I started to see some of lesbians who have the same mindset as mine started to speak up. The world is still changing and maybe we can find balance for eachother.