The Adventures of Ro

whitesugargingersugar:

cumaeansibyl:

collectivehistory:

A woman hitting a skinhead with her handbag, Sweden, 1985 by Hans Runesson. The woman was reportedly a concentration camp survivor. 

I hope it was full of bricks

queen

itslaban:

One of 400 Expelled Palestinians with his daughter after His Return Home, Deir El-Balah Camp, Gaza, Palestine, 1995. 

<3

This makes my heart smile.

(Source: poeticislam)

thisiswhitehistory:

Day 8 of White History Month: The Construction of Whiteness

White supremacy does not exist or persist because whites foolishly fear people with a different skin color. it survives and thrives because whiteness delivers unfair gains and unjust enrichments to people who participate in and profit from the existence of a racial cartel that skews opportunities and life chances for their own benefit. it externalizes the worst social conditions onto communities of color and provides whites with a floor below which they cannot fall. - George Lipsitz, The Posessive Investment in Whiteness

You are likely aware that race is socially constructed. Whiteness, too, is a social construction. Whiteness is not an accident, nor an innocuous creation. It was initially created and still exists today to justify a racial order in which those considered white are at the top, and people of color are at the bottom. Whiteness is normalized, thus it generally goes unnoticed.

Whiteness is not just about skin color (those considered white are not literally white, just as those considered Black are not literally black), but also about investment, interests, and attitudes - it is a form of social capital rather than a static concept. Investing in whiteness meant the construction of white supremacy and as an extension, privilege simply for being white. The construction of whiteness prevented white Americans from fighting for more and seeking out solidarity with people of color along other lines, such as class. Today, whiteness still obscures many white people’s best interests.

Indentured servants were differentiated from Black slaves through the construction of whiteness. While indentured servants were never treated as poorly as Black slaves, white indentured servants and Black slaves initially worked alongside each other, lived in similar conditions, and had sexual relations with one another. Black slaves were eventually considered to be  lifelong slaves, while white indentured servants were only temporarily servants. Black people were considered natural slaves, bound to slavery by their Blackness, while white indentured servants had whiteness extended to them. 

For centuries, slave holding and land owning white men benefited the most from slavery, theft of land, and the general oppression of Black and Native Americans. Despite this, whiteness gave poor whites a reason to trust and buy into the system of whiteness. Buying into whiteness meant a guarantee that someone else was always below you. Buying into whiteness also meant patriarchal protection for white women.

Whiteness was mandatory for citizenship in the United States. Non-European immigrants went to court to try to have the racial group they belong to considered white. Immigrants quickly learned upon arrival in the United States that whiteness was also necessary for success (which is another post in itself). These immigrants had to work towards being considered white.

There were tangible benefits to be found in whiteness. Jim Crow laws and intimidation largely restricted the rights and movement of people of color. Segregation meant that those considered white had access to all public spaces, and particularly the best spaces available. This meant widespread access to public facilities, better schools, universities, and more. The GI Bill and Social Security Act initially excluded many Black Americans, yet they greatly benefited the white working and middle class. Restrictive covenants excluded people of color, yet they included even later European immigrants and granted them access to the best neighborhoods.

Political Scientist Andrew Hacker asked his students how much money it would take to go from being white to being Black. Most students put a dollar amount of $50 million (or $1 million per year of their life). Whiteness is an enormous enough investment that a cash value can be ascribed to it.

Benefits conferred by whiteness have affected what resources people of color have had access to and have resulted in widespread wealth disaccumulation (and subsequent accumulation of wealth for white Americans). Even today, due to a centuries-old construction, these privileges exist (see: white privilege). 

Here’s to everyone who thinks I’m a racist because I don’t agree with whiteness. 

nedsecondline:

Young women accounted for the majority of participants in the sixth lesbian march in Mexico City last weekend. As many as 7,000 people attended this year’s gathering. Distinct from the festive annual gay pride march, this event enables lesbians to tackle political issues affecting them, such as violence against women. (via Mexico’s young LGBT women take a stand at lesbian march - UPI.com)

Week 25

tranqualizer:

[photo: image of Eva Panjwani, a working-class Muslimah Queer South Asian immigrant resting against a dresser and smiling at the camera. text reads, “please help me pursue my dream of finishing college.]

Help Eva Learn and check out her fundraiser here! the goal is $1,700.

Short Story Long

My name is Eva Panjwani and today, I am asking you to make an investment in my future.  Let me tell you a little about myself, paint a picture so to speak.  I am 25 years old, and I live in Carrboro, North Carolina.  I was born in Karachi, Pakistan; I split my childhoold between tiny Beach Park, Illinois and the industrious city of Winston-Salem, North Carolina.  

I am not so different from you. When I discover a song I like, I tend to listen to it on repeat for a while, until I find the next one.  I was super into the Harry Potter series when I was younger, and dressed up for all the movie premieres.  After ordering things from the menu at a restaurant, I inevitably get food envy when my friends’ choices arrive.  

Growing up, I was always considered a smart kid.  I was in the Academically Gifted program from 4th grade onwards, even though I came into US public schools with English as a Second Language.  In high school, I exhausted all of my school’s options in advanced mathematics classes, and ended up applying and being accepted into the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics.

Struggles with bullying and low self-esteem were a prominent part of my childhood and adolescence, and getting away from all the years of harassment was the biggest reason I applied to NCSSM.  In high school, I was in a period of self-discovery like everyone else, and after hints of me being somehow “different” since I was 4 years old, I finally came out.  To myself.  Raised Muslim, I knew this was a Big Deal. 

I got a good SAT score and ended up being admitted to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with the prestigious Johnston Scholarship - a merit and need-based full ride.  That was all back in 2006.  Something else big happened to me in 2006: my father unexpectedly passed away.  

Ever since then I have struggled with reoccuring issues related to:

• supporting myself financially
• mental health imbalances
• figuring out who and where my community was.

I lasted a little over two years at UNC, relying on part-time jobs and the small amount of leftover scholarship money to feed myself and buy books, before all my problems caught up to me.  I needed desperately to take time off from school to set straight my emotional world, and in doing so I lost my scholarship. I’m a working-class Muslimah Queer South Asian immigrant that has struggled immensely with my emotional and mental well-being.  It’s not too easy finding out who to turn to, where to go.  And my depression turned into anxiety too, panic attacks happening at an increasing rate, and thoughts of suicide haunted me. I was at rock bottom.

Since then, I have been able to turn my life around and seek support - via mental health professionals and through building a community for myself. I took responsibility for my well being and did what I needed to do to re-center my emotional world. I took night classes in culinary arts at Durham Technical Community College, and have been working in foodservice. I keep a semi-regular blog that chronicles what is has meant for me to learn self-care and self-love, in hopes of spreading to others. I have worked enough to have a small savings account to help me through financial ups and downs. I have a cat! I am an activist, and have tried to stay a part of the conversation on education reform, and the fight for Worker and Student Power here in NC. I help run a national radical youth blog.

In many, many ways I am emotionally and mentally different from the at-risk, distracted, and lonely young woman I was when I lost my scholarship.  I know I am more pragmatic, I am more self-aware, I am quieter and I am resourceful. I want a second chance at finishing my degree, and I finally believe I am ready and able to pursue it

What I Need & What You Get

I am applying for nontraditional readmission to the University. In order for me to apply for nontraditional readmission, I have to show evidence of recent successful coursework via Carolina Courses Online - i.e. online classes through the Friday Center. The idea is to have a better understanding of my current academic promise. In order to do that, I need:

• $1,182 towards tuition for 6 credit hours (2 classes).
• $84.24 towards the accompanying fees for 6 credit hours (2 classes).
• $250 towards textbooks - this is an estimate.
• And the rest is towards the IndieGoGo fee(s).

Help Eva Learn and check out her fundraiser here! the goal is $1,700.

para-todxs-todo:

bullit1987:

Mexican Revolutionaries 

THE SOMBREROS WERE NECESSARY