katzcriss:

when you wanna talk about the thing but you can’t talk about the thing because you know people will roll their eyes and be like ‘oh great she’s talking about the thing again’ so you just kind of sit there and pout because you want to talk about the thing so badly but you know if you try you’ll just get shit for it

Truth! Here’s some food for thought in all aspects that affect me on a daily basis. Please feel free to add your own experiences.

When a person of color opens up about racism they know that they’ll have to deal with someone who groans, rolls their eyes, and tells them to not blow things out of proportion. They know that killers will walk away because “we don’t know the full story” or “they have a mental illness” – which paints a horrible picture for those with mental illnesses – or "they acted in the heat of the moment.” Meanwhile, victims will be blamed because thugs/threats/suspicious/ran/didn’t listen. They know this while, at they same time, they live in a world that claims to want racial equality.

When a woman opens up about being assaulted they know that they’ll have to deal with someone who asks, “What were you wearing? Were you drunk? Did you lead them on?” “Why didn’t you defend yourself?” When she opens up about feeling uncomfortable she knows that someone will call her a bitch because “it was a compliment” or “you’re too sensitive.” While, at the same time, she lives in a world that claims to want women to feel safe at all times.

When someone who isn’t “the norm” when it comes to sexuality opens up about their rights, they know they’ll have to deal with someone who “doesn’t mind gay people, but they shouldn’t get married” or someone who “doesn’t mind transsexuals, but don’t go into our bathroom” or someone who “doesn’t believe that asexuality is real” or “bisexuals are confused” and so on… while, at the same time, they live in a world that claims to want LGBT rights.

When someone who isn’t the “ideal body” opens up about wanting to be seen beyond their weight, they know that they’ll have to deal with someone who calls them out of their name, who suddenly knows their health history, who assumes they aren’t happy or can’t be happy, who decides who they are because of the size of their body – fat or skinny. This is all while living in a world that claims that everyone can live their lives how they are most comfortable. This is all while living in a world that can’t decide what the “ideal body” is.

All of these people know these things, so a lot of times, they sit and want to speak up, but don’t, because there’s always someone who shoots them down.

So don’t be the one who shoots them down. Be the one who listens. Or, more importantly, when someone does shoot them down, be there to support them.

thedreamsallhide:

when discussing the taylor/nicki thing, please

• recognize nicki pointed out a real issue
• recognize taylor made a mistake
• but don’t assume she is the devil because she made this mistake
• and don’t try to invalidate taylor’s feminism because she stupidly thought a tweet was about her when it wasn’t
• recognize anaconda’s impact
• don’t slut shame nicki
• don’t hate on taylor
• don’t hate on nicki
• don’t hate on anyone
• don’t make it a competition between fans
• discuss the real issue because I bet nicki would prefer that we discussed what she was trying to point out than trying to destroy taylor which is only taking the focus out of what nicki was trying to talk about
• thanks

geekygothgirl:

feministcaptainkirk:

badlywrittenproblogs:

antfish:

breathelikefire:

black—lamb:

feministingforchange:

feministcaptainkirk:

Spot the lie. Oh wait, trick question

This is SPOT ON!!!

pretty much

Spicy Mayo

No. This is wrong. How does not “seeing race” make someone an ignorant asshole? What’s wrong with this is that it’s doing the same thing white people are doing, and if it’s wrong for white people, it’s wrong for all people. Fuck labeling myself or anyone else. I’m a human, my species has invented telecommunications, space flight, simulations of a human brain, and gone to the fucking moon. It sucks that ancestors were used for backbreaking labor without pay, but whites weren’t the only one’s that did it. I’m not saying that it was right, because the worst thing to do other than genocide. But Egyptians had slaves, maybe not in the massive quality as the whites, and that’s a huge fucking number, but it happened. The cop issue sucks so much it’s like an overgrown dyson vacuum cleaner, but that’s where we vote the people who will bring us change. It sucks to be a minority country, I wouldn’t understand the shit people have to go through and I’m sorry, but racism has to end for everyone. Otherwise the side will tip, and it will be the same thing just opposite. And is bringing someone’s pain and dropping it onto someone else the right thing to do? No, it isn’t. That’s what bullying is, and no one likes a bully.

The problem with saying “I don’t see colour” is two-fold: first, your belief that not “seeing” people for the diversity they represent makes you a good person. It doesn’t (and going about the world thinking you’re better than those who do actually makes things worse), The second part — and the crux of this matter — is that not seeing people for their diversity of backgrounds means you’re actively and consciously ignoring the (historical and current) context of their lives.

It’s akin to telling someone who was wrongly imprisoned for thirty years, “hey, you’re out of jail now, so stop talking about it!” As if ex-convicts are not discriminated against or stigmatized in society, including those who were wrongly imprisoned.

Don’t deny your white privilege. Acknowledge it and dismantle it.

You’re right, though. No one likes a bully. Which is why no one likes white people.

Also I love how these idiots are always like NON WHITE PEOPLE HAD SLAVES TOO and they drag up stuff that literally happened thousands of years ago but when black people talk about American slavery and its continuing impact on American blacks to this day thanks to the institutions that followed it (an incomplete list including the exclusion of blacks from the Homestead Act, sharecropping, Jim Crow laws, and anti-drug laws among others) it’s always OH MY GOD THAT HAPPENED SO LONG AGO JUST GET OVER IT when American slavery was only officially abolished in 1865, which for those of you playing along at home who can do math, is just over 150 years ago. And they always act like the abolishing of slavery lead to instant equality for American blacks when yeah, look at our fucking history. As a country America has actively worked to stigmatize and devalue black people and white people (myself included) have benefited immensely from that. Drop your “colorblind” bullshit. White people are the only people who can afford to be “colorblind” and say things like “race doesn’t matter” because for us, it doesn’t. Too bad it’s not the same for everyone.

Reblogging for the commentary.

Also reblogging to say what I always say about “I don’t see color” which is: I get what you’re saying but no.  There’s nothing wrong with seeing color.  There’s nothing wrong with diversity.  Our differences make us beautiful.  See them.  Appreciate them.  Respect them.  It’s perfectly fine to see color just don’t be a dick about it.

naturee-feels:

Your not any less of a black girl if you don’t have a booty.

Your not any less of a black girl if you can’t dance.

Your not any less of a black girl if you don’t have any curves.

I find a lot of black girls feeling complacent if they do not have these certain attributes, that almost seem synonyms to Black Women. Your blackness is not and should not be defined by this.

I also see a lot of people, black or non black, who help perpetrate these stereotypes and it needs to end.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you play video games.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you watch anime.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you read comics.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you watch sci-fi.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you don’t use slang.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you don’t listen to hip hop.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you’re not sassy.

You’re not any less of a black girl if you cry.

The only thing that makes you a black girl is the color of your skin, not the things you do in your life.

blackfangirlsunite:

sourcedumal:

red3blog:

DC Comics’ Amanda Waller’s various incarnations over the years. Notice a trend?

UGH.

I am SO PISSED THE FUCK OFF

The Wall is a FAT DARK SKINNED NAPPY HAIRED WOMAN

FUCK THIS SKINNY LIGHT SKINNED GIRL THEY GOT IN THIS SHOW

SHE IS NOT THE WALL

You already know fat dark skinned woman can not have any place on tv if she is not shuckin, jivin, being a mammy, or someone’s sassy friend

OK yeah this sucks  :(  That’s a huge transformation.  At the same time, don’t bash the light skinned skinny girl, she didn’t do anything, the show did.  It’s more like “fuck the show” not “fuck that light skinned girl.”  

animehead:

terrabellum:

i feel like such a disgrace of black people

my voice is so soft and quiet and can’t laugh/talk loudly at all

everyone expects me to be all bold and sassy but im just a quiet nerd

nah. if people expect you to be that way, they’re stereotyping you. not all black people are loud or sassy or anything else people stereotype us as. don’t even let yourself feel like you’re a disgrace because that’s bullshit. you’re fine just the way you are

This.  

fuckyeahfeminists:

30rockasaurus:

“Do I get stress headaches at work? Yes, definitely. From the moment I get in, it’s “Denise we need this! Denise we need that!” Which is stressful… ‘cause my name is Linda. Denise is the other black woman that works here. By 10am, someone in the copy room makes a joke about Kobe Bryant, and everyone looks at me to make sure it’s ok. And I smile like it’s ok. But really, my head and neck are starting to throb. Then I spend the rest of my afternoon training my interns, and answering their questions, like, “Yes, black people use shampoo”, and, “No, I don’t know any good reggae clubs around here”, and, “Yes, Condoleezza Rice is very articulate, why do you sound so surprised?” And, “No, I can’t tell you where to buy weed!” And that’s when I reach for Excedrin.”

oh my god I am dying. too real.

Actually that hair thing has happened to me.  I went to college (ah good ol’ Iowa State) with micro braids and I was the only black girl on my floor.  The questions.  Man, oh man, the questions.  

sonofagorgon:

m-trollacicconesboobs:

batmandracula:

A straight, white woman, from a middle class family, whos good looking. It must be real hard being you Madonna.

yeah! because Madonna has had the EAAASIEST live of them all right?? some of the funniest parts where things like when her mother died when she was 6 and she had to take care of her younger siblings! (dreamy right?) or  when she moved to new york and didn’t have enough money to buy food! (right? sounds INCREDIBLE!) and when she was raped by a guy at knifepoint??? OMG HOW FUNNY is to see your best friends die of AIDS and see  how everybody says they deserve it because they are gay! (hillarious!) and specially when her then husband Sean Penn abused her for several months that concluded with her 8h bound to a chair raped and beaten by a baseball bat! then  OMG the media has always been so kind to her! (they never called her slut, bitch…) and let’s not forget her 2 miscarriages in a period of 4 years!(OMG how does she dare complain?)without forgetting that every day she wakes up to Little monsters sending her death treats and reminding her that she is old and should die (SWEET!) 

But the thing that irks me the most is that this bitch has done nothing to deserve what she has, because she hasn’t worked hard in her entire life, I mean only 600 hours of rehersal for her last tour SHAME ON YOU, and obviously it’s AMAZING to see how the media dimisnishes your talent and accomplishments in a 30 years+ period by calling you talentless ( I mean she only writes and coproduces all her songs, WHAT A DUMB BITCH) and most of all her lack of compromise with the LGBTQAI community, that lead to criticism from all the conservative groups even nowadays! because she hasn’t built herself as a person at all.

the conclusion is you don’t have the right to complain if you are not from a minority right?

#how to sit someone down: a guide

This this this this this THIS THIS THIS!  Like o.k., I get if you want to be all supportive of minority groups.  That’s awesome, o.k.?  Keep doing that.  However, I’ve said it like a thousand times and I’ll keep saying it, the way to support us is NOT BY BASHING ANOTHER GROUP!  Do NOT bash white people, or straight people, or men, or anything.  Anything. ANYTHING!  DO NOT BASH THEM AND DO NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS OF THEIR LIVES BEING EASY because they aren’t minorities.    

Now is white privilege and male privilege things like that exist?  Yes.  But that does not give you the right to tell these people, “Pfft your life is soooooo easy,” because you don’t know them personally.  I have a lot of great white friends, straight friends, male friends, skinny friends, they are amazing people I would never, NEVER go to them and say, “You don’t know what it’s like to be black/lesbian/female/plus sized,” just… no.  That is COUNTER-PRODUCTIVE TO YOUR CAUSE!  They are my friends because they love me for me and when someone is racist, or sexist, or homophobic, or fat bashing, or whatever THEY ARE THERE FOR ME.  I am NOT going to be like, “Get out of here you don’t understand because it’ll never happen to you!”  

I mean fuck my partner is a white girl, jesus!  Should I hate her because she “will never understand what it’s like to be a black woman,” I mean… just… stop being supportive by bashing others, that’s not support that’s anger.  

tonystarksdangertits:

terminus-est:

I feel like I need to print this out and tape it to the lamp next to my bed so I see it every goddamn day.

yeah, I need this in poster form

“Writing isn’t a real job.”

“Unless if you’re a celebrity or horribly disfigured you’ll never get published.”

“Writing is easy.”

“You’re too ______ to cosplay ______.”

“You’d be so cute if you lost weight.”

“You actually play video games?”

“Gay people shouldn’t get married.”

“It’s just a phase.”

“You haven’t found the right man.”

“It’s because your boyfriend hurt you.”

“It’s because you took Women’s Studies, now you hate men.”

“You haven’t slept with a man so how would you know?”

“You sound white.”

avengette:

theempressdiaries:

magdolenelives:

taliaitscoldoutside:

dealanexmachina:

Okay but can we talk for a moment about the layers of complexity regarding race that are unfolding in this scene right here?

You have:

1. Two black women discussing very real issues of privilege and passing regarding dark and light skin tones in society.
   
2. In which topics of identity and feelings of belonging and kinship are discussed and dissected explicitly, because one is the bi-racial child of the other, at one point actually pointing out how she didn’t feel like she didn’t belong to either group.
3. Which is further complicated by the fact that Lena is a lesbian, so her comments about belonging (or rather not belonging) to the minority or majority take on another layer of unspoken but very present and implied exclusion/inclusion.
4. All of which is sparked from Lena’s mom calling Lena out on the fact that throwing a kickass Quinceanera (without really fully understanding the ins and outs and nuances of the culture) is not the same as making sure Mariana is part of her Latina culture, and actually in fact very finely skirts the line of cultural appropriation if it’s all about you projecting your feelings of cultural isolation.

This is what happens when you make women, women of color, and lesbians the main characters of your show. We can have conversations like this on TV, and regardless on whose side of the discussion you fall on, the fact that we’re even SEEING this conversation is, in itself, revolutionary. It has been a long time since I have seen a scene like this tackle the topics of race so head on, and on a family show at that.

Major props to everyone involved in bringing this scene to life, because the writing and the acting make it so neither woman is fully in the wrong, and I am so happy to see this bring brought up, because scene like this spark dialogue about topics that are rarely addressed so openly in our own lives.

EVERYONE THIS IS WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT WHEN I’M TALKING ABOUT FOSTERS OKAY?????

I think I did a spittake when I found out this airs on ABC Family. I haven’t done a “happy/impressed spittake” in awhile.

Which show is this?

The Fosters; go watch it!! :D

Wow, just… ow.  There’s so much truth in this though.  And the sad part is this applies for discrimination from the majority AND for the minority group.  In a way, it applies more towards racism within the group. There’s so much inner discrimination that it’s crazy.  Dark skinned, light skinned, bi-racial, fuck, hair… HAIR!  Hair standards are a thing, too!  I remember in college people thinking my hair was fine (I went to Iowa State, a predominantly white campus) but when I went back home to Chicago?  Oh my fuck!  I was like, “I’ve been going to class and writing papers and being busy who has times for hair?!”  Nope.  Didn’t fucking matter.  "You need a touch up, like, now.“  "You walked around like that?”  "Is there no one in Iowa who can do hair?“  Even now, to this day, if I’m going back home part of me has this moment of, "Shit I need to do something to my hair because they are going to give me so much shit.”  I really try not to, but I can’t help myself.  It’s ingrained in my brain.

And god, please, don’t get me started on the way I talk.  I apparently “sound white” or “why are you trying to sound white?”  Like I got this back in Chicago a lot.  Shut.  The.  Fuck.  Up!  I’m just talking, damn, black does not mean that I sound hard and tough and ghetto.  If a black person sounds geeky, or intelligent, or doesn’t drop their letters, they are NOT TRYING TO SOUND WHITE!  There is no white sound, there is no black sound, it’s just dialogue.  I’ve actually had people call the store when I worked at GameStop and look SURPRISED when they walked in and saw me, like… shit, o.k., that whole hard slang thing is not something we all do!  It’s slang, ANYONE CAN DO IT!  I’ve seen the most trifling, ghetto people walk into the store who were white, o.k.?  IT’S NOT A RACIAL THING!

Black people tear each other to shreds over really silly things.  This gif set is so painfully accurate.  She’s right, dark skinned people do face more discrimination, but at the same time the other girl is right too!  She’s light skinned so she may be hated on for “not being black,” but at the same time the dark skinned lady may be seen as not pretty because her skin is so dark, and just… it’s so crazy!  I remember in high school being jealous of light skinned girls because everyone thought they were so pretty, but at the same time there was this idea of “passing for white,” and just… oh god, it’s just… so bizarre.  Just… stop hating on one another for trivial things, you want people to look beyond skin color but you can’t do it yourself.