At the Bottom of the Box was Hope

Stories and Conversations

[akaratna]

Help Palestinian refugees with a Click

Please help deliver support to Palestinian families; all you have to do is to click once a day for free, every day!

[burninglights]

fucking insane to be a person of colour in the uk right now

[burninglights]

When my family first moved to the UK, we faced a similar risk to our wellbeing & safety as many are facing now, albeit for different reasons. in light of everything happening in Ireland & the tensions increasing in Glasgow, and the perennial England, here’s a list of actionable things to do for people who may be targeted & anti racist allies.

MY HOME IS ON THE LIST/LIKELY TO BE TARGETED, WHAT CAN I DO?

* it may bring you peace of mind to have a go-bag ready, just in case. A go-bag is a bag with everything in it that you need to get out a volatile situation quickly. Any bag that can be secured (buttoned or zipped) will do. In your go-bag, you should include;

- identifying documents; passport/driver’s license/asylum card/ILR certificate/British Residency permit card

- Wallet and/or banking books

- A spare charger & cable and/or a power bank

- any shelf-stable medication (tablets, inhalers etc.) if you are on medication that needs to be refrigerated, leave it in the fridge until you have to leave

- Sanitary items; toothbrush, toothpaste, sanitary pads & tampons, deodorant. If you have very young children with you, you may also want to take your nappy bag.

* If you have to leave, a go-bag is a convenient way to ensure you have everything of importance with you.

* If you are being supported by an asylum seekers or refugee charity, or are a member of a gurdwara/temple, mosque, synagogue or church, reach out to your religious leaders. They may be able to provide direct support, or put you in contact with organisations or other congregants who can help. If you are friendly with your neighbours, it may be worth contacting them too.

* IN THE EVENT THAT “PROTESTORS” DO COME TO YOUR HOUSE, CALL 999 IMMEDIATELY, AND FOLLOW ANY INSTRUCTIONS THEY GIVE YOU. MOVE AWAY FROM ANY WINDOWS. DO NOT OPEN YOUR DOOR UNLESS INSTRUCTED TO DO SO BY EMERGENCY SERVICES.

I’M AN INTERNATIONAL STUDENT/CARE WORKER/NHS WORKER, WHAT SHOULD I DO?

* Contact your student welfare office/NHS Trust/agency for advice, support and referral to organisations that may be able to provide assistance

* if you live in or commute through an area that is likely to be targeted, contact your lecturers and your faculty to find out whether remote study is possible; if you work in care or as part of the NHS, find out if it is possible to change shifts.

* If it would provide peace of mind, prepare a go-bag as listed above

* Reach out to your the uni society or student’s organisation for international students or students of specific ethnic origin; they may be able to provide you with direction to resources and peer support. If your university has a Marxist or Socialist society, reach out to them for mutual aid with a travel buddy etc., for getting to and from your place of study/work

* If you are a member of a gurdwara/temple, mosque, synagogue or church, reach out to your religious leaders. They may be able to provide direct support, or put you in contact with organisations or other congregants who can help.

* If you are friendly with your neighbours, it may be worth contacting them too for assistance with travel to & from work.

* Report any racism or racialised violence you are subjected to. NHS staff have a right to refuse to treat patients who harass, abuse, threaten or insult them; if a patient is racist to you, where possible, ask another member of staff to take over their care.

PERSONAL SAFETY:

* do not leave your home unless strictly necessary. If it is necessary to leave, don’t do it alone.

* use NextDoor, WhatsApp, social media and word of mouth to avoid commuting through “protestor” road blocks, areas of active conflict etc.,

* When travelling, use Share My Location or Life360, and keep at least two people aware of your expected time of arrival at your destination with instructions to contact the police if you do not let them know you’ve made it safely

* do not directly confront any individuals involved, or allow them to bait you into becoming confrontational

* only record if it is safe. Do not record individuals directly/from up close

* Do not directly intervene. If you see violence occurring, contact emergency services and if safe to do so, record what’s happening.

ALLYSHIP & HOW TO HELP:

* if you have neighbours, friends, coworkers or acquaintances form targeted communities, reach out to them. Ask them what you can do to help them feel safe.

* If you live in an area likely to be targeted, reach out to any vulnerable people you know. If safe and possible, offer to let them shelter with you in the event they need to leave home

* If you see any incitement to violence online screenshot it; it may prove useful in the event of individual “protesters” being prosecuted

* If you see any specific areas being discussed as targets, alert anyone you know at risk in the area

* Reach out to local refugee & asylum seekers’ organisations, to organisations supporting foreign national care & healthcare workers, and to churches, mosques, gurdwaras; they may be looking for short term assistance in helping to provide for vulnerable members of their community

CHARITABLE ORGANISATIONS FOR ASSISTANCE & TO SUPPORT:

* NASC Ireland; refugee & asylum seeker charity

* Doras.org; migrant, stateless persons, refugee and asylum seeker rights advocates

* Jesuit Refugee Service; religious refugee & asylum seekers charity

* Irish Refugee Council; supporting stateless displaced persons & refugees in NI & ROI

* International Student’s House (IE & UK WIDE): provides hardship funding and help to international students

* PathFinder (UK WIDE); supports international students

* Care International (GLOBAL); global carer’s charity

* Choose Love (IE & UK WIDE); charitable organisation supporting refugees and asylum seekers

* Praxis UK (UK WIDE); supporting refugees & asylum seekers

* The Runnymede Trust (IE & UK WIDE); antiracism education charity

* Migrant’s Rights Network (IE & UK WIDE); advocacy and support for migrants and refugees

* ShareTheMeal (GLOBAL); providing meals for refugees and those fleeing conflict globally

* Amnesty (IRELAND, UK & WORLDWIDE); human rights NGO

* UNHCR & UN Refugee Council (GLOBAL); UN refugee bodies supporting those seeking asylum, fleeing conflict & internally/internationally displaced worldwide

[jellyfishforest135]

The prologue of my new fic, Silence in the Ghost, is now on AO3! I’ve been working on this one on and off for nearly a year, so I’m so excited to finally get this sci-fi/romance/thriller out into the world! Updates weekly.

Summary: Nothing in nineteen-year-old Hera's life is simple. Not her work with the rebellion, not her feelings for her handsome new copilot haunted by a mysterious past, and certainly not their current mission: tracking down a Corellian freighter that no one has seen or heard from in weeks. When their investigation leads them to a mysterious ghost ship drifting through space with no power, Hera and Kanan's relationship will be put to the test as they race to find answers before the air runs out.

Rated T

[jellyfishforest135]

New chapter is up now!

[jellyfishforest135]

New chapter and we are getting spooooooky

[akaratna]

Help Palestinian refugees with a Click

Please help deliver support to Palestinian families; all you have to do is to click once a day for free, every day!

[sally2033]

The world is forgetting us while we are still fighting to survive.

I am not writing this for attention. I am writing because my family is still trapped in a nightmare that has not ended. Every day is a struggle to find food, clean water, and the most basic necessities. Every day we wonder how we will make it through the next one. The world may have stopped talking about us, but our suffering did not stop. If you see this post, please do not pass by. Reblog, share, and support us if you can. Your kindness can help a family survive another day. We are exhausted, but we have not given up hope. ❤️

Emergency: Help Nader save what's left of his family

Hello everyone, my name is Sahar! I am organizing this fundraiser on behalf of a dear friend of mine in Gaza and his family. I have been tal

✅[Vetted by @/90-ghost and @/el-shab-hussein]

[stellanslashgeode]

Chapters: 6/? Fandom: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types, Star Wars: Tales of the Empire (Cartoon), Star Wars: Tales of the Jedi (Cartoon 2022) Rating: General Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Barriss Offee & Luminara Unduli, Obi-Wan Kenobi & Luminara Unduli, Ahsoka Tano & Luminara Unduli, CC-1004 | Gree & Luminara Unduli, Barriss Offee/Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker & Luminara Unduli Characters: Luminara Unduli, Barriss Offee, Barriss Offee’s Mother, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Original Characters, CC-1004 | Gree, Ahsoka Tano, Anakin Skywalker Additional Tags: Master & Padawan Relationships (Star Wars), Recovering from loss, Fusion of Star Wars Legends and Disney Canon, POV Luminara Unduli, Star Wars Pre-Prequels, Mirialan Culture & Customs (Star Wars), Mirialan Species (Star Wars) Summary:

Luminara Unduli adjusts to her new way of life after her knighting ceremony, as she mourns the loss of her master, Katri. She knows that her life is about to change forever, she can feel it. Can she overcome her fear of loss and accept a new and fragile child into her life?

[jedi-order-apologist]

Veteran

Obi-Wan sees how the Empire has treated its loyal soldiers. Written for @jedijune 2026 - Prompt: Compassion and Sweet and Short June 2026 - Prompt: Young

READ ON AO3 (100 words)

Obi-Wan didn’t know the man, but he knew his face. He knew the colors that painted the man’s armor.

He knew the 501st had marched on the Temple alongside Anakin, and slaughtered every Jedi inside, no matter how old or young.

And for that terrible act, so crucial to the Empire’s foundation, how had it rewarded its soldiers? Here was the stark answer: they had been abandoned and left to die on the streets alone.

Despite the memories, Obi-Wan could not help the compassion that welled up, and he extended his hand with what little aid he could still give.

[intelligentchristianlady]

A bus may have only a couple of passengers, especially at the beginning or end of its route. But let's also take fuel efficiency into account.

[foxoftheasterisk]

If there's one person on a bus because that person cannot or doesn't want to drive, the bus is succeeding.

[luckyladylily]

I read a study once on the fuel efficiency of various types of commuter vehicles (car, bus, train) on a per person basis and the number of people needed riding public transit to match the "efficiency" of cars is shockingly low. A bus needs to carry like 3-4 people to be fuel efficient, and trains require 2-3 per train car. Both often carry two dozen or more during peak hours, more than justifying any perceived requirements for efficiency for the train or bus to provide service the entire day.

[brightlotusmoon]

[saveaboud]

IT HURTS TO BE SILENCED WHILE YOU ARE DYING IN GAZA.

[saveaboud]

I am not just a post. I am someone fighting war, severe anemia, hunger, and fear every day.

[saveaboud]

Please don’t scroll away. Donate or share… maybe your kindness will help save me and my little siblings.

Chuffed - PayPal - Verified

[saveaboud]

[ringthembells]

please help my friend aboud and his family!

[saveaboud]

Guys… in case I disappear, please follow my backup account @aboud-lives

[aboud-lives]

Please!!!

[saveaboud]

21 / 450 

[thehereticpharaoh]

This is what hieroglyphs and figures in ancient Egyptian temples looked like before their colors faded. They were recreated using a polychromatic light display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, following thorough research.

[fictionadventurer]

Pop culture reduces It's a Wonderful Life to that last half hour, and thinks the whole thing is about this guy traveling to an alternate universe where he doesn't exist and a little girl saying, "Every time a bell rings, an angel gets its wings." A hokey, sugary fantasy. A light and fluffy story fit for Hallmark movies.

But this reading completely glosses over the fact that George Bailey is actively suicidal. He's not just standing there moping about, "My friends don't like me," like some characters do in shows that try to adapt this conceit to other settings. George's life has been destroyed. He's bankrupt and facing prison. The lifetime of struggle we've been watching for the last two hours has accomplished nothing but this crushing defeat, and he honestly believes that the best thing he can do is kill himself because he's worth more dead than alive. He would have thrown himself from a bridge had an actual angel from heaven not intervened at the last possible moment.

That's dark. The banker villain that pop culture reduces to a cartoon purposely drove a man to the brink of suicide, which only a miracle pulled him back from. And then George Bailey goes even deeper into despair. He not only believes that his future's not worth living, but that his past wasn't worth living. He thinks that every suffering he endured, every piece of good that he tried to do was not only pointless, but actively harmful, and he and the world would be better off if he had never existed at all.

This is the context that leads to the famed alternate universe of a million pastiches, and it's absolutely vital to understanding the world that George finds. It's there to specifically show him that his despondent views about his effect on the universe are wrong. His bum ear kept him from serving his country in the war--but the act that gave him that injury was what allowed his brother to grow up to become a war hero. His fight against Potter's domination of the town felt like useless tiny battles in a war that could never be won--but it turns out that even the act of fighting was enough to save the town from falling into hopeless slavery. He thought that if it weren't for him, his wife would have married Sam Wainwright and had a life of ease and luxury as a millionaire's wife, instead of suffering a painful life of penny-pinching with him. Finding out that she'd have been a spinster isn't, "Ha ha, she'd have been pathetic without you." It's showing him that she never loved Wainwright enough to marry him, and that George's existence didn't stop her from having a happier life, but saved her from having a sadder one. Everywhere he turns, he finds out that his existence wasn't a mistake, that his struggles and sufferings did accomplish something, that his painful existence wasn't a tragedy but a gift to the people around him.

Only when he realizes this does he get to come back home in wild joy over the gift of his existence. The scenes of hope and joy and love only exist because of the two hours of struggle and despair that came before. Even Zuzu's saccharine line about bells and angel wings exists, not as a sugary proverb, but as a climax to Clarence's story--showing that even George's despair had good effect, and that his newfound thankfulness for life causes not only earthly, but heavenly joy.

If this movie has light and hope, it's not because it exists in some fantasy world where everything is sunshine and rainbows, but because it fights tooth and nail to scrape every bit of hope it can from our all too dark and painful world. The light here exists, not because it ignores the dark, but because the dark makes light more precious and meaningful. The light exists in defiance of the dark, the hope in defiance of despair, and there is nothing saccharine about that. It's just about as realistic as it gets.

[ladylokianna]

This is without a doubt the most accurate thing i've ever read about this awesome movie.

[royalhandmaidens]

flying as a hijabi (alone this time) and the guy next to me is talking really loudly about bin laden and killing terrorists and making deliberate eye contact with me the entire time

why are ppl like this???

[royalhandmaidens]

and it’s only because i’m alone - having a 6’4” bulky built husband usually makes people swallow whatever nasty comments they may have

[royalhandmaidens]

jokes on him because a flight attendant overheard him and upgraded my seat

go stew in your anger in economy, peasant

[royalhandmaidens]

flight attendant came and slipped me this, bless her soul

[royalhandmaidens]

alhamdulillah safely home and very appreciative of the kind flight crew who looked after me

but i do want to take a moment to remind everyone that people with the intention to do evil or make their hate known almost always go after those who are perceived as vulnerable. it’s no surprise to me that things like this happen almost exclusively when i am alone and an easier target. hijabis especially, being so visible. to my hijabi girlies, remember to stay aware of your surroundings and practice safe travel habits. to my friends on here, it pays to be vigilant as well and to help watch the backs of those around you if you’re able

this stuff happens a lot more often than you’d think, unfortunately, and the most we can do is to try and be as safe as we can and watch out for each other

[landunderthewave]

If you experience someone ranting at a fellow passenger, one great non-confrontative strategy is to act like you know each other from way back when and are having a chance encounter. Like "Ooooh, what a surprise to see you here! How are you doing??" This will also allow you to brush past the aggressor.

[royalhandmaidens]

yes!!! this!!!

someone has done this for me before and it really does work! de-escalation is always safest for both you and those around you if it’s manageable and this is one of the best ways to do it!

[whatbigotspost]

In case anyone wants to learn more bystander tips and deescalation techniques , Right To Be (formerly Hollaback) has good resources and trainings, covering the 5Ds:

Distract

Delegate

Document

Delay

Direct

[dloeza]

codex mendoza

[vintage-tigre]

The lifecycle of a cherry

[akaratna]

UNRWA ~ United Nations Relief Works Agency

Donate: https://donate.unrwa.org/int/en/general

[akaratna]

The Gaza Municipality / @MuniGaza:

https://gaza-city.ensany.com/campaigns 

Current Active Campaigns are  —

“Life for Gaza 2”. Donations will be directed toward:

Water supply enhancement projects

Maintenance of water wells

Implementation of water desalination initiatives

Management of waste collection and disposal systems

Reconstruction of roads demolished during war

Implementation of sewage water pumping and treatment schemes

Execution of pest control and rodent eradication programs

“One Step Closer”. The Artificial Limbs and Polio Center is one of the most essential facilities under the management of Gaza Municipality, responsible for its administration and providing essential resources, equipment, and supplies to enable the center to serve citizens for nearly 50 years. Established in 1976, this is the only facility currently operating in Gaza City, offering prosthetic services to the injured. It also provides therapeutic and medical care for children with disabilities, the elderly, stroke patients, and physical therapy services.

Donations will be directed toward operational expenses to ensure the continuity of essential services for citizens, sustain the Artificial Limbs and Polio Center, and provide the critical medical care that has become even more urgent due to ongoing aggression.  Including:

Manufacturing and fitting prosthetics for all levels of upper and lower limb amputations.

Offering psychological support and rehabilitation to help patients cope with the mental challenges of limb loss and develop coping strategies that foster self-confidence and social integration.

Maintaining and repairing prosthetics to ensure their ongoing effectiveness.

Designing and supplying orthopedic devices for various levels of amputation and spinal support.

Providing custom-made medical footwear.

Training individuals with disabilities to use their devices effectively, focusing on empowering them to engage in society and rely on their self-capabilities.

Supplying polio patients with essential assistive devices to support their needs.

[akaratna]

ANERA:

Provides humanitarian assistance and sustainable development to advance the well-being of refugees and other vulnerable communities in Palestine, Lebanon and Jordan. 

Help Refugees In Palestine, Jordan & Lebanon | Anera

Help Families Facing War & Displacement Donate Now Right now, your support can provide TWICE as many meals, water, hygiene kits, healthcare

Gaza and West Bank Response Log | June 2026

Lebanon Activity Log | June 2026