[[male, feminist, Rromani, queer, disabled]] Dogs, photography, happiness, that last bit of ice cream at the bottom of the bowl, music, and funny people. Â If you're ever sad, I'll be sad with you. Then we'll dance. Â That picture was drawn by my good friend Tawny who is amazing and adorable.
BLACK TUMBLR. Gather âround. I have a story to tell you (pictures included).
Late february/Early March gave us the very first #Blackout. Awesome right? Hereâs  how that got started: expect-the-greatest made a post and recklessthottieâ answered it. He said black tumblr should have a selfie day, she suggested calling it the Blackout and they went from there:
Youâll notice that recklessthottie is a saved url that points you in my direction. Thatâs because that is my old url (more on why I changed in a bit). So we get to work getting the idea to spread and Tâvon ( @expect-the-greatest) even made this post to follow up:
Once the plan got big enough whatwhiteswillneverknowâ got wind of it and made graphics for other social media platforms and a masterpost with information. Hereâs where the story really gets good. The idea picked up steam but nukirkâ the moderator over at whatwhiteswillneverknowâ, did not know that I was supposed to be credited for being a co-creator so I was left out of the masterpost and all conversations. I had to go ask him to credit me and even then, had to prove myself by showing him what Iâve showed you all so far.
When the day got REALLY big on March 6th and we started getting media attention, guess what happened. You guessed it! I was completely minimized while my co-creators were given their due. They also didnât mention me  while they got interview offers. It got to the point where I had to basically ghost write and give pointers on what to do and say and how to explain the project (@whatwhiteswillneverknow can confirm. Theyâve since apologized).  In fact, the only REAL mention of me or credit I was given that first #BlackoutDay was to have my old url made fun of by a YouTube personality (he  only mentioned me, the misogynior was real) and to have my photos taken and used in his video without my permission. YIKES.
So that stung, but I continued to work to keep this thing going because I believe in what it can be. Month after month, putting things in place and orchestrating partnerships and promotions so that #Blackout and #BlackoutDay would continue to be successful and grow outside of Tumblr. Paying attention to how we could make this better for all of you. Answering mail on our blog (seriously, go look at theblackoutofficial and realize who appears most active). Getting heat from other parts of Tumblr and Neo-Nazis and white supremacists. I worked even after someone told me âno one will take you seriously as a womanâ. I worked and networked, even when expect-the-greatestâ was inactive.  In fact, heâs been open about this:
 This isnât my first time trying to tell Tumblr the truth.Â
I have spoken about this previously and about how Tumblr has harassed me or minimized me through these months and how itâs made my role difficult. Â What is my role? Pulled straight from our website:
 I am working very, very hard. I have put money into getting a website and making us legitimate. And for what? To have people constantly questioning me? Running into inboxes on anon and being rude about me to my co-creators? I am fed up with the bullshit I have had to deal with and keep quiet about because I was afraid of more harassment.
Black Tumblr, I am a black woman that has been there the ENTIRE time working to give you something you enjoy so AT LEAST do me the favor of giving me my credit and stop harassing me and my co-creators as if I suddenly showed up to a party I wasnât invited to.
this is what we mean when we say ALL white people have white privilege. whether youâre rich, poor, a criminal, uneducated or anything else. a white criminal has a better chance at getting a call back then a black person with no criminal record. shut the fuck up next time you wanna talk to us about privilege.Â
Iâm in Texas, and I drove past a school just now, and on the grass, just outside of the entrance, they had a huge pro-life sign. Just no. No Texas. Bad Texas.
what I really like about this, is that theyâve included Jaden Smith, who is a youth, and he is talking on behalf of us, speaking the truth. But literally all we see in the media about Jaden is that him and Willow are âweirdâ âquite unusual  kidsâ âand very strangeâ when really he is just being himself, and still adults are not getting that. âThey hear kids all the time, but they donât really listenâ Literally sums up his portrayal in the media, they see him, and the hear him, but they donât acknowledge him for the creative adolescent he is. They just tell us he is bizarre.
please, donât delete the captions i or other users have added to images describing them. tumblr is so bad for blind/vi users and you never know when that image might reach someone who is blind/vi. i canât imagine how frustrating it is to hear the comments on an image but not know what the image is actually of, especially for PSA/signal boost posts. be kind and keep captions intact.
I always hear how patient caregivers and family members of disabled people need to be, but nobody ever told me that disabled people need to be more patient than anyone else. We have to wait politely when we need help with something. We have to wait until itâs convenient for them. We have to be understanding when someone fails to meet our needs. We have to be gracious for everything for fear of our caregivers denying us help if weâre even the slightest bit ungrateful.
Three more cities adopted Indigenous Peoples' Day in just the past 48 hours.
Following a growing trend, the city council of Albuquerque, New Mexico has voted six to three to recognize October 12th â typically known to most as âColumbus Dayâ within the USAâ as Indigenous Peoplesâ day in a new proclamation. Albuquerque has the highest concentration of Indigenous people in New Mexico.
In the past two months, eight cities got rid of Columbus Day in favor of adopting Indigenous Peoplesâ Day. Three of those cities adopted Indigenous Peoplesâ Day this week.
Albuquerque, New Mexico â The cityâs formal declarationâencourages businesses, organizations and public entities to recognize Indigenous Peoples Day, which shall be used to reflect upon the ongoing struggles of Indigenous people on this land, and to celebrate the thriving culture and value that our Indigenous nations add to our City.â
Lawrence, KS â Since September, students from Haskell University in Lawrence, Kansas have been taking initiative and pushing for the city to honor their ancestors by declaring October 12th Indigenous Peoplesâ day. Just this Wednesday, they won.
Portland, OR â Portlandâs City Council declared Indigenous Peoplesâ day on Tuesday, something tribal leaders have been seeking since 1954.
St. Paul, MN â In August, St. Paul followed Minneapolis by declaring Indigenous Peoplesâ Day instead of Columbus Day. Minneapolis passed its own resolution last year.
Bexar County, TX â The resolution was passed Tuesday, and local activists intend to press for the same thing in San Antonio.
Anadarko, OK â In September, Anadarko declared Indigenous Peoplesâ Day. Anadarko Mayor Kyle Eastwood signed the proclamation while surrounded by tribal leaders from the Apache, Choctaw, Delaware, Wichita and others.
Olympia, WA â Mayor Pro Tem Nathaniel Jones presented Olympiaâs proclamation at a rally in August. Nearly 150 people showed up to support the initiative.
Alpena, MI â In September, Mayor Matt Waligora declared Indigenous Peoplesâ Day. The city says they desire âto develop a strong and productive relationship with all indigenous peoples, including the Saginaw Chippewa Tribe, based on mutual respect and trust.â
These cities are following in the footsteps of Seattle and Minneapolis. Meanwhile, Oklahoma City came close to passing it in September and will try to pass it again on October 13th, the day after the holiday.
City Council Member Rey Garduño wrote and proposed the proclamation, with guidance from local activists. The campaign was initiated last year during an âAbolish Columbus Dayâ demonstration at City Hall.
Although these changes have been quite recent, the struggle for the recognition of Indigenous Peoples Day has been going on since 1954, when the idea was first proposed in Portland, OR.
The Albuquerque Police Department have a notorious record of harassing and killing oppressed people. Their law enforcement divisions have shot 50 people resulting in 28 fatalities since 2010. In Albuquerque, Indigenous people compose 4.6 of the cityâs population, but 13% of its consistently homeless population.
This name change is a fantastic trend that needs to grow fast, but it needs to be followed up by concrete action and legislation. Nationwide (and worldwide â particularly in Latin American countries that have suffered from US-backed coups), Indigenous people suffer from economic inequality, health problems, and human rights abuses. Itâs time we celebrate their culture and tradition rather than their oppressorsâ, and itâs time we give back to those weâve taken so much from.
As a disabled person, I donât like that my life is viewed as a constant reminder to non-disabled people that it could always be worse, and I donât like that Iâm considered inspirational simply for living the life Iâve been given. Disabled people donât exist to inspire non-disabled people or to remind them that there are no excuses in life, or that life could always be worse. We did not ask to be feel-good story on the 5 oâclock news when we go to football games, get asked to prom, or graduate high school. Those are just normal teenage things and it shouldnât be any more inspiring because you do them sitting in a wheelchair or with some other disability.
What Youâre Really Saying When You Call Me âInspirationalâ (via ceepstyle)
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