#ask andrewism

[andrew-ism]

Fun facts are overrated, what is a boring fact about yourself? For example, I ALWAYS put my left shoe on before my right shoe.

I eat oatmeal every day.

[andrew-ism]

Have you ever read "The Disposessed" by Ursula Le Guin? If so, what did you think about it? Also more generally: Are you a fan of utopian/dystopian fiction and if so, do you have any recommendations?

I have read it, and a few other works by Le Guin. It was a solid read in the moment, but if I'm being honest it wasn't particularly memorable for me. I think because it was hyped up a lot I was a bit disappointed when I finally got around to reading it. I might've actually enjoyed The Left Hand of Darkness more.

What has persisted in my memory are the Parable of the Sower and Parable of the Talents books by Octavia Butler. The world she crafted and story she weaved, far too much like our own, continues to stir in my memory with every passing year.

On a lighter note, I've also quite enjoyed the two short Monk and Robot novellas by Becky Chambers. The taste of worldbuilding it gives us is very satisfying.

[andrew-ism]

Hey, I just wanted to ask as a person from the Caribbean also. What got you so passionate about, or I guess got you into the political sphere. A lot of the things you speak about aren't typical of a lot of Caribbean YouTubers one of the reasons your content stood out to me.

From a very young age, I noticed the problems in my country (Trinidad & Tobago) just from looking around and I wanted to change things. Many of my old drawing and writing books were thus filled with ideas for change or worldbuilding fantasies. I've always loved writing and seen it as my way of shaping the world. As I got older, I spent more time trying to understand the issues, the history, and the contemporary situation by reading, chatting with folks in person and online, and consuming edutainment. My passion for learning was also helped by my homeschooling experience.

Without getting deep into my whole life story and political journey, this pursuit of knowledge and solutions was kicked into overdrive in 2019 as I was introduced to the ideas of socialism and anarchism and later in that same year experienced the depressing and life-draining nature of full-time work for the first time (previously I had done a few part-time internships, short-term contracts, and sole trade work). While in the office, I read digital copies of both The Communist Manifesto and The Conquest of Bread, which led me to start a blog in 2020 where I would be able to publicly share what I had been thinking about and learning about for so long. That was on Medium.com. At that point, I wanted to be an art journalist.

Before long, radical ideas explored through a local lens became the prime focus. But due to low readership over months of consistent effort, I came to see blogging as a medium with limited opportunity for reach in our increasingly video-dominated age, which culminated with the creation of my YouTube channel.

However, as much as I wanted to keep my focus on the country and the region, I couldn't limit my message. I don't tailor my voice and message to either a local audience or an American audience. I grew up on content that acted like America was the only country and audience in the world, but I knew there were people like me globally going through the same issues who didn't want to hear every message filtered through the American lens.

I think both globally and locally when I make my videos, and I believe my approach has allowed me to reach folks internationally, which has gotten me to a size where people across the islands can now more easily take notice of my work and hopefully get some good out of it. My heart remains here in the region, and I would like to expand my reach here in the region, but it's easier said than done. I've seen an opportunity in TikTok, but I really can't add more to my plate at this point. A burning passion for learning combined with consistent effort, the help of various folks, and luck sprinkled in has brought me to where I am now, and that's what I'm trying to maintain going forward.

[andrew-ism]

I had no idea you were here! Good to see folk like you being active where I can touch you guys. Thank you for making my life a little bit more green (and in your case yellow too) than it was, very inspiring and even more so to people like me young and in the global south. I don't have much ways of doing something now, but all this time I'm storing knowledge and fuel for later in life. You're part of this. Thank you.

Thank you!

[andrew-ism]

I know that you aren't very active on here anymore but if you somehow see this ask, What are your thoughts about veganism? I recently started learning and leaning more towards anarchism and naturally I was asking these questions. I first learnt a lot about anarchism/ anarcho-communism from you, so i thought i would ask for your stance on it too!

I think having a strong stance against the abuse and exploitation of animals is noble and it is one that I share, but not perfectly. Although I've reduced my meat consumption considerably, it's not zero. As for other animal products, I try to source them as ethically as I can.

[andrew-ism]

Hello Andrew. I'm just sending you this because I think you're killing it on youtube. Absolute legend.

Thank you 🫶🏽

[andrew-ism]

Hello! I'm from the Philippines and currently pushing for liberation from the colonized mindset that permeates through our everyday life, as well as mutual aid initiatives to mitigate economic disparity. Your videos have been eyeopening for me and I was wondering... What do you think are the most sustainable and efficient courses of action? I have leadership experience in grassroots movements but I find it quite difficult to organize as I struggle to find like-minded people.

I think that the most sustainable and efficient courses of action are entirely context-dependent and it's tough for me to give the people who ask me this question specific recommendations without a fully detailed description of their unique situation.

As much as I hate to borrow from "corporate speak," it might be helpful to do a SWOT analysis of your area to identify the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats present in your unique context. Maybe someday I'll make a video going into that idea in more detail.

It may also help to do a resilience assessment. I found Think Resilience's self-directed course to be quite helpful in explaining this way of thinking in a concise manner. It's also completely free.

I fully relate to the struggle to find like-minded people, and it has certainly continued to be a challenge in my own local efforts. If/when I find an easy solution to this, you'll be the first to know. What I can suggest for now is that you seek out not necessarily like-minded people, but perhaps like-invested people. Meaning seek out groups that are already doing some sort of social, political, environmental, or educational activism but may not necessarily share your radicalism and try to work/build relationships with them that will naturally create opportunities for you to radicalise their efforts and tactics and spread anarchic and decolonial ideas.

Of course, doing this solo comes with the risk of your own radicalism being watered down--especially in more institutional spaces--which is why especifists recommend you engage in social insertion within movements as a group rather than as an individual.

My video on social revolution is meant to be a comprehensive overview of the variety of actions necessary to transform our world, so you can also look to those tactics and projects to draw inspiration once you've identified what needs doing and been able to connect with some folks who are as motivated as you to see change.

Hope this can help in some way. All power to all the people in the Philippines!

[andrew-ism]

hey, not a question but wanted to say how inspiring you are. your videos and writings have been a big influence on how I dream and move about the world. I do believe that liberation must be rooted in love, and I feel love from your works which has given me the confidence to start building community with the people around me. I pray for your well being and success in your endeavors and good luck with your book!

🫶🏽