Posts Categorized: Uncategorized
Our Lives Matter and Howard Demonstrations Prove Protest Isn’t Dead
After the Black Lives Matter protests, and all of the “Hands Up Don’t Shoot” marches, I began to lose faith in activism. I started to believe that maybe it truly was a passive way to get someone’s attention and that the method was dead. Back in the times of Martin Luther King Jr. and Huey Freeman, things like sit ins and protests and speaking engagements outside of serious public buildings were a force to be reckoned with, but as times changed, so did the system. Recent events have changed my mind. It’s certainly a time to be alive as we, young people of the larger population start to listen and open our eyes to things that affect us. We need to vote more and we need to make sure… Read more »
March for Our Lives Showed Me Solidarity Isn’t Real
There is no such thing as solidarity. I used to think that statement was unheard of, and I couldn’t understand why people couldn’t just stand up and fight for one another in hard times and band together through tragedy. I watched the students in Parkland and all over the country march out of their schools to fight for the stricter gun laws. I saw all of the hashtags: #neveragain #marchforourlives #protectkidsnotguns. It seems like students all over have had enough of the country they live in not protecting them. However, even though the high schools had all kinds of rallies and marches, there were no participants at the college level. In college, we’re taught about ALICE that tells us to fight back, barricade doors and escape at all costs. Grade… Read more »
Black People Have Been Marching
This weekend, tens of thousands of Americans joined together all around the country to protest gun control in the March for Our Lives. The students from the high school in Parkland, Florida, which suffered a massive shooting taking 17 lives, have been speaking up loudly about their feelings on gun control. There was an overwhelmingly positive response from notable figures, even the White House sending out a message to commend the students for exercising their first amendment rights. The March for Our Lives is a good thing, and its response is even better. Youth from all around the country are tired of gun violence being ignored, and their determination is not going unheard. However, this is not the first time gun violence has been protested this much before. What makes this… Read more »
Three examples of environmental reproductive injustice
Environmental justice takes shape in many forms, but it is often not taken as seriously as other human rights issues. Here are three instances where environmental justice meets reproductive justice. Toxins Because many low-wage workers are women and people of color, they are often exposed disproportionately to toxic chemicals in the air. This includes chemicals used in hair and nail salons, home cleaning products and agricultural pesticides. These toxins are known for causing a slew of reproductive health problems. What is commonly called the Toxic Trio are the chemicals formaldehyde, dibutyl phthalate, and toluene, which are three notoriously harmful chemicals used in nail salons. These chemicals vaporize into the air and can cause many health problems for those that inhale them. Formaldehyde is used as a “nail hardening agent”, dibutyl phthalate… Read more »
Rape Culture is Dating Culture
Another sexual assault revelation in wake of the #MeToo movement was posted online, accusing comedian Aziz Ansari of sexual misconduct. The piece, “I went on a date with Aziz Ansari. it turned into the worst night of my life,” has received a lot of backlash, much more so than others, with many supporters of this movement claiming this accuser had gone too far. In the piece, the anonymous woman “Grace” recounts a night where Aziz acted forcefully upon her the whole night with her giving few verbal cues about her discomfort, but giving no indication that she was consenting to anything that he was doing. Still, several publications have released op-eds where woman, often sexual assault survivors themselves, believe calling this an act of sexual assault to undermine the movement. Many… Read more »
Reproductive Care Doesn’t Need Validation. Die Mad About it.
When we talk about reasons that people use birth control, we love to validate it. A conversation around why contraceptives should be covered by insurance is not complete without a mention of how somebody uses it for their PCOS or intense periods or hormonal regulation. And while these are all entirely valid and necessary reasons to go on the pill or something of the sort, it is also valid to use it for what the name suggests: controlling birth. Though I’m stating the obvious, this discussion of birth control’s uses comes down to our society’s pervasive fear of women’s sexual pleasure. It seems like we’ve accepted that women are going to have sex, but haven’t gotten to the point yet where we can admit that women, just like people of… Read more »
Hey! Don’t use my religion to discriminate
The President of the United States signed an executive order that promotes religious liberty. As a person of faith, I grow tired of the rhetoric that categorizes my faith as one to be weaponized to promote discrimination against minority groups. This order is not for the empowerment or protection of American Christians, but to allow the conversation to be dominated by white evangelical Christians voices who support restrictions on LGBTQ communities, abortion, and access to reproductive health care for individuals who it. I apologize to the communities affected by this order because this is not what my religion teaches. My religion is built on the protecting the meek and oppressed, building relationships with those on the margins of society, and fighting for those who are being taken advantage of by… Read more »
Mama’s Day Bail Out
Though we’ve had a rocky past during the typical teen angst years, my mother is my best friend. She’s my shoulder to cry on, she’s my inspiration. She accepts me even when I’m at my worst, and she taught me the value of unconditional love. Smart, and driven, my mother was also the first person to teach me about being #AbortionPositive and unapologetically pro-choice. Since my childhood was spent in an often conservative Catholic school, my mom spent the time outside of school to teach me about progressive politics, bodily autonomy, and the value of pro-choice legislation. Without my mom, I couldn’t be the person that I am today. This is why it saddens me that so many of our country’s Black mothers are incarcerated, and won’t get to spend… Read more »
There’s Something In the Air
There’s something in the air. It spreads like a plague, an unquestionable fear deep seated in the roots of oppression. Its wings spread ever so gently throughout the country, the home that many black people and other people of color have known all of their lives. The voice that it occupies feels us with fear, hate, sadness and other emotions that interpersonal human reactions haven’t processed yet. This voice approaches the doorsteps of our social spaces and stares us in the face. We stare grimly, desperately and fearfully at this figure. What is a person of color supposed to do in this situation? Is this what our world has become as a result of this new era? Have our lives and our everyday lived experiences become a facade for society… Read more »
Easter in Texas: Resurrected Bathroom Bill Now A Sickening Zombie
Part-time Texas Governor and full time conniving Slytherin, Greg Abbott, announced his encouragement of Texas House Bill 2899, which bars transgender individuals from using the bathroom consistent with their gender and overturns any anti-discrimination ordinances passed by Texas localities. HB 2899 is the evil spawn of Texas Senate Bill 6, which had similar aims but is being held up by Speaker of the House Joe Strauss, who is taking his sweet time (probably intentionally) to assign the bill to a committee. Without a committee assignment, the bill has lost traction. This stall apparently concerned hateful lawmakers, who seem hell bent on passing any type of trans-discriminatory legislation before the Texas session is over in May. So how bad is this resurrected bathroom bill? IT’S TERRIBLE! UGLY! NO GOOD! Brainless, decayed and… Read more »
