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Obviously not expecting a (white) American site to gaf about today so lemme talk a bit more about Windrush Day and the Black British experience:

I feel like the Black British experience is constantly one of work and struggle. Our parents and grandparents lived through colonial and post colonial (using the term lightly) rule just to end up working and serving the imperial core, targeted by the same government that invited them here. A lot of the time its phrased as a choice but in reality what else could they have done? Ts and Cs apply bc for some West African Brits their parents were middle class back home but for me and others our families grew up in poverty in places still recovering from slavery and colonialism.

Britain whitewashes the history of Black immigrants, literally in the sense we're not taught our own history of Black people in Britain and metaphorically by applying British individualist myths; that as long as you work hard, don't complain about it and love Britain you can be British too. But it erases, ignores and distorts the truth that the British state used our community as nothing more than a labour force to rebuild after WWII and actively targeted Black British communities with police surveillance, brutality and systemic racism. All whilst denying it of course and turning their nose up at the very accusation. Very British.

Black British contributions, West African and West Indian to be more specific don't just apply in terms of work but in terms of shaping culture. 'Roadman' has become a meme and a caricature (including by some Americans on here ik u lot love 'chav') with barely any connection to its Black British roots, even when the term gets used as an insult to mainly Black working class men or used as a British version of 'thug'. The grime scene is undeniably a staple of Black Britain yet it is pathologised and judged, moral panics about Black people's violence and yet capitalised and profitted off of by non Black Brits as an aesthetic. Everybody wants the tracksuits, the tunes and the terminology innit. To be 'road' means to be Black British yet when its time to talk culture, nobody wants to credit it us. All of a sudden its 'London culture'.

But it isn't all doom and gloom. There's so much history and culture here in our spaces. I'd be lying if I said growing up where I did was easy. But it has shaped my outlook and made me and I'll carry that with me forever. Our grandparents and parents came here with so little and made so much out of nothing. And I'll always honour that. Justice for the Windrush generation.

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What are your thoughts on commenting with a goal to motivate author to write more?

I know there are not thought-crimes but I'm kinda feeling unsure about myself rn. There is a fic that I really liked and I think about rereading it. It also wasn't updated in quite some time and I know that generally authors are often motivated by comments

I'm thinking about making comments as I reread and the put them into the chapters. The thing is, my biggest motivation with it is to encourage author to write more and it makes me feel, idk, slimy? Like, they wouldn't know that that's why I commented and they would be just normal comments (+ I never ever even put anything vagueing about updates like "I can't wait to see how it will turn out!" or something, so I'd certainly not be pushy about it) but still I feel bad like I'm manipulating the author :/

So, yeah. Basically, do feel like underlying motivations matter if there is no discernible difference between the comments?

If you do a good thing for a selfish reason, is the thing still good?

From that author's perspective, I'd say probably.

If I received a slew of comments on one of my fics, I'd be elated. Depending on how many spoons I had, I'd even reply to them all.

It might or might not motivate me to continue writing, though. If I don't have an idea for where to go next then receiving a comment likely won't get me past that block.

As long as you're content with just brightening someone's day without a guarantee that it'll get you what you want in the end, then I say have at it. To paraphrase a post I saw on my dash recently, a rich man who builds an orphanage because of his own selfish reasons has still given orphans a place to go.

That's how I see it, but let's see what the rest of the blog thinks.

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(gripping the skink with both hands, pale and feverish, sweating and shaking as I look at myself in the mirror) “killing a character is a valid writing choice that can be a crucial plot mechanic and lend beauty and depth to the story as a whole” (wretches up blood into the sink) “even when it’s my favorite character”

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she was seriously worried that the city would get rid of the grafitti before she could take a picture with it

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Little boys. 💕 Postcard from my collection, unsent, 1902.

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I saw this post on tiktok and as soon as I opened the comments I started sobbing

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Love this lil cretur so much 🖤

from Clothes Make the Creature by @chaoticquibit ✨

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translation: “My sheep! [bah! bah!] You are my life. [bah! bah!] Walk behind me…[bah! bah!] Sing (after me).”

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and what are we going to do when the HP series comes out and we start seeing a resurgence of the fandom here including gifsets and fics. like are u guys gonna bring up your neurodivergence and cry "can we separate the art from the artist!!!!! you dont need to pay to watch it!!!!!its my comfort show and I'm DEPRESSED and AUTISTIC"

what then

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Apparently there was some kind of race scheduled at a local park or something so I've been trying to avoid the main trail but a little while ago when I had to cross near it I overheard the following shouted exchange

Higher feminine voice: woo, look at you go! You're jogging! Keep it up!

Lower masculine voice (panting): you know it! Last place is still a place, baby!

And goddamn if that didn't rewire my brain a little bit.

Last place is still a place, baby.

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Why do you use It/Its pronouns...

i got tagged in elementary school and never recovered

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ppl complain abt everyone being so boring/inauthentic/detached these days but the second u have interests they deem unusual theyll be like "waitttt thats giving neurodivergent..." like damn its so awesome that were pathologising giving a fuck about anything they dont sell at a tj maxx

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brotzly pizza toppings

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saw a post redrawing this and was inspired

original under cut