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[sexistentialisms]

[image description: combination of hammer and sickle and disability symbolism. a figure sits in the “sickle” part of the symbol, in a way that evokes a wheelchair, and is crossed by the hammer part of the symbol]

feel free to share this image i made 2 years ago. i may have gotten a shirt made out of it but i never intended it to be like, My Thing. it’s two universally recognizable symbols around which countless movements around the world have been organized. by combining them, i am indicating the inextricable links between struggles for disability justice and struggles against capitalist exploitation. i would like it if people would do with this whatever and everything they want to: make pins, buttons, patches, stickers, shirts, flags, spray paint, whatevr DIY project you want to do to promote the links between communism and disability justice. you don’t have to credit me. think of a catchy phrase to go with it. go wild. literally this is just an idea in image form, and the ways this image can and should be used are not up to me to decide. im not the first to have this idea, as these movements have historically overlapped in significant ways, so this symbol is more or less a reflection of the past as much as a potential banner for struggles of the future.

i am not capable of making anything more than a symbol, alone. but please feel free to share as i think this is a great conversation starter at the very least, for people who are confused as to why you’d combine the hammer and sickle and wheelchair symbolism in the first place. it’s a great way to educate about the links between capitalist exploitation and the exploitation and neglect of disabled people. and above all it’s an intuitive link that many disabled people and communists will understand and channel as they use the symbol, in whatever way works for them.

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“I am a type-1 diabetic and if i die young you’ll know why and who is responsible. they have names and addresses.” 

this is a well-written and informativ article, but it doesn’t mention the important fact that this was a tactic used by ACT-UP during the AIDS crisis in the US in the 90s. They dumped the ashes of AIDS victims on the White House lawn. now doctors are saying that with current treatment HIV is less of a threat to chronic health than type 1 diabetes. and about the same number of people hav type 1 diabetes as are HIV positiv in the US. it’s abt 1.25 million for both conditions. 30 million have type 1 or type 2 diabetes. and over 100 million are diabetic or pre-diabetic. more than a third of US adults. this is not to put down HIV/AIDS as a major, if not the biggest in living memory, healthcare crisis that happened and continues to happen to the poor and large parts of the world. but diabetes has been killing people for longer than HIV, and it will continue to kill them by the hundreds and thousands if we don’t recognize it as one of the most alarming healthcare crises this century has seen or will see. to see ACT-UP tactics being used to mobilize around different healthcare concerns besides HIV/AIDS is both inspiring and powerful, and is a good example of what i would call solidarity of practices. you can only use this tactic amidst horrible circumstances - people needlessly dying, or more correctly being killed off by negligence and corruption. that makes it all the more powerful as a weapon against the powers that are killing us. I am a type-1 diabetic and if i die young you’ll know why and who is responsible. they have names and addresses.

[sexistentialisms]

here’s someting interesting for you too. marsha p. johnson had a close friend and roommate named randolfe “randy” wicker, and he is still alive and is still involved in activism. he has some very rare footage of marsha p. johnson and others who knew of her on his youtube channel. you should definitely take a look at them if you want to learn more and subscribe to his channel too.

[sexistentialisms]

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: NAMELESS WOMAN: AN ANTHOLOGY OF FICTION BY TRANS WOMEN OF COLOR

Hi, we’re looking for fiction to add to our upcoming print edition of the anthology we released last year as an ebook. We’re currently interested in short stories in any genre written by trans women of color and trans/nonbinary people who are affected by transmisogyny. In order to submit writing you must be a dmab (designated male at birth) person who also identifies as a person of color.

The total length of your short story or excerpt should be between 1,000 and 7,500 words. Each contributing writer will be paid $100 for their work. You don’t need to have any previously published writing to be published in the anthology. See full guidelines at our site: http://www.transwomenwriters.org/submission-guidelines-print-anthology

Submissions will be open from August 24th to October 12th, 2016, which is a flexible deadline so get in touch if you need more time. Please email your submissions and any questions to twocanthology@gmail.com.  

[sexistentialisms]

for those of you who havnt read / heard yet, somthing horrible happened today (last nite/ this morning) in orlando, at a gay club called pulse. a lot of people will hear abt this in really jarring ways from social media, and a lot of people are upset and angry. if this is your first time reading abt this, please take yr time to approach this subject in a way that is safest for you.

some of u are outside the US and will hear news slower, some of u simply havnt encountered this information yet. at times lik these, you blink and suddenly u turn around and the whole world is expressing their outrage and grief, and that can be almost as ovrwhelming as the information itself. you can take space to process these facts on yr own, in yr own way, and in yr own time. a lot of people have died; you are not responsible for evry1 else's process and expression of grief in addition to yr own. but you can, if and when you feel ready, help specific individuals with their process by reaching out and offering support and community.  

please take care of yrselves, and please take care of each other. we need to come together at times lik these. please let me kno if any1 needs to talk today to process this. i'm here for u all with love and a radical and unwavering commitment to destroying the structures of violence that kill us every day.

[sexistentialisms]

hey, your friendly neighborhood disabled trans woman here. my partner and i need to pay rent soon but we’re running a bit low on funds. we’re both looking for jobs but it’s come up entirely dry. if you’re willing to donate it would be immensely appreciated. if you can’t donate, reblogging/boosting this is also immensely appreciated. thank you so much in advance.

i have the square cash app and paypal. my username for square cash is $valyrie and my paypal email is bpirtle7@gmail.com (legal name bullshit x.x )

again, we really appreciate any assistance is hugely helpful.

[sexistentialisms]

Inmates jailed in Flint forced to drink, shower in toxic water

Even though Mayor Karen Weaver declared a state of emergency in December, followed by Gov. Rick Synder in January and President Barack Obama a few days later, inmates in the Genesee County Jail in Flint were forced to drink the water, as well as shower in it, according to a new report from Democracy Now!

According to the report, the jail distributed bottled water to inmates after Weaver declared an emergency in December, but the bottled water only lasted a shockingly short amount of time.

[sexistentialisms]

On February 6th a student organization at American University booked Venus Selenite, a Black trans woman writer and performance artist, for a paid speaking engagement and to facilitate a workshop. However, Venus has not actually been PAID for any of the work she did, and has been given the run around by American University saying that they’ve lost her paperwork and essentially putting her through a billion bureaucratic hoops in order to not compensate her for her work. As a result of this, Venus has canceled an opportunity to deliver a keynote at another event on American University’s campus and now is having difficulty coming up with her rent this month.

If you can please boost this and let Michael Elmore, senior director of American University’s Student Activities Office know that Venus deserves to be paid for her work at 202-885-3931.

AND if you can, please contribute to Venus’ YouCaring https://www.youcaring.com/venus-thomas-hinyard-373926 so that she can remain in stable housing!

[sexistentialisms]

Most workers are now employed in sectors that are peripheral to the economy’s well-being, if they take industrial action it causes inconvenience only to the immediate employer and perhaps a few companies up and down the supply chain. In contrast the essential proletariat is that group of workers who can halt vast areas of the economy by stopping their work. These workers are employed in the economy’s core industries, industries that can only operate with a relatively high level of labour input into their processes, which gives to those workers an already existing control over process; core workers’ latent power can be demonstrated immediately in industrial action which spreads its knock-on effect to all businesses in the locality and beyond, producing spiralling repercussions in society. Core-workers include factory workers, dustmen, power workers, distribution workers (post, rail, road haulage, ferries, dockers, etc); in all of these examples the cessation of work causes immediate and widespread problems for the economy, and this is why it is precisely in these industries that wildcat action is most frequent, quite simply, industrial action in these industries has a history of success. [...] The working class is nothing but the collective position of those who are brought closest to the machinery of the capitalist system; a human function in the capitalist machine; the working class are the revolutionary body because of, and only because of, their position in the capitalist economy, they are the one social body that can close the system down. [...] If general circumstances force you to work in an essential industry (and by essential we mean those industries that will make the continuation of capitalist society impossible by their absence) then you are a proletarian, this social status is not something to be fetishised, it’s just a fact. The working class is merely a function of the capitalist economy. We are interested in the proletariat only to the measure that the proletariat literally has in its hands the levers of capitalism’s power. Only those who can be effective will be effective. As for the left, everywhere we see unresurrectable and useless acts, which no matter the intention connect only with institutions that were formed ages ago: revolution has become, for too many, the smashing of mirrors — at the moment this is called anti-capitalism. There are no revolutionary means of connecting to society, there are no means of escaping absolute containment by institutional determinations, except in the locus of production; factory production is where society’s power originates and it is the only place where it can be directly engaged for certain; outside the factories all is spectacle, all is mirrors. Every non-productive social form is more or less unreal and engaging with them in political terms is always a move into falsity. How is an anti-capitalist protester going to change the world? Bу what means exactly? We have given our formula, yes it is simplistic, it is materialistic, mechanistic even, but even so, everything in the world is made, and power derives from the control of this making, if the making is stopped then the source of this power is interrupted, that is our formula. So now let us hear the plans of the anti-capitalists, what for them is the source of capitalist power, how is ownership maintained? How are the anti-capitalists to engage the power they have theorised, and how to overthrow it? If it is a good recipe then we shall use it, if however, it begins: first take several million assorted people over the world and get them all angry about the conditions of their life, and induce them to catch a plane to some foreign city to march down the main thoroughfare, perhaps breaking a few windows, then we say this is not a good recipe but the continuation of miragic democracy by means other than the vote.

Monsier Dupont, Nihilist Communism, “‘Working class consciousness’?”

[source]

[sexistentialisms]

white jews are implicated in white supremacy not by virtue of being jewish but by virtue of being white. white jews have a special responsibility insofar as we are JEWISH to join POC, including other Jews, in building movements to systematically dismantle whiteness; not "special" insofar as we have more power than other whites in doing so (we don't), but "special" insofar as we are the inheritors simultaneously of the racialized violence against our own peoples and of the moral outlook of our ancestors of compassion and justice for the oppressed.

[sexistentialisms]

https://www.gofundme.com/uj9eedt8 or donate via paypal ismajick@gmail.com please I’m like three weeks late on my shot

[sexistentialisms]

Hello! I’m an chronically ill abuse survivor and I’m struggling to pay for basic living expenses including rent, food and medical appointments. I used to get some financial assistance from a friend but he can’t provide that any more. I’m in pain a lot of the time and am extremely weak, so getting by day to day is hard enough without the extra stress of poverty. My PayPal is donationsfund1112@gmail.com Please help me out by donating or reblogging this post! Thank you. 

[sexistentialisms]

I’m 21 years old and permanently bedbound from slipping down a staircase on the last day of high school 3 years ago (medical evidence). I had hoped to study music and was also shortlisted for a $20,000 law scholarship, but now I’m destined to spend the rest of my life on a bed. Because I am not able to work, I’ve also been on the verge of homelessness for almost a year and my social security payment is only $200/week. I’d like to find some financial stability by seeking recompense for the accident that has caused my severe disability and every bit of misery it entails.

Given the extent of my condition, the payout could be potentially in the millions of dollars if I’m successful in the case. However, for now I need a lot of help to fund the medicolegal reports as well as the expert report assessing the staircase I slipped down. In part due to the complexity of my medical condition, I wasn’t able to find a suitable law firm that is able to fund these reports on my behalf. My solicitor suggested the reports would cost  $15,000 AUD to $25,000 AUD over the course of 1 - 2 years. For now, I will need to pay $5,000 AUD to $10,000 AUD for the expert report which needs to be completed within about a month. Further details about the legal issues: 1  2

I’ve set up a YouCaring page specifically for these reports so that the donations can be counted toward the total needed. I know the goal is quite high, but donations will accumulate, and the case will last 1 - 2 years so there’s time to raise the total amount. I’ve deducted the $2000 that have already been raised from the approx. goal. Please consider donating any amount you can or reblogging this post. Thank you for your support!

[sexistentialisms]

Alternatives to ‘Sioux’

As you may know, the word ‘Sioux’ is considered to be a slur amongst members of the Oceti Sakowin. It is not our word for ourselves, but rather a name given to us by another nation and perpetuated by the Europeans / Euro-Americans.

You also may have noticed that our official tribe names often contain the word ‘Sioux’ (‘Oglala Lakota Sioux Tribe’ for example.) The reason for this is entirely legal. When our treaties were drafted, they were written as an agreement between the US Government and the ‘Sioux Nation.’ For this reason, we cannot fully abandon the name. However, when we’ve had opportunities, we’ve dropped the name in places we can (’Oglala Lakota County,’ for example, a name chosen by the rezidents.)

Simply put, members of the Oceti Sakowin generally don’t refer to themselves as ‘Sioux’ and, if we can’t change it legally, at least we can continue to assert our identity on our terms. So, if you choose to respect that, here’s a quick Oceti Sakowin education guide:

Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) 

Oceti Sakowin (encompasses all language dialects) is the simplest and broadest replacement for ‘Sioux.’ You can use this term if you aren’t aware of the specific language group to which ‘Sioux’ refers. Within the Oceti Sakowin are three main groups, which are further divided into seven subgroups:

Isanti Oyate (Santee — Dakota Dialect)

Ble Wakantunwan (Mdewakanton*) - Spirit Lake

Wahpetunwan (Wahpeton) - Leaf Village

Wahpe Kute Tunwan (Wahpekute) - Leaf Archers

Sinsin Tunwan (Sisseton) - Swamp Village

Wiciyela Oyate (Yankton/Yanktonais — Dakota Dialect ; commonly mislabeled as Nakota* Dialect)

Ihanktunwan - End of Horn Village

Ihanktunwanna - Little End of Horn Village

Tinte Oyate (Tetons — Lakota Dialect)

Tinte Ta Tunwan (Tintatunwan Oceti Sakowin) - Plains Nation

Within the Tinte Ta Tunwan / Tintatunwan Oceti Sakown (#7), there are another seven subdivisions:

Tintatunwan Oceti Sakowin - Lakota

Oglala - Scatters Their Own (Pine Ridge Indian Reservation)

Sicangu - Burnt Thighs (Rosebud Reservation, Lower Brule Reservation)

Hwohwoju (Mnikiwoju/Mniconjou) - Swamp Plant  (Cheyenne River Reservation)

Itazipcola (Itazipco) - No Bow  (Cheyenne River Reservation)

Owohe Nunpa (Oohenunpa) - Two Paunch Boiler (Cheyenne River Reservation)

Sihasapa - Black Feet (Cheyenne River Reservation, Standing Rock Reservation)

Hunkpapa - End of Horn (Standing Rock Reservation)

*modern terminology *In the past, the term Nakota has been applied to the Yankton, but this is a mistake. The Yankton speak Dakota. Nakota speakers are Assiniboine / Hohe and Stoney, who broke off from the Yankton at a time so long ago their language is now nearly unrecognizable to Lakota and Dakota speakers.

[sexistentialisms]

An excellent article by my dear friend Jonathan Katz on the racism in Jewish communities and the responsibility of white Jews to address it.

[sexistentialisms]

Kayden Clarke, ableism, and transphobia

Content warning: this post discusses police/state violence, suicide, ableism, and transphobia. 

The autistic person who was murdered by police in Arizona on February 4, 2016, was a transgender man named Kayden Clarke. News reports wrongly identify him as a woman and refer to him by his deadname and incorrect pronouns. Police were called to Kayden’s home in Mesa, AZ, after reports that he was suicidal. The officers claim that he came towards them with a knife, and they both shot him. He was taken to a hospital and died there. He didn’t attack either officer, and the cops made no previous efforts to restrain him before firing their weapons. One of them made a statement saying that Kayden “had something else we’re not sure what it was” in addition to the knife, that “it was dark inside the room,” and that “they felt threatened.” Kayden was not a threat, and he should have received help and care, not an instant death sentence. 

The article on Planet Transgender is currently the only one that correctly identifies Kayden as a trans man. He posted several videos documenting his transition online, starting in late 2015. In the most recent one, posted 3 weeks ago, he describes being denied hormones for being autistic. In the video, he states that he’s currently attempting to sue the clinic over refusing him treatment, after also being denied treatment by multiple other clinics. 

So she basically says, so she read my chart, of my diagnoses, and she says things like, “How does Asperger disease effect you?��� And when I list it all, she’s like, “Ok, well, we need to fix your Asperger’s before I write a letter for your doctor in order for you to start T.”

Kayden’s therapist refused to write the letter of recommendation that he needed in order to obtain hormones because he was autistic. Later in the video, he says that one of the causes of his depression was his gender dysphoria. 

In my chart, it says I’ve tried suicide, I’ve tried suicide by cop, I’ve tried shooting myself. All this depression since first fucking grade has stemmed from not being able to transition.

Kayden was killed by ableism, medical gatekeeping, and state violence. The invalidation of trans identities, the ableist notion that people with autism and mental health issues cannot be in control of our own narratives and have autonomy over our bodies, the false conception of autistic people as dangerous, all contributed to the violence committed against him. Kayden deserves justice, and all trans people and autistic people deserve safety, respect, and compassion.  

[sexistentialisms]

Read Facebook event for full information.

Short version: This is a call out for court solidarity for a young trans woman of colour arrested in East London and remanded in custody at HM Thameside Prison, a private men’s prison. There is reason to believe she is also being denied her HRT. Please share, especially if you have followers in London. If possible turn up on Monday 8th February, 9am at Thames Magistrates Court, 58 Bow Road, E3 4DJ. Also there is a petition you can sign.