#i feel like when it comes to other marginalized groups its understood and respected not to say slurs

[icanseethefuture333]

White authors and teachers love to talk about anti blackness just so they can use the n slur

[jesussavedevenme]

After Effects Chapter 4

Chapter 4 here we go!!!!!!

The first thing Bracken noticed when he entered the room was the blinding light coming from Kendra. The aura that surrounded her seemed to have brightened in a way that definitely didn't fit the sickly pallor of her skin. Bracken squinted against it, willing his eyes to adjust. Over the years Kendra had gotten much better at controlling the brightness of her aura. To the point that, if you didn't know her, she could pass as fairy struck. Bracken wanted to chalk the sudden brightness up to the fact that she was too tired or too ill to control it but something told him it went deeper than that.

Tanu had told Bracken everything he knew about these symptoms,and Seth had told him everything that had happened up until this point. Something still wasn't adding up. Tanu was convinced that this was poison, but Bracken couldn't bring himself to agree with him. Kendra hadn't been in contact with anything to poison her. And no matter how hard he searched be couldn't find any sign of illness. Magical or otherwise. He decided he needed a new set of eyes, someone who wasn't shaking with anxiety. Someone who knew more about everything magic. The only person he knew like that was his mother. Over the course of 30 minutes, the symptoms seemed to be worsening instead of getting better. Her fever seemed to be slowly rising even higher. All color had drained her face, leaving Kendra as white as a sheet. What scared Bracken the most was that he couldn't reach her mind. Something impenetrable was blocking him. This meant he couldn't wake her or reach her mind to ask her what was wrong. Her breathing was ragged and short, as if it was a struggle to breathe. There was no doubt in Bracken's mind that he needed to get her to the fairy realm. Fast.

Something curious about what the whole situation was that Kendra's condition seemed to improve, even if only marginally, whenever she came in contact with Seth. The change wasn't noticeable unless you truly looked for it but whenever Seth got close enough or brushed against her, Kendra's face would take on a much less pained look and her thrashing would immediately settle. Bracken however couldn't decided what significance that held, if any. The siblings were impossibly close and it could very well be a reflection of that bond. Besides they were literally the others counterpart, complete opposites, in everyway shape and form. Over the years they had stunned Bracken, along with the rest of the magical world, with the things they were able to do together. Never before had light and darkness mixed in this way. Never before had they worked together, and the results were honestly astounding. Time and time again Bracken was reminded of how thankful he was that Kendra and Seth were on their side. Otherwise Bracken is sure that nothing would stop them from taking over the world.

Bracken reached for Kendra's face, attempting to brush away the hair that was matted to her face with sweat. He almost recoiled at the heat that assaulted his hand. He took a moment to focus on cooling his hand in hopes that some of that chill would seep in and bring down the fever that was raging through her body. He also tried to send waves of calm through her , as he had done so many times before, attempting to soothe her tortured mind even if he could not reach it. Bracken frowned when this seemed to make it worse and pulled his hand away. His heart aching with helplessness. This was something that he couldn't help her with. Something that he couldn't protect her from. And he hated every second of it. The fact that he seemed to have made it worse made him feel endlessly guilty and caused tears to well up in his eyes. Tears that he would refuse to let fall. Kendra's thrashing was reaching new levels and Bracken was worried that she was going to hurt herself. Tanu seemed to be thinking the same thing but Bracken stopped him before he could grab her.

"Seth, place you hand on her back," Bracken ordered, desperately trying to keep the shake out of his voice. Later when Kendra was settled and on the mend, he would break down but right now he shoved all of those feelings into a tightly sealed chest and assumed his perfectly practiced poker face. Seth looked incredibly confused but still did as he said without asking questions. Something Bracken was grateful for because Bracken wasn't quite sure he could give him answers. Bracken's earlier theories about her improving around Seth were proven true the second Seth's hand came into contact with her body and immediately her thrashing stopped. " Good. Keep it there, " He instructed. Seth nodded, looking every bit as bewildered as Bracken felt. In the moment the new development was very useful but in the long run it made things much more difficult. Kendra needed to get to the Fairy Realm however it seemed that the only person who was able to touch her safely was Seth. The one person who couldn't step foot in the Fairy Realm without lowering the defenses. Defenses that were already lowered because of the imbalance of the sources. Bracken dragged a hand down his face as he struggled to think of a solution and came up with only one.

"Seth pick her up, we need to get her to the Fairy Realm," If it was possible for Seth to look more confused he did. His eyebrows furrowed and he looked for all the world like almost puppy. It was times like these that Bracken wondered why people thought Seth was so scary. But then he remembered the fearsome displays of power and the towering height of the shadow charmer didn't help the image at all.

"I can't safely enter the Fairy Realm," He replied, picking Kendra up despite his confusion. Bracken chose to focus on Seth's eyes which were at least a good inch above his own, instead of the way Kendra hung limp and lifeless in his arms.

"No but you're the only one who seems to be able to touch her with sending her into a fit,"

" So we're going to what? Bring the Fairy Realm to us?" Bracken hand honestly pondered that suggestion however it would be nearly impossible to move everything needed into a either a secluded area or the main house. Even if it was somehow possible, it would take much too long. The solution he came up with wasn't much better in his opinion.

" No, the only thing I can think to do is to walk from here to the shrine and then I'll get her into the Fairy Realm, " Bracken said through a sigh, residing the urge to run his hand down his fave again or better yet tug out every strand of hair he had. The anxiety of the situation was eating him alive, churning his insides and causing his heart to pound seemingly out of control. It was taking everything in him not to break down.

" The walk there is about an hour from the main house at minimum," Came the deep voice of Tanu, who Bracken had honestly forgotten was there. The concern was written all over his face. Bracken picked up on the implications of that statement. The worry that none of them were willing to admit. It sent a pang through his heart and his desperation rose to new levels. " I would suggest taking Hugo. Hugo could carry Seth who could still keep in contact with Kendra and you could have an Astrid carry you."

The plan was brilliant and Bracken couldn't help but beat himself up because he didn't think of it. He tried his best not to think about what would have happened had Tanu no been here because the other man was right, an hour was much too long. Still he couldn't help but feel an immense wave of guilt, he wasn't entirely sure he grasped why but he felt as if this was his fault. Like he could have and should have done something to prevent this. He bring himself to nod, not sure if his voice would hold up, and forced down tears once more before turning towards the door with Seth in tow. He shot a look at Tanu from over his shoulder, hoping that it conveyed his gratitude and the tight but kind smile he got in return seemed to reply that he understood. When Bracken stepped outside, he found Seth had already called Hugo and was currently being lifted unto his shoulder. He wasn't exactly sure how it was possible but somehow, Hugo looked just as concerned as the rest of them. All activity in the yard seemed to have ceased as the fairies all stopped staring and occasionally whispering amongst themselves. Because, no matter how vain they were Kendra was still a respected member of the Fairy Realm. Even the most vain of fairies protect their own. Bracken brought his fingers to his lips in a shrill whistle, summoning the Astrids that had been lurking at the edge of the forest. He quickly explained the plan as Seth in turned explained it to Hugo. And then they were off.

The wind rustled in his ears and his hair blew backwards, occasionally smacking him in the face. He could hear the thumping of Hugo quick footsteps as he easily, kept up with the Astrid flying above him. For a few moments a group of fairies had followed, wanting to watch the event unfold, but one sharp look from him sent them scurrying back to the main yard. Any other day Bracken would have felt bad, seeing as they weren't really doing anything wrong however right now he had other things on his mind.

The short ride seemed to take an eternity. The passing minutes felt torturous. Finally the shrine came into view surrounded by its glistening lake and the gazebos that generally held good memories for Bracken. The Astrid deposited him on the island that held the shrine at the same moment that Hugo came bursting through the shrine sending leaves an birds scattering. The Astrid flew over and took Kendra from Seth before flying back, bypassing the journey over the lake, though he doubted the Niaids would bother them. That had been yet another oversight on his part, another thing he hadn't thought through, another thing that could have held dire results. His guilt continued to mount as the Astrid landed and passed Kendra over to him. He tightened his grip, holding her as her body stiffened and trembled, and stepped into the soothing light that would lead him into the Fairy Realm.

††††

The hospital infirmary was bustling as different healers ran around grabbing supplies and searching for solutions to an unknown problem. Celeste, his normally quite and timid sister, was confidently shouting orders and she stood at the head of Kendra's bed assessing the situation. Bracken stood helplessly at the entrance of the infirmary unable to go any further as it would hinder the progress of the healers. Kendra was thrashing again making it difficult to assess her condition. Pained whimpers left her mouth. He was sure that they were barely audible to everyone else, especially over the chaos but he heard every single one. And each one was like someone took a hammer to his heart, continually shattering it into millions of pieces.

The sounds of the infirmary began to fade out around him, replaced with thoughts that were much to loud. His chest tightened and seemed to restrict his breathing, causing it to come out in sharp pants. A firm hand was placed one his shoulder and an arm wrapped around him and he was forced out of the entryway and eased onto the cold marble floor. He wanted so bad to fight, to get back to Kendra, to help in someway but his body betrayed him. His panic deciding it would no longer be ignored and robbed him of his strength. And so all he could do was sit there and pant, desperately trying to draw in a full breath but failing every time. Hot tears burned down his cheeks and harsh sobs racked his body. The hands that had guided him out now cradled him, fingers gently scrapping against his scalp paired with a gentle rocking. For a moment he allowed himself to believe that it was Kendra. Calming him down after he woke up from a particularly harsh nightmare.

Eventually he began to calm down. Not because he felt better, no if it was possible he felt worse than before but, because he was too drained to continue and numbness had begun to set in. He pushed away from whoever was comforting him, feeling a deeps sense of shame fill him at his display of despair. He felt, as he always did in the palace, that a Prince should be more composed that he had an image to uphold. He slowly worked up the courage to look the person in the eyes and was shocked to be met with the concerned blue eyes of his father. This father didn't say anything, he rarely did these day. A far cry from the loud laughter of his childhood. Instead he just sat beside him keep a firm grip on his hand. He could hear his mother inside of the infirmary, presumably finding a way to help like Bracken wished that he could.

Time passed, though he wasn't sure how much. Everything seemed to move in a bit if a blur. It wasn't like before in the infirmary. This time he was aware that things were going on around him however he couldn't quite focus enough to identify them. Honestly, he couldn't bring himself to care what they were anyway. His thoughts continued to torture him with what if's and the steady presence of his father, while helpful, did little to combat it. If Kendra was here she would read to him, filling the silence with enough to keep his thoughts at bay while also not forcing his mind to Interact if it wasn't ready. That seemed to be all he could focus on right now. Thoughts of Kendra, ways that she always helped him and here he was unable to help her.

He distantly heard the voice of his mother calling his name but it was enough to pull him out of his haze. Next to his mother stood Celeste looking worried and uncertain. Bracken's anxiety began to pick back up but he shoved it down hoping that it would remain at bay. He stood on shaky legs, his father's hand falling from his grasp. He was instantly aware of the loss, he hadn't realized how much it had been helping him until it was gone. He followed them back into the infirmary where his eyes were immediately drawn to Kendra. Her light was still unnaturally bright and her face still held evidence of pain however her body looked relaxed for the first time since he'd arrived at Fablehaven earlier in the day. It was hard to believe that it was only about and hour or two ago. It seemed like a lifetime had passed since then. Bracken's tore his gaze away from Kendra and looked towards his mother and sister, eyes darting between them. Waiting impatiently for either of them to say something. To tell him what was wrong and how to fix it. Celeste was the one to break the silence with the clearing of her throat.

"What Kendra has is actually fairly common. Well, as common as Fairly Realm diseases can be. It's actually the same thing the ill fairies have come in with. Kendra has light poisoning," Celeste explained quietly. Bracken had heard of light poisoning, he had actually experienced it himself after a particularly interesting failed misadventure in his youth. Bracken however, had been visited the infirmary and had been better within the hour. Just time for a lengthy lecture, much to his displeasure. The same could not be said for Kendra who had only slightly improved. Mostly due to the fact that her fever had been successfully brought down. The explanation honestly made sense as it provided an explanation as to why Bracken couldn't sense anything. The problem wasn't being caused by an illness or physical poison, it was caused by light itself in turn explaining why her aura was so bright. It also explained why she improved around Seth. The natural darkness inside of him most likely cut through the light, bringing some sense of balance back into her body.

" Why is Kendra's body responding differently than the fairies?" Bracken asked, glancing around the otherwise empty infirmary that had been filled with fairies earlier in the day. Fairies that were now out going on with their lives as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened.

" Simple, our make ups are different. When our bodies come across a problem we simply purify and heal it instantly. When the human body runs into a problem it either attacks it or tries to work around it. Kendra's body is attacking whatever is poisoning her." His mother explained, " The problem is the thing that's poisoning her is light. She's a fairykind meaning that the light is a part of her, so instead of her body attacking what it views as poison-"

" It's attacking itself."Bracken finished running a hand down his face at the revelation. A revelation that once again explained many things. Her deteriorating state and her residence to treatments to state a few. " So, what do we do now?" He asked, closing the question that had been heavily on his mind ever since they arrived in the Fairy Realm.

"I don't know," Celeste admitted, her voice sounding shaky. Kendra and Celeste had gotten off to a bit of a rough start, mostly due to Celeste's quiet nature, but over time the pair had become rather close. " The best we can do is repair the damage her body does in an attempt to cleanse itself and hope that the poisoning wears off or lessens overtime," Bracken glanced at Kendra, looking as white as the sheets and much too small. The grim statement fueled his anxiety and he found himself gripping onto her limp hand, trying to force some of his strength into her body and praying that she was strong enough to pull through this.

†††††

Ok so here's chapter four. I honestly kind of hate it because it fought be the ENTIRE TIME! On the bright side I am officially done rewriting and I can now continue the story which is the fun part! As always let me know what you think and what you want to see next. I also absolutely love hearing what you guys think is going to happen next!

[arfox158]

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages

TLDR: With a bit of research and support we were able to demonstrate a proof of concept for introducing a fraudulent payment message to move £0.5M from one account to another, by manually forging a raw SWIFT MT103 message, and leveraging specific system trust relationships to do the hard work for us!

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages App

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages Message

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages To My

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages For Her

Before we begin: This research is based on work we performed in close-collaboration with one of our clients; however, the systems, architecture, and payment-related details have been generalized / redacted / modified as to not disclose information specific to their environment.

A desktop application for Instagram direct messages. Download for Windows, Mac and Linux.

Have a question, comment, or need assistance? Send us a message or call (630) 833-0300. Will call available at our Chicago location Mon-Fri 7:00am–6:00pm and Sat 7:00am–2:00pm.

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages App

With that said.. *clears throat*

The typical Tactics, Techniques and Procedures (TTPs) against SWIFT systems we see in reports and the media are - for the most part - the following:

Compromise the institution's network;

Move laterally towards critical payment systems;

Compromise multiple SWIFT Payment Operator (PO) credentials;

Access the institution's SWIFT Messaging Interface (MI);

Keys in - and then authorize - payment messages using the compromised PO accounts on the MI.

This attack-path requires the compromise of multiple users, multiple systems, an understanding of how to use the target application, bypass of 2FA, attempts to hide access logs, avoid alerting the legitimate operators, attempts to disrupt physical evidence, bespoke malware, etc. – so, quite involved and difficult. Now that’s all good and fine, but having reviewed a few different payment system architectures over the years, I can’t help but wonder:

“Can't an attacker just target the system at a lower level? Why not target the Message Queues directly? Can it be done?”

A hash-based MAC might simply be too big. On the other hand, hash-based MACs, because they are larger, are less likely to have clashes for a given size of message. A MAC that is too small might turn out to be useless, as a variety of easy-to-generate messages might compute to the same MAC value, resulting in a collision. WhatsApp Messenger is a FREE messaging app available for iPhone and other smartphones. WhatsApp uses your phone's Internet connection (4G/3G/2G/EDGE or Wi-Fi, as available) to let you message and call friends and family. Switch from SMS to WhatsApp to send and receive messages, calls, photos, videos, documents, and Voice Messages. WHY USE WHATSAPP. Garrick Hello, I'm Garrick Chow, and welcome to this course on computer literacy for the Mac. This course is aimed at the complete computer novice, so if you're the sort of person who feels some mild anxiety, nervousness, or even dread every time you sit down in front of your computer, this course is for you.

Well, let's find out! My mission begins!

So, first things first! I needed to fully understand the specific “section” of the target institution's payment landscape I was going to focus on for this research. In this narrative, there will be a system called “Payment System” (SYS). This system is part of the institution's back-office payment landscape, receiving data in a custom format and output's an initial payment instructions in ISO 15022 / RJE / SWIFT MT format. The reason I sought this scenario was specifically because I wanted to focus on attempting to forge an MT103 payment message - that is:

In this video I will show you where to locate the serial number on a Western golf cart. Ebay Store: Please SUBSCRIBE. Western golf cart serial number lookuplastevil.

MT – “Message Type” Literal;

1 – Category 1 (Customer Payments and Cheques);

0 – Group 0 (Financial Institution Transfer);

3 – Type 3 (Notification);

All together this is classified as the MT103 “Single Customer Credit Transfer”.

Message type aside, what does this payment flow look like at a high level? Well I’ve only gone and made a fancy diagram for this!

Overall this is a very typical and generic architecture design. However, let me roughly break down what this does:

The Payment System (SYS) ingests data in a custom - or alternative - message format from it's respective upstream systems. SYS then outputs an initial payment instruction in SWIFT MT format;

SYS sends this initial message downstream to a shared middelware (MID) component, which converts (if necessary) the received message into the modern MT format understood by SWIFT - Essentially a message broker used by a range of upstream payment systems within the institution;

MID forwards the message in it's new format on to the institution's Messaging Interface (let's say its SAA in this instance) for processing;

Once received by SAA, the message content is read by the institution's sanction screening / Anti-money laundering systems (SANCT).

Given no issues are found, the message is sent on to the institution's Communication Interface (SWIFT Alliance Gateway), where it's then signed and routed to the recipient institution over SWIFTNet.

OK, so now I have a general understanding of what I'm up against. But if I wanted to exploit the relationships between these systems to introduce a fraudulent payment without targeting any payment operators, I was going to need to dig deeper and understand the fundamental technologies in use!

So how are these messages actually 'passed' between each system? I need to know exactly what this looks like and how its done!

More often than not, Message Queues (MQ) are heavily used to pass messages between components in a large payment system. However, there are also various “Adapter” that may be used between systems communicating directly with the SAG (Such as SAA or other bespoke/3rd party systems). These are typically the:

Remote API Host Adapter (RAHA);

MQ Host Adapter (MQHA);

Web Services Host Adapter (WSHA).

Having identified that MQ was in use, my initial assumption was that there was most likely a dedicated Queue Manager (QM) server somewhere hosting various queues that systems push and pull messages from? However, due to SWIFT CSP requirements, this would most likely - at a minimum - take the form of two Queue Managers. One which manages the queues within the SWIFT Secure Zone, and another that manages queues for the general corporate network and back office systems.

Let's update that diagram to track / represent this understanding: Now I could research how this 'messaging' worked!

There are multiple ways to configure Message Queues architectures, in this case there were various dedicated input and output queues for each system, and the message flow looks something like this: Full disclosure, turns out it’s hard to draw an accurate - yet simple - MQ flow diagram (that one was basically my 4th attempt). So it’s.. accurate 'enough' for what we needed to remember!

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages Message

Now I had a good understanding of how it all worked, it is time to define my goal: 'Place a payment message directly on to a queue, and have it successfully processed by all downstream systems'.

This sounds simple, just write a message to a queue, right? But there are a few complications!

Why are there few indications of this attack vector in the wild?

How do I even gain “write” access to the right queue?

What protects the message on the queues?

What protects the messages in transit?

What format are the messages in?

What is the correct syntax for that message format at any particular queue (0 margin for error)?

Where does PKI come in? How / where / when are the messages signed?

Can I somehow get around the message signing?

What values in the messages are dependent / controlled / defined by the system processing them (out of my control)?

What is the maximum amount I can transfer using Straight Through Processing, without alerting the institution / requiring manual validation?

But OK, there's no point dwelling on all of that right now, I'll just clearly define what I want to do! The goal:

Successfully write a payment instruction for 500,000 GBP;

Inject that message directly onto a specific queue;

Have the message pass environment-specific validation rules;

Have the message pass sanctions and AML checks.

Have the message successfully signed;

Have the message pass SWIFTNet-specific validation rules;

What I was not interested in doing for this research - yet needed to understand nevertheless for a full attack chain was:

How to compromise the institution's network;

How to gain access to the MQ admin's workstation;

How to obtain the pre-requisite credentials.

What I wanted to 100% avoid at all costs:

The attack involving SWIFT payment operators in any way;

The attack involving SWIFT application access in any way;

A need to compromise signing keys / HSMs;

A need to compromise SWIFTNet operator accounts or certificates or any type of PKI;.

Now I had an idea of what to do, I needed to make sure I could write a raw MT103 payment instruction! Typically, even when operators write payment messages using a messaging interface application like Alliance Access, they only really write the message “body” via a nice GUI. As raw data this could look something like:

I'll break this down in the following table:

NameFieldValueTransaction Reference20TRANSACTIONRF103Bank Operation Code23BCRED (Message is to 'credit' some beneficiary)Value Date / Currency / Amount32A200102 (02/01/2020) GBP 500,000.00Currency / Original Credit Amount33BGBP 500000,00 (£500,000.00)Ordering Customer50KGB22EBNK88227712345678 (IBAN) JOHN DOE (Name) JOHN'S BUSINESS LTD (Line 1) 21 JOHN STREET, LONDON, GB (Line 2)Beneficiary59KFR20FBNK88332287654321 (IBAN) ALICE SMITH (Name) ALICE'S COMPANY (Line 1) 10 ALICE STREET, PARIS, FR (Line 2)Remittance Information7012345-67890 (essentially a payment reference)Details of Charge71ASHA (Shared charge between sender and receiver)

Now as this is a valid message body, if I were targeting a payment operator on SWIFT Alliance Access, I could - for the 'most' part - simply paste the message into SAA's raw message creation interface and I'd be pretty much done. With the exception of adding the sender / recipient BIC codes and most likely selecting a business unit. However, these values are not stored in the message body. Not stored in the message body you say? Well that complicates things! Where are they stored exactly?

The message “body” is referred to as “block 4” (aka the “Text Block”) within the SWIFT MT standard. As suggested by the name, there is probably also a block 1-3. This is correct; and these blocks are typically generated by the payment processing applications - such as SWIFT Alliance Access - and not necessarily input by the operators. A 'complete' MT103 message consists of 6 blocks:

Block 1 – Basic Header

Block 2 – Application Header

Block 3 – User Header

Block 4 – Text Block

Block 5 – Trailer

Block 6 – System block

So it looked like I was going to need to learn how to craft these various “blocks” from scratch.

Block 1 (Basic header)

Reading through some documentation, I crafted the following “Basic header” block:

A breakdown of what this translates too is as follows:

NameValueContextBasic Header Flag1Block 1 (Not 2, 3, 4, or 5)Application TypeFFIN ApplicationMessage Type0101 = FIN (I.e not ACK/NACK)Sender BICEBNKGB20EBNK (Bank Code) GB (Country Code) 20 (Location Code)Sender Logical TerminalATypically A, unless they are a significantly large institution and require multiple terminalsSender BranchXXXAll X if no branch neededSession Number0000The session number for the messageSequence Number 999999The sequence number of the message

Taking a step back, I already identified two potential problems: the “session” and “sequence” numbers! These are described as follows:

Session Number – Must also equal the current application session number of the application entity that receives the input message.

Sequence number – The sequence number must be equal to the next expected number.

Hmmm, at this point I was not sure how I could predetermine a valid session and/or sequence number - considering they seemed to be application and 'traffic' specific? But there was nothing I could do at the time, so I noted it down in a list of 'issues/blockers' to come back to later.

Block 2 (Application Header)

A bit more dry reading later, I managed to also throw together an application header:

Again, I’ve broken this down so it makes sense (if it didn’t already; I’m not one to assume):

NameValueContextApplication Header Flag2Block 2I/O IdentifierIInput Message (a message being sent)Message Type103103 = Single Customer Credit TransactionRecipient BICFBNKFR20FBNK (Bank Code) FR (Country Code) 20 (Location Code)Recipient Logical TerminalXAll General Purpose Application Messages must use 'X'Recipient BranchXXXAll General Purpose Application Messages must use 'XXX'Message PriorityNNormal (Not Urgent)

Awesome! No issues crafting this header!

Note: At this point I should probably mention that these BIC codes are not 'real', however are accurate in terms of in format and length.

Block 3 (User Header)

The third block is called the “User Header” block, which can be used to define some “special” processing rules. By leverage this header, I could specify that the message should be processed using “Straight Through Processing” (STP) rules which essentially attempts to ensure that the message is processed end-to-end without human intervention. This could be specified as follows:

However, this was not yet a valid header! As of November 2018 the user header requires a mandatory “Unique end-to-end transaction reference” (UETR) value, which was introduced as part of SWIFT's Global Payments Innovation initiative (gpi)! This is a Globally Unique Identifier (GUID) compliant with the 4th version of the generation algorithm used by the IETF standard 'RFC4122'. This consists of 32 hexadecimal characters, divided into 5 parts by hyphens as follows:

where:

x – any lowercase hexadecimal character;

4 – fixed value;

y – either: 8, 9, a, b.

This value can be generated using Python as seen below:

With an acceptable UETR generated, this is how the third block looked:

And as before, a breakdown can be found below:

NameValueContextUser Header Flag3Block 3Validation Flag119Indicates whether FIN must perform any type of special validationValidation FieldSTPRequests the FIN system to validate the message according to the straight through processing principlesUETR Field121Indicates the Unique end-to-end transaction reference valueUETR Value8b1b42b5-669f-46ff-b2f2-c21f99788834Unique end-to-end transaction reference used to track payment instruction

Block 5 and 6 (Trailer and System Blocks)

I’ve already discussed “block 4” (the message body), so to wrap this section up, I'll be looking at the final 2 blocks: Block 5, aka the “Trailer”; and block S, aka the “System” block.

Before going forward, let me take a moment to explain the pointlessly complicated concept of input and output messages:

An “input” message (I) is a message which is traveling “outbound” from the institution. So this is a message being “input” by an operator and sent by the institution to another institution.

An “output” message (O) is a message which is traveling “inbound” to the institution. So this is a message being “output” by SWIFTNet and being received by the institution.

OK, moving swiftly (aaaahhhhh!) on.

For Input messages, these blocks were not too much of a problem. The headers only really seemed to be used to flag whether the message was for training / testing or to flag if it was a possible duplicate, which syntactically took the following form:

Where “TNG” indicated “training” and “SPD” indicated “possible duplicate”.

However, with Output messages, it got considerably more complicated. An example of what the trailer and system block could look like on an Output message is the following:

A breakdown of these various values is:

Trailer ((5:) MAC – Message Authentication Code calculated based on the entire contents of the message using a key that has been exchanged with the destination bank and a secret algorithm; CHK – This is a PKI checksum of the message body, used to ensure the message has not been corrupted in transit; TNG – A flag to indicate that the message is a Testing and Training Message.

System ((S:) SPD – Possible Duplicate Flag SAC – Successfully Authenticated and Authorized Flag. This is only present if:

Signature verification was successful.

RMA (Relationship Management Application) authorization and verification was successful.

COP – Flag indicating that this is the primary message copy; MDG – The HMAC256 of the message using LAU keys.

However, these seemed to only be values I would need to consider if I was to try and forge an “incoming” message from SWIFTNet or an 'outbound' message on the output of the SAG.

So.. I'll stick with crafting an “input' message trailer:

Now, having said all that, it turned out the trailer block did seem to sometimes hold a MAC code and a message checksum (sigh), meaning I actually needed to construct something like:

So that was +2 to my 'issues/blockers' list. However, issues aside, I now understood the complete message format, and could put it all together and save the following as a draft / template MT103 message:

Highlighted in bold above are the areas of the message I was - at this point - unable to pre-determine. Nevertheless, a summary of what that the message describes is:

Using the transaction reference “TRANSACTIONRF103”;

please transfer 500,000.00 GBP;

from John Doe, (IBAN: GB22EBNK88227712345678) at “English Bank” (BIC: EBNKGB20);

to Alice Smith (IBAN: FR20FBNK88332287654321) at “French Bank” (BIC: FBNKFR20);

Furthermore, please ensure the transaction charge is shared between the two institutions;

and mark the payment with a reference of “12345-67890”.

To wrap up this section, i wanted to take a moment to explain some logic behind the target of 500,000 GBP, as it is also important.

Aside from the many reasons it would be better to transfer (even) smaller amounts (which is an increasingly common tactic deployed by modern threat actors), why not go higher? This is where it’s important to understand the system and environment you are targeting.

In this instance, let's assume that by doing recon for a while I gathered the understanding that:

If a message comes from SYS which is over £500k;

even if it has been subject to a 4 eye check;

and even if it is flagged for STP processing;

route it to a verification queue and hold it for manual verification.

This was because a transaction over £500k was determined to be “abnormal” for SYS. As such, if my transaction was greater, the message would not propagate through all systems automatically.

OK, so now that I understood:

how the system worked;

how it communicated;

the fundamental structure of a raw MT103 payment messages;

and how much I could reliably (attempt) to transfer.

And with that, it was time to take a break from MT standards and establish an understanding of how I would even get into a position to put this into practice!

To place a message on a queue, I was going to need two things:

Access to the correct queue manager;

Write access to the correct queues.

Depending on the environment and organisation, access to queue managers could be quite different and complex. However a bare-bones setup may take the following form:

An MQ Administrator accesses their dedicated workstation using AD credentials;

They then remotely access a dedicated jump server via RDP which only their host is whitelisted to access;

This may be required as the queues may make use of Channel Authentication Records, authorizing specific systems and user accounts access to specific queues;

The channels may further be protected by MQ Message Encryption (MQME) which encrypts messages at rest based on specific channels. As such, even if someone was a “super duper master admin” they would only be able to read / write to queues specifically allocated to them within the MQME configuration file (potential target for another time?);

The MQ Admin can then use tools such via the Jump Server to read/write to their desired message queues.

So, in this scenario, to gain access to the message queues I - as an attacker - would need to compromise the MQ admin’s AD account and workstations, then use this to gain access to the jump host, from where I could then access the message queues given I knew the correct channel name and was configured with authorization to access it.. and maybe throw some MFA in there..

That is understandably a significant requirement! However, when discussion sophisticated attacks against Financial Market Infrastructure (FMI), it is more than reasonable to accept that an Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) would see this as a feasible objective - We don't need to dig into the history of how sophisticated attacks targeting SWIFT systems can be.

Next, it was time to finally identify a feasible attack vector for message forgery.

Now with an idea of how to gain the right access, as well as an understanding of the various technologies and security controls in place; I update my diagram:

You may have noticed I've added something called “LAU” around the SAA-to-SAG adapter, and another “LAU” to the MID-to-SAA MQ channels, which I have yet to explain. “Local Authentication” (LAU) is a security control implemented by SWIFT to authenticate messages using a pair of shared keys between two systems. These keys are combined and used to generate a SHA256 HMAC of the message and append it to the S block. This can then be validated by the recipient system. Effectively, this validates the origin and authenticity of a message. As such, even if an attacker was in position to introduce a fraudulent payment, they'd first need to compromise both the left and the right LAU signing keys, generate the correct HMAC, and append it to the message in order to have it accepted / processed successfully.

But LAU aside, I now just needed to figure out which queue to target! There were a lot of queues to work with as each system essentially has multiple “input” and “output” queues. With that in mind, it was important to note that: an incoming message would require being in the format expected by the target system (from a specific upstream system) and an outgoing message would need to be in the format “produced” by one target system and “expected / ingested / processed” by its respective downstream system. So to figure this out, I worked backwards from the Gateway.

Targeting SAG

This was the least feasible attack vector!

I hadn't really looked into how the SWIFT adapters worked - If only I could research literally everything);

SAA and SAG implemented LAU on messages sent between them - An excellent security control!;

The output of SAG was directly on to SWIFTNet which would entail all sorts of other complications - this is an understatement)!

Next!

Targeting SAA

So what if I wanted to drop a message on the “outbound” channel of SAA?

LAU and the SWIFT adapter aside, remember those session and sequence numbers? Well, messages which leave SAA are in the near-final stages of their outbound life-cycle, and as far as I understood would need to have valid session and sequence values. Given I didn't know how to generate these values without gaining access to SAA or how they worked in general (and lets not forget the LAU signing) this didn't currently seem feasible.

Next!

Targeting SANCT

This solution didn't actually transport messages back and forth; it just reads messages off the queues and performed checks on their details. Not much I could wanted to leverage here.

Targeting MID

To target MID, I could try and inject a message onto SAA’s “input” queue, or the “output” queue of MID. This would only need to match the format of messages produced by the Middleware solution (MID). Following this, in theory, the (mistial) message session and sequence number would be added by SAA, along with the UETR. This was promising!

However, MID was a SWIFT “message partner”, which are typically solutions developed using the Alliance Access Development Kit that allows vendors to develop SWIFTNet compatible software, and consequentially, implement LAU. So again, in-order to forge a message here, I’d need to compromise the left and right LAU signing keys used between SAA and MID, manually HMAC the message (correctly!), and then place it on the correct queue.. This also no longer looked promising..

Targeting SYS

OK, how about the input of the next system down - the 'Payment System'?

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages To My

As described previously, the inbound data was a custom “application specific” payment instruction from the institutions back office systems, and not a SWIFT MT message. This would be an entirely new core concept I'd need to reverse - not ideal for this project.

But how about the output queue?

Although SYS received custom format data, I found that it output what seemed to be an initial SWIFT MT messages. This was perfect! Additionally, SYS did not have LAU between itself and MID because (unlike MID) SYS was not a SWIFT message partner, and was just one of many-many systems within the institution that formed their overall payment landscape.

Additionally, because SYS was esentially just one small piece of a much larger back office architecture, it was not part of the SWIFT Secure Zone (after all you cant have your entire estate in the Secure Zone - that defeats the purpose) and as such, made use of the Queue Manager within a more accessible section of the general corporate environment (QM1). Konica minolta bizhub c352 driver mac os xcompubrown recovery tool.

With this in mind, and having - in theory - compromised the MQ admin, I could leverage their access to access on the corporate network to authenticate to QM1. I could - in theory - then write a fraudulent payment message to the SYS “output” queue, which we will call “SYS_PAY_OUT_Q” from here on.

OK! It seems like I finally had an idea of what to do! But before I could put it into practice, I of course needed to create a diagram of the attack:

I think it’s important to take a minute to refer back to the concept of “trust” which is what lead to this attack diagram. My theory behind why this may work is because the MID application, implicitly trusts whatever it receives from its respective upstream systems. This is intentional, as by design the security model of the payment landscape ensures that: at any point a message can be created, a 4 (or 6) eye check is performed. If there was a system whose purpose it was to ensure the validity of a payment message at any point upstream, the downstream systems should have no real issue processing that message (with some exceptions). After all, It would be next to-impossible to maintain a high-throughput payment system without this design.

And with that said, the plan was now clear:

Leverage the access of a Message Queue administrator;

to abuse the “trust relationship” between SYS, MID, and SAA;

to introduce a fraudulent payment message directly on to the output queue of SYS;

by leaning on my new found understanding of complete MT103 payment messages.

It was finally time to try to demonstrate a Proof-of-Concept attack!

So at this point I believe I had everything I needed in order to execute the attack:

The target system!

The message format!

The queue manager!

The queue!

The access requirements!

The generously granted access to a fully functional SWIFT messaging architecture! (that’s a good one to have!)

The extra-generously granted support of various SMEs from the target institution! (This was even better to have!)

Message Forgery

I needed to begin by creating a valid payment message using valid details from the target institution. So before moving on I was provided with the following (Note: as with many things in this post, these details have been faked):

Debtor Account Details – John Doe, GB12EBNK88227712345678 at EBNKGB20

Creditor Account Details – Alice Smith, GB15EBNK88332287654321 at EBNKGB20

Some of you may have notice that the sending and receiving BIC’s are the same. This was because, for the sake of the research, I wanted to send the message back to the target institution via SWIFTNet so that I could analyse its full end-to-end message history. Furthermore, you may have noticed we are using 'test & training' BIC code (where the 8th character is a 0) - this was to make sure, you know, that I kept my job.

But yes, with access to these 'valid' account details and the knowledge gained during the research so far, I could now forge a complete Input MT103 messages:

Note: Field 33B is actually an optional field, however, the MT standard stated that “If the country codes of both the Sender’s and the Receiver’s BIC belong to the country code list, then field 33B is mandatory”. As such, if 33B was not present in the message, it would fail network validation rules and SWIFTNet would return a NAK with the error code: D49.

Optional / Mandatory fields aside, it was not quite that simple! There were a few minor changes I needed to make based on the specific point in the message's its life-cycle I was planning to introduce it!

As I list these changes, remember that the objective is to introduce the message to the output queue of SYS (Which exists before MID, SAA and SAG)

The first 3 blocks needed to be placed on a single line;

Remove field 121 (UETR) from the User Header, as this would be generated by SAA during processing;

Remove 1 character from the transaction reference as it needed to be exactly 16 characters (classic user error);

Add decimal point to transaction amount using a comma - otherwise it would fail syntax validation rules;

Ensure the IBAN's were real and accurate, otherwise it seemed the message would fail some type of signature validation on the SWIFT network. The IBANs are fake here, but during the real PoC we used accurate account details in collaboration with the target institution;

Remove the trailer block (5) - as this would be appended by SAA during processing;

Remove the System Block (S) - as this would be completed by the SAG.

And the final message was as follows:

Note that the location in which I introduce the message has resolved all of the 'issues / blockers' I'd tracked whilst researching the message structure! It would seem the further upstream you go, the easier the attack becomes - given MQ is still used as a transport medium.

Message Injection

Now I had my raw MT103 message, I just need to save it to a file (“Message.txt” - sure why not) and place onto the “SYS_PAY_OUT_Q” queue using one of the admin's tools:

With access to a sole MQ Administrator's AD account;

We connect to the MQ admins machine;

Log into the Jump Server;

Open our MQ tools of choice and authenticate to queue manager (QM1) where the output queue for SYS was managed;

Connected to the 'SYS_PAY_OUT_Q' queue;

Selected my forged “Message.txt” file;

Invoked the “write to queue” function;

And it was off!

Loggin in to Alliance Access and opening the message history tab, we sat awaiting for an update. Waiting, waiting, waiting… waiting… and..

ACK! It worked!

That's a joke; did we hell receive an ACK!

See, this last section is written slightly more 'linear' than what actually happened. Remember those 'tweaks' used to fix the message in the previous section? I hadn't quite figured that out yet..

So roughly seven NACKs later - each time troubleshooting and then fixing a different issues - we did indeed, see an ACK! The message was successfully processed by all systems, passed target system validation rules, passed sanctions and AML screening, passed SWIFTNet validation rules, and SWIFT’s regional processor had received the message and sent an 'Acknowledgement of receipt' response to the sending institution!

For the sake of completeness, I’ve included the ACK below:

And of course a breakdown of what it all means:

NameValueContextBasic Header Flag1Block 1Application TypeFF = FIN ApplicationMessage Type2121 = ACKInstitution CodeEBNKGB20AXXXEBNKGB20 (BIC) A (Logical Terminal) XXX (Branch)Sequence and Session No.19473923441947 (Sequence No.) 392344 (Session No.)Date Tag177200103 (Date) 1102 (Time)Accept / Reject Tag4510 = Accepted by SWIFTNet

Excellent! WooHoo! It worked! .. That took a lot of time and effort!

Closer Inspection

But the ACK wasn't enough, I wanted to make sure I understood what had happened to the message throughout its life-cycle. From the message I placed on the initial queue, to being processed by SWIFTNet.

Thankfully, as we sent the message back to the target institution we could see its entire message history. I already knew what the raw message placed on the queue looked like, so I wanted to focus on what became of the message once it had been processed by SAA:

The end-to-end tracking UUID had been generated and added (b42857ce-3931-49bf-ba34-16dd7a0c929f) in block 3;

The message trailer had been added ((5:(TNG:))) where I could see that - due to the BIC code used - SAA had flagged the message as 'test and training'.

Additionally, an initial System Block segment had been added ((S:(SPD:))), tagging the message as a possible duplicate. I wonder why - *cough* 7th attempt *cough*?

OK, so that was SAA. Now let’s see how it looked it once it passed through the Gateway and regional processor:

OK, we can see a few changes now.

The session and sequence numbers have been populated (1947392344);

The I/O identifier in block 2 has been updated to track that it is now an 'Output' message;

The additional data within Block 2 is a combination of the input time, date, BIC, session and sequence numbers, output date/time, and priority;

The trailer has been updated with a message authentication code (MAC) calculated based on the entire contents of the message using a pre-shared key and a secret algorithm;

Additionally, a checksum of the message body has been stored within the trailer’s “CHK” tag. This is used by the network to ensure message integrity.

I also took a look at the entire outbound message history, just to see all the “Success” and “No violation” statements to make it feel even more awesome!

So that's that really..

With a bit of research and support I was able to demonstrate a PoC for introducing a fraudulent payment message to move funds from one account to another, by manually forging a raw SWIFT MT103 single customer credit transfer message, and leveraging various system trust relationships to do a lot of the hard work for me! https://arfox158.tumblr.com/post/655263262721638400/wireless-external-hard-drive-for-mac.

As mentioned briefly in the introduction, this is not something I have really seen or heard of happening in practice or in the 'wild'. Perhaps because it clearly takes a lot of work.. and there is a huge margin for error. However, if an adversary has spent enough time inside your network and has had access to the right documentation and resources, this may be a viable attack vector. It definitely has its benefits:

No need to compromise multiple payment operators;

No requirement to compromise - or establish a foothold within - the SWIFT Secure Zone;

No requirement to bypass MFA and gain credentials for a messaging interface;

No generation of application user activity logs;

No payment application login alerts;

No bespoke app-specific and tailored malware;

And all the other things associated with the complex task of gaining and leveraging payment operator access.

All an attacker may need to do is compromise one specific user on the corporate network: a Message Queue administrator.

The industry is spending a lot of time and effort focused on securing their payment systems, applications, processes, and users to keep - among other things - payment operators safe, Messaging Interfaces locked down, and SWIFT systems isolated. But the reality is,; the most valuable and most powerful individual in the entire model, might just be a single administrator!

As always, a security model is only as strong as its weakest link. If you're not applying the same level of security to your wider institution, there may very well be many weak links within the wider network which chain together and lead to the comrpomise of systems which feed into your various payment environment.

I think the main thing to remember when reflecting on this research is that it did not abuse any vulnerabilities within the target institution's systems, or even vulnerabilities or weaknesses within the design of their architecture. It simply leverages the legitimate user access of the Message Queue administrators and the trust relationships that exist by design within these types of large-scale payment processing systems.

So the harsh reality is, there is no particular list of recommendations for preventing this type of attack in itself. However, the main point to drive home is that you must ensure the security of your users - and overall organisation - is of a high enough standard to protect your highest privileged users from being compromised. Things such as:

Strong monitoring and alerting controls for anomalous behaviour;

Requirements for Multi-Factor authentication for access to critical infrastructure;

Segregation of critical infrastructure from the wider general IT network;

Strong password policies;

Well rehearsed incident detection and incident response policies and procedures;

Frequent high-quality security awareness training of staff;

Secure Software Development training for your developers;

Routine technical security assessments of all critical systems and components;

The use of 3rd party software from reputable and trusted vendors;

However, in the context of Message Queues, there is one particular control which I think is extremely valuable: The implementation of channel specific message signing! This, as demonstrated by SWIFT's LAU control, is a good way in which to ensure the authenticity of a message.

As discussed, LAU is - as far as I know at the time of writing - a SWIFT product / message partner specific control. However it's concept is universal and could be implemented in many forms, two of which are:

Update your in-house application's to support message signing, natively;

Develop a middleware component which performs message signing on each system, locally.

This is a complex requirement as it requires considerable effort on the client’s behalf to implement either approach. However, SWIFT provides guidance within their Alliance Access Developers guide on how to implement LAU in Java, Objective C, Scala and Swift;

Strip any S block from the FIN message input. Keep only blocks 1: through 5;

Use the FIN message input as a binary value (unsigned char in C language, byte in Java). The FIN message input must be coded in the ASCII character set;

Combine the left LAU key and the right LAU key as one string. The merged LAU key must be used as a binary value (unsigned char in C language, byte in Java). The merged LAU key must be coded in the ASCII character set;

Call a HMAC256 routine to compute the hash value. The hash value must also be treated as a binary value (unsigned char in C language, byte in Java). The HMAC size is 32 bytes;

Convert the HMAC binary values to uppercase hexadecimal printable characters.

An example of how this may work in the more flexible middleware solution proposed is where the original service is no longer exposed to the network, and is altered to only communicate directly with the custom 'LAU-eqsue' service on its local host. This service would then sign and route the message to its respective queue.

When received, the core of the recipient payment service would seek to retrieve its messages from the queues via the 'LAU-esque' signing middleware, which would retrieve the message and subsequently verify its origin and authenticity by re-calculating the signature using their shared (secret) keys. Key-pairs could further be unique per message flow. This design could allow for the signing to be used as a way to validate the origin of a message even if it had passed through multiple (local) intermediary systems.

As a final bit of creative effort, I made yet another diagram to represent what this could perhaps look like - if life was as easy as a diagram:

If you made it this far thanks for reading all.. ~6k words!? I hope you found some of them interesting and maybe learned a thing or two!

I'd like express our gratitude to the institution who facilitated this research, as well as specifically to the various SMEs within that institution who gave their valuable time to support it throughout.

Fineksus - SWIFT Standard Changes 2019

https://fineksus.com/swift-mt-standard-changes-2019/

Paiementor - SWIFT MT Message Structure Blocks 1 to 5

https://www.paiementor.com/swift-mt-message-structure-blocks-1-to-5/

SEPA for corporates - The Difference between a SWIFT ACK and SWIFT NACK

https://www.sepaforcorporates.com/swift-for-corporates/quick-guide-swift-mt101-format/

SEPA for corporates - Explained: SWIFT gpi UETR – Unique End-to-End Transaction Reference

https://www.sepaforcorporates.com/swift-for-corporates/explained-swift-gpi-uetr-unique-end-to-end-transaction-reference/

M DIBA - LAU for SWIFT Message Partners

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/lau-swift-message-partners-mohammad-diba-1/

Prowide - About SWIFT

https://www.prowidesoftware.com/about-SWIFT.jsp

5m Mathmrs. Mac's Messages For Her

Microsoft - SWIFT Schemas

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/biztalk/adapters-and-accelerators/accelerator-swift/swift-schemas

SWIFT FIN Guru - SWIFT message block structure

http://www.swiftfinguru.com/2017/02/swift-message-block-structure.html

[canchewread]

Editor's note: this journal is original content (written by myself, of course) and has not appeared elsewhere online before today. I should also note that because this is both an opinion piece and an informal journal, my level of commitment to providing citations for the disingenuous wasn't particularly high; if you're looking for formally documented evidence that we're currently in the middle of a fascist takeover, I encourage you to check out my academic writing about the subject on ninaillingworth.com instead.

Journal 09/09/2020: Looking the Beast in the Eye

When I originally sat down to pen this journal, my intention was to call it something along the lines of “advice to a young leftist” which is probably in no small part, the reason why it's taken me three days to write this piece. This is because unfortunately I do not have very much good advice for a young leftist today in two-thousand and twenty, or at least much advice that isn't going to sound rather a lot like “quit before what you believe destroys your entire life.”

As I've written (extensively) elsewhere, we're in the middle of a fascist takeover that is more or less succeeding across the entire Pig Empire, and what passes for the liberal (read: capitalist) establishment in our respective nations seem quite content to try and appease the beast by feeding them the entire left and any marginalized group “uppity” enough to demand justice, equality or representation. There is not a lot of upside to being an open leftist right now and understanding what I know about both the history of fascism and the history of reactionary crackdowns in America, it's awful hard for me in good conscience to advise any young person to willingly subject themselves to the tender mercies of an uncaring state and its fascist cutout vigilante groups.

Let's talk a little bit about what that history, including very recent history, can tell us and why what it tells us isn't very good for the American left. Here in particular, we as both a class in American society and a people that believe in a more equal, compassionate and humane way of life, stand at the intersection of state power, class oppression and the homicidal revenge fantasies of a fascist political order that has seized power throughout much of the United States. The fact that this is not understood by our milquetoast Dem Soc allies and the bougie “progressive left” is completely irrelevant; as any Ferguson activist (who is still breathing) can tell you COINTELPRO never ended, performative liberal anti-racism stops well short of opposing police repression, and genteel society will respond to violent reprisals against activists by the reactionary right with either dead silence or some mild clucks of disapproval at best.

Are the liberals aware that when the increasingly fascist American right says “the left” they mean liberals and suburbanite Democrats too? On some level I'm sure they are, but clearly the threat of increased taxation and social programs for the poor terrifies them far more than the possibility fascism will progress to the point that they're next in front of the firing squad – I've been told the liberals of Weimar Germany felt much the same way during Hitler's rise; which merely demonstrates that the liberal capacity for coddling fascism if it's profitable knows few limits. Furthermore the nauseating truth is that many of your misguided and misinformed liberal allies in the working class simply don't understand that the fascist right always seeks to eliminate the militant left first simply because those are the people who're going to fight back when you start loading Muslims, Latinos and lanyard Democrats onto cattle cars.

This historical process of fascism of course intertwines with the American establishment's history of ruthlessly repressing, criminalizing and even murdering the left. As I detailed extensively in a prior essay called “The Inversion Perversion” the state's war against Americans who want a more equal society (in any number of ways) predates the rise of Nazi Germany, the American Civil War and as those who've studied colonial America might argue, even the foundation of the country. Between the mass deportations of anarchists, suppression of left wing literature through the mail, two Red Scares, anticommunism, Hoover's COINTELPRO war against the civil rights movement, the black power movement and the American student left, or all the way up to the Obama Department of Justice's ruthless oppression of the Occupy, Ferguson and North Dakota Pipeline protests, I could easily spend this entire essay demonstrating that when it comes to persecuting, destroying and yes even murdering the left, there is a long and storied history of bipartisan consensus in America – I see no reason or evidence to suggest that has changed much in our modern times.

In other words history, even recent American history, says that this story ends in a jail cell or a shallow grave for some of the folks reading this journal right now and I don't know how to sugarcoat that for anyone, let alone a young person with their whole life (such as it is) ahead of them. The plain, god-awful truth is that the American right wants you dead, and the center-right American liberal establishment simply doesn't care, just as it has never cared, because they also want the left destroyed and fear sharing their ill-gotten wealth more than they fear fascism. Furthermore, this same elite “liberal” establishment is actively engaged in splitting the component parts of the current American uprising up into acceptable and non-acceptable targets; that's why Joe Biden keeps yammering about police funding, anarchists and “looters.” Democrats in particular are doing this even as fascist militia vigilantes are starting to execute antifascists and protesters in the street, might I add.

Did I mention that it's a really bad time to be an open leftist, or even just someone who passionately feels cracker murderpigs shouldn't get away with murder because some fascist gave them a badge? And yet of course therein also lies the rub; just as there is danger in resisting the imposition of a fascist order there is also danger in refusing to resist.

Turning once again to history, we know that the fascist creep isn't going to stop itself until well after it has killed millions of people and destroyed everything about our lives that contains any meaning whatsoever. The reactionary backlash will not stop with silencing, arresting and/or killing teenage anarchists, African Americans protesting against racialized police violence or Portland soccer moms who've had enough fascism for a lifetime. The fascist mindset and method of societal control dictates that there must always been more enemies both within and outside of the state who represent both an abomination that should be destroyed and a threat to everything good and pure in the national character. Right now, the waking dragon of American fascism has cast a laser-like focus on those brave few Americans who are willing to physically resist the transformation of the country from a corrupt Oligarchy to an overt fascist police-state with rigged elections. Once that enemy is crushed and defeated, the beast will turn its eye to others – unions, teachers, and yes even Democratic Party politicians who've always been friendly to the fascist capitalist billionaires running much of the reactionary American right today.

Whether you choose to fight, hide or run, it has become crystal-clear clear to me that we are all headed towards dark days in the very near future and the only variable left to be determined is which segments of the audience reading this will be thrown onto the pyre first. What we know today as “Western Society” is blindly crashing through the kinds of barriers people who desire peace, comfort and security simply don't breech without expecting violence, bloodshed and a whole lot of rain.

Perhaps in light of all this my advice to the young leftist should be to harden oneself for the torrential downpour of violence, repression and yes death that lies ahead, regardless of whether or not you choose to resist the fascist creep. Perhaps the best thing I can offer a young person staring directly into the eye of this beast is the assurance that it is not their fault, that nobody in history has ever asked to be born into the war against fascism and that ultimately the fascists cannot win because fascism is a death cult that will eventually eat itself and has done so every single time before this one. Perhaps all I really have to share with you is the hope that in the darkness and despair that lies ahead of us you will remember my words and know that no matter how much they repress, terrorize and torture us, fantasy cannot be reality, slavery cannot be freedom and life cannot be death.

And that I think is the handle and the comfort I can offer those of you reading this who’re young enough to have a future beyond the fascist order; I have no optimism to sell you but I can make one promise that may help carry you through the bowels of the hell we are all descending into after all. It might not amount to much yet, but I promise you there will always only be four lights; no matter how many of us they murder to try and “prove” otherwise. Do not give these maggots the satisfaction of seeing your fear; know that at least some of you reading this will eventually dance on their graves and take whatever comfort you are able to, in that inevitability.

Never forget - one way, or another, the future is left.

nina illingworth

Independent writer, critic and analyst with a left focus. Please help me fight corporate censorship by sharing my articles with your friends online!

You can find my work at ninaillingworth.com, Can’t You Read, Media Madness and my Patreon Blog

Updates available on Twitter, Mastodon and Facebook. Podcast at “No Fugazi” on Soundcloud.

Inquiries and requests to speak to the manager @ASNinaWrites

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“It’s ok Willie; swing heil, swing heil…”

[ruminativerabbi]

What I Saw on Mulberry Street

At first, I was slightly amused by the whole brouhaha that followed the announcement last week by the estate of Theodor Geisel, a.k.a. Dr. Seuss, that it would stop republishing and selling six of the famous author’s books, including such classics as And To Think That I Saw It On Mulberry Street, If I Ran the Zoo, On Beyond Zebra, and McElligot’s Pool.  I know all these books; they were classics of children’s literature so long ago that I remember reading them when I actually was a child and enjoying them immensely. We all did. Dr. Seuss was part of the children’s canon back then: read by all, touted endlessly by librarians and teachers, and considered controversial—as far as I recall—by none. Just the opposite, actually: if there was one children’s author from back then whose whimsy was deemed charming and fully acceptable, it would certainly have been Dr. Seuss.

But times have changed. And there is no question that illustrations in all the books in question feature caricatures of various minority groups, particularly Asians (depicted with slanty lines for eyes, pigtails, and conical coolie-style hats) and Black people (shown shirtless, shoeless, and wearing grass skirts). On the other hand, Dr. Seuss himself was a powerful enemy of fascism who published more than 400 wartime cartoons savaging Hitler, Mussolini, and the Japanese leadership. And some of his books were thinly veiled anti-fascist parables: it is widely understood, for example, that Yertle the Turtle (1958) was meant as a direct attack on fascism (apparently dictatorial Yertle originally sported a Hitler-style moustache) and that Horton Hears a Who (1954) was meant as a kind of encouraging parable about the American occupation of Japan. More to the point for Jewish readers is that The Sneetches (1961), a book that the estate will continue to publish, is a focused, double-barreled attack on racism and anti-Semitism and was understood that way from the time it was published. Nor was this imputed meaning—the author himself was widely quoted at the time as saying formally, that The Sneetches “was inspired by my opposition to anti-Semitism.”

So we are left with an interesting dilemma. Geisel, a life-long Lutheran who actually suffered a bit of anti-Semitic discrimination in college when he was mistaken by some bigoted classmates for a Jew, was a proud anti-fascist, a virulent opponent of racism and anti-Semitism, and a true American patriot. And he published some books that featured images which feel—at least by today’s standards—racist or at the very least inappropriate for books pitched at impressionable children. The managers of his estate solved their problem the easy way by deciding simply not to republish six of the man’s books, thus ending the controversy by eliminating the problem. An alternate approach, of course, would have been to re-edit the books, eliminate the offensive imagery, and bring out versions that feature the original text with illustrations tailored more precisely to suit modern sensitivity. And speaking specifically as a Jewish American, the fact that there aren’t any Stürmer-style caricatures of hook-nosed Jews holding huge bags of money in these books shouldn’t be a factor in our evaluation of the evidence: if anything, the thought of Black parents cringing when they come across racist caricatures of Africans should be more than resonant with Jewish parents able to imagine being in exactly the same position and feeling exactly the same level of hurt and outrage. And that brings me to the question that feels to me to be at the heart of the matter: should works deemed utterly non-offensive in their day be altered, either slightly or dramatically, to suit evolving standards with respect to race, religion, ethnicity, gender, etc.? It’s an interesting question, one that goes to the heart of the question of what literature actually is and what role it could or should play in society.

There are, of course, lots of examples of books that have been successfully revised to suit modern tastes. Agatha Christie’s book And Then There Were None was originally published in the U.K. as Ten Little Negroes (and the third word on the cover was specifically not “Negroes”). That was deemed offensive here, so the publisher just made up a different title. (The English publishers eventually did the same and brought the book out under the marginally less offensive title Ten Little Indians.) In Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, a favorite of my own children years ago, Roald Dahl originally depicted the Oompa-Loompas who worked in the factory as African pygmies and the depiction was basically of them as slaves and certainly not as dignified, salaried employees. A century earlier, Dickens himself was prevailed upon to tone down Fagan’s Jewishness in Oliver Twist, which he did by halfheartedly removing some of the references to Fagan’s ethnicity. Of course, when the author himself makes the revisions we are having an entirely different discussion: surely the actual authors of books should feel free make whatever changes they wish to their own work. The question is whether the world should “fix” published works to make them suit issues that were on no one’s radar, or hardly anyone’s radar, when the book was written and published.

Some readers will recall that one of my pandemic coping exercises last spring was embarking on a re-read of Mark Twain, a favorite author of my younger years. I was surprised how well many of his books stood the test of time, but I found myself most engaged of all by my re-read of Huckleberry Finn. Widely and entirely reasonably acclaimed as an American classic, the book is basically about the relationship of Huck and Jim, who is almost invariably referred to as Negro Jim. (Again, that’s not the word that appears in the book.) Of course, Mark Twain was writing about Missouri life in the 1830s and he himself was from Missouri and a child of that era. So he certainly knew how people spoke and I’m entirely sure that that word was in common use to reference Black people. Today, that word is anathema to all and is considered unusable in normal discourse, written or oral. But what about the book itself? Should it be “fixed” by having the dialogue altered specifically to reflect a dialect of English spoken in those days by no one at all? Or should the book itself be dropped from high school or even college reading lists as something too offensive to allow, let alone to require, young people to read? Huckleberry Finn is an interesting book for many different reasons, not least of all because Jim, a slave, is depicted sympathetically as a man of character, virtue, and strong moral values—a fact made all the more poignant by the fact that he is depicted as almost wholly uneducated. Indeed, Jim is a grown man with a wife and family, while Huck is a boy of thirteen or fourteen and the clear implication is that while the white world has failed utterly to make Huck into a decent adolescent, Black Jim, an uneducated slave, is quite able to bring him to the threshold of decency by showing him how to behave in an upright manner. So the book is hardly anti-Black. Just the opposite is far more true: in many ways, Jim, not Huck, is the hero of the book. And yet the constant use of that word is beyond jarring. Editions have been published for use in school that simply omit the word or change it. Is that a rational compromise? Or does that kind of bowdlerization deprive the book of its essential honesty, of its ability to depict a society as it truly was and not as moderns vaguely wish it had been? It’s not that easy to say.

When I was deeply involved in the research that led me to publish my translation of the Psalms, I became aware—slightly to my naïve amazement—of the existence of Christian editions of the Psalms from which all references to internecine strife, violent clashes between opposing groups in old Jerusalem, the corruption that led at least some poets to condemn the Temple priesthood, and the deep alienation from God with which at least some psalmists struggled—that the psalms depicting all of that challenging stuff had been nicely excised from the book so as to create a book of “nice” poems. (This parallels a Christian edition of the Old Testament I once saw from which the entire book of Leviticus had been omitted, presumably lest readers be offended by the notion that animal sacrifice and the safeguarding of ritual purity were essential elements of the covenant between God and Israel.) Those editions of the Psalms struck me as ridiculous and precisely because the resultant book was specifically nothing like the original work and gave a totally incorrect impression of the original work. But would one of the Dr. Seuss books under discussion really have been substantially altered by some of the drawings of black or Asian people replaced with more respectful images?

My feeling is that the Dr. Seuss affair is indicative of a larger issue in society. Obviously, changing a few drawings in a book is not such a big deal and is something that I’m sure happens without fanfare in the world of publishing all the time. But this specific issue seems to have struck such a chord with so many precisely because Dr. Seuss is deemed, not entirely incorrectly, as representative of a simpler world—by which term people generally mean one in which it wasn’t deemed necessary to care what smaller groups in society felt or thought. We’ve come a long way since then, and rightly so. The Seuss estate could certainly have felt justified in commissioning some new drawing to avoid going against modern feelings about ethnic or racial stereotyping. The books themselves would have been substantially the same. Once that line is crossed, however, and the book no longer is the same as it was—“fixing” the language in Huckleberry Finn, for example, or eliminating Shylock’s Jewishness from the play or Othello’s blackness—that is missing almost entirely the reason literature exists in the first place: to stir up emotion, to challenge readers’ preconceptions, and to educate—in the literal sense of the world: to draw the reader forward to a new level of understanding of the world of the author…and of the reader as well.

[processproductionsophielindsay]

LORNA SIMPSON

Lorna Simpson, The Water Bearer (1986)

https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/02/arts/design/02lorn.html

Lorna Simpson, Guarded Conditions (1989)

https://www.artspace.com/magazine/art_101/book_report/representing-the-black-body-lorna-simpson-in-conversation-with-thelma-golden-54624

Lorna Simpson, Necklines (1989)

https://mcachicago.org/Collection/Items/1989/Lorna-Simpson-Necklines-1989

Lorna Simpson Wigs (1994)

https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/lorna-simpson-wigs-1994/

Childhood

Born in Brooklyn in 1960, Lorna Simpson was an only child to a Jamaican-Cuban father and an African American mother. Her parents were left-leaning intellectuals who immersed their daughter in group gatherings and cultural events from a young age. She attributed their influence as the sole reason she became an artist, writing, "From a young age, I was immersed in the arts. I had parents who loved living in New York and loved going to museums, and attending plays, dance performances, concerts... my artistic interests have everything to do with the fact that they took me everywhere ...."

Aspects of day-to-day life lit up Simpson's young imagination, from the jazz music of John Coltrane and Miles Davis, to magazine advertisements and overheard, hushed stories shared between adults; all of which would come to shape her future art. The artist took dance classes as a child and when she was around 11 years old, she took part in a theatrical performance at the Lincoln Center for which she donned a gold bodysuit and matching shoes. Though she remembered being incredibly self-conscious, it was a valuable learning experience, one that helped her realize she was better suited as an observer than a performer. This early coming-of-age experience was later documented in the artwork Momentum, (2010).

Simpson's creative training began as a teenager with a series of short art courses at the Art Institute of Chicago, where her grandmother lived. This was followed by attendance at New York's High School of Art and Design, which, she recalls "...introduced me to photography and graphic design."

  Early Training and Work

After graduating from high school Simpson earned a place at New York's School of Visual Arts. She had initially hoped to train as a painter, but it soon became clear that her skills lay elsewhere, as she explained in an interview, "everybody (else) was so much better (at painting). I felt like, Oh God, I'm just slaving away at this." By contrast, she discovered a raw immediacy in photography, which "opened up a dialogue with the world."

When she was still a student Simpson took an internship with the Studio Museum in Harlem, which further expanded her way of thinking about the role of art in society. It was here that she first saw the work of Charles Abramson and Adrian Piper, as well as meeting the leading Conceptual artist David Hammons. Each of these artists explored their mixed racial heritage through art, encouraging Simpson to follow a similar path. Yet she is quick to point out how these artists were in a minority at the time, remembering, "When I was a student, the work of artists from varying cultural contexts was not as broad as it is now."

During her student years Simpson travelled throughout Europe and North Africa with her camera, making a series of photographs of street life inspired by the candid languages of Henri Cartier-Bresson and Roy DeCarava. But by graduation, Simpson felt she had already exhausted the documentary style. Taking a break from photography, she moved toward graphic design, producing for a travel company. Yet she remained connected to the underground art scene, mingling with likeminded spirits and fellow African Americans who felt the same rising frustrations as racism, poverty, and unemployment ran deep into the core of their communities.

At an event in New York Simpson met Carrie-Mae Weems, who was a fellow African American student at the University of California. Weems persuaded Simpson to make the move to California with her. "It was a rainy, icy New York evening," remembers Simpson, "and that sounded really good to me." After enrolling at the University of California's MFA program, Simpson found she was increasingly drawn towards a conceptual language, explaining how, "When I was in grad school, at University of California, San Diego, I focused more on performance and conceptually based art." Her earliest existing photographs of the time were made from models staged in a studio under which she put panels or excerpts of text lifted from newspapers or magazines, echoing the graphic approaches of Jenny Holzer and Martha Rosler. The words usually related to the inequalities surrounding the lives of Black Americans, particularly women. Including text immediately added a greater level of complexity to the images, while tying them to painfully difficult current events with a deftly subtle hand.

Mature Period

Simpson's tutors in California weren't convinced by her radical new slant on photography, but after moving back to New York in 1985, she found both a willing audience and a kinship with other artists who were gaining the confidence to speak out about wider cultural diversities and issues of marginalization. Simpson says, "If you are not Native American and your people haven't been here for centuries before the settlement of America, then those experiences have to be regarded as valuable, and we have to acknowledge each other."

Simpson had hit her stride by the late 1980s. Her distinctive, uncompromising ability to address racial inequalities through combinations of image and text had gained momentum and earned her a national following across the United States. She began using both her own photography and found, segregation-era images alongside passages of text that gave fair representation to her subjects. One of her most celebrated works was The Water Bearer, (1986), combining documentation of a young woman pouring water with the inscription: "She saw him disappear by the river. They asked her to tell what happened, only to discount her memory." Simpson deliberately challenged preconceived ideas about first appearances with the inclusion of texts like this one. The concept of personal memory is also one which has become a recurring theme in Simpson's practice, particularly in relation to so many who have struggled to be heard and understood. She observes, "... what one wants to voice in terms of memory doesn't always get acknowledged."

In the 1990s Simpson was one of the first African American women to be included in the Venice Biennale. It was a career-defining decade for Simpson as her status grew to new heights, including a solo exhibition at New York's Museum of Modern Art in 1990 and a series of international residencies and displays. She met and married the artist James Casebere not long after, and their daughter Zora was born in the same decade. In 1994 Simpson began working with her grandmother's old copies of 1950s magazines including Ebony and Jet, aimed at the African American community. Cutting apart these relics from another era allowed Simpson to revise and reinvent the prescribed ideals being pushed onto Black women of the time, as seen in the lithograph series Wigs (1994). The use of tableaus and repetition also became a defining feature of her work, alongside cropped body parts to emphasize the historical objectification of Black bodies.

  Current Work

In more recent years Simpson has embraced a much wider pool of materials including film and performance. Her large-scale video installations such as Cloudscape (2004) and Momentum (2011) have taken on an ethereal quality, addressing themes around memory and representation with oblique yet haunting references to the past through music, staging, and lighting.

Between 2011 and 2017 Simpson reworked her Ebony and Jet collages of the 1990s by adding swirls of candy-hued, watercolour hair as a further form of liberation. She has also re-embraced painting through wild, inhospitable landscapes sometimes combined with figurative elements. The images hearken to the continual chilling racial divisions in American culture. As she explains, "American politics have, in my opinion, reverted back to a caste that none of us want to return to..."

Today, Simpson remains in her hometown of Brooklyn, New York, where in March 2020, she began a series of collages following the rise of the Covid-19 crisis. The works express a more intimate response to wider political concerns. She explains, "I'm just using my collages as a way of letting my subconscious do its thing - basically giving my imagination a quiet and peaceful space in which to flourish. Some of the pieces are really an expression of longing, like Walk with Me, (2020) which reflects that incredibly powerful desire to be with friends right now."

Despite her status as a towering figure of American art, Simpson still feels surprised by the level of her own success, particularly when she compares her work to those of her contemporaries. "I feel there are so many people - other artists who were around when I was in my twenties - who I really loved and appreciated, and who deserve the same attention and opportunity, like Howardena Pindell or Adrian Piper."

The Legacy of Lorna Simpson

Simpson's interrogation of race and gender issues with a minimal, sophisticated interplay between art and language has made her a much respected and influential figure within the realms of visual culture. American artist Glenn Ligon is a contemporary of Simpson's whose work similarly utilizes a visual relationship with text, which he calls 'intertextuality,' exploring how stencilled letters spelling out literary fragments, jokes or quotations relating to African-American culture can lead us to re-evaluate pre-conceived ideas from the past. Ligon was one of the founders of the term "Post-Blackness," formed with curator and writer Thelma Golden in the late 1990s, referring to a post-civil rights generation of African-American artists who wanted their art to not just be defined in terms of race alone. In the term Post-Black, they hoped to find "the liberating value in tossing off the immense burden of race-wide representation, the idea that everything they do must speak to or for or about the entire race."

The re-contextualization of historical inaccuracies in both Simpson and Ligon's practice is further echoed in the fearless, cut-out silhouettes of American artist Kara Walker, who walks headlong into some of the most challenging territory from American history. Arranging figures into theatrical narrative displays, she retells horrific stories from the colonial era with grossly exaggerated caricatures that force viewers into deeply uncomfortable territory.

In contrast, contemporary American artist Ellen Gallagher has tapped into the appropriation and repetition of Simpson's visual art, particularly her collages taken from African American magazine culture. Gallagher similarly lifts original source matter from vintage magazines including Ebony, Our World and Sepia, cutting apart and transforming found imagery with a range of unusual materials including plasticine and gold-leaf. Covering or masking areas of her figures' faces and hairstyles highlights the complexities of race in today's culture, which Gallagher deliberately teases out with materials relating to "mutability and shifting," emphasising the rich diversity of today's multicultural societies around the world.

[ghostphoenix-kry]

k so ur always tagging goofy shit w lilith or amelia, so like i wanna know their deal, like give me a whole info dump

My friend, I will gladly dump some of my shit on them out for you,,, these two are particular favorites along with Sol. Also I am so sorry this turned out so long and so incoherent. I couldnt figure out what all to say about them and I forgot some of the things I could say about them.

Its really long.

I'll start off with the standard Lilith for now.

Lilith is a French musician and criminal in the Cowboy Times that are Red Dead Redemption. A woman with a lot of pride and an inability to take anyone's shit.

She grew up a single child with parents that firmly believed she needed to form herself to their ideas of life. She needed to be as perfect as possible to them and to her future husband. She needed to learn to be the ideal wife or she would fail in life. For years she tried to live up to their expectations but it was never enough and it wasnt healthy at all, so she got fed up with it and left home.

Out there in the 'real world' she developed a talent for musical performance and found out the hard way that relationships are painful and sketchy at best. After falling for the charms and promises of countless pretty faces and kind smiles, the lies coated in sweet words claiming love and devotion, she realized that people lie a lot. And that there were too many pompous men that seemed to think themselves entitled to nightly affection and heart, only to take it and fuck off with it.

Granted, she understood that it was naivety on her end and a want to feel some sense of being wanted that got her there. After a while of hoping the next time would be different and having it end up just the same, she decided she was done. A coldness had begun to sink in then, a hatred and bitterness towards the idea of folks flirting with her or attempting to pull the wool over her eyes with falsified affection.

So, Lilith said fuck this noise, and decided that if those rich and disloyal men were so sure of themselves and their worth to her, that she would use it. She would lean into it while remaining distant.

She would learn to lie incredibly well.

So she did just that. She performed as always, but it wasnt about the pocket change people would give her. Now she would seek out those pompous rich bastards herself, using tactics to suggest interest and letting them decide it was an invitation. Only to leave with them at night and leave them ass up in a ditch, their wallets now marginally lighter, and their faces a bit less perfect.

She became a temptress and a thief. And she became powerful and proud. Travelling from town to town in order to escape the law, she continued her performances and acts, targeting more unfortunate men with a momentous burden being in their wallet.

This said, she isn't inherently bitter towards everyone. But she definitely composes herself with an air of undeniable authority around other people. Essentially a vibe that for the most part tells people not to try anything or they will find her hands in their face before they can catch them.

Within a few small groups, her guard is lowered and she allows herself to be more relaxed though. Letting her usage of French slip out along with her humor and need to be earning her keep and helping out. She is used to being alone, so she wants to contribute somehow to anyone she might be staying with in order to convince herself and others that she is indeed helping. Look! I am doing work! Please let me stay! Usually these are the people she grows fond of and will protect with terrifying ferocity.

She is also at times though, a little bit dumb of ass. Lilith is fluent in French and in English, but there are words still in English that she thinks she knows but does not. For instance she gets confused by the names for baby animals and is quite convinced that quite a few baby animals are just -insert animal name- + "ling" (Piglings, chickenlings, gooselings, etc) In the times her inner idiot shows, she will get very flustered and embarrassed. She feels she is supposed to be smooth and intimidating afterall. Not to mention formal.

Also while she has very much given up on recieving love from another, and is quite against the prospect of a relationship, she does still catch feelings for people on occasion. And it always kind of scares her. But an affectionate or fond Lilith is an incredibly soft one that has a lot of love to give but is a bit hesitant to give it.

Lass is also very maternal in nature, even despite being a bit pissy. She wants to protect.

TLDR; Lilith Streith is bitter French musician and thief who does not trust getting close to men, but does find that the nice ones who are respectful are really super cool and she likes them a lot.

Amelia Alexi on the other hand, is quite the opposite.

Miss Alexi is a Grade-A gunslinger and mercenary in the Cowboy Times, a very annoyed and fed up deputy in FarCry, a S.T.A.R.S. agent that's too willing to fight literally anything in Resident Evil, and overall, a professional pun-slinging dumbass with sleep and trust issues.

I'm going to go with Cowboy Times storyline and traits because it's a bit better thought out at this time.

Amelia grew up with a brother and her parents, all of which she was very close with. She was brought up in a musical family, and a family that was very keen on the idea of being kind and doing what is right. They hunted and grew a good majority of their food, but were well enough liked by the nearby town too. They were good folks that helped a lot of people.

In a series of quite unfortunate events, some of which inadvertantly brought on by herself, Amelia found herself alone, wanted by the law for murder, and riddled with guilt and wrath. Her parents having disappeared on her and her brother, only for her brother to be executed for a crime she committed.

The law failed her brother big time, the judge having said guilty with little to no evidence of her brother's involvement. And seeming how it was her crime, she is so hurt and angered by his death. Wrath builds in her rather quickly, and she takes it out on those who caused it, killing off those crooked men of the law in a fury before stealing a horse and bolting, killing off any pursuers who come too close.

Those mental wounds continue to fester and her rage ends up directed towards the law as an entirety. They are liars and snakes. And if they want to come after her now, she won't hesitate to send them back to their maker.

Despite her resolve, she finds herself faced with nightmares and visions a plenty. Nightmares that startle her awake and leave her in tears. Nightmares about her brother's death, and the death's of so many others she has and hasn't met. They are painful and terrifying to her, so she soon decides the only way to avoid them would be to avoid the medium they come across, sleep.

Thus the first of her horrible care habits begins as Amelia cuts out sleep. Avoiding it at any cost, which soon enough weighs on her and causes a bit of paranoia. Constantly fatigued and constantly on high-alert, she somehow manages to retain her gun-slinging abilities and sharp senses for the most part, but unfortunately finds that her body will forcibly shut down on her and make her black out when it decides its had enough. Usually in rather unfortunate times and places.

The back of her horse

In the middle of a field

In a chair

In a tree

In the middle of cleaning her weapons

All over the place. Not ideal, but she is a surprisingly lucky lass, and nobody goes looking for a killer and expecting her to be passed out in the middle of the road.

Anyway, back to important stuff.

Due to the reputation she gains amongst the law, she finds herself being lassoed into a rather sketchy group of people. A den of vipers, men and women with guns and knives to lend. She finds herself in a guild of mercenaries, run by one Mama Morgen. The Queen of the den.

Amelia is soon enough stuck with the den, being called out to snuff out lives in return for money as well as assurance that Mama Morgen wouldnt turn those hired weapons on her for knowing too much.

While Amelia is usually apathetic anymore, too tired and done with life to care about others and too sure to keep her distance to get close enough to care, she is still a sweet hearted little woman. A lonely one, a tired and jaded one, but a sweet one.

She has odd habits and a sense of humor, finding some amusement in shitty jokes and some peace in playing a nice music piece on her violin. Her fury is strong, but it remains directed at those who wronged her so badly in the past. People aren't inherently bad, she can get along well enough with people, as she has retained her old kindness.

When she is comfortable with someone, she too tends to grow fond and protective of them. While she is far less maternal in nature, she doesnt want her friends to feel any kind of pain or anguish. To her they are deserving of the best and only the best, so she works hard to keep them free of danger or stress. To cheer them up and make them laugh when they do find themselves stressed or hurt. Within the short leddy, there is a lot of care to provide for those that she thinks have earned it.

Amelia can also be a bit sassy and dumb of ass as well. And proves it frequently. Any possible feelings she may catch are not registered as feelings until it hits her like a brick when she realizes that cuddling and snoozing with a person on a nightly basis is not a thing most people do when they're just friends. And trying to do horse tricks and cool stunts in front of a person to impress them is not entirely normal either.

Also, she does a lot of stunts. Miss Alexi is fond of two things: The warmth of a thousand suns, and The Thrill. Has on multiple occasions jumped off of cliffs in order to land in the water below, especially when being pursued. Though she does enjoy being pursued as well, especially in a rather cruel way when it's the law pursuing her.

She is intelligent as a person, but her common sense isn't always present and she is likely to crack a joke or impulsively steal things at inopportune times. There is little impulse control.

She is alive because of luck, spite, and an uncanny ability to shoot really quickly. Nothing more.

[floatingcatacombs]

The Magic and Wise Asexual

12 Days of Aniblogging 2019, Day 7

Media tropes about LGBT+ identities are just as old as the identities themselves. The unfaithful bisexual, the effeminate gay, the fetishistic trans woman, the bed-dead and severe lesbians. As I’ve been reading through LGBT+ manga this year, I’ve started to see another recurring trope concerning a slightly different orientation. Let’s talk about The Magic and Wise Asexual.

The magic and wise asexual is not generally supernatural, but rather, in a similar role to the Magical Negro trope, this is a stock character who appears out of the sidelines during a time of crisis to offer crucial insight to the protagonist. Existentially detached from the other character’s romantic and interpersonal struggles, they are able to cut through the bullshit and tell the other character what they truly need to do to be happy. At best, it’s a good way to introduce asexuality to an audience who may not be familiar with the identity and give extra dimension to already strong characters. At worst, this trope uses identity as a tool to solve plot problems, which isn’t a very healthy way to think about marginalized groups. Now I’ll go into each instance of this trope from the manga I’ve recently read, and how each character is handled.

Sasaki-Sensei from Kanojo ni Naritai Kimi to Boku

Ah, Kanoboku again! I literally just wrote about it a few days ago, but I’m back to explore its depiction of asexuality. Unfortunately, it falls into all the tropes I outlined earlier without properly fleshing out its character in return. One of the main characters visits her teacher in the middle of a meltdown over being misgendered and spurned by a boy she likes. Sensing the need for a pep talk, Sasaki brings up how he, too, has felt hurt because nobody understood or accepted him. He spends a whole chapter detailing how he’s always someone without romantic or sexual interests, and how his friends and family have never quite been able to understand that. He concludes that inherent value comes from yourself, not others around you, and that you have the right to decide how you want to live. While self-worth is crucial, this conversation ultimately falls flat. Sasaki-sensei really only seems to exist to deliver one deep truth talk per character in the series, and his asexuality feels like the means to one of those talks rather than a genuine part of him.

Maki from Bloom Into You

Maki is something of an enigma at the start of Bloom into You. What’s he really like behind that shaggy hair and quiet demeanor? Because of spending his childhood with his three sisters, he’s good at talking with girls and picks the student council because of its caretaking roles. All of this femininity makes it easy to headcanon transness onto Maki at first, but as it turns out, this is all setup for Maki’s role as a relationship guide to Yuu and Touko. Maki is fascinated by relationships, he just views them as a spectator sport. When it comes to giving sage relationship advice to Yuu, he’s not just justifying his advice through his asexuality, he’s also using his social intelligence and penchant for observing minute details to inform what he says. His asexuality and feminine attunement don’t make him a pushover, though. During his game of Symbolic Batting Cages with Yuu, he sternly rejects the notion that she might be “just like him”, declaring that he is firm in his lack of orientation but she’s just trying to escape from some complicated feelings. Maki may typically be a reserved and subtle character, but he has enough grounding to rise above the mere trope of wise asexual.

Anonymous from Shimanami Tasogare

Anonymous subverts the trope of the magic and wise asexual by playing into it literally and as hard as possible! If this seems like a contradiction, then it’s exactly what she intended. Anonymous’ ideal self is a person with no past or hardcoded identities. She wants to be totally transparent, but also a mirror. She wants people to project their expectations and desires onto her, helping them find themselves without any active intervention on her part. She’s a magical realist character in an otherwise entirely reality-conforming manga, with frequent shots of her jumping off of buildings and vanishing into the wind. Characters who expect long-winded motivational speeches from her often end up disappointed. Amidst all this intentional mystery and enigma, Anonymous is assured in one thing – her asexuality! The author of Shimanami Tasogare is x-gender and asexual, and I have to assume that some of Anonymous’ backstory and ideals are connected to some of their own. Overall, Anonymous, like the rest of ST, is like no other manga and its sheer uniqueness and willingness to push the “oh yeah asexuals are mysterious and wise and powerful” trope to its natural limits is something to be respected.

_

And that’s it for me! I’m not asexual myself, so my outlook on these characters is more out of archetypical curiosity than any personally deep meaning. But overall, it’s excellent that asexual characters are getting some genuine representation in the recent scores of LGBT+ manga. Even when their representation comes off as flat, it still comes across as genuine and in good faith, which is a step above the representation from manga of decades past.

[vopium]

A Framework for a Healthier YouTube

-by Andrew Cherry

YouTube, the video-sharing platform owned by Google that we all rely on for one reason or another, is routinely cited as one of the top used websites from around the world. There are few other places you can get daily long form vlogs, makeup demonstrations, cooking tutorials, cat video compilations, and television show breakdowns while being a click away from intense political analysis or video tutorials of open heart surgery. Part of the draw of this goliath website is the ever-expanding quantity and variety of videos available to the consumer for “free.” I use the phrase “free” here because while users don’t have to monetarily pay to access video content, there are major drawbacks to the site that end up negatively impacting both content creators and the general viewing public. My goal here as an active user of YouTube is to provide a set of recommendations that I believe would work to push back against some of the more harmful and toxic effects of the site. I hope not to change the fundamental structure of the site or stifle people’s creativity, but rather, I hope that these changes would make the site safer for everybody and work to ensure healthy discourse both online and in real life.

Re-Design the YouTube Algorithm

One of YouTube’s biggest issues is the way that their video recommendation algorithm suggests viewers to watch more and more extreme videos, in what is being called by some as the Alt-Right Pipeline. While the site has evolved to become much more than just a company in a lot of ways, it still strives to make money, and thus, the algorithm suggests similar but more extreme videos knowing that this gradual escalation will keep people actively engaged and generating more ad revenue. This Vox article does a good job of laying out the issue, whereas people start watching conservative YouTubers like Ben Shapiro who himself has explicitly disavowed the alt-right, but then YouTube’s algorithm continues to direct these viewers to further-right videos and cements their radicalization to the far-right over time. While I do see the irony of linking to a YouTube video here to drive my point home, this video titled “The Alt-Right Playbook: How to Radicalize a Normie” takes a pretty comprehensive, step-by-step approach to demonstrating how this radicalization can happen online.

The Vox article above notes how persuasive these extreme YouTube videos can be and even quotes sociologist Zeynep Tufekci in saying that “given its billion or so users, YouTube may be one of the most powerful radicalizing instruments of the 21st century.” Given the long term and deeply alarming implications of that quote, it’s necessary to unpack why the site wields such influence in the minds of its users. I would argue, in terms of Cialdini’s Six Principles of Persuasion, that authority and social validation are the two strongest feelings associated with YouTube’s persuasiveness. With respect to his concept of authority, I argue that YouTubers like Ben Shapiro, Steven Crowder, and Joe Rogan become expert authority figures in the minds of their frequent viewers, which then makes these viewers more inclined to check out the videos produced by frequent guests on these shows. These guests, however, are often content creators even further to the right than the original hosts, which compounds with the perceived authority of the YouTube algorithm to push people further down the Alt-Right Pipeline even quicker.

Furthermore, I argue that the YouTube ends up plays on people’s lack of social validation to encourage them to stay on the site longer. This principle explains that as you see people around you doing something, you are more likely to also do that thing in order to fit in. In a time when people around my age are often incredibly anxious and feeling isolated from the world at large, it can be more common for people to latch onto social groups where they feel somewhat understood. One such area is alt-right comment sections on YouTube or by following alt-right YouTubers on Twitter. By deriving their social validation from these circles and by delving deeper into that online bubble, people are more likely to follow the examples set by these online agents, regurgitate their toxic talking points, and influence more people to go down that path.

In order to combat this issue, I recommend that YouTube take a serious look at how their algorithm is designed and make changes accordingly. It should no longer be the sole motive of the algorithm to keep people engaged to drive ad revenue. There should be a team of human moderators involved who understand the dangerous nature of online radicalization and work to prevent it from happening. This is not to say that conservative thinkers should be censored online, but rather to say that YouTube has an outsized influence on modern culture and should be aware of the role their site has played in disseminating fascist ideologies as simply free speech from right wing thinkers.

Make Monetization Practices more Transparent

In the past few years, YouTube has faced extensive criticism for the ways in which they control monetization practices on the site. Content creators who make videos and upload them on the site sometimes come to find that their content had been age-gated, hidden, or simply demonetized. This means that for people who rely on YouTube as their primary source of income, demonetization on popular videos means significantly less money coming in and they are often not provided with any explanation from the company as to why a video was demonetized. This article on The Verge highlights the accompanying problem to larger demonetization issues, which are the arguments that YouTube was automatically demonetizing videos from LGBTQ+ creators simply because of their identities. While they deny these claims, YouTube was also accused of showing anti-gay ads before LGBTQ+ videos, further contributing to the belief that the site says they support these lifestyles but then acts rather differently. It is important to note here as well that even if the videos become remonetized after YouTube reviewers check it out, the creators of the video do not get reimbursed for the money lost in that time frame and these types of practices can work to hide this type of information from the marginalized people who may need it.

Thus, I argue that YouTube needs to make their monetization practices more transparent and provide YouTubers with more in-depth responses after demonetization happens which explain why it happened and how to quickly appeal if they feel it was unjust. If they need to hire more reviewers to engage personally with videos and decide more quickly whether they should be monetized or not, then so be it because the site surely has the money to do so. Not only would this help to retain active YouTubers that are starting to feel sidelined, but it would help to bring in more users because as authors Kraut and Resnick explain on page 199 of Building Successful Online Communities, “Providing potential new members with an accurate and complete picture of what the members’ experience will be once they join increases the fit of those who join.”

Increase Child Protections and Age Restrictions

As mentioned previously above, setting 18+ age restrictions on LGBTQ+ content simply because of the creator’s identity is harmful because it prevents young, questioning individuals from viewing potentially validating and reassuring information that they could not get elsewhere. On the other hand, however, there needs to be a larger effort by the site to ensure that the videos that are allowed in the family/kid friendly side of YouTube are actually safe for children to watch. Last year, Wired reported that they found videos “containing violence against child characters, age-inappropriate sexualisation, Paw Patrol characters attempting suicide and Peppa Pig being tricked into eating bacon” that were discovered by following YouTube’s recommended section or just allowing the site’s autoplay function to do its job.

These horrifying videos would be scarring even to an adult, and I cannot imagine the type of long-term psychological damage that it could inflict upon children without their parents even being aware of what is happening. It is imperative then for YouTube to do a better job of ensuring that the content allowed to be viewed by children is safe for their eyes by improving the age restriction settings and increasing human involvement in the scanning of these videos for child protection. This will have to be done carefully, however, because subjecting people to scanning these types of videos all day long would also likely have negative lasting mental health effects. I would recommend ensuring that the workers have proper mental health services to go along with it and allowing for the rotation of workers in and out of this type of moderation position.

I am not naïve enough to think that these are all simple solutions to such complicated and encompassing problems. Alt-right fascists will not simply disappear if we better regulate YouTube content and fix the radicalization aspects of their recommendation algorithm. Certain videos will most likely always get demonetized or age-restricted even when their creators don’t think its necessary. It can be hard to catch every single disturbing video uploaded to the site when there are over 500 hours of content being uploaded to YouTube every minute. But, it is my hope that these recommendations are taken seriously and at the least, start a conversation about how the site can do better, and at most, can be used as a framework for how YouTube can become a better, more healthy site for all parties.

[plannedparenthood]

Justice, Knowledge, and Power: Meet the People of Raíz

In their own words, four organizers discuss why they push for public policies that truly represent the Latinx community — and work to protect access to health care.

Planned Parenthood health centers provide care to communities across the country — people of all colors, all gender expressions, regardless of income, education, or immigration status. But that care affects each of our communities in different ways.

The Latinx people who power Planned Parenthood can attest to that truth, and can speak from knowledge about how their life experience informs the ways Planned Parenthood speaks about — and works to protect and expand — access to health care

We want you to meet a few of the Latinx members of the Planned Parenthood family — and to learn from them, in their own words, about the importance of the work they do every day.

Angelica Romero Raíz Organizer, Planned Parenthood Arizona

1. How long have you worked at Planned Parenthood?

I am a new Raíz organizer and have been on staff for five months — but I was a Raíz volunteer for two years.

2. Why did you come to work at PP?

I got involved with PP because I knew this administration would attack women — but specifically women of color like myself. Planned Parenthood not only focuses on health care for all, but also advocates for immigrant rights so I thought it would be the perfect route to fight for the injustices that matter to me.

3. What does the Raíz organizing work mean to you?

Organizing with Raíz is like organizing for our roots and where we come from. Educating our communities of color on reproductive care issues is something powerful because at times, our people are the ones who are being left out of the reproductive care conversations. Seeing my mom be educated about the services we provide and being able to break the abortion stigma she held is something powerful, and even more empowering when it can be done to many other women like my mother through the Raíz program.

Norma Jimenez Specialist, Latino Leadership and Engagement, Planned Parenthood Federation of America

1. How long have you worked at Planned Parenthood?

I started my involvement with Planned Parenthood in Phoenix in 2014 when President Obama rolled out the Affordable Care Act (ACA). At the time I was working with a Planned Parenthood group called Community Connect —  which I had heard about when a friend who knew I was looking for an internship related to health care emailed to say, “you should apply to this.” That job focused on helping Latinx people and people of color get health insurance. Over the course of six months, I walked neighborhoods, knocked on over 100 doors, mainly Spanish-speaking  households, and assisted them in enrolling and choosing a healthcare plan that would work for them and their families through the ACA.

After the enrollment period ended, I continued to engage with Planned Parenthood locally and kept working with Latinx folks through a program called Raíz. As an organizer with Raíz, I helped get sex-ed policies  adopted by local school districts and provided an educational forums and pláticas to Spanish-speaking communties and partners. I decided that I wanted to continue being connected with Planned Parenthood, and now, I am working with the strategic partnerships team at the national office in DC.  

2. Why did you come to work at PP?

I grew up in a Catholic household in a Mexican family. At a young age, I was made aware to never let anyone touch my body without my permission; or if I was ever made uncomfortable by a male or anyone, to let my mom or grandma know. That was it. All other topics related to reproductive care, education or health care were not talked about. When I was in middle school, my body started to develop faster than many other of my girl friends. I hid my body under loose clothing when I went to school and hated my body because I was starting to look like a woman. During this time, I also got my period (in middle school) during class and I was so scared. That moment changed me. I was scared, confused and I felt alone and questioned, "why me?" — as if I was broken and I had done something wrong. I had to learn how to navigate that time and moment on my own. My family didn’t talk to me about it. They didn’t know how.

I understood soon enough that many of our moms, and loved ones don’t know how to bring up the subject of reproductive care to their children. Many of our parents think our teachers should be educating us on “sex topics” when in reality, comprehensive sex education is not taught in school at all.

This is why I have decided to work with Planned Parenthood.  Planned Parenthood is the country's largest sex education provider as well as the go-to provider for reproductive health care for  people. Planned Parenthood was there for me when I needed my first annual exam. They were there when I needed to learn about my birth control options and most importantly, Planned Parenthood helped me find my voice, and my identity. I learned to love my body unconditionally. I want all young people to know they are not alone, and it’s okay to feel confused and scared. Planned Parenthood is here for you.

3. What does the Raíz organizing work mean to you?

My first time learning to unpack all the bottled-up feelings and trauma I had since I was little, was through Raíz. Raíz provided me with resources and skills to help me develop my professional career. To be empowered, to make my own choices while at the same time being true to the values my family had instilled in me. I identify as an immigrant, as a woman, as a Latina, as a feminist, as the first to go to college, as a survivor.

Raíz is not just another Planned Parenthood program. Raíz uplifts our people, our communities, it empowers people to be true advocates for what they believe. Raíz advocates for justice and helps change policies for the betterment of our families and selves. Raíz works with our moms, abuelitas, with teens, students, with community partners to work on issues that are important to us.

Raíz organizers know we are not single-issue people who live single-issue lives. Raíz upholds our culture, our races, our people and more than anything, trust and family.

Victoria Ruiz-Marin Raíz Organizing Specialist, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains

1. How long have you worked at Planned Parenthood?

I have worked for Planned Parenthood since January of 2017. I was hired by PPFA as a Raíz Organizer to engage the Latinx community in Las Vegas. At the start of 2018 I transitioned into my local affiliate, Planned Parenthood of the Rocky Mountains.

2. Why did you come to work at PP?

I decided to work for Planned Parenthood because I recognized the lifesaving medical services  they provide each and every day to women and people who need it most. As an undocumented individual who did not have a maternal figure during my adolescence due to unjust immigration policies, I found myself with a pregnancy scare and no knowledge of how to proceed during my high school years. During that stressful time in my life, Planned Parenthood was there for me. The nurse who saw me was kind. She addressed my concerns, and talked to me about the birth control options that were available.

As I grew older I realized that several women in my community had not accessed reproductive health care, because of barriers rooted in discrimination. When I was approached about the position with Raíz, I was excited for the opportunity to engage other Latinx community members around access to reproductive health care and the protection of our reproductive rights. The Latinx community is one of the most marginalized and underserved; I knew that through Raíz I would be able to unite my community in order to drive the change needed to protect our reproductive rights.

3. What does the Raíz organizing work mean to you? The work being done through Raíz means I’m able to give back to my community by empowering them to become leaders who advocate for their reproductive freedom. Through Raíz, we can collectively break down the existing barriers that keep us from accessing health care. Organizing my community allows me to uplift their voices and experiences to affect policy and ensure our access to reproductive health care, and hold our elected officials accountable. Raíz is truly about justice and building the most authentic and sustainable partnerships among Latinx folks.

Joshua Alba Raíz Fellow, Planned Parenthood League of Massachusetts

1. How long have you worked at Planned Parenthood?

I’ve worked at Planned Parenthood since late August 2018 — so, nine months.

2. Why did you come to work at PP?

Coming to work at Planned Parenthood was not initially part of my plan, so it was a surprise. As a cis-male Latino, I had always seen Planned Parenthood as a womxn’s organization, even though I’ve sought its services. I decided to take the opportunity, because I realized that all the reading and healing that I’ve been doing for myself, with my partners, family and friends, around  trauma and toxicity stemmed from my relationships with my body, and everyone around me. I still get shook when I register just how fundamental sexual and reproductive health is to identity, empowerment, connection — and how basic health is to all of us.

3. What does the Raíz organizing work mean to you?

This work I’m doing through Raíz is a cornerstone to liberation for me and my people. When I look at the still-lingering effects of Puritan decimation in the Northeast and Catholic colonialism in the Caribbean — I’m Dominican American — I see bodies policed, slaves, minds shackled, forced breeding, rape, mutilation and murder. My family is a direct product of that, and that trauma lives in me. I struggle to heal, and in order to heal, we have to change the core ways in which we see ourselves that we’re established so very long ago. That means owning our own bodies, that means respecting other’s bodies and choices, and doing no harm from this ground level, all the way up. That means fighting for the right for everybody to be able to have, at least, enough protections in this area of our lives, so that we can heal our generational wounds. That’s what Raíz means to me. It’s up to us.

[katieclark27]

Gloria Steinem: the ultimate public intellectual

What does it mean to be a feminist today? When you think of how feminists are perceived in the classroom, at home, through the eyes of the media, or in politics, how do you feel? I feel hopeful — hopeful that women, particularly well-educated, strong women, will change the way females are represented politically, academically, creatively, and socially. With every women’s rally, march on Capitol Hill, or a new elected female in politics, we make progress towards fair representation, equal pay, the right to choose, and so on. But being a “feminist” carries a tremendous amount of dangerous weight. Many still hold the belief that feminists argue for female superiority. Feminists endure a large amount of oppression, backlash, and persecution. In some spheres, identifying as a feminist will give you an invisible “target” on your back — you threaten patriarchy, the system, or gender and social norms. We have certain individuals in our society who take the oppression against females and fight harder against the backlash — Simone de Beuvoir, Betty Friedan, Oprah, and Emma Watson are all women who boldly fight for gender equality. We are fortunate enough to currently be entering into fourth-wave feminism, a sector of feminism that recognizes intersectionality. Fourth-wave feminism is changing how equal gender rights are perceived in the workplace, in the media, in education, in politics, and so on. Fourth-wave, which began in 2012, acknowledges the complex and intertwined systems that contribute to the oppression of highly marginalized groups. More specifically, we must understand that to be a woman of color is more “difficult” than it is to be a white woman. When we look at feminism through an intersectional lens, we see factors like race, socioeconomic status, age, and disability all playing a factor in how certain groups are more oppressed than others. So, who helped us get to fourth-wave feminism? How did we get to this modernized definition of feminism where all types of women are accepted, acknowledged, and advocated for? Perhaps the most famous feminist of all time — Gloria Steinem. Steinem is a feminist, a journalist, a political leader, an esteemed academic, undercover writer, and an author. Simply put, she is a “big shot” in the world of feminism. But she’s not particularly special because she is all of these things at once. Steinem advocated for women so fiercely in the world journalism, politics, academia, and writing that feminism’s trajectory has changed because of her. Steinem’s main thought, that the purpose of feminism is to free the unique qualities within a person and see that both men and women are complex, alike, and independent, is the reason why fourth-wave feminism exists. Rather, once we notice how unique we all are, and how some are born more privileged than others — we can accept, progress, learn better, and understand. 

Steinem spent the beginning of her Journalism career fighting for a voice in the news-room. In a field dominated by white men, Steinem struggled to write news-worthy, meaningful stories as her writing was considered weak. She was assigned to articles called “the women’s pages,” where she wrote about lifestyle, wellness, fashion, and nylon-stockings. Constantly seeking to write something with purpose and intention, Steinem finally gained attention when she worked undercover at Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Club in 1963. In her expose “A Bunny’s Tale,” Steinem revealed the sexist, unglamorous, and underpaid lifestyle of “the bunny.” So, what was Steinem’s purpose of writing this muckraking reveal? Her objective, at its core, was to prevent men from defining sexuality. If men are the only ones who determine what it means to be a sexual woman, female autonomy is jeopardized. To uncover sexism is to revolutionize females. The ideas behind “A Bunny’s Tale” were not to popularize the Playboy Club itself, but to diminish its founding principles that women are for the male gaze or for male entertainment. She interviewed the bunnies — without makeup or costume — and discovered each woman was a complex, unique individual with substance, meaning, and background. She started the conversation that females are strong and capable, but underrepresented and accounted for. After gaining national press, Steinem was able to continue to shine light on the inequalities females face. She started New York Magazine, where she reported on women’s rights, progressive social issues, and political campaigns. Steinem aimed to make it evident that things absolutely matter. The language we use, the history we reference and the truths we hold, all add up to a large superstructure of how we interact as men and women. Therefore, language is fragile. Be gentle but truthful with the words you use — treat language with respect, because it holds tremendous weight for how we see ourselves and the world. Steinem dedicated her journalism to women’s rights. She used journalism as a platform to discuss ideas about gender and equality, and people listened. Some found her politics defiant and disorderly, others found hers to be refreshing and new. However, regardless of how you perceived Steinem, she understood that getting people to hear her ideas was the ultimate goal. Specifically, it’s “not whether the people are listening, but whether they’re hearing things worth talking about.” She was controversial in the fact that she saw everything as gendered. She often remarked how journalism is supposed to be unbiased and balanced, but this is wrong. This idea contributes to male domination. If we see journalism as having two sides, then we are creating a gendered perspective on news. There are never “two sides to every issue.” There is the truth. Steinem used journalism as a way to communicate ideas on money, power, sex, greed, poverty, love, and age. Her most famous piece, “The International Crime of Female Genital Mutilation,” which was published in 1979, unveiled the 75 million women suffering with the results of genital mutilation. In her article, Steinem articulates: 

“the real reasons for genital mutilation can only be understood in the context of patriarchy: men must control women’s bodies as the means of production, and thus repress the indepdent power of women’s sexuality.” But Steinem also defends men’s sexuality as well: 

“these patriarchal controls limit men’s sexuality too … that's why men are asked symbolically to submit the sexual part of themselves and their sons to patriarchal authority, which seems to be the origin of male circumcision, a practice that, even as advocates admit, is medically unnecessary 90% of the time.” 

Her ideas are extreme and progressive. Discussing genital mutilation was radical in 1979. News was supposed to be conservative or traditional. But Steinem saw the future as a time for freedom of thought and change. If we can expose the danger within societies that have genital mutilation, we can fix the issue at hand: patriarchy. Her journalism also critiqued pornography. She explains that pornography exists because the drama and tension within porn come from the idea that one person is dominating the other. There is no equality in pornography, just control. Steinem’s entire brand is exposing how corruption affects women. She is blunt, outspoken and explicit — but change occurs when we are transparent. She recognized that news can only be informative if it evokes change and emotion — do not sugarcoat patriarchy (even if the topic at hand, like pornography or genital mutiliaton, is controverrsial). Steinem took her straightforward and candid rhetoric to create the iconic feminist magazine Ms., in 1978. Her most famous essay, “If Men Could Menstruate,” reflected on the power systems that shape politics and the economy. She creates a world in which men have menstrual cycles and how this would shift power. Ms., created by women for women, was meant to highlight the various ways in which women are exploited. From opinion pieces about abortion to motherhood, Ms., displayed the female struggle in an honest, entertaining, and witty way.

Steinem understood that females are not free until political action occurs. If we are restricted by the law, in ways that men are not, we are in danger. We are controlled by two forms of power — political and social. Political power restricts our voice and how we perform in society. More specifically, political power is responsible for democracy — how we vote, female reproductive rights, the wage gap, and so on. Social power is how we are raised as men and women or who is viewed as the dominant gender. Both of these types of politics coerce us to act a certain way. Traditionally, women are meant to be homemakers, wives, or mothers. Men are the money earners, ultimate leaders, and fathers. Steinem saw these two behaviors as ideas we must unlearn. Rather, the first problem for all of us, men and women, is not to learn, but to unlearn. In order to move forward, politically and socially, we must leave behind these learned behaviors that control how we perform. Steinem argued that marginalized groups, such as women or people of color, cannot advance if to be female is to be submissive, or to be black is to be inferior. Steinem saw much of our political system to be purely imbedded behaviors that intensely control our thinking. She then became the face of women’s rallies across America. Coining the term “pro choice” rather than “pro abortion,” Steinem made it clear that no female is for abortion — we are for the power over our own bodies. Steinem insisted that reproductive rights are the most important right of a woman: "opposing women's right to control our own bodies is always the first step in every authoritarian regime.” Steinem aligns closely with another famous feminist icon, Ruth Bader Ginsburg. The two women, born in 1933 and 1934, see reproductive rights as a human rights, not a privilege. Both of these women hold the belief that you create change when you are vocal, outspoken, and strong willed. Their politics are controversial but controversy is their brand. Both exist in different spheres of politics — Steinem, in front of the camera, is on the cover of magazines and is an iconic activist throughout the media. Ginsburg does the work behind the scenes  — she sets the precedent for how women are treated socially and politically. They compliment each other perfectly, proving that activism does not exist without politics, and vice versa. 

Steinem stressed the importance of grooming future generations for a more progressive world. She comments: 

“we've begun to raise our daughters more like our sons, but it will never work until we raise our sons more like our daughters.” 

To raise “sons more like daughters” is crucial for feminism to continue. If we fail to teach boys skills like empathy, kindness, diligence, and cooperation — skills often deemed feminine — we set them up for failure. This is where fourth-wave feminism comes into play. Steinem’s view on feminism was never narrow. She perceived feminism to be applicable to both men and women. Rather, everyone has something to gain from being a feminist. Steinem was a global thinker. 

“she understood that race, class, and caste (she traveled for two years after college in India) tend to double and triple the degree of oppression to which women are subjected.” 

From this, Steinem worked relentlessly to create a system in which women from every race, class, and caste are supported. She preached the importance of women’s studies, black studies, and sexism just as much as mathematics, science, history. We cannot have a world where one field of study is represented — a comprehensive education is the key to progression. An education where students can view oppression and privilege through the context of their peers will create a world in which we can recognize our similarities and differences. From this, fourth-wave feminism is made possible through Steinem’s theory on intersectionality. This sector of feminism is defined by the recognition of race, class, and gender through education. If we do not teach future generations the importance of equality through education, we are basing feminism off of white women — which is not an accurate or fair representation of the female struggle. Steinem has remarked that black women have more commonly been feminists than white women. She comments: 

“Intersectional feminism examines the overlapping systems of oppression and discrimination that women face, based not just on gender, but on race, sexuality, socioeconomic status, physical ability, and other marginalized identities.” 

Because intersectional feminism recognizes factors like race, sexuality, socioeconomic status, and physical ability, marginalized groups are more likely to be feminists because they have been the result of systematic racism and sexism. Marginalized groups are subject to hate, persecution, or oppression. Steinem’s commentary only strengthens those who have been oppressed, and allows their struggle to become legitimate. This has changed the trajectory of feminism — would intersectionality exist without Steinem? I say no. Without her outspoken rhetoric, constant commentary, and controversial brand, feminism would look much weaker, narrower, and limited today. 

[hellsparadiseessays]

To trick or be tricked - How certain literary concepts tie into Chôbe’s story arc

Disclaimer : This is a Chôbe rant an opinion piece more than essay, though I still use the many elements provided by the source material to justify my points. It’s also pretty spoilery so make sure you’re properly caught up before reading.

This write-up will be about the literary concepts of the trickster and the tricked character, based on the theme of the Faustian Bargain, a certain Japanese tale and how they tie into Chôbe’s character arc.

I. Faustian Bargain

First thing first: what is a Faustian Bargain, and where does it come from? Well, it comes from European stories involving a character who decides to bargain with the Devil to obtain what he or she desires in life. In exchange, their soul would be taken to Hell for eternal damnation. Initially a cautionary tale of a religious nature, its moral aspects still has a universal tone: it is all about sacrificing one’s personal morals and spiritual values in order to gain wealth or other benefits. The most famous literature works about it are Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragical Story of Doctor Faustus (1592), Shakespeare’s Macbeth (1606) and Goethe’s Faust (1808), though more modern literary works use this trope in the story: Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890), Ira Levin’s Rosemary’s Baby (1967), as well as comics, movies and video games, such as Hellblazer (1993), Death Note (2003), Sleepy Hollow (1999), The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), Skyrim DLC Dragonborn (2012/2013) or The Witcher 3 DLC Hearts of Stone (2015). In Europe, a lot of local legends about Devil’s Bridges are also tied into this idea: the architect asked the help of the Devil in exchange for the first soul to cross the bridge. The architect would then outsmart the Devil by sending a cat, and the Devil would refuse to add the last stone to the bridge in reaction.

And like I said, meddling with supernatural entities and getting punished for it as a form of cautionary tale isn’t a Europe-only thing, it’s a common form of storytelling at a universal level, and Japanese literature has both its own set of traditional tales in that matter (generally involving deities and people not paying their respects to shrines, as well as oni getting tricked by humans) and modern stories mixing various Western and Japanese writing concepts to end with a unique literary style.

Now how is this idea expressed with Chôbe’s story arc? Well, it’s played straight from the moment he gets taken to Hôrai, but there’s a major twist on it from the start. Indeed, as soon as we’re introduced to the Aza brothers and their past, in chapter 9, we learn something important: the path they end up following always starts by being forced onto them rather than willingly followed from the start. It all starts when they get stripped from their status as samurai because of their Lord’s mistake, then their life falls even more apart when they lose their mother to illness and their father to a failed revenge that only led to his execution. As we’re explained this, we also learn that Chôbe’s thing is to adapt and keeping his pride. The way Toma explains it is interesting because we can take it as Chôbe refusing to back down, but I also think there’s more than that. Chôbe had to deal with a lot of bad events and grow up very quickly in order to protect his little brother, so what better thing to stay a master of his own fate than taking what’s forced on them and lashing out at society in reaction? In other words, the Faustian Bargain starts as something forced on Chôbe, yet he decides to make full use of it as a reaction, because it’s the best way for him to maintain a form of control over what little he has left.

This pattern is further reinforced throughout Chôbe’s trip around the island: the Waitanhua growing in the Tan pit never asked for his opinion and simply invaded him like a parasite – he later realized he could make use of it and started teaching himself during the fight against the Doshi. Same thing with Lord Tensen: Chôbe is forcibly put down and taken to Hôrai against his will, even though his initial plan was to get back to his brother. He quickly understood he’d be powerless against Rien and the other Tensen, and thus decided to get along with their plans because it’s his best chance to both stay alive and keep his brother alive – that’s where his Faustian Bargain really start, when he negociates Toma’s life against everybody else’s. It’s terrible from our point of view, because as the readers we care about all the characters, but from Chôbe’s point of view that insane bargain makes sense, and he’s fully aware of the dangerous situation he’s in. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s planning to not only trick the other Asaemon and convicts to get rid of the competition for the Elixir of Life, but Lord Tensen as well. Why? Because of the only two nasty smiles he gave us while in Hôrai (when he decided on the path to follow with Rien and when he managed to block Ju Fa’s strike with a single hand – and didn’t miss the occasion to taunt him in the process because he’s a spiteful little shit), because he really dislikes the Tensen and told the readers so, because he’s openly been thinking about killing Rien himself – but not now, he needs more strength first and is fully aware of it, power is the key to be at the top. With that in mind, I wouldn’t surprised at all to see him backstabbing the (remaining?) Tensen left and right as soon as he can. Especially since the tricked bargainer can also become the trickster in a Faustian Bargain.

However, that image of the tricked/trickster can also be related to a certain story about a certain creature in Japanese folklore, whose fate isn’t the prettiest, yet gets an interesting interpretation.

II. The imagery of Shuten-dôji and the sad fate of an Oni

First thing first, who is Shuten-dôji? Well, he’s a famous oni (a demon) in Japanese folklore. Leader of a band of oni (one of them being named: Ibaraki-dôji, Shuten-dôji’s henchman) and acting during the reign of Emperor Ichijô (r. 986-1011), he would kidnap maidens from Kyoto with his band of oni and keep them as servants in his fortress – optionally slaughtering them to drink their blood and eat their flesh. Abe no Seimei, Onmyodô of the Imperial court, divined that the demon’s fortress was on Mount Ôe, and the Emperor sent a small party to save the women and put an end to the terror of the demon king. He sent Minamoto no Raikô and Fujiwara no Hôshô to exterminate the demon and his underlings. After Raikô’s party left Kyoto, they encountered three deities of transformation, after having paid homage to their shrine, that told them to disguise themselves as yamabushi priests to trick Shuten-dôji and gain his trust. The trick worked, Shuten-dôji offered them his hospitality and shared his sake as well as his personal story with them – he would do what he was doing near Kyoto because him and his people had been displaced from their mountains after the construction of a temple nearby. Raikô then offered some sake given by the deities in order to incapacitate Shuten-dôji and take his head. And that he did, once the oni was asleep, even though the head still tried to bit him and failed only because Raikô had taken the precaution to wear to helmets beforehand. The party returned to Kyoto and Shuten-dôji head was left in the Treasure House at Byôdô-in temple.

Now, without taking the entire story at face value, I’ve noticed a lot of curious patterns that paralleled with Chôbe’s own story. First, the most obvious, the likeness to an oni. For those of you who are on the Discord server [note: r/Jigokuraku’s server], remember how I’ve been joking about Chôbe and his most fitting oni axe? Boi, what an interesting coincidence. We even get to see him drink Soshin blood (because hydration is important for survival), even drink human blood once (to Toma’s horror, which seemed to amuse him) because liquid is liquid when you’re in a tough situation, we see him drink sake with the bandits in Toma’s flashback, we know he’s the leader of a gang of bandits and was causing enough problem to get the death penalty, Toma is clearly his right hand man, Chôbe has been described as wearing a monk outfit in the bonus pages of volume 2... And we even have some interesting things from a geographical point of view.  As soon as I saw the names of the locations, I decided to google them out of curiosity. The Lord of Akô had his domain set in nowadays Hyôgo prefecture. Mount Ôe from Shuten-dôji’s story is located in Tanba province, nowadays an area that encompasses areas of both the central part of nowadays Kyoto prefecture and the east-central part of Hyôgo prefecture. Another funny thing is, Chôbe’s bandit village was set in Iyo Mountains, a group of peaks in nowadays Ehime prefecture, on Shikoku. He basically had his own fortress in the mountains, and originates from the place where it is said Shuten-dôji has been killed.

Interestingly enough, while oni have been feared, then mocked, they are now seen under another angle: one can feel sympathy towards them because they are tricked by humans, and they also make a perfect metaphor for the marginal who lives outside of a society that rejects them. And again, it fits with Chôbe’s life – though this part will be thoroughly explained in my next essay, so I’ll end this piece here so nobody will be spoiled.  But let’s just say that society and its rules haven’t been kind to Chôbe, and he clearly decided to take it and throw it back as hard as he can in reaction – I get the thought process, having grown in a rather rough neighbourhood myself it’s the sort of thing I’ve personally witnessed. It doesn’t make his actions ok, but it explains them.

While I don’t necessarily expect him to meet the same fate as Shuten-dôji, I’m also not sure he’ll survive by the end of the story. Let’s just say I’m on the fence about that, because his story arc is about to move again now that Toma is in Hôrai, and I think his survival will depend on his future decisions. From a narrative point of view, he still has a possibility to live until the end. The question is, will he take it? Will he be able to set aside all of his hang-ups to save his skin from himself? I honestly hope he will, because he needs closure for himself. And I don’t want him to die, too.

Sources

Faustian Bargain: here, here, here (fun fact about this one : the picture of the Devil’s Bridge of Céret, in Southern France, is one I know *very well* because one of my grandmas lives there)

Shuten-dôji

Japanese Demon Lore: Oni from Ancient Times to the Present by Noriko T. Reider (2010)

[lovingtheroyals]

Her Majesty The Queen has passed on two patronages to The Duchess of Sussex –The National Theatre and The Association of Commonwealth Universities. The Queen has held the roles for 45 and 33 years respectively. Her Royal Highness will also take on Patronage of two additional charities as part of her official working portfolio – Smart Works and Mayhew.

The Duchess is delighted to become Patron of both national and grassroots organisations that are part of the fabric of the UK, and is very much looking forward to working with them to bring wider public attention to their causes. Her Royal Highness feels she can use her position to focus attention on, and make a particular difference to these organisations and, more widely, the sectors they each represent.

For the arts, the National Theatre’s mission is to make world class theatre that is entertaining, challenging and inspiring for everyone and to be as inclusive, diverse and national as possible. In support of access to education, the Association of Commonwealth Universities is the world's first and oldest international university network and the only accredited organisation representing higher education across all 53 Commonwealth countries.

With regards to supporting women, Smart Works helps long-term unemployed and vulnerable women regain the skills, confidence and tools to succeed at job interviews, return to employment and transform their lives. In terms of animal welfare, Mayhew is a grassroots charity working in a unique way to improve the lives of animals and people to better communities both in London and internationally.

Over the last year, Her Royal Highness has held meetings and conducted private visits with each of these organisations. The Duchess will today visit Smart Works and over the next few weeks will undertake public visits to the other three organisations.

Further information on these organisations and why The Duchess has chosen to support them as Patron follows:

The National Theatre

The Duchess is a strong believer in using the arts to bring people from different backgrounds and communities together. The National Theatre’s mission is to make world class theatre that’s entertaining, challenging and inspiring – and to make it for everyone. It aims to reach the widest possible audience and to be as inclusive, diverse and national as possible with a broad range of productions that play in London, on tour around the UK, on Broadway and across the globe.

The National Theatre's extensive UK-wide learning and participation programme supports young people’s creative education through performance and writing programmes like Connections, New Views and Let’s Play. Its major new initiative Public Acts creates extraordinary acts of theatre and community; the first Public Acts production was 2018’s Pericles. The National Theatre extends its reach through digital programmes including NT Live, which broadcasts some of the best of British theatre to over 2,500 venues in 65 countries, and the free streaming service On Demand In Schools, used by nearly 60% of UK state secondary schools.

The National Theatre invests in the future of theatre by developing talent, creating bold new work and building audiences, partnering with a range of UK theatres and theatre companies. For more information, please visit https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/.  

Whilst Her Royal Highness spent ten years working in television, her training is in theatre. As well as a double major in theatre and international relations from Northwestern University, which is renowned for its drama programme, Her Royal Highness volunteered at a performing arts after school programme for children in underprivileged school districts in Los Angeles.

The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU)

As a university graduate, Her Royal Highness is a strong advocate of accessible education for all, something she spoke of most recently during her visit to Fiji last year. Established in 1913, the ACU is the world's first and oldest international university network, with more than 500 member institutions in over 50 countries. It is the only accredited organisation representing higher education across the Commonwealth. The ACU champions higher education as a force for good in the Commonwealth and beyond.

Among its key principles is the value of higher education to society – or its role ‘as a common good’ – and the conviction that this value is enhanced by international collaboration. The ACU manages international scholarship schemes – including the UK government’s three major scholarship programmes and The Queen Elizabeth Commonwealth Scholarships – that offer life-changing educational opportunities, convenes universities to address key policy challenges such as climate resilience and peace and reconciliation, and promotes the role of universities in delivering the UN Sustainable Development Goals. For more information please visit https://www.acu.ac.uk/.

During her recent visit to Fiji, The Duchess announced new Gender Grants for ACU member universities in the Pacific to fund new learning initiatives aimed at empowering female university staff and promoting gender equality. Her Royal Highness last month met with university leaders, academics and international scholarship students as they discussed the role of higher education in addressing issues such as human trafficking, modern slavery, gender equality, peace and reconciliation, and climate change.

Smart Works

The Duchess has visited Smart Works several times over the last year where she has worked with many women who have benefited from the charity’s support, helping them through coaching and interview preparation. Her Royal Highness has also volunteered with several other projects in this sector in the past. Created in September 2013 Smart Works exists to help long term unemployed and vulnerable women regain the confidence they need to succeed at job interviews, return to employment and transform their lives.

Half of Smart Works’ clients are from an ethnic minority, long-term unemployed and have been unsuccessful with a large number of job applications. Thanks to the charity’s support, 60% go on to get a job following their visit to Smart Works. As well as providing complete outfits of high quality clothes for job interviews, beneficiaries also have access to one-to-one interview training and the opportunity to join Smart Works Network, meeting every month to further their professional and personal development. Smart Works aims to dress 3500 women this year across their two London offices, and additional bases in key cities across the UK - Edinburgh, Manchester, Reading, Birmingham and Newcastle. For more information please visit http://smartworks.org.uk/.

Her Royal Highness has also been involved with several other projects in this sector, including a project whilst at university which provided prom dresses for young women in underprivileged areas. The Duchess has a longstanding track record of working in the space of women’s empowerment both in her local community as well as abroad. In recent years, Her Royal Highness has travelled to India and Rwanda working on projects to mobilise women in challenging or marginalized situations to see their full potential.

Mayhew

The Duchess has long understood the connection between animals and community welfare and has supported various animal rescue centres in Los Angeles. Established in 1886 and entirely funded by public donations Mayhew is an animal welfare charity working to improve the lives of dogs, cats and people in communities both in London and internationally. Mayhew looks for innovative ways to reduce the number of animals in need through pro-active community and educational initiatives and preventative veterinary care.

This includes working with homelessness charities across London to ensure people and their dogs can be kept together; running a Pet Refuge programme to provide shelter and care for the pets of people in crisis for short periods of time; and educating young people about animal welfare and the importance of responsible pet ownership. Internationally, Mayhew works with governments, local communities and charitable groups in Afghanistan, Georgia, Russia and India to help improve animal welfare. For more information visit https://themayhew.org/.

The Duchess of Sussex is very much looking forward to working closely with these organisations, and her continued work with The Royal Foundation of which she is joint Patron along with The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and The Duke of Sussex.

Rufus Norris, Director of the National Theatre said: “I would like to thank The Queen for Her Majesty’s long and unwavering support and service to the National Theatre. We were honoured when The Queen became our Patron in 1974 and have celebrated many moments together including, in recent years, the Diamond Jubilee and the marking of our 50th anniversary. It is a privilege to welcome The Duchess of Sussex as our new Patron. The Duchess shares our deeply-held conviction that theatre has the power to bring together people from all communities and walks of life. I very much look forward to working closely with Her Royal Highness in the years to come”.

Dr Joanna Newman MBE, Chief Executive and Secretary General of the ACU, said: “We are absolutely delighted that HRH The Duchess of Sussex has chosen to become Patron of the ACU. The Duchess shares our passion for the transformational power of higher education, and Her Royal Highness’ support will help champion higher education as a force for good in the Commonwealth and beyond. We would like to thank Her Majesty The Queen for her support, and we look forward to working closely with The Duchess as our Patron.”

Juliet Hughes-Hallett, Chair and Founder of Smart Works said: “We are thrilled to announce that The Duchess of Sussex will become the Royal Patron of Smart Works. An acknowledged champion of women and their rights worldwide, The Duchess will motivate ever more women to come to our centres and get the job that will transform their lives. The Duchess’s patronage will inspire the women we serve and help them reach for the stars.”

Caroline Yates, CEO of Mayhew said: “We are so excited that HRH The Duchess of Sussex has chosen to be our Patron. Mayhew works to improve the lives of dogs, cats and the people in our community, tackling the root cause of animal abandonment and neglect and supporting vulnerable people to stay with their companion pets. The Duchess has spent many years championing animal welfare, and we are honoured to have our charity represented by such a passionate Patron. We look forward to working closely with The Duchess and hope that, together, we can help even more animals and people.”

[grimscale-mercenaries]

Tears & Treason

Written by: Thaelea Solarsphere

A fire burned in the hearth of a modest manor on the outskirts of Darkshire. It wasn’t that cool in the dreary forest, but Thaelea certainly felt a chill. It had been trying day and night. So much lost in so little time. And for what? Pride? Stubbornness? A sense of self-righteousness that she, herself, was always railing against? As she sat before the fire, pale, half-lidded eyes staring into the flames with a complete lack of expression, the Ren’dorei replayed the events of the past twenty-four hours over and over in her head.

Her emotional state was something of a mess. Lea had gone from anger, born from a sense that she had been ignored or marginalized, to sorrow, owed to a feeling of betrayal, and finally to...nothing. She felt nothing. Since Dusty, the ever-pleasant Worgen Druid had tried to console her earlier in the day, Thaelea had been blank. She’d been staring into the fire with an uninterrupted stare for the better part of two hours, a small note clutched lightly in her right hand, when Saraena felt the need to speak to her mother. 

“Is everything okay, Mom?” She asked. The newest addition to the Solarsphere line, Saraena, had the appearance of an eighteen-year old Human, yet was scarcely four months old. The accelerated aging her mother had employed on the girl just recently completed, leaving her physically mature, and mentally mature...enough. “You’ve been sitting here for a while.” The concerned daughter’s words went unanswered. She was nervous. Lea had never seemed quite so off, though she had been prone to emotional instability before. She tried again. “Mom…?” “What is it, Saraena?” At last she answered. “I was worried. You haven’t said a word since you got home.” “I’m...thinking, love. It’s been a rough day. I’m sorry if I’ve neglected you.” “Of course not. I’m a big girl; I can take care of myself.” She smiled and approached her mother, taking her free hand. “Can I get you anything?” “No, thank you.” Lea’s gaze turned to her daughter. The first, genuine smile in two days spread across her face. “You know, you are the only thing I’ve done right since my exile. I can’t imagine life without you.” The elder Solarsphere squeezed the hand of her daughter and drew her in for an embrace. “Can you keep an eye on the house tonight? I need to take a trip overnight. I’ll be back tomorrow.” “A trip?” The concern in Saraena’s tone was evident. “Why don’t I come with you? You’re not yourself, Mom. I don’t want anything to happen to you.” “I’ll be fine, love. I just need to see someone.” Lea took her daughter to her chest in yet another hug, ensuring that her child did not see her throw the parchment in her right hand to the flames. 

After a few preparations and gathering of provisions, Lea called for her demonic steed and set off into the night. After leaving the city limits of Darkshire, the supernatural beast left the ground and took to the skies, flying while looking as though it were running on thin air. Lea headed north, through Elwynn Forest, and finally into the Burning Steppes. Even flying, the trip took hours. It was past midnight when the Ren’dorei finally reached her destination, landing about a mile West of Blackrock Mountain. Apart from the wandering Dragonkin and a few fire elementals, the immediate area was devoid of life and structure. But Thaelea would not have come here idly. There was a reason.

Lea spent roughly an hour at the location in the Burning Steppes, waiting in utter silence. But for what? What could have enticed her to take an unplanned journey to the Burning Steppes of all places? Why would she- “Well, hello, my errant daughter.” Thaelea froze. The voice was unmistakable. It was the first time she’d heard it in over a year, and it still sent an ominous chill through her body. Reluctantly, the woman turned to face the source of the voice. And there he was, Thaeleon Solarsphere, a lord of Silvermoon and the patriarch of House Solarsphere. “Father…” She answered, the nervousness plain in her voice.

Thaeleon did not come alone, nor did he arrive by similar methods. As Lea laid eyes on her father, she saw the portal closing behind him, and cast her violet hues on the small retinue he brought with him. Six men, in all: two Farstriders and four Blood Knights. Being a noble of influence meant that Thaeleon went nowhere without a guard. The man drew his arms behind his back and walked towards his daughter. Thaeleon was her father, but even so, his presence always unsettled her. He dressed in greens and blacks, wore epaulets with spikes protruding from them, and gave off an aura of Fel so strong that Lea’s own aura could go unnoticed in his presence. Thaeleon was a Warlock with some six hundred years experience, and not to be trifled with. 

“You’ve been ignoring my letters.” Thaeleon’s eyes, like two small embers of Fel-fire, weighed heavily on his daughter. “I’ve been busy. I joined a group that-” “Yes, I know. Relic-hunters and mercenaries. Very disappointing.” “How did-” “You should know by now that nothing escapes my sight, Thaelea. I’m told you were cast out recently. Still having trouble fitting in, I see.” “It wasn’t...like that.” Lea stood there, like a child being lectured. She held her hands, one over the other, before her, and stood with slouched shoulders and a bowed head. “They’re good people.” “Then why are you no longer among them?” “I…” She winced. The wound was fresh. She didn’t want to talk about it. “That’s not what this is about.” “Thaelea.” When his daughter lifted her gaze, she was greeted by a sharp slap to her right cheek. “I asked you a question.” Lea grabbed her face and stroked the stinging flesh. “I...Made mistakes…” “Yes, you did. Thinking that you would find comfort in Human kingdom, believing for a moment that you’d ever be one of them.” “What would you have had me do?! I was banished! I had nowhere to go! And you let-” Another slap was delivered to the already-damaged cheek. Even now, a bruise began to form. “You should have died. Instead you sully our House by joining the enemy. I should end your misery right here and now. Fortunately for you, my dear, I am a merciful man.”

Much of the day had been spent in tears. Only Dusty was permitted to see Lea in such a state, and even that was embarrassing for her. Now, Lea was on the verge of tearing up again. ‘Haven’t I suffered enough?’, she thought to herself as her father paced around her, like a vulture circling its next meal. ‘Isn’t it enough that I live in anguish? That I’ve suffered for over a year in exile?’ Such thoughts were kept to herself, as any further protest would surely have earned her another slap, or worse. Thaeleon Solarsphere was not a man who enjoyed debate. 

The Ren’dorei stood in silence for several moments, waiting for her father to speak again. All the while, she looked to the retinue that had accompanied him. They were armed in the usual fashion for their military branches, though each of them bore the silver emblem of House Solarsphere on their arms. They may have served Quel’Thalas, but they served Thaeleon -first-. “I have a use for you.” At last, he spoke. The wait had seemed like an eternity. And the words gave Thaelea a strange happiness. “You...need me?” She asked, eyes wide in surprise. “Yes. And by a strange twist of fate, you are ideally placed to assist me.”

Thaelea very nearly trembled at the prospect. If her father wanted something of her, it would not be good. It may very well lead to her death. However, she knew her father long enough that when he said he had a use for her, he wasn’t asking. He was commanding. “What do you want?” Thaeleon halted, now positioned behind her. “Do you know why they cast you out?” This again. Why did he have to speak of this? “B-because I...made mistakes.” “Yes, and what were those mistakes?” “I..” This was perhaps more tortuous than his slapping her. Forcing her to admit to him, to his entourage, and to herself that she had done wrong was agonizing. “I was prideful...I didn’t respect my colleagues. I wasn’t consider-” “No.” “...No?” “You are an Elf. These pitiful creatures have no right to presume themselves your equal. Pride, dignity, superiority, these are the things that make Elves who we are. Your mistakes were not to hold yourself above them, but to think them your friends.” “But...They are...They were…” “They’re nothing. Your sentimental nature caused you to latch onto lesser beings to replace the connections you lost in Quel’Thalas. That’s all they were. They should have understood you were better than them. Even diminished as you are, you are still an Elf. You are a goddess among ants.”

Perhaps Thaelea had spent too much time around Humans. There was a time when such words would have made sense. But to her ears, they were wrong. Even as smug and superior as she acted, it was a far cry from the person she used to be. As her father tried to re-integrate such ideas into his daughter, they just wouldn’t take root. ‘No. This is wrong.’ The words rang in her mind. ‘They were...good people. Covie was not..is not beneath me.’ 

This was a mistake. Thaelea should never have accepted the invitation to meet. The impulse to flee rose in her. Eyes began darting around. Maybe she can get to cover long enough to use her hearthstone. But as the thought occurred to her, one of the Farstriders, bow in hand, just shook his head. He could see in Thaelea’s eyes what she was thinking. He’d have an arrow through her heart before she took two steps...No, through her ankle. Her father wouldn’t let her off that easy. Lea was trapped. She had dug her own grave on this one. 

“There is something that I want.” Thaeleon’s voice interrupted her inner thoughts, pulling her focus back to reality. “It is in Human hands. You, and the insects you surround yourself with, will retrieve it for me.” Thaelea blinked at her father. “I don’t work for them anymore.” “So rejoin them.” “They’ll...never take me back.” “They will.” “Father..There’s no-” She was struck again, this time so forcefully that it sent her to the ground. Lea winced as she hit the ground, staring up at her father from the dusty, ashy soil of the Steppes. “I can’t go back! They won’t forgive me!” “I don’t care. You will find a way to ingratiate yourself back into their graces, you will induce them into procuring this relic, and then you will give it to me.” The Solarsphere patriarch threw a wrapped parchment onto the ground beside his daughter. “When you have it, contact me, then conjure a gateway within the city, somewhere discreet. I will come to claim it.” “You...You’ll come to Stormwind?” “I thought I’d take one last look before Sylvanas burns it to the ground.” The assembled Elves behind him chuckled. “You will see this done.”

Lea took the parchment, then returned to her feet. “Why?” She asked. A sudden silence fell upon the group. Thaeleon turned his gaze on his daughter, Fel energy burning in his eyes. “What did you just say?” Lea bowed her head, not meeting her father’s gaze. “What you ask…” He interjected quickly. “I don’t ask.” She winced. “What you...command, it will require much on my part...I deserve...something.” The idea of compensating his daughter for her service actually caused Thaeleon to laugh. “And what is it you want? To come home?  Very well. Do this, and I will-” “No.” Lea’s gaze raised to meet her father’s. “You’ll betray me...That’s what you do. Family is treacherous...unreliable.” “Is that so?” He chuckled again. “You’re probably right. Who can resist the temptation?”

Thaelea shut her eyes. She wanted to cry. Things kept going from bad to worse to worst since the previous evening. But this was no time for tears. Showing vulnerability before a serpent ready to strike will only encourage it. “I want...Saraena to go home.” The chuckling from her father stopped. He grew irritated. “You want me to take that bastard child of yours to Quel’Thalas? She’s just another piece of filth from your new-” Thaelea howled. “NO!” Her skin grew dark, becoming Void-like. The Elven retinue drew their weapons, prepared to defend their lord. “You may berate me, insult my friends, even strike me...But you will NOT speak ill of Saraena.” 

In that moment, Thaelea had found courage. But she was also petrified. Her expression was ferocious, but hid terror in her heart. Thaeleon watched his daughter in silence. It wouldn’t be surprising for him to kill her right there and then. He was spoken of among the nobility in Silvermoon as the ‘lord of Fel-flame’. Thaeleon could incinerate his daughter in moments. And she was ready for it. Lea wouldn’t go down willingly. She’d lose, but she would fight. “Very well.” The Ren’dorei was gripped by shock. Did he just…? “I will arrange for your daughter to be taken to Quel’Thalas. I’ll even enchant something that will allow her to appear as Sin’dorei, rather than spending the rest of her life in the dungeon.” Though she had resolved to not cry in front of her father, Lea could not hold back the single tear that ran down her cheek, born from the relief of knowing that her daughter could go home. “Bring me what I seek. And I will give you this...gift.” 

Can he really be trusted? He admitted not five minutes ago that he would betray his own daughter; how can Lea trust him to honor the agreement for his granddaughter? “How can I trust you?” She asked, eyes focused on her father. “I’ll bring the item that will allow her to assume Sin’dorei form with me when you summon me. You can arrange her own way north and not entrust it to me.” That was the best she could hope for. Even so, she was certain he would betray her. Thaeleon turned on everyone. He was well known for his treachery, and Lea had seen him betray others numerous times. But...what choice did she have? 

“Alright...I’ll do it.” Lea conceded. “What is it you need?” Thaeleon shook his head. “I’ll inform you of that once you’re in a position to get it. Start with rejoining your little company.” A soft sigh slid out of Thaelea’s lips. “I don’t know how. They’ll never-” “Give them what they want. They think you are prideful, arrogant. Return to them in submission. Beg, plead, cry, do whatever you must.” “How...How can you expect me to do this? It’s so undignified…” “For me, yes. For you? What does it matter? Your status is less than dirt. So crawl through it, kiss the feet of your so-called friends, and see it done.” “Yes father...As you wish…”

Lea’s father moved away from her, without so much as an embrace, a kiss, or a single kind word spoken. “You have one month.” He added as a portal opened behind his group. “Find your way back into their company by then, or my granddaughter will pay for your failure.” Lea’s eyes widened “Wait...That’s not-” Thaeleon held up a hand, calling for his daughter to silence herself. “We are done speaking, daughter. Return to your rat’s nest in Duskwood. You have much to do tomorrow.” He turned and stepped into the portal with his guards and he was gone as easily as he had arrived. 

Thaelea was left alone. She fell onto the ground, propped up on one arm with her legs bent at the knee. “I’m sorry, Saraena...This is the best I can do…” Her eyes shut, and tears again streamed down her face. It had been that kind of day. “Forgive me, Covie…” 

[sol1056]

sorry if this is a stupid question but why does dw need to have guest writers legally? :3 uwu I love your posts

hey thanks :D alright, I’ll explain best as I can with holiday brain. I am fully aware this may be more information you were expecting. I feel like I should probably put a warning label on my ask box. Objects in reply may appear smaller than they are. Or something like that.

The original Screen Writers Guild formed in the early 30s, and its purpose was to manage/track screen credits (who gets listed as the author of a screenplay). It turned into a professional association, which is sort of like a union but without the bargaining power, until it applied to be a formal union per the NLRB (National Labor Relations Board). Eventually it grew big enough that radio and television writers wanted in, too, and SWG then became the Writers’ Guild of America (actually two sister-unions, one for West and one for East). 

Early on, there was apparently a rule that to join the union, you had to have professional screenwriter credits. But to be hired on a job that would give you those credits… you had to be a member of the union. The sole exception was definitely biased towards the old-boy network: become friends with the producer, and get hired despite your lack of credits. Not so great if you’re a woman or person of color trying to break in.  

At some point the union changed its rules to address this, requiring studios to hire a certain number of freelance screenwriters. One version I’ve been told is that production studios generally need to have 18-20% of the episodes written by non-staff freelancers. An alternate version of expressing this rule is that 2-3 episodes per season must be by non-staff writers, for any show with more than one season under its belt. 

No matter how you break it down, once a company becomes a guild signatory (iow, agrees to abide by union agreements), everything comes under the NLRB oversight. Legal requirement, all that jazz. 

I took the time to go digging, and I think I found the subsections in the 2017 MBA (Minimum Basic Agreement) that covers freelancers hiring requirements. I’m pretty sure it’s article 20.B, “Television.” But it has rather dense legal language like the following, and it’s my day off and I am just not up for decoding this entire thing. 

This is Article 20.B.3.e, parts (1) through (4).

(1) With respect to an episodic series or once-per-weekserial for which more than six (6) episodes, excludingthe pilot, have been ordered, Company shall have theoption of interviewing not less than one (1) freelancewriter for each story commitment which is unassignedat the time of the network program order for a givenbroadcast season. 

For each such interview, Company shall inform thewriter at the beginning of the interview of all storylinesthen in work, provided that if a storyline is confidentialdue to marketing or other considerations, e.g., a"cliffhanger," etc., Company is not required to informthe writer of such storyline.

The number of such interviews may be reduced byone (1) for each freelance assignment made. It isunderstood that the requirement for such interviewshall not be deemed to imply in any way acommitment for employment. 

Company shall furnish the Guild, upon request,written reports containing the name of the Company,the name of the particular series, the date of andnumber of episodes in the network order, the numberof story commitments in the network order, the namesof the freelance writers interviewed, the dates of suchinterviews, and the names of all freelance writersemployed by Company as a result of such interviews. 

In the event the Company records an interview withthe writer, the Company shall furnish a copy ortranscription of such recording to such writer.

(2) In the alternative, in connection with a particularepisodic series, Company shall employ freelancewriters who have not been employed on such seriesin the previous broadcast season, to write not lessthan two (2) stories with option for teleplay in the caseof an initial network program order of thirteen (13)episodes or three (3) stories with option for teleplay,one (1) of which must be exercised, in the case of anetwork program order of twenty-two (22) or moreepisodes of each such series during a givenbroadcast season. In connection with once-per-weekserials, Company shall have the alternative right tocommit to one (1) teleplay per season for each suchserial. 

In the alternative to the first paragraph of Article20.B.3.e.(2) above, the two (2) required stories withoption for teleplay in the case of an initial order ofthirteen episodes may be replaced with one (1)teleplay based on a story provided to the freelancewriter. Further, the three (3) stories with option forteleplay, one (1) of which must be exercised, may, inthe case of a network order of twenty-two (22) ormore episodes, be replaced with two (2) teleplaysbased on stories provided to the writers.

(3) Company shall elect either subparagraph e.(1) ore.(2) above for each broadcast season of a series.However, if Company elects subparagraph e.(1)above and does not generate the levels of freelanceemployment specified in subparagraph e.(2) above,then Company must comply with subparagraph e.(2)in the subsequent season of such series.Subparagraph e.(1) would thereafter be available onlyif the levels of employment specified in subparagraphe.(2) were fulfilled in the immediately prior season ofsuch series. 

(4) The foregoing access provisions under this Article20.B.3. are not applicable to programs producedunder Appendix B of this Agreement.

Maybe we’ll get lucky and there’s a legal brain following me who can point out if I misread or, idk, translate or something. Frankly, I thought the “about 18%-20% of your episodes must be farmed out to non-staff writers” was a lot clearer. Lot less legalese, certainly. 

Or maybe it’s just how things end up working out, once a series is done. At least, when I went through about 8 different series to compare staff writers vs non-staff, the percentages were pretty consistently around 20% written by non-staff freelance. 

(Before you ask, yes, as a matter of fact, I did work for a law firm for several years in college, because it was good money and I got to play researcher at the law library when the law clerks needed extra help. And I got to sit in court and see some amazingly soap-opera-level drama. But that was suit law, and it wasn’t exactly last year that I finished college, so... anyway.)

As a side-note for anyone curious, SWG will also help companies find more diverse writers through programs like the TV Writer Access Project:

The mission of the TV Writer Access Project is to identify excellent diverse writers in order to provide a hiring resource for television writer-producers and increased access to WGAW members from groups that have been historically underemployed in television.

and the Inclusion and Equity committees:

There are nine Inclusion and Equity committees: the Asian American Writers Committee, Committee of Black Writers, Career Longevity Committee, Genre Committee, Latino Writers Committee, LGBTQ+ Writers Committee, Native American & Indigenous Writers Committee, Writers with Disabilities Committee, and the Committee of Women Writers.

In other words, when a company says, “gee, we just couldn’t see to find any women writers or non-white writers or queer writers or disabled writers…” that dog don’t hunt. The union is there to help companies do exactly that, and to make sure that all members – including marginalized community-members with historically higher barriers to entrance – get exposure. 

Who knows, that info could be useful someday. 

[ingek73]

The Duchess of Sussex announces Patronages

Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Sussex will become Patron of four organisations that reflect the causes and issues with which she has long been associated including the arts, access to education, support for women and animal welfare.

Her Majesty The Queen has passed on two patronages to The Duchess of Sussex –The National Theatre and The Association of Commonwealth Universities. The Queen has held the roles for 45 and 33 years respectively. Her Royal Highness will also take on Patronage of two additional charities as part of her official working portfolio – Smart Works and Mayhew.

The Duchess is delighted to become Patron of both national and grassroots organisations that are part of the fabric of the UK, and is very much looking forward to working with them to bring wider public attention to their causes. Her Royal Highness feels she can use her position to focus attention on, and make a particular difference to these organisations and, more widely, the sectors they each represent.

For the arts, the National Theatre’s mission is to make world class theatre that is entertaining, challenging and inspiring for everyone and to be as inclusive, diverse and national as possible. In support of access to education, the Association of Commonwealth Universities is the world's first and oldest international university network and the only accredited organisation representing higher education across all 53 Commonwealth countries.

With regards to supporting women, Smart Works helps long-term unemployed and vulnerable women regain the skills, confidence and tools to succeed at job interviews, return to employment and transform their lives. In terms of animal welfare, Mayhew is a grassroots charity working in a unique way to improve the lives of animals and people to better communities both in London and internationally.

Over the last year, Her Royal Highness has held meetings and conducted private visits with each of these organisations. The Duchess will today visit Smart Works and over the next few weeks will undertake public visits to the other three organisations.

Further information on these organisations and why The Duchess has chosen to support them as Patron follows:

The National Theatre

The Duchess is a strong believer in using the arts to bring people from different backgrounds and communities together. The National Theatre’s mission is to make world class theatre that’s entertaining, challenging and inspiring – and to make it for everyone. It aims to reach the widest possible audience and to be as inclusive, diverse and national as possible with a broad range of productions that play in London, on tour around the UK, on Broadway and across the globe.

The National Theatre's extensive UK-wide learning and participation programme supports young people’s creative education through performance and writing programmes like Connections, New Views and Let’s Play. Its major new initiative Public Acts creates extraordinary acts of theatre and community; the first Public Acts production was 2018��s Pericles. The National Theatre extends its reach through digital programmes including NT Live, which broadcasts some of the best of British theatre to over 2,500 venues in 65 countries, and the free streaming service On Demand In Schools, used by nearly 60% of UK state secondary schools.

The National Theatre invests in the future of theatre by developing talent, creating bold new work and building audiences, partnering with a range of UK theatres and theatre companies. For more information, please visit https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/.

Whilst Her Royal Highness spent ten years working in television, her training is in theatre. As well as a double major in theatre and international relations from Northwestern University, which is renowned for its drama programme, Her Royal Highness volunteered at a performing arts after school programme for children in underprivileged school districts in Los Angeles.

The Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU)

As a university graduate, Her Royal Highness is a strong advocate of accessible education for all, something she spoke of most recently during her visit to Fiji last year. Established in 1913, the ACU is the world's first and oldest international university network, with more than 500 member institutions in over 50 countries. It is the only accredited organisation representing higher education across the Commonwealth. The ACU champions higher education as a force for good in the Commonwealth and beyond.

Among its key principles is the value of higher education to society – or its role ‘as a common good’ – and the conviction that this value is enhanced by international collaboration. The ACU manages international scholarship schemes – including the UK government’s three major scholarship programmes and The Queen Elizabeth Commonwealth Scholarships – that offer life-changing educational opportunities, convenes universities to address key policy challenges such as climate resilience and peace and reconciliation, and promotes the role of universities in delivering the UN Sustainable Development Goals. For more information please visit https://www.acu.ac.uk/.

During her recent visit to Fiji, The Duchess announced new Gender Grants for ACU member universities in the Pacific to fund new learning initiatives aimed at empowering female university staff and promoting gender equality. Her Royal Highness last month met with university leaders, academics and international scholarship students as they discussed the role of higher education in addressing issues such as human trafficking, modern slavery, gender equality, peace and reconciliation, and climate change.

Smart Works

The Duchess has visited Smart Works several times over the last year where she has worked with many women who have benefited from the charity’s support, helping them through coaching and interview preparation. Her Royal Highness has also volunteered with several other projects in this sector in the past. Created in September 2013 Smart Works exists to help long term unemployed and vulnerable women regain the confidence they need to succeed at job interviews, return to employment and transform their lives.

Half of Smart Works’ clients are from an ethnic minority, long-term unemployed and have been unsuccessful with a large number of job applications. Thanks to the charity’s support, 60% go on to get a job following their visit to Smart Works. As well as providing complete outfits of high quality clothes for job interviews, beneficiaries also have access to one-to-one interview training and the opportunity to join Smart Works Network, meeting every month to further their professional and personal development. Smart Works aims to dress 3500 women this year across their two London offices, and additional bases in key cities across the UK - Edinburgh, Manchester, Reading, Birmingham and Newcastle. For more information please visit http://smartworks.org.uk/.

Her Royal Highness has also been involved with several other projects in this sector, including a project whilst at university which provided prom dresses for young women in underprivileged areas. The Duchess has a longstanding track record of working in the space of women’s empowerment both in her local community as well as abroad. In recent years, Her Royal Highness has travelled to India and Rwanda working on projects to mobilise women in challenging or marginalized situations to see their full potential.

Mayhew

The Duchess has long understood the connection between animals and community welfare and has supported various animal rescue centres in Los Angeles. Established in 1886 and entirely funded by public donations Mayhew is an animal welfare charity working to improve the lives of dogs, cats and people in communities both in London and internationally. Mayhew looks for innovative ways to reduce the number of animals in need through pro-active community and educational initiatives and preventative veterinary care.

This includes working with homelessness charities across London to ensure people and their dogs can be kept together; running a Pet Refuge programme to provide shelter and care for the pets of people in crisis for short periods of time; and educating young people about animal welfare and the importance of responsible pet ownership. Internationally, Mayhew works with governments, local communities and charitable groups in Afghanistan, Georgia, Russia and India to help improve animal welfare. For more information visit https://themayhew.org/.

The Duchess of Sussex is very much looking forward to working closely with these organisations, and her continued work with The Royal Foundation of which she is joint Patron along with The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and The Duke of Sussex.

Rufus Norris, Director of the National Theatre said: “I would like to thank The Queen for Her Majesty’s long and unwavering support and service to the National Theatre. We were honoured when The Queen became our Patron in 1974 and have celebrated many moments together including, in recent years, the Diamond Jubilee and the marking of our 50th anniversary. It is a privilege to welcome The Duchess of Sussex as our new Patron. The Duchess shares our deeply-held conviction that theatre has the power to bring together people from all communities and walks of life. I very much look forward to working closely with Her Royal Highness in the years to come”.

Dr Joanna Newman MBE, Chief Executive and Secretary General of the ACU, said: “We are absolutely delighted that HRH The Duchess of Sussex has chosen to become Patron of the ACU. The Duchess shares our passion for the transformational power of higher education, and Her Royal Highness’ support will help champion higher education as a force for good in the Commonwealth and beyond. We would like to thank Her Majesty The Queen for her support, and we look forward to working closely with The Duchess as our Patron.”

Juliet Hughes-Hallett, Chair and Founder of Smart Works said: “We are thrilled to announce that The Duchess of Sussex will become the Royal Patron of Smart Works. An acknowledged champion of women and their rights worldwide, The Duchess will motivate ever more women to come to our centres and get the job that will transform their lives. The Duchess’s patronage will inspire the women we serve and help them reach for the stars.”

Caroline Yates, CEO of Mayhew said: “We are so excited that HRH The Duchess of Sussex has chosen to be our Patron. Mayhew works to improve the lives of dogs, cats and the people in our community, tackling the root cause of animal abandonment and neglect and supporting vulnerable people to stay with their companion pets. The Duchess has spent many years championing animal welfare, and we are honoured to have our charity represented by such a passionate Patron. We look forward to working closely with The Duchess and hope that, together, we can help even more animals and people.”