choose one
struggling with how to word this, but putting it out there anyway:
i can fully understand the posts on here from a lot of americans being tired of “vote blue no matter who” posts when the #1 thing that people are constantly (and sometimes only?) addressing is how the republican party is going treat trans/queer people if elected.
it’s part of an unfortunate pattern of prioritizing the effects on a demographic that includes white + upper class people, when people of color and those in the global south are actively and currently being killed or relegated to circumstances in which their survival is very unlikely
it is genuinely exhausting to witness this, and i was also on the fence about even participating in voting because i a) felt like it didn’t matter and b) every time i voiced being frustrated with the current state of the country, white queer people would immediately step in with “but what about trans people!” -> (i am mixed race trans man)
and i say this with unending patience toward people who do this, because i know that it’s not something they actively think about. but everyone already knows how the republican party is going to treat queer people. you are probably talking to another queer person when you bring up project 2025. the issue is that, for those of us who aren’t white, or for those of us who are but who are conscious of ongoing struggles for people of color worldwide, the safety of people around the world feels more urgent than our own. that is the calculation that’s being made.
you’re not going to win votes for the democratic party by dismissing or minimizing these realities and by continually centering (white) queer people.
very few people on here and twitter are actually talking about issues beyond queer rights that concern people of color, or how the two administrations differ on these issues instead of constantly circling back to single-issue politics. this isn’t an exhaustive list. but these are the issues that have actually altered my perspective and motivated me to the point of committing to casting a vote
- the biden administration has been engaged in a years-long fight to allow new applicants to DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, the program that allows undocumented individuals who arrived as children to remain in the country) after the Trump administration attempted to terminate it. the program is in limbo currently because of the actions of Trump-backed judges, with those who applied before the ruling being allowed to stay, but no new applications are being processed. Trump has repeatedly toyed with the idea of just deporting the 1.8 million people, but he continues to change his mind depending on whatever the fuck goes on in his head. he cannot be relied on to be sympathetic toward people of hispanic descent or to guarantee that DREAMers will be allowed stay in the country. biden + a democratic controlled congress will allow legal challenges to the DACA moratorium to gain ground.
- the biden administration is open to returning and protecting portions of culturally important indigenous land in a way that the trump administration absolutely does not give a fuck. as of may 2024, they have established seven national monuments with plans to expand the San Gabriel Monument where the Gabrielino, Kizh / Tongva, the Chumash, Kitanemuk, Serrano, and Tataviam reside. the Berryessa Snow Mountain is also on the list, as a sacred region to the Patwin.
- i’m recognizing that the US’s plans for clean energy have often come into conflict with tribal sovereignty, and the biden administration could absolutely do better in navigating this. but the unfortunate dichotomy is that there would be zero commitment or investment in clean energy under a trump-led government, which poses an astounding existential threat and destabilizing force to the global south beyond any human-to-human conflict. climate change has caused and will continue to cause resource shortages, greater natural disasters, and near-lethal living conditions for those in the tropics - and the actions of the highest energy consumers (US) are to blame. biden has funneled billions of dollars into climate change mitigation and clean energy generation - trump does not believe that any of it matters.
i may circle back to this and add more as it comes up, but i’m hoping that those who are skeptical / discouraged / tired of the white queer-centric discourse on tumblr and twitter can at least process some of this. please feel free to add more articles + points but i’m asking for the sake of this post to please focus on issues that affect people of color.
As someone who works in immigration, The whole system is fucked. However, Biden has done a lot to make it easier. Here are some highlights:
- Work permits for asylum seekers. Trump did not allow asylum seekers to work above board, forcing them into cash paying, near slavery jobs. Biden has made work permits relatively quick and easy to get. Also, even though they aren’t cheap, ($520 each) his admin has waived fees for many categories including initial asylum seekers and Violence Against Women Act seekers. Also, anyone with a work permit that was renewed this year will have it for 5 years, enough that if trump fucks the process for everyone people can at least still make a living.
- Prosecutorial discretion. Under Trump, if you didn’t have a path to citizenship and you had immigration court, you were finished. Biden has essentially paused proceedings for hundreds of thousands of people who don’t have a case now, but might in the future, giving them time to work, marry, have children, and potentially open new doors for themselves.
- The one that made the news: Parole in place. To immigrate legally, you have to enter the country legally except under very narrow circumstances. If you crossed the border and don’t win in court, you currently have to apply for a hard to get waiver with a 4 year waiting list to leave and come back legally. Biden is trying to waive this by expanding the options for people who crossed the border and married citizens to eliminate the waiver process.
These changes could be gone as soon as january 25th 2025 if Biden loses, as the new administration will replace the whole administration with political appointees frothing at the mouth to send people back regardless of their personal circumstances.
Sure, immigrating to the US isn’t what everyone wants. I dream of a future with truly open borders where nobody would have to do any of the things I do for them. Right now though, Biden will make things better, even if only to a point. Trump will make them much worse.
Also poor disabled people.
Recipients of SSI are - by definition - not “upper class” because you can’t have more than $2000 at any give time. Half of SSI recipients aren’t white. (People of Color are also more likely to have jobs where they’re injured or working in dangerous conditions, and have also been disproportionately impacted by COVID.)
- The Biden Administration removed the In-Kind Support and Maintenance Rule as it applies to food. This means that - as of September 30th, at least - you won’t be at risk of losing your benefits if someone shares food with you. Previously, if your parents bought you groceries or your friend cooked for you, you could have your benefits reduced by up to 1/3.
- The Biden Administration is also removing some of the obsolete jobs that are used to deny people disability benefits. Applying for disability benefits involves the government telling you “Well these are jobs you could do with your disabilities” - and the list of jobs was established in the 1970s and hasn’t really been updated, and a lot of the jobs don’t really exist in the US anymore. So you can be told “Sure, you’re too disabled to stand, but you could be a Linen Grader, so you’re not Disabled Enough that you can’t work.” - even though that’s not really a job that exists in the US anymore. Under Biden, the SSA is removing some of those jobs like “reptile farmer”, “barrel assembler”, “nut sorter”, and “microfiche mounter”, so you can’t be denied disability benefits based on your hypothetical ability to farm reptiles.
I see vulvas everywhere - Lisa Frischemeier
Butch wearing a dress. Does this count as crossdressing.
cross dressing is when you are any gender and wear any outfit
“When you visit Canada”
“When Canada visits you”
When Canada visits you
My friend, Angel, commissioned me to pyrogragh this pair of leather gloves that he will be using as a wildfire fighter in Colorado. What sold me on the project was him saying “I just want trees and mountains to be included. Other than that, you’d have total creative freedom, I know you create better that way” :’)
By illustrating skeletal human hands made from sticks and wood with growing leaves in the palms of the gloves, I wanted to create a reminder for Angel that he is very much a part of the nature he is fighting to protect.
Yellowing Curtain Crust
Hold on im going filigree mode
sorry yeah ive got a bad case of Thinking About My Friends. im afraid its incurable. symptoms include happiness and love and wishes that they will have the life they want to live.
please look at this sweet precious little beach grass clump growing directly out of a stump
btw I am going to the beach today with my wife for Canada Day weekend and gonna be mostly offline, so please be cool and kind about that post while I’m away 👍
*posts about lesbians/bi women and internalized homophobia* everyone: actually how can we make this about telling men theyre valid for being sexually attracted to women 🥺
omg my first drowned contribution on tumblr 🫡 an honor
hi @couriernewvegas I’m a lesbian and I am quoting the tags from my mutual, who is also a lesbian. Both of us have remarked to each other in the past on the irony of this particular reply getting so many notes.
Speaking just for myself, I do agree there is broadly a trend of taking issues specifically oriented around wlw and trying to make them “universal” or especially about men. In fact, this has happened on other posts of mine. It can be very frustrating derailment.
my intention sharing the tags written by @aurpiment was definitely in alignment with some things other folks have shared in the replies:
today is another good day to be kind online and not assume things about strangers on the internet 👍
say what you will about gotye's "somebody i used to know" but i gotta appreciate a song that ends with a second party rebutting the entire rest of the song, while still in the song. imagine if more songs did this. incredible.
echojulietfoxtrot
OP every song I can think of that does this is awesome, now you mention it. This could be a banger playlist.
oh that reminds me! people have been periodically recommending tracks in this vein, and i recently accrued enough of them that i did in fact make a spotify playlist of songs where a second party rebuts the entire rest of the song, while still in the song.
camellia sinensis, chinese variety, 十八学士shi ba xue shi (eighteen scholars)
#what the fuck is this real
My sweet patreon’s voted on my next clown so here is the clown knight!~