Feminist Monday, June 25

Good morning, y'all. I hope you had a restful weekend. I know I did. Shall we get started? All right, then. First, the videos. 

People are arguing that these are just kids who don't really understand what's going on and that somehow their liberal parents are coercing their children to be transgender. That's complete transphobic bullshit.

Okay. So, the video names and shames quite a few movies I actually like. The fact that I like them doesn't change the fact that they're extremely problematic. (Although, in Knight and Day, the roles are, at the mid-point, reversed, and Red is obviously styling itself after a trashy spy Romance...but yeah. [sigh])

​And now, those links.

Literary/Entertainment: The real reason we need more diversity in film criticism and not just film criticism but also literary criticism and art criticism. It’s a Man’s Literary World. And it's only very slowly improving. 7 Books About the Interplay of Technology and Humanity. How much tech does it take to make you 'not human'? It's an old question. And I saw a a great discussion about tech and disability and how authors need to give thought about what their inadvertently saying when they focus on the question of humanity like this. The differently abled use tech in day to day life and will continue to do so in increasing degrees as tech advances and makes their lives less complicated. Of course, the easiest, cheapest, and best answer is to design our environments as more welcoming and useful to everyone regardless of their ableness. But hey, why do that when we can shunt the cost onto those who can't afford it?

​General: The Last Slave Ship Survivor Gave an Interview in the 1930s. It Just Surfaced. The author, Zora Neale Hurston, received push back regarding the dialect Cudjo Lewis uses to describe his own life. She didn't budge. I feel this was appropriate because Zora Neale Hurston was also black. Context is important. The Washington Post has created a database that tracks the numbers of civilians shot and killed by police. It has existed since 2015. Note: the US government still does not track this information. As always, contrast and compare this to the numbers of cops shot on duty. For 2018, that would be 21. 21 cops killed verses 495 civilians. Remember that the next time a conservative goes on about the war on cops. This ad for a Texas woman running for Congress is a must-see. And this next situation is only getting worse. MIGRANT CHILDREN SEPARATED FROM PARENTS AT BORDER WERE FORCIBLY DRUGGED: LAWSUIT. Drugging kids so that they'll be compliant with their kidnappers. Yeah. ICE is the good guys, all right. [eye roll] For those arguing with the dirtbags who are okay with all this, have some factual ammunition: How to Obtain Protection from a U.S. Embassy or Consulate. Guess what? You have to be on US soil to request asylum and consulates and embassies don't count. The wind in my hair: one Iranian woman’s courageous struggle against being forced to wear the hijab. Again, I feel that whether or not a woman decides to wear and article of clothing--regardless of whether it is related to their religion/culture or not--should ALWAYS be the woman's choice. ALWAYS. Next, an article on gentrification and now it's not a good thing. The Death of a Once Great City.