Just gonna reblog this out of gratitude because I actually did forget…
Fffffffff let me get right on that.
and then reblog for the next forgetful son of a bitch
I’m so great full for everyone that is reblogging this. I totally forgot to take mine
I think that there is some sort of unspoken fairy godparent thing where you see this, realize that you forgot your meds, and rebagel it because if you forgot someone else must have. And in our turn we all take care of each other, even if we don’t know it.
The most effective protest, and the one with the best optics, is the one you make physically: showing up at your shitbag Representative’s district office, camera in hand. Be there when he gets to work in the morning. Be there when she leaves. Ask her if she is embarrassed. Ask him if he is ashamed. Tell her interns and assistants about yourself, about your loved ones. Explain to your local newspaper, to neighborhood blogs, to your facebook friends and Twitter followers why you are furious and disappointed and why you will not forget.
If you would rather call, here’s a potential script. It is maybe not the best? I’m pretty angry.
Hi. I’m calling to register my anger and disappointment at Rep. ____’s Yes vote on the AHCA. [I/my loved ones] am now at risk of losing my insurance, and I am appalled that social programs that personally affect me and my loved ones will be stripped in order to provide tax breaks to the wealthy. Rep. ____ should be ashamed of himself. I and my community will not forget this vote. Will you please take down my information and send me confirmation that the Congressman is listening to constituents? Thanks.
If your rep voted YES and you don’t want to call them, there are PLENTY of people on tumblr who will call on your behalf.
In between the fury and the heartbreak of today (which I am also feeling), I want to also add a few nitty gritty Legislative Process details here:
1. The bill has to pass through the Senate before it becomes law.
2. The reason this is so rushed is largely in part to get it done before the budget reconciliation deadline (which this technically falls under). There are a lot of weird, confusing, conflicting rules for this and TBH I don’t totally understand them (because they’re arcane and extremely complicated), but the point is that our primary goal should be stalling until they run out of time.
3.
The Senate cannot vote on the bill until the CBO scores it, which likely won’t be until June.
4. Congress goes into recess this week and they will be back among their constituents. Give them HELL.
Other Notes:
1. Here is the Congress.gov page showing who voted how (at the time of posting not yet updated but check back).
2. Here is the ActBlue page to donate to Democrats running to oppose Republicans who voted for TrumpCare.
Another reason why it’s a good idea to keep up the pressure on House
members who votes yes on ACHA is that’s it’s not at all unlikely that
they’ll have to vote on it again. Here are three options going forward, as best I understand them:
1.
The Senate votes on ACHA as is and as it was passed by the House; the
bill becomes law of the land. This is the scariest possibility, but
also, imo, the least likely. That doesn’t mean we should get complacent –
there’s a real chance of this happening, but we should have a good
amount of time to stop it.
2. The Senate votes down the bill. It’s dead and the processes has to start all over again or be abandoned entirely.
3. The Senate amends the bill before voting on it, which means that even if they vote yes it has to go back
to the House for another vote on the new version of it. At this point,
House members are free to say “Well, I voted for the original version,
but this new version is unacceptable.” This could be code for “My
constituents are mad at me for my original vote but I don’t want to
admit I made a mistake” or even “I never really wanted this bill to
pass; I wanted the Senate to kill it for me.” I read an article today
with a representative PREEMPTIVELY saying he might not vote yes on the
bill again if the senate altered it.
I hope people call their senators and keep the pressure on there too, but I agree that we can’t take our focus off the House.
Okay non-European tumblr, I’m gonna explain to you why ‘white’ isn’t as simple here as it is in the rest of the world
– Shades of white in Europe range from ‘freshly fallen snow’ to ‘I am frequently mistaken as being from the Middle East’
– White European is a thing. When you fill out a form, under ethnicity, there are several options for white; white British, white European, white other. Because people make that distinction
– There are Europeans who don’t class their ethnicity as their skin colour, but as their nationality. I have family who don’t think of themselves as white, they just think of themselves as Italian and don’t really give much thought to their skin colour
– People here in Britain always question if darker skinned white Europeans are ‘actually white’. I get it a lot myself. My response is always ‘well I’m not anything else, so obviously I must be’
– Despite being white, a lot of Europeans from Italy, Greece, Spain etc, don’t feel white in the traditional sense. We’re not white like white British people. We’re not white like white Americans. We’re our own white. White British is one thing. White Italian is another thing. White Greek is another, etc
– Which is why we have this notion here in Europe of ‘nationality over race’. Being white isn’t as important as where you’re from
– So this really only becomes an issue if you’re an immigrant
– So being white in Europe doesn’t save you from racial discrimination, because sure, you’re technically white, but you’re not white white. Not the right white
– Here in England, Europeans with really blatantly foreign names, such as myself, find it more difficult to get job interviews, because they take one look at our name and don’t bother reading the rest of the CV. A guy I know was actually told by his boss to reduce the pile of CVs he had by ‘chucking away any with a name you can’t fucking pronounce’
– And then even when you do get an interview, half the time you walk into the joint several shades darker than everyone else and feel like you’ve walked into the ‘Swedish supermodel’ clubhouse and you just know you’re not getting hired
This is all basic stuff and it’s very much taken for granted here. Race and ethnicity are not as clear cut, so it can be very confusing for non-Europeans to wrap their heads around. Which is fine. But I implore you to stay in your lane, because when you say things like ‘no white person anywhere in the world ever knows what it’s like to face racial discrimination’, it’s really fucking offensive to all of the European immigrants who are denied jobs, harassed by the police and beaten by racists, because foreign is foreign to these people, and they don’t give a shit if you’re technically white. So when you mean white American, say white American.
This doesn’t just apply to “darker skin” Europeans either (which I’m sure some Americans would argue are POC for some reason or other). Try being slavic in Western Europe. Hell, try being Sinti or Roma in any part of Europe.
Especially in the UK you can be as white as you like but if you aren’t from Britain (or in some cases just England) then you face discrimination. It really isn’t that clear cut in Europe and it drives me mad when people say white people can’t experience racism because that’s such a US-centric idea.
And if you’re from anywhere in South-East Europe then you should prepare for your country to be slandered in every UK paper. Seriously, you can’t turn on the news, go on the internet, read a newspaper, without being told how Romanian, Ukrainian, Polish people are a drain on the UK’s resources and they should be banned from the country. And guess what?
(That’s Mila Kunis. She was born in the Ukraine.)
(Sebastian Stan. From Constanta, Romania.)
(Mia Wasikowska, from Poland)
(Nina Dobrev, who was born in Bulgaria.)
They are white! Just because they are white, it doesn’t mean people from their countries cannot face horrible discrimination, and it doesn’t mean that they can’t be constantly told that they don’t work as hard as people from Western Europe, and that they don’t deserve basic human rights.
So just before you force your ignorance onto people who don’t hold the same views as you due to where they live operating in a different way, just remember that not everybody lives in America.
Here it is guys, the post that finally puts what I’ve been trying to say for far too long into words!
…I didn’t know Sebastian Stan was Romanian.
But as somebody who has lived in England and the US, I can vouch for all of this. The race issues in Europe and the race issues in the US are not the same.
For the last few years, there has been an awful backlash against immigrants from Poland, with some of the same language used that Americans use about “Mexicans” (By which, half the time, they mean anyone from south of the US/Mexico border).
It’s worth understanding that
1. Racism and discrimination are everywhere.
2. They don’t take the same form everywhere.
I have lived in England for over 10 years now, and can confirm all of the above. As soon as I open my mouth people can tell, of course, that I was not born and raised British.
I was yelled at in the street because a lady thought I was Polish. People have pushed their chairs into my parents and insulted them in a restaurant because they were recognised as Germans.
Being white is not that cut and dry over here.
And being “socially” white as opposed to just pale skinned evolves over time. I mean, there have been times in America when Irish and Italian people have not been considered “white”.
READ THIS POST IF YOURE AMERICAN
Look at the abuse aimed at Eastern Europeans in Britain after brexit. There’s definitely still intense stigma and othering aimed at people who are black/middle Eastern/Asian/etc, and it shouldn’t be ignored or denied, but there’s also a lot of othering and hostility towards people who would just be labeled “white” in the USA.
If somebody from a different place with a different history and context of racism is talking about that, don’t immediately accuse them of making up oppression or denying racism (I mean, unless they’re the dipshits you sometimes see trying to pull the “we don’t have real racism here uwu that’s just an American thing sweaty uwu,” but people like that are almost always spoiled brat Westerners)
I’ve only been in England for about a month, but I’ve already been asked to clarify if I’m white irish or white english and I’m so confused. I’m Canadian?
Yeah, nationalism is more frequent in Europe
THIS! FINALLY!
🙃🙃🙃
Finally.. Most Americans just don’t seem to get it.
I’m black german and I’m tired of people reblogging this. Xenophobia is the word you are looking for and also poc in Europe have to face racism and Xenophobia at the same time. And sometimes even colorism
Xenophobia is a problem, but white Europeans need to realize the difference between Xenophobia and racism. All of you guys benefit from white privilege. Suffering from Xenophobia do NOT negate white privilege.
We can have conversations about this without throwing poc in europe under the bus and painting America a clueless zone that doesn’t understand ethnicity. Having lived in both Germany and the USA, we all have to have this conversation without ignoring white privilege and racism
^^^^ Exactly. Also, from an American Black woman who has lived in Europe? The myth that Europe doesn’t have racism like the US is a lie. It does, it also has a lot of xenophobia. This is one of those times where embracing the power of “and” is necessary and depressing.
“In a healthy relationship, your partner hears you out if you’re upset, and their goal is to avoid upsetting you in the future, not to debate whether you should have been upset in the first place.”
You know what line gets me every time I watch MAD MAX FURY ROAD?
“Do not, my friends, become addicted to water. It will take hold of you, and you will resent its absence.”
Think about that. “Addicted to water.” It makes it sound like water is an extra luxury that people don’t need but are greedy for, something they should be able to go without, and if they are desperate for it, it’s their own fault, and not the fault of the man who has all of it, and withholds it.
Think about how the people in power tell us not to be greedy for the things we need, like healthcare, like a living wage, like the right to be free of fear and violence in our own communities. The people in power tell us not to be greedy for these things, when they themselves already enjoy them freely, and withhold them from us.
Don’t trust the narrative that tells us we’re being greedy by asking for things that we need.
Don’t trust the asshole sitting on a grassy hilltop with his hand on the spigot telling us not to be greedy for water.
You cannot challenge racism, on this level, by being nice to and reaching out to white supremacists. Their entire ideology revolves around dehumanizing us. It just does. not. work.
You cannot fight fascism by prioritizing the feelings of fascists and letting them think they’re safe around you. You don’t “get them on your side”. Because treating them kindly and respecting them, gives them your silent approval and access to those of you who are way more vulnerable than you are and who cannot afford to feel safe enough to “debate” with these monsters.
Our humanity is not a question or a debate topic, and by giving these people a platform you legitimize their views and help spread them to a larger audience.
Then… How did it work for this guy?
They shot him in the fucking head.
Say that shit again!
They shot him in the fucking head.
They shot him in the fucking head.
They shot him in the fucking head.
They shot him in the fucking head.
The idea that MLK was ‘nice’ to white supremacists is also just historical revisionism @kuurihaunt.
He was sent death threats. The FBI considered him dangerous. People assaulted and murdered many of his followers. White America thought he was too confrontational and not appeasing enough to the sensibilities of whites. He was considered disruptive and an “outside agitator.” He was not a beloved man. He was hated and despised.
His protests came with the risk of being brutalized or killed by police or vigilantes. He decried the white moderate for caring more about order than justice. He refused to condemn riots, ‘the language of the unheard,’ because of how violent America was to Black people. Despite their differences, Malcolm X offered him protection and self-defense. Even though he was committed to nonviolent resistance, which meant breaking the law, disrupting traffic and yes – willingly opening yourself to being brutalized, he was more complicated than you give him credit.
The United States hated him and for his troubles he was killed.
He was not the caricature of nonviolence you think he was. Read a fucking book.
shealwaysreads 