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made in honor of the now-extinct population of Falasteen crocodiles, the sunbirds that almost lost their names, and everyone else surviving the attempted erasure.

posted the other week as part of an ongoing fundraiser offering free prints and paid, with 100% of proceeds going to Care for Gaza. it has since been translated, wheatpasted, and flown on kites all over the world from Saigon to Scotland...!!!

monetary donations are never a substitute for holistic political action, and a push for a different world... but the shows of solidarity and support have lifted my spirits so much.

this is now available on a t-shirt too, screenprinted by hand in Texas!same deal: all profits go to food, medicine, and other critical supplies via Care for Gaza (& the PCRF). thank you for sharing.

image description below:

a Palestine sunbird holds red poppies in their beak next to the text RIGHT TO EXIST. a Palestine crocodile (a subspecies of the Nile, now extinct thanks to occupying forces) guards a shining key next to the text RIGHT TO RETURN. a Palestinian olive tree, full of fruit is next to the text RIGHT TO RESIST. a Palestinian family of five, all embracing each other next to the text RIGHT TO REMAIN.

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ettingermentum has just published an excellent guide to protest voting state-by-state. for those of you who are bemoaning your choice between biden and trump, for those of you who are against genocide, and for those of you want to utilize your civic duty to vote: this is how you can pressure joe biden for a ceasefire

Earlier this week, when I was talking with my girlfriend about the Michigan primary results, she asked me if we could also vote uncommitted in our state’s primary. Since we live in Georgia, I knew that we didn’t have that option, so I told her that it wasn’t possible and that I personally planned to use my ballot to write in Jane Fonda. Then she asked me if that vote would be counted, which made me realize something: I didn’t know if it would. I looked it up, and and after a bit of searching, I learned that the answer was no. As a Georgia voter, I have to either vote for one of the three names on the ballot or a “validated write-in candidate” or my vote will be discarded. My year-old plan to vote for Jane had always been DOA, and I had never known it until that moment. This got me thinking. If I, someone who writes about politics for a living, didn’t know the exact procedures for a protest vote in my primary in my own state, how many prospective uncommitted voters out there actually know what their options are? I presumed that someone out there had published a guide for how to protest vote in each state, but, at least as far as I can tell, such a guide does not exist. To remedy this problem, I decided to create a guide myself. The following is the first ever state-by-state, territory-by-territory cheat sheet for how you can, and cannot, cast a protest vote against this administration in your upcoming Democratic primary.

Category 1: Can Vote Uncommitted

This is the simplest and most straightforward category. In these states and territories, voters are given a Michigan-style uncommitted option on their ballots. These ballots are fully counted in the results like votes for any of the named candidates. If the total uncommitted vote reaches 15% statewide or in a congressional district, it will be awarded delegates.

Although some of these states have additional protest voting options in addition to uncommitted, selecting the uncommitted line is the most direct and straightforward way to register an anti-Biden vote. If available, it should be chosen over all other options, including write-ins, blank ballots, or votes for named candidates like Dean Phillips or Marianne Williamson.

State/territory list:

March 5th: Alabama, Colorado (Called “Noncomitted”), Iowa (Mail-only Caucus), Massachusetts (Called “No Preference”), Minnesota, North Carolina (Called “No Preference”), Tennessee, American Samoa

March 6th: Hawaii

March 12th: Northern Mariana Islands, Washington, Democrats Abroad

March 19th: Kansas

March 23rd: Missouri

April 2nd: Connecticut, Rhode Island, Wisconsin

April 6th: Alaska (Called “Undeclared”)

April 13th: Wyoming (Caucus, Called “Undeclared”)

May 14th: Maryland

May 21st: Kentucky

May 23rd: Idaho (Caucus)

June 4th: Montana (Called “No Preference”), New Jersey, New Mexico

June 8th: Virgin Islands

Category 2: No Uncommitted Option, But Can Vote Write-Ins

Following the set of states and territories that provide straightforward uncommitted option, we reach a small, unique category of primary contests. These states do not provide an uncommitted option, but they do allow for write-in votes, and they take the unique step of tallying every single one of these write-ins in their vote totals. This allows for voters to vote for whoever they want, from Abraham Lincoln to the demiurge, and still see their ballots counted in a broad “write-in” pile of general dissent.

Unlike uncommitted votes, write-in votes will not be able to win delegates as a category—they are only tallied together as a group convenience on election results pages for the sake of convenience. Legally, they all represent votes for entirely different candidates. While it would technically be possible for a write-in candidate to win delegates if they hit the required benchmarks through write-in votes for them, there are currently no efforts to coordinate this. As such, feel free to vote for whoever or whatever you want if you live in these states or territories.

State/territory list:

March 5th: Vermont

May 21st: Oregon

June 4th: Washington, D.C.

Category 3: No Uncommitted Option, Most Write-Ins Not Tallied, But Blank Votes Tallied

Right on the heels of the previous small list with very specific rules is another small list with even more specific rules. Like Category 2, these states do not provide an option to vote uncommitted, but allow for write-ins. Where they differ from the Category 2 states is that they do not count most write-ins in their overall tallies. To save time, only write-in votes for “qualified” write in candidates are considered valid and counted. This means that any write-in vote that says something like “ceasefire,” “uncommitted,” and, yes, “Jane Fonda,” will be discarded.

For most states that do this and don’t provide an uncommitted option, this rules out the possibility of a protest vote beyond voting for the named candidates. These states are the exception, however. Unlike most states, they count blank ballots in their totals. While blank ballots cannot earn delegates, they are counted as a bloc, making them a clear statement of opposition to Biden that avoids providing support for Phillips or Williamson. As such, it is best to send back ballots in these states.

State/territory list:

March 5th: Maine

March 30th: North Dakota (Caucus)

April 2nd: New York

April 28th: Puerto Rico

Category 4: No Uncommitted Option, Most Write-Ins Not Counted, Blank Ballots Not Counted

Category 4 states have easily the most delegates of any section on this list. Unfortunately, they’re also where the options for protest votes become sharply limited. These states have similar rules as Category 3 states. They don’t provide an uncommitted ballot line and don’t tally write-in votes except for those given to qualified write-in candidates. What makes them different from Category 3 states is that they also don’t count blank votes in their tallies.

To register a non-Biden vote in the tallies here, you have to vote for someone pre-approved by the state, whether that be a named candidates on the ballot or a qualified write-in candidate. For most states, this leaves you with Dean Phillips and/or Marianne Williamson if you want your vote to count. Feel free to choose between the two at your own discretion, although you can always vote for another listed candidate or even prick someone from your state’s list of qualified write-in candidates if you really want to avoid voting for either of them.

State/territory list:

March 5th: California (Both Dean and Marianne on ballot), Texas (D and M), Virginia (D and M), Utah (D and M)

March 12th: Georgia (D and M)

March 19th: Arizona (D and M), Illinois (D and M), Ohio (Dean only)

April 23rd: Pennsylvania (Dean only)

May 14th: Nebraska (Dean only), West Virginia (Dean only)

Category 5: No Uncommitted Option, No Write-in Option, Blank Ballots Not Counted

Category 5 is very similar to Category 4, except with one difference. Instead of just making the write-in option functionally useless, these states don’t provide it at all. There’s no way to get around voting for one of the named candidates of you want to cast a protest vote in these states.

State/territory list:

March 5th: Arkansas (D and M), Oklahoma (D and M)

March 12th: Mississippi (No D or M or anyone else. Biden will just get 100% of the vote here. They’re still holding the contest, though.)

March 23rd: Louisiana (D and M)

June 4th: South Dakota (D and M)

June 8th: Guam (Candidate list currently unavailable)

Category 6: No Primary

Here’s the strangest section of them all. These states just cancelled their primaries and handed all of their delegates to Biden. They won’t let you vote against him even if you want to!

State/territory list: Florida and Delaware

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voting 'uncommitted' aka utilizing the protest vote is now one of the key strategies to let the biden administration know exactly what you think of their policies. it doesn't affect your vote in november, but it does very much affect the US policies being enacted on the ground in gaza right now.

think of it as a "fuck you" to joe biden, in the most democratic way possible.

you're not abstaining. you're not voting third party. you're not voting for trump. this is a protest vote. you're exercising your civic rights and letting joe biden know: fuck you.

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god calls me on the payphone, tells me there aren't enough magnolia trees in the garden. asks me a question. i spend my whole life answering it.

#words #spent 15 min scrolling through my saved posts to find this

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coming to learn that i may have developed seasonal allergies

#spent allll morning with my face up against my fav early spring blooms and taking pics #later in the day to be like why do i feel like shit.

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I’m actually really fun once you get to know me (takes 3-4 years).

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Oh I'm so excited how this one came out!!!!

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have seen several sources pick it up now….it seems like hind, the little girl who called for help while trapped in the car with her martyred family members almost 2 weeks ago, was found martyred as well still in the vehicle that was targeted by israeli tanks. no word on the PCRS paramedics dispatched to rescue her. i’m absolutely devastated. there is no justice in the world.

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the audio from the phone call w 6-year old hind who was trapped in a car with the bodies of her entire family is haunting me. the audio from her 15 year old sister who died after calling for help is haunting me. we still don't know what happened to her or the medics who went to rescue her

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how do you live?

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Palestinians deserve human rights and that should never be controversial. Ceasefire now, stop the genocide, end the occupation free Palestine.

The Palestinian sunbird was declared the national bird of Palestine in 2015 after Israel tried to change its name in their ongoing effort to erase Palestinian identity. The Palestinian sunbird is now a symbol of hope and freedom.

As long as prints are sold, all proceeds will go to Medical Aid Palestine (MAP).

annadittmann.com

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Israel has banned children’s insulin injectors from entering Gaza

Children can die within a matter of days without insulin. In even less time a lack of insulin will cause blindness, nerve damage, and kidney failure.

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Oh and if literal grass-touching IS viable, I also advocate for touching invasive grass. Many parks in the US have invasive plant removal volunteer work days. You get some air and some exercise and you can talk to other volunteers if you want or you can just march off into the trees on your own and start wreaking havoc with various hand tools. If you want to do something that is both useful AND destructive, I have found nothing better

#this is my job and not only is the act of making tangible visible positive environmental impacts really satisfying #but outdoor work w/ my hands has been very therapeutic as well #in the sense of learning to recognize local plants/birds/etc and becoming more aware of nature and connected to it #but also hacking away at vegetation is a great activity when you’re upset/angry and need the catharsis lol #removing invasive vegetation and making an effort to promote native vegetation is one of the most impactful things you can #do to directly benefit the environment on a local level - and in addition to local places like parks #one of the best places to start is within your own living space! take note of what’s growing in your own yard #and see what you can remove or add to benefit your pollinators and local wildlife #because in an ecosystem habitat is everything. and it is becoming increasingly more fragmented and disturbed with overdevelopment and #and invasive plants that have escaped cultivation

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Today, we honor the memory of Tortuguita, who was murdered one year ago by mercenaries from the Atlanta Police and Georgia State Patrol while defending Weelaunee Forest and an inhabitable future for all of us.

Cop City represents a possible future in which ever more resources will be invested in training and militarizing massive bodies of police that will control the rest of us by brute force. For those employed in the violence industry, it represents a tremendous opportunity. The police murdered Tortuguita in order to secure the right to hoard all your tax dollars for themselves and their allies.

By contrast, Tortuguita's courageous conduct stands as an example to us all. In a time of economic desperation and catastrophic climate change, it’s up to us to show that solidarity and the desire for freedom are more powerful than selfishness and the readiness to obey.

https://crimethinc.com/AtlantaSolidarity

#StopCopCity

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resilience is not sustainable we are not supposed to endure life we are supposed to live it

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[id: a digital drawing of zevran arainai standing from the chest up. he’s in a forest and it’s nighttime, and a gap in the canopy of trees reveals stars twinkling in the night sky above him. he’s looking upwards with a slight smile on his face. he has brown skin, brown eyes, and shoulder-length blond hair. he’s wearing a plain, long sleeved beige shirt. end ID.]

freedom pt. 2

#back on my bullshit #dragon age #zevran arainai #dragon age: origins #my art

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first digital drawing in *checks watch* one year seven months

#LOL