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alpaca-clouds · 8 months

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The Punk-Factor of Punkpunk Genre

So, when I posted my history of Solarpunk, someone (probably not in good faith) asked: “So, what about the punk in all the other punk genres?!” towards my request to put the punk back into Solarpunk. And given that my autistic brain obviously cannot just let that stand… You know what? Let me talk about the other punk genre and in how far they are “punk”. I tried to be as exhaustive as possible, though there is a good chance, that I might have missed some of the punkpunk genre. So feel free to add.

Trying to judge the punkiness I do not assume punk as simple counter culture, but a specific ideology. Quote from Wikipedia:

[Punk ideology] is primarily concerned with concepts such as mutual aid, against selling out, hierarchy, white supremacy, authoritarianism, anti-consumerism, anti-corporatism, anti-war, imperialism, conservatism, anti-globalization, gentrification, anti-racism, anti-sexism, class and classism, gender equality, racial equality, eugenics, animal rights, free-thought and non-conformity

Most of the artwork here has been taken from concept art of either of the examples listed.

Sorted from most futuristic to pre(historic). Yes, the list is long.

Cyberpunk

We start with the OG punk genre, the one after which all other punk genre were named. Yes, you could argue that in fact the two genre following are more futuristic – but Cyberpunk kinda just had to start the list.

As a genre: Given that Cyberpunk had its start completely in literature it is the best defined in this regard. Taking place in a late stage capitalist dystopian world in which most is owned by megacorps who don’t follow anyone’s laws but their own, the protagonists usually are social outcasts fighting against their own oppression, trying to keep themselves alive in a world hostile to them. With cybernetics always being a core of the genre, it also tends to deal with the question of humanity in a “ship of Theseus” sort of way. How much can the human body be altered, before the human vanishes?

As an aesthetic: Cyberpunk is the most punk in terms of aesthetics, really. There is a lot of punk and grunge going on in terms of character design. Neon hair colors, fishnets and thorn up jeans jackets can be found here. As well as of course cybernetics on the characters. The world usually is a megacity with a stark divide between rich and poor, tons of neon signs, a slight Japanese influence, flying cars and somehow a constant downpour of rain.

Punk-Factor: Cyberpunk is the one punk genre, where the “punk” was chosen very knowingly as a name. Usually the protagonists are “punks” fighting for their place in the world against a suppressive capitalist system. (Also, they usually fit the punk aesthetic, if they don’t wear leather dusters.) It should be noted however, that especially in newer western Cyberpunk often the punkiness vanishes more and more – for the same reason we have so little Solarpunk: media that outright confronts the problems of capitalism is just less supported.

Examples: Neuromancer (1984), Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology (1986), Snow Crash (1992), The Matrix (1999), Dredd (2012)

Biopunk

As a genre: As a genre biopunk is still fairly ill defined, as it mostly shows up as a subsection of Cyberpunk. Rather than the characters having cybernetic implants (or additionally to it) they are augmented on a genetic level. This can be all sorts of augmentations, changing anything from appearance to giving characters higher strength and agility, giving them claws or night vision, or in some cases even “magic” powers. Usually the genre tends to be set in worlds similar to Cyberpunk. In fact it might well be set in a cyberpunk world, only that characters with bioaugmentations exist parallel to those with cybernetics. Additionally, though, there is a subsection of this genre, that concerns reproductive rights.

As an aesthetic: Ironically biopunk is even less defined as an aesthetic. There is not a lot of biopunk art out there and most that exists can go in different directions. As such it often mixes elements from other punk aesthetics – like Cyberpunk, Steampunk or Dieselpunk – with an assortment of bodyhorror elements.

Punk-Factor: It is hard to define the “punkiness” of a genre, that barely exists for the most part. Usually, when it is set against a Cyberpunk backdrop, it might be very punky, but in other settings those punk elements vanish.

Examples: Ribofunk (1995), Altered Carbon (2002), Bioshock (2007), The Windup Girl (2009)

Nanopunk

As a genre: Like Biopunk Nanopunk mostly exists as a subsubgenre to Cyberpunk, often being set in a mostly Cyberpunk world, only that instead of or additionally to Cybernetics, the technology used to alter the human body is nanites. These serve the same function as the genetic manipulation in Biopunk, giving the human in question more strength and agility and at times more or less magical abilities. There is one common plot that comes up again and again, with an AI or megacorp turning the nanites against the people they inhabit or trying to control them.

As an aesthetic: Aesthetically Nanopunk does not have much in terms of its own identity. Most artworks relating to Nanopunk feature a similar aesthetic to Cyberpunk, with megacities and lots of neon.

Punk-Factor: This genre is so small, that it is kinda hard to judge the exact punkiness.

Examples: The Diamond Age (1995), Prey (2002)

Solarpunk

As a genre: Being another genre, that started as such, Solarpunk is a bit better defined. Solarpunk usually takes place in a world post-strive. It is post-capitalist and decolonial in its settings, usually featuring a world that has either formed against the backdrop of preventing climate collapse or in the aftermath of it. A lot of it features people rebuilding – or alternatively building communities. It always features elements about living in harmony with nature or trying to do so. So far, the genre is mostly defined by short stories, partly because there is still disagreements within the movement, how far a conflict can be taken to still qualify as Solarpunk.

As an aesthetic: Solarpunk has a very strong aesthetic definition, mostly featuring all sorts of cities and urban areas, that incorporate natural elements into the urbanity, with greenery growing on roofs and concrete car-centric streets being replaced with more natural, walkable areas. The character design aesthetic is not quite as clearly defined, but usually features natural materials and patterns usually seen within indigenous art.

Punk-Factor: Contrary to what many say, Solarpunk is fairly punk, as it very much embraces the entire anti-hierarchical, anti-capitalist mentality. With the big difference, that the punk mentality is no longer counter culture, but the mainstream culture.

Examples: The Dispossessed (1974), Nausicaä (1984), Laputa – Castle in the Sky (1986), Princess Mononoke (1997), The Summer Prince (2013)

Lunarpunk

As a genre: Lunarpunk is pretty much a subsubgenre of Solarpunk, just as Nanopunk and Biopunk are sprung off from Cyberpunk. It is so far ill-defined as a genre, but the general consensus is, that it is set in solarpunk-esque worlds, but with a heavier focus on mysticism or spiritualism, at times outright including magic. It also tends to feature a lot darker places, being set in underwater or underground settings – or alternatively at night.

As an aesthetic: Lunarpunk is far more of an aesthetic than a genre so far. It features dark places, often with bioluminescent elements in it. Often featuring a mixture of black and dark blue with lighter blue, violet or light green elements shining in the middle of it. Mushrooms – especially glowing mushrooms – feature repeatedly in artwork.

Punk-Factor: Given that Lunarpunk is barely defined as a genre it is hard to estimate the punkiness in it. If it gets more stories, will those still feature the anti-capitalist and anti-hierarchical messaging we see in Solarpunk? This should be the defining factor. Some of the artworks use little aesthetics from the punk scene, but nothing much more.

Examples: Bioluminescent: A Lunarpunk Anthology (2023)

Hopepunk

Honestly, I had no idea where to put this one, given that it might technically be set at any time and place.

As a genre: Hopepunk is very much a genre, not an aesthetic. It has been defined as the opposite of grimdark by its “inventor/name-giver” Alexandra Rowland. The basic idea is to create fiction that instead of taking a dystopian, defeatist and violent approach, takes one defined by hope and to some degree pacifism. As such the genre can be set in any setting, real or fantastic. It mostly is defined by the protagonists taking opposition to cruelty and violence, fighting for a better world and, crucially, also partly archiving it. Other than in usual Cyberpunk, where the best possible ending, tends to be, that the protagonists get to live a somewhat better life themselves, Hopepunk aims to better the life at least for groups of people.

As an aesthetic: Being fully a genre, Hopepunk has no aesthetic associated with it.

Punk-Factor: Hopepunk is punk less in the sense of the protagonists or things happening within the story, which might or might not be punk, but was named such rather because it is considered counter cultural towards the gross of media at the moment, that often strives for a “realistic, gritty, grimdark” outlook on the world. Basically it is saying: “Hope is punk.” I will not make any judgement on whether or not this is true.

Examples: The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (2014), Mad Max: Fury Road (2015), The Good Place (2016)

Mythpunk

As a genre: Another one, that does not really fit into a temporal sorting system, because once again it can be set anywhere between the stone age and the far future. The basic idea is, that the story interweaves postmodern storytelling with elements from mythology or folklore. This can mean mythological, genre-traversing retellings, but it can also mean, that mythology seeps into any given story bit by bit. As such the genre with probably the most media in the subgenre is Urban Fantasy, which often borrows from mythology and incorporates these elements.

As an aesthetic: Mythpunk as an aesthetic is a bit strange. There is definitely a mythpunk aesthetic that exists, often mixing familiar elements with elements from mythology and folklore (at times also including quasi-folkloric works of literature, such as Alice in Wonderland and the Wizard of Oz). Often just a bit dark and twisted.

Punk-Factor: To be perfectly frank, for the most part, there is not a lot of punk to be found in this genre. While there have been definitely punky stories told within the genre, this is more a story decision than something inherent to the genre.

Examples: Pan’s Labyrinth (2006), Over the Garden Wall (2014), Inscryption (2016)

Dustpunk / Rustpunk / Desertpunk

As a genre: Kinda grouping those above all together, because people argue about what they might entail and in some interpretations they kinda are similar: Post-apocalyptic stories set in a world of sand and rust. Often featuring a loner character, having to go up against everyone to ensure his own survival – and at times being forced to learn, that the lonerness might not win him (and most often it is a him) anything.

As an aesthetic: Aesthetically this tends to be very much post-apocalyptic, maybe in some cases with some more classical punk elements added to characters and surroundings.

Punk-Factor: Given that there is neither a system to rage against – nor a new, less hierarchical system – usually there is not that much punk outside of some aesthetic choices. Neither tend those stories go into constructing worlds of mutual aid or working against oppression.

Examples: Anything Mad Max should count for this.

Atompunk

As a genre: Atompunk usually deals with themes connected to the cold war – in some cases directly, in some indirectly. Often it overplays the American ideals that were pushed for during the cold war era and portrays scenarios in which American Exceptionalism slowly reveals itself as the dystopia most punks already know it to be. Outside of this vague idea for the setting, the genre is less described, as there is less of a clear script an Atompunk story might follow. So, little description of who might be the protagonist and what their role is.

As an aesthetic: The aesthetic of Atompunk borrows heavily from the Raygun Gothic aesthetic. So, futurism, as it was imagined in the 1950s and 1960s, with heavy influences from late pulp age science fiction art.

Punk-Factor: The aesthetic in this is definitely not punk. The stories often have some vague punk ideas of recognizing how fucked up the world has become, but given the genre is fairly wide in terms of stories, it is hard to give a definite answer to how “punk” it is. One can definitely tell punk stories within this genre, though.

Examples: Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy (1978), Fallout (1997), Futurama (1999)

Dieselpunk

As a genre: Dieselpunk is once again an example of “strong aesthetic, but no clear genre identity”. Generally, Dieselpunk is concerned with the interwar period, but might cover either of the world wars. In some cases the genre features alternate timelines, in which one war happened and not the other, or in which another faction won, with the technological development being influenced by this as well. But as a genre it is not much defined. A lot of stories building on Lovecraft’s legacy feature Dieselpunk in some regards. And there is definitely a subsection of Dieselpunk stories centered around “what if Nazis won” or “what if Nazis somehow went underground and did their own technological development after the war”. Also, there are a lot of stories about pilots of war planes in this genre.

As an aesthetic: As an aesthetic Dieselpunk is more clearly defined. A lot of bare metal and the sorts of technology you would expect from this era, often with retro-futurist and art noveau elements in between. A lot of the fashion within the genre is defined by pilot and military clothing of the times, but at times also dipping into “roaring 20s” fashion styles.

Punk-Factor: In this genre I would generally say: “If the story involves punching Nazis, you might get a couple punk points – but otherwise this is not really punk.”

Examples: The Iron Dream (1972), Brazil (1985), Dark City (1998), Iron Sky (2012), Bitter Seeds (2010)

Teslapunk

As a genre: Yet another one of these, that exists mostly as a vague idea, with no clear definition. The basic idea is a world, that works on Tesla’s inventions. And as those of you, who watched Doctor Who, might know, Tesla sorta, kinda already invented the internet or had an idea of what it could be and how it could work. So a Teslapunk world is based in an alternate timeline, but might in fact go into light futurism. There is not much in this genre though with a unique thematic identity, as stories that use Teslapunk as a backdrop rarely have coherent themes.

As an aesthetic: The aesthetic of Teslapunk is basically “Steampunk, but with Tesla-coils and electricity”. Which is not a big surprise given that Tesla came from the same era that would also be the inspiration for Steampunk. So, we have a lot of Victorian fashion, maybe some light augmentation, airships, and – again – all the tesla coils you can muster.

Punk-Factor: As, again, I think punk is more about themes than aesthetic, this is once more not really possible to judge, because there do not seem coherent themes within the genre so far.

Examples: The Prestige (2006), Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (2011), Bioshock Infinite (2013)

Arcanepunk

Another one of those that do not neatly fit into the timeline…

As a genre: Arcanepunk takes place in a world, where both magic and technology have developed. In some cases both developed side by side, in others, we might have a technological world, that suddenly discovers magic by some happenstance. The fact is, though, that both exist parallel to each other or might at times be intertwined, with technology being powered by magic. This can exist at different technological stages, usually featuring settings inspired by the late 19th or early 20th century. But usually futuristic stuff that includes magic might be considered Arcanepunk, just as might stories that mix 18th century technology with magic. While also a vague genre, there is a repeating theme of magic being hoarded by those in powers and the poor and downtrodden finding ways to still use it in their own advantage.

As an aesthetic: Given that Arcanepunk’s setting is defined by the co-existence of magic and technology, rather than a specific technology, Arcanepunk has less of a defined aesthetic. Never the less, we have a part of punk aesthetics that often come up, as a surprising amount of Arcanepunk features characters with neon colored hair.

Punk-Factor: Another genre that is rather thin, yet, there is a surprising amount of stories featuring some punk ideas of fighting against an oppressive system and being counter culture to a main culture build around suppression.

Examples: Too Many Magicians (1966), Shadowrun (1989), Bartimaeus (2003), Arcane (2021) duh

Steampunk

Steampunk was the second genre to pick up the “punk” suffix and hence is as much responsible for the punk-punk as Cyberpunk as the originator.

As a genre: Being named as early as it has been, Steampunk kinda suffers the same issue as Cyberpunk itself. There is a lot of ideas there, but some are only vaguely defined. In general, though Steampunk always takes place in a world where the steam engine became the defining technology and was never replaced with the combustion engine. As such cultural aspects from the steam era, especially Victorian England and the Belle Epoche, still carry over for longer, than they did. So often we will see noble households based around similar values as the puritan Victorian English families, while the very poor are made to work in workhouses. At times we might also see themes of colonialism here. In some cases magic might exist in these worlds, as might electricity for some aspects. There is often a heavy inspiration from Jules Verne and H.G. Wells. Though it is still hard to define the “stereotypical steampunk story”, given that Steampunk offers a wide variety of stories, from adventure stories and romances, over to stories where people rise up against the Victorian-esque society.

As an aesthetic: Steampunk as an aesthetic is very much influenced by Victorian aesthetics and the time period of the late 19th century, mostly in the USA, Great Britain and France. But as all other punk genres it knows very well: “If it is worth doing, it is worth overdoing,” so steam-related elements are added to everything. Could

Punk-Factor: In the original idea for Steampunk was a lot of punk. “What if we took Cyberpunks ‘rage against the unjust system’ and made it 19th century” they asked. But given that the genre branched out so much, it is not necessarily there in all the stories. There is a ton of stories where people rage against that steam powered Victorian machine – but also a ton in which the Victorian world gets idealized and romanticized.

Examples: Thief (1998), The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (1999), Wild Wild West (1999), Clockwork Century (2008) – also half of all Sherlock Holmes adaption made after 2000 in any medium usually use Steampunk elements

Silkpunk

As a genre: Silkpunk is hard to define, despite there being a clear definition. The reason for this is, that the person who coined the term – Ken Liu – had a very specific idea in mind. He explains that the idea is of a world that has technology as language. In which form is as important as function, is made to speak a language all of its own. Inspired by ideas from W. Brian Arthur and Chinese philosophy. However, what the wider Science Fiction and Fantasy community made from it was “Steampunk but East Asian!” But given he coined the term (and also the alternative feels vaguely racist) I am going to go with Ken Liu for this. While Silkpunk will usually be set in an East Asian inspired world, the central idea is about the duality of technology, which will also be addressed within the stories.

As an aesthetic: As said above, the idea Liu had for it was a world that features some technology, but technology that is as much about form and communication through it, as it is about function. So the technology here has strong visual ideas. At least that was, how Liu intended it. Once again, the wider community made “Steampunk, but East Asian” out of it.

Punk-Factor: There is not a lot of stuff in this genre for now – however so far I do not manage to see a lot of punk ideas in it, even though some of Liu’s stories definitely feature the concept of challenging a higher power.

Examples: Dandelion Dynasty (2015), The Black Tides of Heaven (2018), The Tea Master and the Detective (2019)

Clockpunk

As a genre: Once again storytelling in this genre is not really defined, but the worlds diverge a bit before the wide adaption of steam, instead featuring mechanical devices powered by coils and springs and somehow kept alive, often at least implied through some form of arcane magic that gives “live” to these mechanical inventions. Most examples of Clockpunk, however, tend to show up as settings for parts of fantasy stories. Any fantasy world might have this “Clockpunk” area, where protagonists might travel. Especially games tend to feature this. While there is definitely a trope of the “mad inventor” often going along with this, few other tropes stand out.

As an aesthetic: The aesthetic of Clockpunk tends to take some inspiration from the early 19th century, but tends to add a lot of gears to everything, with even city wide gear constructions keeping things working. We often will find mechatronic characters, such as wind up soldiers or wind up dancers.

Punk-Factor: Once more, there are so few stories told, that it is kinda hard to speak about how punk this is. Most stories told so far, however, do not feature punk elements.

Examples: The Great Mouse Detective (1986), Hugo (2011), Clockwork Planet (2017)

Whalepunk

Please note: This is one of those genre, I would love to see more in, though so far it is barely explored.

As a genre: And you might ask: “Why do you even name those genre, that exist mostly in theory?”, to which I might answer: “Because I am a nerd.” As all these retrofuturists genre, Whalepunk imagines mostly an alternate historical timeline, where the technology that became defining was based around whale oil. This means that in Whalepunk often whalers or harbors play a big role, though as the genre is again very thinly spread, it is hard to say what “THE whalepunk” formular is. It seems there is a tendency, to mix some mysticism or magic into the genre, though, as the idea of hunting sea monsters often plays into it as well. Good chance that it could at some point merge with Cthulupunk (which I did not name separately, because most of it is either covered in Whalepunk or Dieselpunk).

As an aesthetic: The aesthetic of Whalepunk is basically “Steampunk, but with more sailors, ships and sea monsters”. There is definitely a bit of Oceanpunk mixed into it as well, with some aesthetics being somewhere between Steampunk and Dieselpunk. (Which is kinda ironic, because whale oil was mostly used in the early 19th century.)

Punk-Factor: And again. There so far is not a lot of connective thematic tissue within that genre, so exploring themes is kinda hard.

Examples: Dishonored (2012), Dredge (2023)

Oceanpunk / Piratepunk

As a genre: It really is hard to divide the Piratepunk out of the Oceanpunk, though some might call it different. The idea here is that this genre features stories mostly set on the ocean and often more heavily leaning into fantasy, than science fiction. While the worlds might feature technological elements, they will almost certainly feature magical elements of some sort. The characters will usually be seafaring one way or another and stories might involve any sort of adventure. There might be a storyline, though, about one company or nation trying to control the seas – often times through magical means – with the characters often unwillingly being made to oppose them. This genre might also take place in a post-apocalyptic setting with a flooded planet.

As an aesthetic: While the aesthetic is not clearly defined, there is a good chance that it borrows heavily from the late 17th and early 18th century and the golden age of piracy, when it comes to both ships and fashion sensibilities.

Punk-Factor: Pirates, at least as far as modern media imagines them, tend to be very punk, as they tend to inherently oppose any sort of government and what not. While the punk is not there in all of the stories, a lot of the most popular stories from the genre will feature at least lightly punky elements.

Examples: One Piece (1997), Pirates of the Caribbean (2003), Assassin's Creed IV: Black Flag (2013)

Dungeonpunk

As a genre: So, the idea of the genre is basically “What if Cyberpunk, but Dungeons & Dragons?” Usually set in a vaguely medieval world, this world still shows the same corporate corruption as your usual Cyberpunk world. Adventurers are just another resource to be exploited by the system, their day job involving going on yet another dungeon crawl. For this there might be some technology entirely powered by magic, with those magic items taking over the same functions technology might have in a Cyberpunk world. And yes, indeed some brave dwarf, elf or halfling might rise up and challenge the corporate dungeon syndicate. (As you might sense: Yes, this genre tends to be at least partly a bit of a parody of the punkpunk idea. Though it also can be played straight as “Cyberpunk conflicts, just that all technology is somehow magic.”)

As an aesthetic: This is once again one of the examples, where there is a clear idea behind it – but absolutely no clear aesthetic, as this genre might cover anything from medieval settings to a lot more modern stuff.

Punk-Factor: The base idea, being heavily inspired by the base idea of Cyberpunk, just from a very different perspective. But too many people read the genre as “Magic Technology, yay”, in which case, no, it is not punk.

Examples: Dungeons & Dragons can be played this way, also Final Fantasy VI – XIII definitely counts.

Sandalpunk

As a genre: I mostly include this for the sake of it, because this genre tends to boil down to “fantasy set in ancient Greece or Rome, but with vaguely anachronistic elements”. It might also include alternate history stories (even going so far as Science Fiction) based on the idea “What if Ancient Rome/Ancient Greece never fell?” There is no real overarching themes, even though I could imagine some interesting way one could build those up. So far, though, it is mostly a vague gesture towards: “SciFi Fantasy, but with more ancient civilizations.”

As an aesthetic: The aesthetic is usually just Ancient Rome or Ancient Greece, but with more magic or anachronistic elements.

Punk-Factor: Given the super vague nature of the genre and the fact that it seems more like a genre of hindsight (with most media being declared this having been released even before 2000)… Nobody wrote those stories to be punk. The one punk thing I can see about several of these stories is people challenging Gods, but… That’s about it.Examples: Hercules: Legendary Journeys (1995), Xena: Warrior Princess (1995), God of War (2005)

Stonepunk

As a genre: The basic idea of Stonepunk is, that it is set in a stone age world, but with the technology being pressed towards a very anachronistic end, which is often played for laughs. Basically it gives stone age people a modern seeming world, though not really. Often enough this is used to make a point about the modern world and parody it in some regard. An argument can be made for stories, that feature stone age technology people being somehow subjected to modern technology (for example through time travel or space travel) also possibly falling into this genre.

As an aesthetic: Usually the aesthetic of Stonepunk is one of an overplayed stone age setting. The clothing characters might wear are not what we know is historically more accurate but really just “everyone wears a pelt around their shoulders”. Meanwhile stone age tools get spun to be used as all sorts of modern technologies.

Punk-Factor: The genre does usually not feature punk themes. However, the nature of parodying and challenging the modern world tends to be punk in its own merit, I assume?

Examples: The Flintstones (1960), The Croods (2013), Horizon: Zero Dawn (2017)

That's it. That's the list.

Feel free to add to it.

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criptochecca · 7 months

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I do not want, you may well understand, to proceed today to a critique of the colonial system. I do not intend as a colonized man, speaking to colonized people, to demonstrate that the colonial state is an abnormal, inhuman and reprehensible state. It would be grotesque on my part to want to convince you of the unacceptable nature of colonial oppression. However, I would like to focus my reflections on the violence integral to colonial oppression.

The colonial regime is a regime instituted by violence. It is always by force that the colonial regime is established. It is against the will of the people that other peoples more advanced in the techniques of destruction or numerically more powerful have prevailed. I say that such a system established by violence can logically only be faithful to itself, and its duration in time depends on the continuation of violence.

But the violence which is in question here is not an abstract violence, it is not only a violence perceived by the spirit, it is also a violence manifested in the daily behaviour of the colonizer towards the colonized: apartheid in South Africa, forced labour in Angola, racism in Algeria. Contempt, a politics of hate, these are the manifestations of a very concrete and very painful violence.

Colonialism, however, is not satisfied by this violence against the present. The colonized people are presented ideologically as a people arrested in their evolution, impervious to reason, incapable of directing their own affairs, requiring the permanent presence of an external ruling power. The history of the colonized peoples is transformed into meaningless unrest, and as a result, one has the impression that for these people humanity began with the arrival of those brave settlers.

Violence in everyday behaviour, violence against the past that is emptied of all substance, violence against the future, for the colonial regime presents itself as necessarily eternal. We see, therefore, that the colonized people, caught in a web of a three-dimensional violence, a meeting point of multiple, diverse, repeated, cumulative violences, are soon logically confronted by the problem of ending the colonial regime by any means necessary.

[...]

In certain colonies, the violence of the colonized is the last gesture of the hunted man, meaning that he is ready to defend his life. There are colonies which fight for freedom, independence, for the right to happiness. In 1954, the Algerian people took up arms because at that point the colonial prison became so oppressive that it was no longer tolerable, because the hunt was definitely on for Algerians in the streets and in the countryside and because, finally, it was no longer a question for the Algerian of giving a meaning to his life but rather of giving one to his death.

[...]

What we are saying is that we need to close our ranks. It is necessary that our voice should be powerful not only by being vigorous but also for the concrete measures that could be taken against this or that colonial state.

[...]

No, the violence of the Algerian people is neither a hatred of peace nor a rejection of human relations, nor a conviction that only war can put an end to the colonial regime in Algeria. The Algerian people have chosen the unique solution that was left to them and this choice will hold firm to us.

Frantz Fanon - Why We Use Violence, address to the Accra positive action conference, 1960 (translated by Robert J. C. Young)

#frantz fanon

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seulszn · 2 months

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WHAT’S GOING ON IN HAITI 🇭🇹

Haiti is a country in the Caribbean and Latin America that has been exploited and oppressed by colonial powers and imperialist forces for centuries. Its people have suffered unimaginable horrors and atrocities. Haiti was the first Black republic in the world, and the second independent nation in the Americas and the first Latin American country It achieved its independence in 1804, after a successful slave revolt against France. Haiti's independence was a threat to the racist and capitalist system that dominated the world. It inspired other enslaved and oppressed people to fight for their freedom and dignity. Haiti was also punished for its independence by the colonial powers. It was forced to pay a huge indemnity to France, and faced trade embargoes, diplomatic isolation, and military interventions.

Haiti was also exploited by multinational corporations and NGOs, who profited from its cheap labor, natural resources, and humanitarian aid. They also imposed their agendas and policies on the Haitian people, undermining their sovereignty and democracy. Haiti was also devastated by natural disasters, such as earthquakes ( a earthquake they are still recovering from that happened in 2010 and then a earthquake that happened in 2021 that killed 1,419 people) hurricanes, and floods, which worsened its already dire situation. Haiti was also victimized by diseases, such as cholera, malaria, and COVID-19, which ravaged its population and health system. The diseases were often introduced or exacerbated by foreign actors, such as the UN peacekeepers who brought cholera to Haiti in 2010. Haiti was also marginalized and silenced by the mainstream media, which portrayed it as a hopeless and helpless case, ignoring its history, culture, and achievements. The media also spread misinformation and stereotypes, fueling racism and stigma.

Haiti was also betrayed and abandoned by its allies and neighbors, who turned a blind eye to its plight, or worse, contributed to its misery. The United States of America, in particular, has a long history of meddling and undermining Haiti's sovereignty and stability. Taking 500,000 dollars from Haitian banks and still collecting money. The United States of America has invaded, occupied, and intervened in Haiti numerous times, imposing its political and economic interests. It has also exploited Haiti's labor and resources, and blocked its development and trade. sugar refining, flour milling, and cement and textile manufacturing, clothing, scrap metal, vegetable oils, dates and cocoa are all things given to other countries by Haiti. The United States of America has also supported and funded the Core Group, a coalition of foreign powers that has interfered in Haiti's internal affairs, manipulating its elections, constitution, and government. The United States of America has also failed to protect the human rights and dignity of the Haitian people, both in Haiti and in the US. It has deported and detained thousands of Haitian refugees and asylum seekers, and discriminated and criminalized them.

Here are a list of countries who agreed to help the United States and Canada evade Haiti:

Germany

France (the same country that we had to pay just to be free)

Benin

Jamaica

Kenya

Yes I am Haitian my dad side is from Haiti. My fathers family moved up here to Seattle because Haitian was going through a small silent genocide and have been since they have been free from France in 1804, France took my countries money and told them that they have to pay reparations just for existing and they had to pay France just to be free from the French. And then America jumps onto the bandwagon and decides to take billions of dollars from Haiti. Haiti was once the richest country but became the most poorest because of ignorance.

My people are being killed everyday just for speaking out against their government, my people are being killed because nobody was their for them when the 2010 and the 2021 earthquake happened because “Haiti is a bad country and helping them won’t do anything” and they are still recovering from that to this very day. Families are being displaced, the violence is getting worse, innocent people are dying and are fighting trying to stay alive, women and children are being r$ped and kidnapped. I have family that live in Haiti that I lost all contact with because they are fighting everyday, and who knows if they are even alive.

Here are some important links to help you get a better understanding on what’s going on in Haiti and stuff to donate to

Donations:

Haitian Health foundation

Partner in Health: Haiti

Hope For Haiti

Haiti Aid

Haiti Children

Haiti Twitter Link for More Donations. P2 P3

Videos

FYI a lot of these videos are from last year but a lot of them speak really well on what is always going on and why they are going through it

Haiti Debt

What is Happening in Haiti

Haiti and the Rice

Listen Part 2

Free These countries as well

What we want to free in Haiti

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE TAKE THE TIME OUT OF YOUR DAY TO AT LEAST LOOK AT THESE LINKS. For the sake of My dad and the sake of my family I want to see them happy they wanna go home but won’t be able to until Haiti is free I will update this if I need to and please Like, comment, reblog anything is appreciated

#free haiti #free palestine #genocide #haiti crisis #haiti #☆— mj speaks

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flyin-shark · 10 months

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Well now you know I have to ask- why do you hate liberals?

Ok so the main issue is their support of capitalism. Capitalism exploits workers, greatly exploits the global south, gives capitalists (the people that own capital not the supporters of capitalism) way more than they could ever hope to work for. Literally look up the numbers on bezos and other billionaires it’s ridiculous. There’s a LOT more on capitalism but that’s enough for this post.

Besides their support of the system that exploits us, they fail to understand the connections between capital and the state. They’ll say things like “vote with your dollar” without realizing that people with more dollars get more votes. On a larger scale this means governments are going to side with capital. The nature of power structures is to centralize like this.

Liberals will say they support bipoc and queer folk without caring to change the power structures oppressing us. Sure they’ll sell rainbow pins on Etsy but they aren’t going to address the structural changes that need to be made to protect queer people. Sure they’ll support black artists but we can’t do anything about the prison industrial complex. Maybe putting even more cops on the streets will help /s

So much of what they do is performative. Look we painted Black Lives Matter on a street. We solved racism. Look all the corporations used rainbow logos for a month. Homophobia and transphobia have been defeated. Like at least you sound like you want change but only enough to keep enough people happy so the status quo doesn’t change.

Last point I’ll mention is that liberals always expect compromise. One side is fighting for their rights and the other wants that side dead. Liberals come in saying come on guys let’s be civil here. Surely there’s some compromise we can come to. My existence and the rights of others are not up for debate. Compromise is what got us the three fifths rule where African Americans were counted as 3/5 of a person. Compromise gets us the 13th amendment which outlawed slavery except in cases of s crime. Which then leads to the prison industrial complex and the prison population of today. Compromise is what gave the right the Supreme Court, ending abortion rights for millions of people.

That’s a good portion of why I don’t like liberals. Thanks for coming to my Ted talk.

#shark sayin stuff #196 #liberals suck tbh #they should get better ideologies #long post

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am-i-the-asshole-official · 7 months

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AITA for almost killing my 8th grade english teacher? (warning: racism, sa mention)

I (M16, 14 at the time, white (this is important later)) was part of the newspaper in middle school. The teacher running the newspaper (F… 50? 60? i have no idea) was always really nice to me, and we got along really well. I was ecstatic to see that she would be my english teacher in 8th grade.

That is, until the class actually began.

This english class we mostly read books about oppression and historical atrocities and genocide because our history class wouldn’t cover that for some reason (the reason is racism). It seemed like this teacher would have done a good job of teaching this material, but well. you can see where this is going.

a week into the school year the whole class saw that she was pretty racist - not like overtly racist; she sort of said she cared about fighting oppression and then… was a part of that oppression. like she’d say “i could never be racist” and then she would be racist. it’s hard to explain. she would always be incredibly weird about disciplining the Black kids in the class, blaming one guy in particular for like. every time a guy in the class acted like and eighth grade boy would act. she was also really condescending to him; she’d constantly make comments about how he couldn’t follow rules (which obviously isn’t true). she did this to an extent to all the other Black kids in the class as well; later when some of them went to the principal to talk about what happened they said they didn’t feel safe in her class.

additionally, pretty much nobody even stood for the pledge of allegiance (we were usually busy reading cause the library in that school was really nice and had a really good collection of books), and when they did they’d never actually say it. this teacher had a problem with this, and every time she saw absolutely nobody in the class standing for the pledge of allegiance, she’d make the entire homeroom (oh yeah i was in her homeroom too, forgot to mention that) tell her why they didn’t for literally the entire class period. Every time someone mentioned systemic racism or racist history she’d butt in either saying “my parents were immigrants and they stood for the pledge” or she’d start talking about her gay son. some kids told stories of being called slurs when they were younger. some kids cried. she would always bring up her gay son as a rebuttal. and i get that being gay is hard, i’m gay myself, but that is not in any way applicable to the situation at hand here. This happened on three separate occasions - sometimes a single person would stand for the pledge just so there was at least one person doing it and so we wouldn’t have to have that conversation.

And then there was the actual teaching. oh boy. so, as i said before, almost all of our books in this class were about some sort of historical atrocity because the history class didn’t have time for it apparently. and uh. uhhhhhhh yeah. with this teacher it was not a good experience.

We had read books about racism for summer reading and we were reading the novel Chains at the beginning of the school year, and the teacher would always talk about how “resilient” the characters in the books were and how they made the best of their situations and fought back, but never about how these characters should have never had to be in these situations in the first place and WHO PUT THEM IN THESE SITUATIONS, WHAT SYSTEMS PUT THEM IN THESE SITUATIONS YOU KNOW THE KIND OF STUFF ONE WOULD NEED TO KNOW FROM A COURSE LIKE THIS TO MAKE SURE HISTORY DOESNT REPEAT ITSELF. Later in the year we read Warriors Don’t Cry and it went exactly how you’d expect. “Resiliency”. Also worse than you’d expect. The teacher victim blamed the author, a real ass person writing about real fucking events, for almost being assaulted at a young age. And though we focused more on the systems of oppression, thankfully, we also watched and interview with the little rock nine and some of the people who harassed them in school, and one of them, a white woman, said the n word and refused to apologize. and this teacher defended her???? On another occasion we had a lesson about feminism and we read some of Sojourner Truth’s writing, and she interpreted it as solely being about womanhood and not race - and when I tried to talk about how race is an important factor in the message of one of the speeches, the teacher called my parents. We also read books about the holocaust and this teacher was surprisingly respectful throughout the whole thing. No victim blaming, no talk of resilience, nothing.

I had talked to her about all of this before. We knew each other from the newspaper, and it even seemed like I was her favorite student. She would not budge. Sometimes she even made the argument that I was smarter than the other kids, that I cared more than the other kids, that I would notice these things and care about them but other kids wouldn’t and I should just shut up because nobody understands me because i’m just so smart. which made me fucking pissed. i don’t care any more than the other kids who told you stories of being harassed and ridiculed at 8:30 am on a weekday so that the whole class could excercise their freedom of speech. i’m not any smarter than the other kids who cited countless examples of the atrocities this country committed against people of color to you who you didn’t listen to. in fact, i’m not even that smart. i’d say i’m kind of an idiot. and i want to be an idiot, because then i’m not put on a pedestal to push other people down.

This happened two years ago so i don’t exactly remember the order in which these next three events happened.

Since during these talks sometimes i’d start to cry, in may my french teacher asked me if i wanted to transfer to her homeroom and i did. It was a lot better there.

Around this time about eight of the kids from my old homeroom went to the principal to talk about this teacher and how her class made them feel unsafe.

Anyway, my backpack is very heavy. I usually have a lot of books in there, until this year I used five subject notebooks, I never clean out my folders and I brought a laptop as well. Even with all this though, my backpack always ends up being heavier than I expected.

So, one day my anger toward this teacher boiled over. On my way out of english class, when she went to say goodbye to me, I shoved her to the side with my backpack. It turns out that broke her hip, and she was out of school for two weeks. When she came back she said she had almost died in the hospital. She also announced her retirement, and that she was going to go and “end racism”, ironically. She knew I was the one who hit her, but she didn’t say anything about that. I was still her favorite, apparently. It left a bad taste in my mouth that she still thought of me like this. Eventually I graduated from that school and I haven’t seen her since.

tldr: A teacher of mine was racist and making a lot of the kids in the class feel unsafe, and she tried to keep me from arguing with her about it, so I hit her with my backpack and broke her hip, almost killing her.

AITA???

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

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swolesome · 1 month

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What if I told you that the antidote to Islamophobia isn't Antisemitism?

CW for this post (you have seen the title.) I feel like this shouldn't need explaining, but merciful Brigid, some of the shit I have seen. It's time for Led Tasso to come out. I'm not Jewish, let's just get that out of the way first, but my position on Palestine is largely informed by Jewish people who have been protesting for decades about the horrific treatment of Palestinians being done by a settler colonial state appropriating their religion, culture, language, and trauma. Fascist governments weaponizing fear and hiding behind religion is a well known tactic, and the fact that so many people have put this readily available information from their minds, specifically in this conversation, speaks to how incredibly pernicious antisemitism really is. I'm treading lightly here because as someone who's not Jewish, it really isn't my place to explain the cultural complexities, trauma, or general experiences of Jewish people. But if you haven't seen those discussions crossing your feed, you should be looking inward and asking why. Because if you're not invested in Jewish voices right now (or in general), that's a red flag for the kind of rhetoric you've internalized and the struggles you take seriously. The position I can speak from, however, is one of being committed to challenging all forms of systemic violence and oppression. So from that stance, and I cannot stress this enough: If you are fighting for some at cost to others, you are reinforcing oppression. It is wild to me that "Nazi" has come to mean "The worst thing a person can be" without recognition of the fact that the ideology is inherently antisemitic, that this is its centrepiece, that Jews are the number one target. This separation is, once again, an example of how insidious this brand of hatred really is--blatant erasure of the way Jewish people are uniquely targeted. I know a lot of trans people follow me, so here's a fun fact: You know the "Doctors are transing our kids to damage fertility rates!" conspiracy? You can thank antisemitism for that, too! It's literally just a rebrand of the Great Replacement conspiracy, which is modernized "protection of Aryan bloodlines." The most recent chapter of "My Life as A Bigot" by Joanne Klan Rowling isn't just another gleeful display of her hatred of trans people, it's another addition to the laundry list of antisemitic beliefs and talking points she's been peddling for years. The Charlottesville "unite the right" Nazi rally was spurred on by the removal of confederate statues and anti-Black racism. What is it they were chanting, again? Anyone remember? Any of this ringing a bell? OH RIGHT. "Jews will not replace us." So many other forms of systemic violence are steeped in the poisonous rhetoric of antisemitism. Acting like this isn't the case damns our Jewish siblings who need us while weakening our understanding of the oppressive forces we're fighting. "One struggle" includes all of us. The fact that the Likud government uses accusations of antisemitism as a cover for their violence should make you more diligent about condemning antisemitism, not less. Because letting them weaponize something that is already so widespread and destructive makes it that much harder to dismantle.

Do not stop talking about Palestine. Do not stop speaking up against the horrors of settler colonial violence. But if you can't do this without throwing another group of oppressed people under the bus, you need to question where you learned your resistance tactics, because the company you're keeping there should disgust and terrify you.

#enough is enough #antisemitsm tw #seriously what the fuck #fuck jkr #none of us are free until all of us are free #stop antisemitism

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shuttershocky · 2 years

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I see conversations about people being tired of fantasy works having fantasy racism bc other than often not being handled well, the presence of it implies there is a valid reason for it kinda like how ogres are often treated as pure evil. Thinking about Arknights, I think Oripathy manages to avoid the issues? Systemic prejudices against the infected like classism, ableism, & they make statements with it all & have nuance, it's not just racism for the sake of it but real + complex issues in Terra

I understand your point but Arknights very much does have fantasy racism with the Sarkaz. It takes a backseat to general oripathy discrimination and hidden by the fact that plenty of the main cast is Sarkaz, but you have lines from Meteorite for example stating her surprise that Rhodes Island hired Sarkaz like her in public-facing jobs.

I do like though how Arknights handles the topic of racism towards the Sarkaz. They're shown to actually be a hugely diverse group of people, they're the minds behind the whole Rhodes Island project (Theresa, Closure, and Warfarin are all Sarkaz), and the "reason" for their discrimination isn't because they have superpowers (fucking everyone does) or otherwise are naturally dangerous, it's because they are simply different (everyone else represents an animal, while a Sarkaz is a mythological monster).

Fantasy racism is often eyerolling because it's usually like "In this world the race called Normies are discriminatory towards The Exploders, a race that eats the brains of passerby and then explode. However, when this Normie cop finds a ten year old Exploder lost in his backyard, they will go on an adventure to break down the walls of society, and hopefully not explode."

Arknights explores the topic of the Sarkaz with some nuance, and the careful explanation that the reasons they continue to be discriminated against today came about BECAUSE of their oppression. They are often mercenaries and hired muscle, because there are no other jobs for them. Many are depressed, cynical, and violent from living such a hard life where their lives are seen as expendable, further enforcing the stereotype of Sarkaz as a race of warmongers. Their only land to call their own was ravaged by foreign invasions and then by a civil war.

Even Buldrokkas'tee's entire backstory was about Sarkaz oppression. During Theresa's reign over Kazdel he brought his clan with him to Ursus seeking a better life for them (keep in mind Vigilo called Theresa a great war hero, implying her reign or the leadup to it was marked by war with other nations), and when they arrived in Ursus they were thrown to the frontline of a demonic invasion, made to fight horrifying and inhuman monsters to prove they were worthy of Ursus. It's almost understandable why Buldrokkas'tee sternly told his son not to rock the boat, not to protest the Ursus government's treatment of the infected: they had already fought so hard and sacrificed so much just to get here, just to be citizens.

It's also why Rhodes Island as a creation of a Sarkaz venture is important to the games' themes. Almost every single nation in Terra is a complete dystopian nightmare and yet from the most beaten, oppressed, and discriminated people comes a genuine effort to Make Things Better. Not only does RI reject the status quo of status and power by being a community effort where everyone works according to what they can do and is given according to what they need, they're also the most advanced Oripathy research institute on the planet because of the Sarkaz's own long intertwined history with the disease.

It's a fantasy, in a way. "Yeah you all treated us like garbage but we'll save you anyway while saving ourselves, fuck it. This pandemic will kill us all if we don't."

#arknights

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arcaneillusion · 3 months

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illyrian women being given the opportunity to train while nothing is done to challenge the systems behind their oppression has similar implications to women being given greater opportunities in paid employment while capitalism, racism & patriarchy remain fully intact.

it seems ‘progressive’ on the surface but in reality it:

a) does very little to combat the systemic causes of oppression;

b) merely results in what some sociologists call the dual burden, or women’s triple shift.

essentially, in heterosexual relationships, gender roles have remained largely unchanged, with women continuing to do the vast majority of housework and child-rearing. thus, the move into employment means that women now typically have two jobs (unpaid domestic labour and paid work) to their male partner’s one (paid work). this is the dual burden that many women face under capitalism.

the triple shift is a similar concept; however, it also considers women’s role in carrying out the emotional labour necessary to maintain close bonds within the (nuclear) family unit. this notion instead suggests that women have three jobs (paid employment, unpaid domestic tasks and emotional labour) to their male partner’s one.

there’s a lot of evidence to support both theories, but that’s not the point of this post.

to relate this back to acotar: rhysand giving illyrian women the opportunity to train is about as effective in alleviating their subjugation as access to paid employment was for women.

to be clear, i’m not saying that women shouldn’t be in paid employment (obviously), nor am i suggesting that access to work has done nothing to help improve women’s lives.

perhaps a better way of framing it would be this: did patriarchy collapse when women were granted access to the workplace? did paid employment ‘solve’ gender inequality? it has been decades since women started to transition into paid work, and is misogyny (and a whole other host of issues that stem from patriarchy) any less prevalent?

rhysand granting illyrian women access to training while the roots of their subjugation remain intact simply creates a dual burden. now, instead of just doing the domestic labour, they get to learn to fight so they can go die in wars waged by a ruler that cares very little for their existence beyond their use as cannon-fodder. yay! feminism!

there is obviously room here for a much more in-depth conversation about capitalism, racism and patriarchy & whether such systems are truly any weaker than in previous decades as opposed to having just changed forms/adapted to the modern world. additionally, much more can be said about the subjugation of the illyrians in acotar and rhysand’s role in it, and parallels can be drawn between this and real world contexts. but, for the sake of brevity, i’ll leave that for another time.

my main point here is simply that illyrian women being allowed to train causes further harm and very little progress. they face oppression at the hands of illyrian males, but all illyrians are oppressed by the unequal hierarchy of power that dominates the night court - a hierarchy that rhysand sits at the very top of.

just as in our world patriarchy will continue to function so long as racism and capitalism do too, so will, in the night court, the subjugation of illyrian women continue so long as the unequal distribution of power persists.

rhysand cannot, and will not, fix a problem when said problem is merely a symptom of his power. if illyrian liberation is contingent on the abolition of unequal hierarchies of power, it is therefore contingent on the abolition of rhysand’s position as high lord. freedom for the illyrians is quite literally against his interests.

any solutions he attempts to provide (such as granting access to training) are about as helpful as sticking a plaster on a broken bone.

#anti sjm #anti rhysand #anti acotar #acotar analysis #this has been sitting in my drafts for a while now #i’m not great at articulating my thoughts so apologies if anything is unclear

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verycleverboy · 1 year

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Almost thirty-four years after Donald Trump took out a full-page ad in New York newspapers calling for the return of the death penalty in the wake of the case of a group of young African-American men branded the “Central Park Five”, and a few days after Trump was charged with thirty-four felony counts, one of the now-Exonerated Five took out a full-page ad of his own. The full text follows:

BRING BACK JUSTICE & FAIRNESS. BUILD A BRIGHTER FUTURE FOR HARLEM!

On May 1, 1989, almost thirty-four years ago, Donald J. Trump spent $85,000 to take out full-page ads in The New York Times, New York Daily News, New York Post and New York Newsday, calling for the execution of the Central Park Five — an act he has never apologized for, even after someone else confessed to and was convicted of the crime, the convictions of all five of us were overturned, and we were renamed the Exonerated Five.

Instead, Mr. Trump has often doubled-down. A few weeks after taking out the ad, he went on CNN and stated: "I hate these people and let's all hate these people because maybe hate is that we need if we're gonna get something done."

Even after our exoneration and acknowledgment by the government that we had been wrongfully convicted, Mr. Trump continued to incite animus against me, my peers and our families. In 2013 — over a decade after our exoneration — Trump called the Ken and Sarah Burns Central Park Five documentary "a one-sided piece of garbage," and when asked how he felt now that we were shown to be innocent, responded: "Innocent of what?"

In 2014, the City of New York finally reached a settlement with the members of the Exonerated Five, awarding at compensation to help us rebuild our lives after so many years were taken from us. But even that acknowledgement from the city wasn't enough for Trump to see five young Black and Latino men as anything other than criminals, saying "settling doesn't mean innocence."

Note, after several decades and an unfortunate and disastrous presidency, we all know exactly who Donald J. Trump is — a man who seeks to deny justice and fairness for others, while claiming only innocence for himself.

Being wrongfully convicted as a teenager was an experience that changed my life drastically. Yet I am honored when people express how deeply they connect with my story.

It matters because, while my experience may have been extreme, I have lived through a form of trauma that many of us experience in some way every day throughout our country. My past is an example of systemic oppression imposed by the injustice system.

But the problems our community faced when my name was splashed across the newspapers a generation ago — inadequate housing, underfunded schools, public safety concerns, and a lack of good jobs — became worse during Donald Trump's time in office.

I am trying to change that, by working with so many other dedicated community members to build a better future for everyone, both here in Harlem and across the country.

Here is my message to you, Mr. Trump: In response to the multiple federal and state criminal investigations that you are facing, you responded by warning of "potential death and destruction," and by posting a photograph of yourself with a baseball bat, next to a photo of Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg. These actions, just like your actions leading up to the January 6 insurrection at the U .S. Capitol, are an attack on our safety.

Thirty-four years ago, your full-page ad stated, in all caps: "CIVIL LIBERTIES END WHEN AN ATTACK ON OUR SAFETY BEGINS."

You were wrong then, and you are wrong now. The civil liberties of all Americans are grounded in the U.S. Constitution, and many of us fight every day to uphold those rights, even in the face of those like you who seek to obliterate them.

Now that you have been indicted and are facing criminal charges, I do not resort to hatred, bias or racism — as you once did.

Even though thirty-four years ago you effectively called for my death and the death of four other innocent children, I wish you no harm.

Rather, I at putting my faith in the judicial system to seek out the truth. I hope that you exercise your civil liberties to the fullest, and that you get what the Exonerated 5 did not get — a presumption of innocence, and a fair trial.

And if the charges are proven and you are found guilty, I hope that you endure whatever penalties are imposed with the same strength and dignity that the Exonerated Five showed as we served our punishment for a crime we did not commit.

--Yusef A. Salaam

#yusef salaam #Donald Trump #trump indictment #trump arraignment

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ambivalentpsychopomp · 8 days

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Op is annoying as hell (dude still uses "i/p") but this is actually a good point. A lot of people in leftist circles have such a surface level/limited understanding of colonial dynamics that they can't comprehend the fact that Israel is an oppressive entity, coexisting with the fact that Jewish indigeneity to eretz yisrael is valid and real.

I think because of our ancient (and deeply spiritual/ religious) connection to eretz israel, many Jews are automatically conditioned to shut down any notion of "coloniser" accusations. But let's not kid ourselves, the Zionist movement was proudly colonial from the start and there's no way around that no matter how many politically lukewarm liberal infographics we post.

Indigenous experience (in relation to colonialism) is a socially constructed position that only exists within a specific systemic structure. Palestinians are the colonised people, they are the people currently suffering the most direct effects of colonialism and there is no way around that. In that way, among many others, they are indigenous.

However, the dismissal of Jewish history / ancestral trauma that's so common among leftists in the name of uplifting the Palestinian struggle IS very exemplary of a kind of black and white thinking that is pretty antithetical to actually deconstructing systemic injustices.

Modern day Medinat Israel only exists because of the centuries of trauma, exile, discrimination and genocide that the Jewish people have gone through.

The existence of a Jewish state was proposed as a direct response to our endangerment, and it is precisely because of antisemitic violence, which (arguably) still traces back to our original exile from Palestine, that Zionist Jews find so much comfort in the idea of a militarised Jewish state.

Dismantling colonialism means freeing Palestine AND allowing Jews to reconnect with our lost culture.

If you claim to support Palestinian liberation but in the same breath deny Jewish history or say shit about how modern Jews have no culture, or no meaningful connection to the holy land because they're "descended from converts" or because they "look white" you are not being ideologically consistent and you are participating in actually legitimate antisemitism.

I understand where these attitudes come from, Israel’s PR is pretty fucking misleading going on about “western values” and “the people of light vs the law of the jungle” and this is because, like I said, Israel IS objectively a racist, genocidal, colonial entity. However your criticisms of Medinat Israel should not be targeting the entirety of Jewish history. Israel has existed for a couple of decades. We have existed for thousands of years, and been pretty fucking oppressed for most of them.

Don’t start denying one racism in the name of fighting another one.

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salvidida · 4 days

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Everything about Scar's treatment in Brotherhood sucks so bad, but there was something specific that has been bothering me for awhile. I hadn't been able to quite put my finger on what it was since watching FMAB for the first time recently (as a lifelong 03 fan). So I rewatched FMA 03 again and it finally clicked what it was that further upsets me about Brotherhood regarding Scar, besides the more obvious imperialist propaganda and racism:

The Elric's relationship to him.

Now obviously Ed's racism towards Scar in Brotherhood is pointed out frequently enough, but it doesn't stop there. It's the way that Brohood Ed is incapable and fully resistant to ever bridging that gap besides a deeply uneasy allyship-of-convenience. Al is also fully distant from Scar, besides their mutual antagonism in the earlier arc. And nothing more is really explored here between these characters.

And I didn't realize how much I valued the way 03's Scar, Ed, and Al contrast, overlap, mirror, battle, and support one another. Their fates and goals are inseparable. Alchemy's impact on the Elrics' lives is reflected with Scar's life and his brother's, as well as their familial relationship to their own brothers; many point out the similarities between 03 Scar and Al, with some noting how Ed and Scar's brother match each other. And the way the Elrics here are more able to engage with the harsh realities that inform Scar's choices and actions versus that of their place as Amestrians, and for Ed as an active member of the military who, despite wanting to cling to his principle of never taking a life, at times can see Scar's point of view and even, with reticence, sympathize with him (Al even more so).

There are layers to the relationship across these three characters. The tension and humanity that arises is a driving force in revealing the dialectics of this show. It's to the point that Al and even at times Ed defend Scar when talking with other characters towards the end of the show, and they even ultimately owe their lives to him (the philosopher stone and grand arcanum that allowed both Ed and Al to live, and for Al to regain his body). And the bond between the Elrics help Scar to forgive his brother, to speak aloud that he loves him in his final moments, before triumphantly accomplishing his goal against the Amestrian military, saving the remaining Liorans, and saving Al from becoming Kimbly's final bomb.

And there are other moments, such as Scar helping Al in Lab 5, telling him he sees his unmistakable humanity after Al helps him save Ishbalan refugees. Scar attempting to help Ed in Lab 5 after he refuses to sacrifice the prisoners for the Philosopher Stone, because he sees the humanity in Ed too, the humanity that can resist merely being a ruthless military dog and scientist. The way Scar treats Al almost like a little brother of his own, and when he mentions that Ed and his older brother share the same kind eyes- said at a time when Scar still harbours ill feelings for his brother's taboos and his sacrifice; which becomes all the more poignant when he forgives his brother before creating a Stone passed down to the Elrics. Scar mentions having sworn off specifically targetting state alchemists post-Lab 5, and this feels like his way of sparing the Elrics of his wrath, even as he holds fast to fighting against an oppressive system with necessary violence. The material here is rich for analysis and appreciation! It doesn't settle on more digestible, black-and-white character archetypes and plot conveniences.

There's a reason why the final outro for 03, where it flashes across four deceased characters who mattered to the Elrics, includes Scar. The man is in the ranks of Trisha, Nina, and Hughes! This isn't a mistake, the writers are intentionally showing the indelible impacts of these people who they cared about.

But with FMAB, it's exceptionally flat here and entirely derogatory. Ed hates Scar, and the narrative treats him as wholly right to do so. Scar needs to repent and reform to the side of his genociders, and never shall these characters interact or converse beyond putting a stop to Father. Scar was nothing more than a vehicle to reach his murdered brother's alchemic research, and an example to be made of any radical who so much as raises a finger against the State. All three of these characters want nothing to do with each other, and that's about as far as we get with them. In Scar's own words, he's nothing more than the 'ooze' (the poison) that arises from military conquest, and by the end of the show it's clear that, even with Scar saving the entire country that destroyed his life, to the Elrics, he will always be that 'ooze'.

In Brotherhood Scar committed what the Elrics clearly considers to be the ultimate sin: he killed Winry's parents, and no matter the circumstances surrounding that event, no matter what else changes, no matter which mass murderers, monsters, and genociders the Elrics can sympathize with, humanize, befriend, and forgive, Scar will never be anything more than an unforgivable murderer. The best everyone gets here is moving on and living seperate lives. Nothing more.

The fact that Ed openly wishes he could beat the shit out of Scar, he verbalizes as such while Winry patches him up and Miles lectures him about the value of reforming the military regime to include more racialized people for its imperialist complex. And the big mercy Ed in this moment offers to Scar is... Not kicking the shit out of him after all.

The juxtaposition between these adaptations, the cold hatred of FMAB versus the entangled, poetic antagonism and comradery of FMA 03 makes experiencing the former anime so depressing. Until watching Broho it never dawned on me just how much I truly appreciated the complexities between Scar and the Elrics in 03. Finding Scar's Earth counterpart at the end of Shambala wasn't just a fun cameo: it feels like a road that leads back to an ally.

At least now I have something I can more consciously enjoy whenever I revisit 03, while articulating yet another reason why I can't stand Broho.

#fma #fma 03 #fmab #this def needs editing but its late and i wanted to get my thoughts out there #the antagonism and humanity and comradery of 03 is achieved with so much subtlety and skill #it never ceases to blow me away #eta: ok so i spruced up the post a bit. this is still a bit of a messily written meta but eh #also i'll probably reblog this later on with further analysis and examples of how 03 handles the Scar-Elrics bond

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alpaca-clouds · 8 months

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Some Punk Genre Ideas

Writing that horribly long Punkpunk genre overview, that obviously missed some of the punkpunk genre, I could not help but think that there are some punk genres that are somewhat missing or could be defined. That is genres, that kinda use the punk idea and mix them with certain scenarios or retrofuturism. And I would argue, that these genre already somewhat exist in one way or another, but have not quite been defined.

Once again, I will go with this idea for punk ideology – and with the presumption that this somehow should play into the genre.

Please note: While I absolutely think that there is a ton of stuff that could be explored in regards of retrofuturist ideas based around non-white cultures and technologies (for example by defining more punk derivatives from Amazofuturism and Afrofuturism), that is nothing for my white ass to talk about. 😉

I will start with three anime derivates – that have most certainly inspired this kinda storytelling before…

Mahoupunk

As a genre: The magical girl genre is ripe for deconstruction, and sees more and more of the sort even in western media. While traditionally the genre often concerns young girls and their magical powers in a story of self-discovery and coming of age, it also usually has a lot of potential in terms of both who the magical girls fight and who they get their powers from. I propose that Mahoupunk could feature both stories of magical girl powers being used by those in power for oppression with others – both Magical Girl and normies – trying to fight this system, or of Magical Girls awakening in a dystopic world (possible Cyberpunk), trying to change it for the better. The wide variety of the way magical girl powers can be used would allow for a variety of storytelling opportunities, given the powers can be used both in terms of combat, but also in terms of mutual aid.

As an aesthetic: The aesthetic could play around with classical magical girl elements against a rather dark and gloomy backdrop. We see this already a lot in magical girl deconstructions, with the pastel colored magical girls with their hearts, ribbons and flowers against a dark skyline.

Punk-Factor: As I propose it, the genre would play around a lot with the question of “Who has power and who uses it for what?” The magical girl powers – or those, who distribute it – can be a tool of the powerful and the oppressors, but they can also be a tool for those who fight against this kinda oppression. And this fight against oppression and the trial of helping others are most certainly punk elements.

Examples: My Otome, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power

Note: The idea here kinda comes from my frustration over the lack of magical girl deconstructions. We have dark magical girls, yes, but most of them tend to be “magical girls but dark and gritty and people die”, rather then exploring the themes about magic and who gives it. Yes, Madoka and Uta~Kata kinda explore this a bit, but it never goes further into the who gets and who controls magic – the way that some of the following genre explore those themes.

Mechpunk

As a genre: Admittedly, this almost feels like cheating because the Mecha-Genre has been deconstructed about five hundred times already and kinda already does this on the regularly, which always makes me surprised that so few people dare to put it on Cyberpunk lists for example. What I propose as Mechpunk could also be called Gundpunk, because, let’s face it, Gundam has my ass pretty much covered. In a world where SuperRobo-style Mechas are the most effective type of war machinery, they will get used to oppress people and uphold the (often capitalist) status quo, while not rarely people from the lower classes might find themselves forced to pilot these suits. But being the effective war machines, they also can be used to break the cycle. As such the pilots might need to navigate their way between political strive and the fight for a better world.

As an aesthetic: Again, this genre feels like cheating, because at least a forth of all the Mecha anime out there play it like this – but it also has found its way into western media like this. I feel, we should embrace the aesthetic of the SuperRobo and those neat overstyled pilot suits, though. Put that in front of a rather dystopic cyberpunk backdrop and it plays a lot with the contrasts.

Punk-Factor: Again, fighting the system of oppression definitely qualifies as punk. I would also be super interested in seeing stories, where the Mechas are used in more creative and productive ways, such as mutual aid.

Examples: Basically two thirds of all the Gundam series out there, Bokurano, Iron Widow

Monpunk

As a genre: While the other two are examples of genre, that have been played around with a lot, I also have to talk about my kinda favorite anime subgenre, that has been explored too little so far: Monster taming. While not the first of its kind, Pokémon is probably the most influential part of the monster taming genre, but there are a ton of others out there. While it is obvious that this genre is heavily inspired by Shinto believes, I find it almost sad, that there are rarely any deconstructions – but Monpunk would be one of those. Monpunk would explore both the spiritual and the ecological aspects of the monsters. The creatures, that are inherently linked to their human partners, are exploited – be it by the system or their human partners themselves. Pokémon itself allows itself for such readings, and I would go as far that at least Takeshi Shudo’s novels can be read in a way that the Pokémon and trainers are exploited by a capitalist system. The genre could explore the bonds between humans and creatures, both as friends, but also as an exploitative relationship. It could also feature characters getting aware of the exploitation happening.

As an aesthetic: Something that to me really works well about the entire monster taming genre is the contrast between humans and creatures, so this is something that could be used in the design aesthetic. Slick human designs with kinda futuristic outfits meet wild creatures, that are monstrous and feature natural elements.

Punk-Factor: As so nicely pointed out by that Wikipedia description of “punk ideology”, there is also an aspect of animal rights and environmentalism to punk, which could be explored within this genre. And of course, going the Pokémon route, this could also be super interesting as a comment on capitalist systems.

Examples: The Pokémon novels by Takeshi Shudo, Kaiba, MyHiME

Note: While the capitalist reading might also work with “merch bound mons” (like the cards in Yu-Gi-Oh and its derivates, or the Beyblades), I do not think that this kinda story would quite work with what I imagine here.

Did I choose the genre based on starting with the letter M? No, I did not. It just happened to turn out that way. But I kinda find it fitting.

There is the general thing of course that a lot of western media still kinda struggles with these ideas in general. We do not get a lot of books or movies based around these genre in western media, even though I know there are quite a lot of writers who write about it. I think this is partly, because it is seen as “childish”, but partly also because people do not quite get what it could look like outside of the visual medium, which at least the mechas and mons heavily rely on in their storytelling.

Still, I would absolutely love to see these kinda stories told in all sorts of media. And god darn it, book publishers. Give those magical girl stories a chance.

Moving away from anime/manga inspired ones and going back to some more history inspired ones:

Knightpunk

Note: I know I am not the first one to propose something along these lines. I have seen the title Castlepunk and Plaguepunk thrown around quite a bit. But there is an argument to be made for a world developing technology from the medieval feudal setting onwards, with stories being told within all sorts of time periods.

As a genre: The defining feature of Knightpunk would be that it is set within an anachronistic feudal setting. There are kings and queens and nobility who hold power. The world has duchies and landlords (who actually hold land and not just houses). And most of the population are considered uneducated peasants used for menial work. While technology has improved, there are still some of the problems going around like the danger of famines. The church, too, has some hold over the people, threatening them with eternal damnation. And the knights exist to uphold the status quo. The central conflict of these stories would feature characters trying to either find a way they can exist in peace – or actually overthrow the system. There also could be stories told about the value of education, medicine and moving forward as a society.

As an aesthetic: I would argue that as an aesthetic Knightpunk already exists. There are a ton of stuff that play around with medieval fashion and of course armor and adding modern day or even futuristic elements to it.

Punk-Factor: Playing it as I imagine, the stories would be quite punk both in terms of featuring counter culture, and in terms of tackling themes of standing up against a corrupt system.

Examples: Nimona, Jupiter Ascending, Code Geass

Druidpunk

As a genre: I am surprised this is not a thing yet – but maybe I should not be that surprised after all. Druidpunk takes inspiration from the time between about 200 BC and 500 AD, with both the Roman colonization of Western Europe and the later Christianization of the area, which also included Pegan hunts. This might also be used as an inspiration for more futuristic settings build on those ideas. But the central conflicts arises from the violence that Roman and later Christian forces inflict on the Celtic population of these areas – and it would feature conflicts both of faith and of power within it, seeing that this Celtic population would often be seen as second class. It would also play around with Celtic ideas of fae and magic in a way of fighting the oppressors, as well as with ideas about the value of preserving knowledge through stories.

As an aesthetic: There is a respectful way to go about this aesthetic and one that is less so, and in this case I think both are kinda alright? You can go with playing with the aesthetics of real Celtic people of the time, maybe given them some visual updates and just lean more into stuff like the Celtic knot and what not. Buuuuuut, you also could just take your average Dungeons & Dragons Druid aesthetic and dial it up to 11. Bonus points if you use this against a more downplayed Roman aesthetic.

Punk-Factor: Admittedly, despite it featuring kinda a fight against colonization, I would argue this is a bit less punk and more about the general idea (and my frustration with how little we see written about this time from this perspective).

Examples: I don’t know if there are any books like this. You tell me.

Guillotinepunk

Note: How is this not yet a thing? I really tried looking for something along the lines of this idea, but… it does not seem to be a thing so far?

As a genre: The history of the French Revolution is a complicated one. Other than what you have been told, it did not quite fail, rather it petered out and then there came Napoleon, took part of the ideas and threw away others. But what if we use the ideas of the French revolution and tweak the setting a bit. Maybe this is retrofuturist and the Revolution just continued. Maybe the revolution happens within a more modern setting – but similarly as it did in reality. But there is strive and class struggle here. The people are rising up against the nobles, who have suppressed them for so long. Heads are rolling and for a moment things seem great. But as the revolution continues, the disagreements between the revolutionaries will become more and more clear, with factions turning against each other and a battle of ideas starting.

As an aesthetic: There are guillotines and there is the fashion of the upper class of the epoche, but taken to an extreme, that we did not quite see in reality. This might be mixed with anachronistic elements, that come to play within the aesthetic. Maybe some military aesthetics mixed in there as well.

Punk-Factor: I would argue that the French revolution is pretty darn punk. You know, those punk ideologies from above? Most of it was aspired to by the revolutionaries. Though I would argue this genre would be just a bit more, as it would also consider the rifts between different parts of such a movement – and how they might or might not be mended.

Examples: Cake Eater (2022) – I still think there gotta be others, because it is so obvious. But I cannot think of any right now.

Tsarpunk

Note: Yes, I am aware that Leigh Bardugo already coined this term, that so far is mostly used to describe anything written by her. However… You might see this coming, but… Let’s add a bit more punk to it, shall we?

As a genre: Tsarpunk could play around with Russian society before the revolution happened. There is a tsar and there is the nobility who owns, at the point, also most of the factories that are becoming more common. A lot of the poor people are serfs under them. There are people, who are willing to rise up against the system – and some of the nobility find themselves drawn between the faction of the tsar and the potential revolutionaries. Steeped in Slavic mythology, there might also be magic and creatures, that court the line between fantasy and horror elements.

As an aesthetic: The aesthetic could mix up the entire Slavic influence a lot more. Aesthetically Slavic culture is very interesting, as it has a lot of intricate elements. There could also aesthetic influences be drawn from Clockpunk, as such mechanations are tied to Russian of the time a lot.

Punk-Factor: Again, Revolutions tend to be pretty darn punk, so playing up the revolutionary angle will give some punk points in my book – though if the revolution is less played up, it might also be less punk as a potential genre.

Examples: The books of Leigh Bardugo, but I would also argue that in a way The Witcher qualifies as well.

If you left me to it, I would probably be able to name some more ideas for historically inspired punk genre. After all, there is a ton of potential there, even if we just look at European history. Especially given the parts that we are looking at so far. (Note to self: I kinda wanna write something about how some of the punk genre could do more with the general idea and setting…) I do also think that kinda the issue with how some people are tackling the punk genre so far is too much of “fantasy/scifi, but with [insert historical setting]”. Instead of going: “What if Cyberpunk, but [insert settings]?” So, there is not as much as theming happening, as there could be. And I do not even necessarily mean those anti-hierarchical/anarchical punk themes. But also more general… themes. You know? THEMES!!!

Also there is a kinda genre, that would also make for an interesting exploration…

Vampunk

Note: Alright, I admit it, this is here because of my near constant vampire obsession, but I also think that vampires are a wonderful vehicle to tell punky stories, based on the simple fact that vampires inherently serve often both as the oppressor/exploiter and the marginalized.

Let me start with talking about the duality of vampires.Vampires inherently are dependent on somewhat exploit humans in most scenarios, given they need to drink human blood. As such vampires have always an incentive to somehow keep humans around and somewhat dependent on them. Often enough they are kinda equaled to nobility or in more modern settings with CEOs and boards of directors. At the same time vampires in most settings also need to keep themselves hidden, fearing some sort of anti-vampire inquisition, with this often being kinda a vague metaphor for queerness.

As a genre: Vampunk would feature a world that has some Cyberpunk features. But the world is secretly run by vampires, who work as the world’s CEO and board members, using their positions to get easy access to the blood they need to survive. However, within the vampire society there is also a large divide between the haves and the have-nots. While the upper-class vampires have power, control and all the blood they can want, the lower-class vampires often barely scrape by, their access to blood regulated through those above them. As such lower-class vampires need to figure out, whether their true allegiance should lie with the vampire upper-class or the humans so unwittingly exploited by them.

As an aesthetic: I think the best aesthetic for this would be something along the lines of Gothic Noir with maybe some punk elements within it. A gothic aesthetic is a no-brainer for this genre, though.

Punk-Factor: The genre could be very much played for punk factors, by playing these stories were much as a class struggle and around the realization that the lower class of any privilege group has as much in common with the marginalized than with the privileged upper class. It should be noted, though, that one has to be careful in this genre. The Victorian vampire had some roots in antisemitic myths and if not threat carefully constructing a genre like this might lead to unintended antisemitic readings.

Examples: Daybreakers (2009)

Fun fact, I find it weird how Daybreakers was universally loathed when it came out in 2009, but recently I actually see a lot more appreciation for that movie. And I think it shows those ideas pretty well. I would also argue that the latter Underworld movies had some of those themes. And I would also argue it is different from usual vampire fantasy on the basis of being more thematically dense. I am kinda hoping that Castlevania Nocturne goes into this direction.

Finally going to some outright futuristic ideas. Things that might kinda exist already as parts of the other punkgenre (mostly Cyberpunk), but are kinda worth exploring on their own. And yes, those again have anime examples, because…

Virtupunk

Note: This definitely is a kind of genre that already does exist but has not been explored in the punky way a lot so far. At least not intentionally.

As a genre: Virtupunk is set in a world that has some Cyberpunk features. Corporations rule a good part of the world, though it might even look like our everyday world. (Because we life under late stage capitalism.) Technology has advanced enough that virtual reality is a thing in one way or another. As such a lot of people interact with the world at least partly through the virtual reality. But even this reality is owned by corporate interest. The virtual world is a thing all on its own, though, in a way that even those corporations running it do often not quite understand. Within it AI is developing faster than anticipated – and only some people seem to understand the importance of it. The protagonist fight – at times with the AI and at times against it – to retake control of this new virtual reality. A central theme is, though, how the virtual world, that kinda functions as a metaphor for the internet, allows people to connect and organize.

As an aesthetic: While I will argue that this is definitely something that exist as a genre, there is not much of an aesthetic so far. Generally, of course, VR headsets will play into this, but not all versions of this genre interact with the virtual worlds through this. The virtual worlds themselves can often be somewhat strange and crazy, breaking with established rules of the real world.

Punk-Factor: I would argue that the central punk theme in this kinda story is even less about the “rising up” part, but rather about the connection and the means of organizing. Though there will usually be some aspects about “taking back the virtual world”.

Examples: I would argue that the main example here is Mamoru Hosoda’s kinda “internet trilogy”, with Belle being the strongest example here. .hack// does definitely also qualify. Also: Serial Experiments Lain.

Augmentpunk

Note: Now, this is a thing that appears in Cyberpunk a lot, but is barely ever thematically explored. Which I find kinda sad.

As a genre: Like Virtupunk, Augmentpunk borrows a lot from Cyberpunk, though its setting tends to be a lot more toned down. The technology taking over in this kind of stories is Augmented Reality, which might either be accessed over devices such as glasses, contacts or masks, or even be just somehow inherently accessible. The AR exists within the real world – mostly – as an additional layer. Depending on how anti-capitalist the stories wants to go, it might feature the constant barrage of advertisement the characters are put under. More often, though, this genre will explore how AR makes the lines between the real and the virtual blur, at times completely destroying concepts of reality.

As an aesthetic: Augmentpunk loves playing around with the idea of overlaying different layers to reality. You will find a lot of holographic images floating over the world and characters in this aesthetic, often contrasting colorwise with the designs of the characters otherwise. There tends to be in general a contrast between a more mundane world and a strange augmented reality.

Punk-Factor: Usually these stories to not go far into the punk themes. There might be a bit with anti-capitalism or something about our addiction to technology, but that usually is about it. It still is something I enjoy, though!

Examples: Dennou Coil, Accel World

Those are just some ideas that I have. I would also be super interested in seeing what other ideas you guys have. How could we interweave those punk attitudes with other genre/settings?

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