(no subject)
happy independence day!
i was not planning on posting today, though i have this elaborate plan to detail my adventures and misadventures in the lovely state of new hampshire over the summer.
but this is an entry i've been meaning to post for awhile.
so - there is a facebook group at smith created by my friend, justine, called "I wish i was a feminist in middle school" and it talks about being self-aware, socially-aware and active about privilege, oppression, and the social structures in place that put some at an advantage, some at a disadvantage, and most that are self-perpetuating.
in around the first two weeks of my time in manchester, we were called upon to attend an immigration rally in the local part right next to main st. our group was all fired up, got our "everyone is an immigrant" and "honk for immigration reform" signs out, i bought a "no one is free when others are oppressed" button. and we marched along the park directing our signs towards traffic, hoping to get support from driver-bys. most people love a protest, even if they have no idea what it's about, most will honk. in manchester, nh, we got nothing. in fact we got the very opposite of support. for the most part, we were just stared at, but it was not rare to be yelled at with things like "go back to mexico!", "no! no! no!", or given the finger. it was crazy. new hampshire is very different for a new england state, it's 94-96% white, a refugee resettlement area, and very christian conservative. i've been having a hard time accepting it, and for the most part, i feel as though i stick out, just in my appearance, and also in the way i speak. this lady called me an illegal immigrant the other day.
but back to why i brought up the "I wish i was a feminist in middle school" group was because there were some little girls at the immigration protest, who knew of what was going on, were well aware of the dialogue and the lingo, and were some of the loudest and most vocal. this girl in particular made me totally jealous...
"I wish I were an activist when I was in middle school". i sometimes question if people are wearing clothing with guevara's image as a fad or if they truly know about his work, and are seeking to further promote his ideals. and even then, if people truly know about guevara and what he was about, would they even wear clothing with his image on it? but with this girl, i was immediately nostalgic and envious. no matter how much i read now, no matter how many protests i attend, or "intellectual" conversations i have, my level of experience or coolness will never match this girl's. she's started so much earlier than i have, her mother is very socially active, and i'm sure her daily environment is very much full of literature, art projects, protests, intellectual conversations, and things even today i am still unable to do b/c of lack of imagination, supplies, or company. sigh - the only thing i can do now is just learn as much as i can, go and seek out the social work, the conversations, and "intellectual" company.
hope everyone had a happy fourth, mine was fairly boring - again, partly the reason why i am just never going to be a cool activist b/c i couldn't think of anything to do. the picture says to me that our future is going to be ok, there will be people who care, and who will try and take care of us by righting the wrongs. and i can't believe i don't even refer to myself as the future anymore, i've already passed that point, i now look towards the middle school kids as the upcoming generation, i've become old news, in this world, the second generation - b/c there are definitely people my age having children already. as of right now, i do not want to have kids, but if i do, i want them to know, and be protesting as soon as they come out of the womb.
i was not planning on posting today, though i have this elaborate plan to detail my adventures and misadventures in the lovely state of new hampshire over the summer.
but this is an entry i've been meaning to post for awhile.
so - there is a facebook group at smith created by my friend, justine, called "I wish i was a feminist in middle school" and it talks about being self-aware, socially-aware and active about privilege, oppression, and the social structures in place that put some at an advantage, some at a disadvantage, and most that are self-perpetuating.
in around the first two weeks of my time in manchester, we were called upon to attend an immigration rally in the local part right next to main st. our group was all fired up, got our "everyone is an immigrant" and "honk for immigration reform" signs out, i bought a "no one is free when others are oppressed" button. and we marched along the park directing our signs towards traffic, hoping to get support from driver-bys. most people love a protest, even if they have no idea what it's about, most will honk. in manchester, nh, we got nothing. in fact we got the very opposite of support. for the most part, we were just stared at, but it was not rare to be yelled at with things like "go back to mexico!", "no! no! no!", or given the finger. it was crazy. new hampshire is very different for a new england state, it's 94-96% white, a refugee resettlement area, and very christian conservative. i've been having a hard time accepting it, and for the most part, i feel as though i stick out, just in my appearance, and also in the way i speak. this lady called me an illegal immigrant the other day.
but back to why i brought up the "I wish i was a feminist in middle school" group was because there were some little girls at the immigration protest, who knew of what was going on, were well aware of the dialogue and the lingo, and were some of the loudest and most vocal. this girl in particular made me totally jealous...
"I wish I were an activist when I was in middle school". i sometimes question if people are wearing clothing with guevara's image as a fad or if they truly know about his work, and are seeking to further promote his ideals. and even then, if people truly know about guevara and what he was about, would they even wear clothing with his image on it? but with this girl, i was immediately nostalgic and envious. no matter how much i read now, no matter how many protests i attend, or "intellectual" conversations i have, my level of experience or coolness will never match this girl's. she's started so much earlier than i have, her mother is very socially active, and i'm sure her daily environment is very much full of literature, art projects, protests, intellectual conversations, and things even today i am still unable to do b/c of lack of imagination, supplies, or company. sigh - the only thing i can do now is just learn as much as i can, go and seek out the social work, the conversations, and "intellectual" company.
hope everyone had a happy fourth, mine was fairly boring - again, partly the reason why i am just never going to be a cool activist b/c i couldn't think of anything to do. the picture says to me that our future is going to be ok, there will be people who care, and who will try and take care of us by righting the wrongs. and i can't believe i don't even refer to myself as the future anymore, i've already passed that point, i now look towards the middle school kids as the upcoming generation, i've become old news, in this world, the second generation - b/c there are definitely people my age having children already. as of right now, i do not want to have kids, but if i do, i want them to know, and be protesting as soon as they come out of the womb.