On Anger as Resistance
From Tumblr's queerandpresentdanger:
I think another reason why it’s important to not be nice when speaking of your oppression-not just a prerogative but important-is to try to really convey the severity of what you’re dealing with. When you’re nice, it’s easy for the person you’re speaking to to assume that you are dealing with minor pet peeves, not seeing the necessity of them to look within themselves to think about the ways they’re contributing. It’s easy for them to dismiss what you’re talking about as trivial interpersonal annoyances that are not representative of larger structural problems. But when you’re fucking angry-when you let across how much pain you’ve endured because of this-it comes across. It’s serious. And even if the person you’re talking to shuts down, fuck at least you feel better, and that’s a minor victory in itself.
Instead of asking us not to be angry it’s more productive to think about why you’re not. It’s more effective to think about what privilege you have for not being angry. It’s more effective to realize the oppression you’re perpetuating by demanding we convey knowledge in a comfortable manner for you when we’ve likely spent our entire lives being uncomfortable. It’s important to recognize the privilege in demanding to control what type of information you’re given and how. Realize the violence you’re inflicting by doing this, supported by and representative of larger types of violence inflicted throughout our lifetimes. And realize when that I don’t comply with your attempts to control me it’s an act of resistance.
I'm just gonna leave that there so as not to speak over the message.
Also gonna link to this guy's other tumblrs: fuckyeahchubbyguysofcolor and fatnudes. The fatnudes one is racially diverse and features nudes of all genders. I think they are both pretty awesome.
I think another reason why it’s important to not be nice when speaking of your oppression-not just a prerogative but important-is to try to really convey the severity of what you’re dealing with. When you’re nice, it’s easy for the person you’re speaking to to assume that you are dealing with minor pet peeves, not seeing the necessity of them to look within themselves to think about the ways they’re contributing. It’s easy for them to dismiss what you’re talking about as trivial interpersonal annoyances that are not representative of larger structural problems. But when you’re fucking angry-when you let across how much pain you’ve endured because of this-it comes across. It’s serious. And even if the person you’re talking to shuts down, fuck at least you feel better, and that’s a minor victory in itself.
Instead of asking us not to be angry it’s more productive to think about why you’re not. It’s more effective to think about what privilege you have for not being angry. It’s more effective to realize the oppression you’re perpetuating by demanding we convey knowledge in a comfortable manner for you when we’ve likely spent our entire lives being uncomfortable. It’s important to recognize the privilege in demanding to control what type of information you’re given and how. Realize the violence you’re inflicting by doing this, supported by and representative of larger types of violence inflicted throughout our lifetimes. And realize when that I don’t comply with your attempts to control me it’s an act of resistance.
I'm just gonna leave that there so as not to speak over the message.
Also gonna link to this guy's other tumblrs: fuckyeahchubbyguysofcolor and fatnudes. The fatnudes one is racially diverse and features nudes of all genders. I think they are both pretty awesome.