Use this post to discuss class issues and how they relate to feminism. I'm going to post a little bit as a starting point, but feel free to add your own thoughts
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I think it's hard for me to have a discussion solely on class standing and feminism ... since every experience I've had relating to the two has been in additional intersection with other oppressions [orientation, disability, etc].
Right now the issue I'm most having difficulty with is... because I am poor, I apparently don't "deserve" to have appopriate, adequate medical treatment. I'm on Medicaid [because yay broke and disabled!] and the amount of times that people have been disgusted with me for getting seen at a specialist's office is astonishing. It seems like we become less-than as soon as we fall below the poverty line.
Same with food. I also get food stamps, and because I have food allergies and hypoglycemia I buy expensive, good food... and some "junk" to carry around with me in case of an emergency. I get fewer weird looks when I buy frozen meals than when I buy scratch ingredients. Like I need to be fucking grateful to eat ramen and blow into a case of hives-and-a-migraine when I could spend the same amount [roughly] and get enough to last me four meals and help keep me feeling stable [and by extension wouldn't need urgent to emergency treatment for an allergic reaction, but that doesn't occur to them, apparently] -- but anything better than trash is just too good for me, I suppose.
[I will freely admit that I bought steak on food stamps last week, because a] it looked good, and b] I wanted it. those reasonings aren't good enough for everyone else so I'll throw in the "it was cheaper than the rest of the meat available in the entire store" line along with a hearty "fuck you" to anyone who tries to police my food choices.]
Man, B&Js. *fistshake* Now I want some and I don't have the energy to go to the store.
[all joking aside I really, really appreciate this. Just what I needed to hear since I've got a nasty attitude "problem" (a hearty fuck you to that label as well!) and it's hard to tell sometimes if it's just me, or if there's really a problem.]
I don't know if this relates exactly, but my father was disabled and living on disability. He had chronic and debilitating pain from a spinal injury, but could still move about. So, my mother would try to claim that if he ever tried doing any recreational activity then he clearly wasn't disabled and should get a full time job.
Disability factors into my experience a lot as well because it is one of the reasons I am poor. This post is sort of an experiment in discussion posts, so feel free to branch out from the main topic as much as you want.
I buy expensive things like steak on my food stamps occasionally too and it is really nobody's damn business. It isn't like buying expensive food means they give you more money. You get the same amount no matter how you spend it. Sometimes something as small as a nice dinner can make me feel less miserable for a little while. Anyone who wants to further restrict what you can buy on foodstamps may use "health" and "waste" as an excuse, but the real reason is they just want poor people to suffer for the sin of being poor.
I'll bet you can imagine the looks I got in the grocery store with two small kids in my cart buying a cake. The cake was for my oldest kid's birthday. Anybody who wants to deny a two year old cake on his birthday because his family is poor can kiss my fat ass.
I guess I should be glad I'm relatively oblivious to most such looks, as many times as I've been on food stamps.
It's really disgusting how people seem to think that simply paying taxes entitles them to decide what is and is not appropriate for those of us who need assistance to spend money on. These same people do not seem to worry a fraction as much about significantly larger expenditures, but when they see someone whose monthly payments might effectively include 1/10 of a cent from them buy things they do not approve of, it's time to bring out the angry disapproval.
I don't usually notice anything unless I have my kids with me. I don't know if it because my kids call attention to me so people are more likely to notice me in the first place, or if it is because people are more likely to judge mothers of small children who are on foodstamps because they think if you are poor enough to need government assistance you shouldn't have kids.
It's possible. I haven't gone shopping with small children in a long time, and I don't use my EBT card to buy things (it's cash benefits, not food stamps - although those will end in November because why do poor disabled people need their own money anyway?)
I always pulled my cash benefits out at the ATM when I got them, because the last thing I wanted to hear was someone ranting at me for using my food stamps to buy socks or something. They never seem to realize that there can be cash on the card and not everything a person buys with it is being bought with food stamps. Unfortunately I can't really do that with my actual snap benefits.
Yeah, I do the same. Also finding that a lot of stores (like CostCo) won't take the cash EBT at all.
I also need to put some of it on my debit card to pay for some things.
I think maybe after this latest news I should just cut everything I don't really need and stockpile for the winter.
I am so pissed right now. I don't know how I missed this when it happened, I've been trying to keep up with the Washington state budget shenanigans this year
Right now the issue I'm most having difficulty with is... because I am poor, I apparently don't "deserve" to have appopriate, adequate medical treatment. I'm on Medicaid [because yay broke and disabled!] and the amount of times that people have been disgusted with me for getting seen at a specialist's office is astonishing. It seems like we become less-than as soon as we fall below the poverty line.
Same with food. I also get food stamps, and because I have food allergies and hypoglycemia I buy expensive, good food... and some "junk" to carry around with me in case of an emergency. I get fewer weird looks when I buy frozen meals than when I buy scratch ingredients. Like I need to be fucking grateful to eat ramen and blow into a case of hives-and-a-migraine when I could spend the same amount [roughly] and get enough to last me four meals and help keep me feeling stable [and by extension wouldn't need urgent to emergency treatment for an allergic reaction, but that doesn't occur to them, apparently] -- but anything better than trash is just too good for me, I suppose.
[I will freely admit that I bought steak on food stamps last week, because a] it looked good, and b] I wanted it. those reasonings aren't good enough for everyone else so I'll throw in the "it was cheaper than the rest of the meat available in the entire store" line along with a hearty "fuck you" to anyone who tries to police my food choices.]
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[all joking aside I really, really appreciate this. Just what I needed to hear since I've got a nasty attitude "problem" (a hearty fuck you to that label as well!) and it's hard to tell sometimes if it's just me, or if there's really a problem.]
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I buy expensive things like steak on my food stamps occasionally too and it is really nobody's damn business. It isn't like buying expensive food means they give you more money. You get the same amount no matter how you spend it. Sometimes something as small as a nice dinner can make me feel less miserable for a little while. Anyone who wants to further restrict what you can buy on foodstamps may use "health" and "waste" as an excuse, but the real reason is they just want poor people to suffer for the sin of being poor.
I'll bet you can imagine the looks I got in the grocery store with two small kids in my cart buying a cake. The cake was for my oldest kid's birthday. Anybody who wants to deny a two year old cake on his birthday because his family is poor can kiss my fat ass.
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It's really disgusting how people seem to think that simply paying taxes entitles them to decide what is and is not appropriate for those of us who need assistance to spend money on. These same people do not seem to worry a fraction as much about significantly larger expenditures, but when they see someone whose monthly payments might effectively include 1/10 of a cent from them buy things they do not approve of, it's time to bring out the angry disapproval.
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I also need to put some of it on my debit card to pay for some things.
I think maybe after this latest news I should just cut everything I don't really need and stockpile for the winter.
I am so pissed right now. I don't know how I missed this when it happened, I've been trying to keep up with the Washington state budget shenanigans this year
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omfg. and of course I've heard nothing about this until now...
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I didn't need this today
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