I Haven't Really Been Engaging In Discourse Because I've Been Sick But I Do Have A Few Things To Say

i haven't really been engaging in discourse because i've been sick but i do have a few things to say now that some dust has settled and im not sleeping 16 hours a day.

the phandom is not a radical space. i dont think it ever will be. thats not saying we cant fight for fair treatment and community care within it, but as long as it is orbiting around two privileged white men it will not be a radical space. the only thing radical about this space and the only real tool we have in our toolkit is how we treat each other.

its disgraceful seeing that there are phannies out there throwing out racial slurs in inboxes. its disgraceful seeing us fracture over what is honestly kindergarten shit.

like rudy said, we need to remember that dan and phil are just some white guys from england. and honestly their biggest crime probably is not knowing many if any poc. theyre privileged people who unfortunately as time goes on and their wealth increases and they stabilize, they will share less and less in common with their fans. theyre going to become more unreachable than they currently are no matter how down-to-earth they remain.

so forget dan and phil. sure, theyve done shitty things in the past and will continue to do so. but insofar as we are fans of them, no matter how much they tell us that they listen to us and care for us, we will never have their ear to change in the ways that we want them to. and honestly? years after the fact apologies done out of fear of a hit to their reputation is not an effective means of repairing anything. it is a bandaid over a deeper problem we need to admit we do not have the means or the leverage to fix (at least while maintaining a space recognizable to us). not to say we can and should not hold dan and phil accountable, but we need to be realistic about what is really important to us. is it celebrities doing and saying the right things or is it us taking it upon ourselves to be better people?

so how are we going to hold people accountable for the things they do in the moment? how are we gonna call people in? how are we going to turn to the people on our dash and at our live shows and treat them? how are we going to log off and show up in our communities?

there is a conversation to be had here about fan culture and how it can/cannot coexist with the idolization of white figures, but that's a different post.

the phandom is not a radical space, but we can be radical people within it. rich white men will always disappoint you, so how can you show up for the people actually accessible to you? and really in the end if it comes down to it, do you have the capability to walk away?

art by the.gauntlets

gofundme for the family

Verified campaign master list (part 1)

Moataz Abu Sakran and family (verified by el-shab-hussein, nabulsi, and northgazaupdates, submitted by @moatazart) LESS THAN 3 WEEKS REMAINING

Suad Ahmad, her newborn baby, and family (verified by nabulsi and northgazaupdates)

Ahmad and family (verified by sayruq, submitted by @wlaabkr)

Eman and family (displaced to Egypt from Gaza) (verified by moatazart)

Eman and family (Sudan) (verified by fairuzfan, submitted by @emooz-8)

Alia, her son Yasser, and their family (verified by el-shab-hussein and northgazaupdates, submitted by @aalya1988)

Lina Zeyad and family (verified by nabulsi, submitted by @lina-zeyad)

Mohammed Almanasra and family (verified by sar-soor and 90-ghost et al, submitted by @save-mohammad-family

Ahmed Al-Nabih and family (verified by el-shab-hussein nabulsi et al, submitted by @ahmedalnabeeh11)

Amal Ashour and family (verified by el-shab-hussein nabulsi, submitted by @amalashuor)

Karam and family (verified by gazagfmboost et al, submitted by @karamrafeek)

Iyad and family (verified by 90-ghost, submitted by @eyadeyadsblog)

Fadi, Shahed, and family (verified by el-shab-hussein, submitted by @shahedsharif11)

Ahmed Alanqar and family (verified by sar-soor et al, submitted by @zinaeleenyamin)

Baby Youssef and family (verified by apollos-olives, submitted by @realmadred123 )

Amna Merwan and Family (verified by 90-ghost, submitted by @ismailmerwan)

Intisar and Bashaer Abushammaleh and family (verified by nabulsi, submitted by @bshaeromars-blog

fighting the war on rpf on the side of rpf

Name ten female characters you like, you get zapped if it's jsut a male character you call a babygirl or other feminine nicknames because I can't see people calling Lestat coquette again

happy pride month