[image description: combination of hammer and sickle and disability symbolism. a figure sits in the “sickle” part of the symbol, in a way that evokes a wheelchair, and is crossed by the hammer part of the symbol]

feel free to share this image i made 2 years ago. i may have gotten a shirt made out of it but i never intended it to be like, My Thing. it’s two universally recognizable symbols around which countless movements around the world have been organized. by combining them, i am indicating the inextricable links between struggles for disability justice and struggles against capitalist exploitation. i would like it if people would do with this whatever and everything they want to: make pins, buttons, patches, stickers, shirts, flags, spray paint, whatevr DIY project you want to do to promote the links between communism and disability justice. you don’t have to credit me. think of a catchy phrase to go with it. go wild. literally this is just an idea in image form, and the ways this image can and should be used are not up to me to decide. im not the first to have this idea, as these movements have historically overlapped in significant ways, so this symbol is more or less a reflection of the past as much as a potential banner for struggles of the future.

i am not capable of making anything more than a symbol, alone. but please feel free to share as i think this is a great conversation starter at the very least, for people who are confused as to why you’d combine the hammer and sickle and wheelchair symbolism in the first place. it’s a great way to educate about the links between capitalist exploitation and the exploitation and neglect of disabled people. and above all it’s an intuitive link that many disabled people and communists will understand and channel as they use the symbol, in whatever way works for them.

this is a well-written and informativ article, but it doesn’t mention the important fact that this was a tactic used by ACT-UP during the AIDS crisis in the US in the 90s. They dumped the ashes of AIDS victims on the White House lawn. now doctors are saying that with current treatment HIV is less of a threat to chronic health than type 1 diabetes. and about the same number of people hav type 1 diabetes as are HIV positiv in the US. it’s abt 1.25 million for both conditions. 30 million have type 1 or type 2 diabetes. and over 100 million are diabetic or pre-diabetic. more than a third of US adults. this is not to put down HIV/AIDS as a major, if not the biggest in living memory, healthcare crisis that happened and continues to happen to the poor and large parts of the world. but diabetes has been killing people for longer than HIV, and it will continue to kill them by the hundreds and thousands if we don’t recognize it as one of the most alarming healthcare crises this century has seen or will see. to see ACT-UP tactics being used to mobilize around different healthcare concerns besides HIV/AIDS is both inspiring and powerful, and is a good example of what i would call solidarity of practices. you can only use this tactic amidst horrible circumstances - people needlessly dying, or more correctly being killed off by negligence and corruption. that makes it all the more powerful as a weapon against the powers that are killing us. I am a type-1 diabetic and if i die young you’ll know why and who is responsible. they have names and addresses.

“I am a type-1 diabetic and if i die young you’ll know why and who is responsible. they have names and addresses.” 

here’s someting interesting for you too. marsha p. johnson had a close friend and roommate named randolfe “randy” wicker, and he is still alive and is still involved in activism. he has some very rare footage of marsha p. johnson and others who knew of her on his youtube channel. you should definitely take a look at them if you want to learn more and subscribe to his channel too.

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS: NAMELESS WOMAN: AN ANTHOLOGY OF FICTION BY TRANS WOMEN OF COLOR

Hi, we’re looking for fiction to add to our upcoming print edition of the anthology we released last year as an ebook. We’re currently interested in short stories in any genre written by trans women of color and trans/nonbinary people who are affected by transmisogyny. In order to submit writing you must be a dmab (designated male at birth) person who also identifies as a person of color.

The total length of your short story or excerpt should be between 1,000 and 7,500 words. Each contributing writer will be paid $100 for their work. You don’t need to have any previously published writing to be published in the anthology. See full guidelines at our site: http://www.transwomenwriters.org/submission-guidelines-print-anthology

Submissions will be open from August 24th to October 12th, 2016, which is a flexible deadline so get in touch if you need more time. Please email your submissions and any questions to twocanthology@gmail.com.  

hey, your friendly neighborhood disabled trans woman here. my partner and i need to pay rent soon but we’re running a bit low on funds. we’re both looking for jobs but it’s come up entirely dry. if you’re willing to donate it would be immensely appreciated. if you can’t donate, reblogging/boosting this is also immensely appreciated. thank you so much in advance.

i have the square cash app and paypal. my username for square cash is $valyrie and my paypal email is bpirtle7@gmail.com (legal name bullshit x.x )

again, we really appreciate any assistance is hugely helpful.

Inmates jailed in Flint forced to drink, shower in toxic water

Even though Mayor Karen Weaver declared a state of emergency in December, followed by Gov. Rick Synder in January and President Barack Obama a few days later, inmates in the Genesee County Jail in Flint were forced to drink the water, as well as shower in it, according to a new report from Democracy Now!

According to the report, the jail distributed bottled water to inmates after Weaver declared an emergency in December, but the bottled water only lasted a shockingly short amount of time.

On February 6th a student organization at American University booked Venus Selenite, a Black trans woman writer and performance artist, for a paid speaking engagement and to facilitate a workshop. However, Venus has not actually been PAID for any of the work she did, and has been given the run around by American University saying that they’ve lost her paperwork and essentially putting her through a billion bureaucratic hoops in order to not compensate her for her work. As a result of this, Venus has canceled an opportunity to deliver a keynote at another event on American University’s campus and now is having difficulty coming up with her rent this month.

If you can please boost this and let Michael Elmore, senior director of American University’s Student Activities Office know that Venus deserves to be paid for her work at 202-885-3931.

AND if you can, please contribute to Venus’ YouCaring https://www.youcaring.com/venus-thomas-hinyard-373926 so that she can remain in stable housing!

https://www.gofundme.com/uj9eedt8 or donate via paypal ismajick@gmail.com please I’m like three weeks late on my shot

Hello! I’m an chronically ill abuse survivor and I’m struggling to pay for basic living expenses including rent, food and medical appointments. I used to get some financial assistance from a friend but he can’t provide that any more. I’m in pain a lot of the time and am extremely weak, so getting by day to day is hard enough without the extra stress of poverty. My PayPal is donationsfund1112@gmail.com Please help me out by donating or reblogging this post! Thank you. 

I’m 21 years old and permanently bedbound from slipping down a staircase on the last day of high school 3 years ago (medical evidence). I had hoped to study music and was also shortlisted for a $20,000 law scholarship, but now I’m destined to spend the rest of my life on a bed. Because I am not able to work, I’ve also been on the verge of homelessness for almost a year and my social security payment is only $200/week. I’d like to find some financial stability by seeking recompense for the accident that has caused my severe disability and every bit of misery it entails.

Given the extent of my condition, the payout could be potentially in the millions of dollars if I’m successful in the case. However, for now I need a lot of help to fund the medicolegal reports as well as the expert report assessing the staircase I slipped down. In part due to the complexity of my medical condition, I wasn’t able to find a suitable law firm that is able to fund these reports on my behalf. My solicitor suggested the reports would cost  $15,000 AUD to $25,000 AUD over the course of 1 - 2 years. For now, I will need to pay $5,000 AUD to $10,000 AUD for the expert report which needs to be completed within about a month. Further details about the legal issues: 1  2

I’ve set up a YouCaring page specifically for these reports so that the donations can be counted toward the total needed. I know the goal is quite high, but donations will accumulate, and the case will last 1 - 2 years so there’s time to raise the total amount. I’ve deducted the $2000 that have already been raised from the approx. goal. Please consider donating any amount you can or reblogging this post. Thank you for your support!

Alternatives to ‘Sioux’

As you may know, the word ‘Sioux’ is considered to be a slur amongst members of the Oceti Sakowin. It is not our word for ourselves, but rather a name given to us by another nation and perpetuated by the Europeans / Euro-Americans.

You also may have noticed that our official tribe names often contain the word ‘Sioux’ (‘Oglala Lakota Sioux Tribe’ for example.) The reason for this is entirely legal. When our treaties were drafted, they were written as an agreement between the US Government and the ‘Sioux Nation.’ For this reason, we cannot fully abandon the name. However, when we’ve had opportunities, we’ve dropped the name in places we can (’Oglala Lakota County,’ for example, a name chosen by the rezidents.)

Simply put, members of the Oceti Sakowin generally don’t refer to themselves as ‘Sioux’ and, if we can’t change it legally, at least we can continue to assert our identity on our terms. So, if you choose to respect that, here’s a quick Oceti Sakowin education guide:

Oceti Sakowin (Seven Council Fires) 

Oceti Sakowin (encompasses all language dialects) is the simplest and broadest replacement for ‘Sioux.’ You can use this term if you aren’t aware of the specific language group to which ‘Sioux’ refers. Within the Oceti Sakowin are three main groups, which are further divided into seven subgroups:

Isanti Oyate (Santee — Dakota Dialect)

Wiciyela Oyate (Yankton/Yanktonais — Dakota Dialect ; commonly mislabeled as Nakota* Dialect)

Tinte Oyate (Tetons — Lakota Dialect)

Within the Tinte Ta Tunwan / Tintatunwan Oceti Sakown (#7), there are another seven subdivisions:

*modern terminology *In the past, the term Nakota has been applied to the Yankton, but this is a mistake. The Yankton speak Dakota. Nakota speakers are Assiniboine / Hohe and Stoney, who broke off from the Yankton at a time so long ago their language is now nearly unrecognizable to Lakota and Dakota speakers.

An excellent article by my dear friend Jonathan Katz on the racism in Jewish communities and the responsibility of white Jews to address it.

Kayden Clarke, ableism, and transphobia

Content warning: this post discusses police/state violence, suicide, ableism, and transphobia. 

The autistic person who was murdered by police in Arizona on February 4, 2016, was a transgender man named Kayden Clarke. News reports wrongly identify him as a woman and refer to him by his deadname and incorrect pronouns. Police were called to Kayden’s home in Mesa, AZ, after reports that he was suicidal. The officers claim that he came towards them with a knife, and they both shot him. He was taken to a hospital and died there. He didn’t attack either officer, and the cops made no previous efforts to restrain him before firing their weapons. One of them made a statement saying that Kayden “had something else we’re not sure what it was” in addition to the knife, that “it was dark inside the room,” and that “they felt threatened.” Kayden was not a threat, and he should have received help and care, not an instant death sentence. 

The article on Planet Transgender is currently the only one that correctly identifies Kayden as a trans man. He posted several videos documenting his transition online, starting in late 2015. In the most recent one, posted 3 weeks ago, he describes being denied hormones for being autistic. In the video, he states that he’s currently attempting to sue the clinic over refusing him treatment, after also being denied treatment by multiple other clinics. 

Kayden’s therapist refused to write the letter of recommendation that he needed in order to obtain hormones because he was autistic. Later in the video, he says that one of the causes of his depression was his gender dysphoria. 

Kayden was killed by ableism, medical gatekeeping, and state violence. The invalidation of trans identities, the ableist notion that people with autism and mental health issues cannot be in control of our own narratives and have autonomy over our bodies, the false conception of autistic people as dangerous, all contributed to the violence committed against him. Kayden deserves justice, and all trans people and autistic people deserve safety, respect, and compassion.  

Read Facebook event for full information.

Short version: This is a call out for court solidarity for a young trans woman of colour arrested in East London and remanded in custody at HM Thameside Prison, a private men’s prison. There is reason to believe she is also being denied her HRT. Please share, especially if you have followers in London. If possible turn up on Monday 8th February, 9am at Thames Magistrates Court, 58 Bow Road, E3 4DJ. Also there is a petition you can sign.

So sorry for mass tagging it’s making me feel rly anxious directly interacting with tumblr people but I only have 36 followers and there’s not so much time to get the word out so… if it’s possible you have followers in London UK please share the original post. (message me if you feel uncomfortable being tagged here and I’ll remove it) @evilscum @cafab @gothhabiba @marchcouldbedarker @anarchacannibalism @dangerousdykes @insurrectionarycompassion @jobhaver @ninjabikeslut @obscurantisme-terroriste @uktransinfo @writeswrongs @amazighlesbian @thousandtinywaves @37q @doopdfloop @ghosttwritten @svvampvvorship @futuristpraxis @swampscvm @femmevoid @frankfurtschool @crystalgrinder @sazzlepops @stresscadett @angstravaganza @nonbinarylondon @queerlondonyouth @genderedintelligence @femmesorcery @bisexuallondon @projectqueer @femmesorcery

I’m Dying and I Need Money

The important information here is that my wife and I need money, for food and for meds, and that you can donate either through the donate button on my blog (which Paypal takes a cut from for using their button), or else by sending money directly through Paypal to mrsmctanuki@gmail.com

The less important details are that I am a physically and mentally disabled trans former sex worker with a terminal illness (it’s complicated, but in short: my brain strokes out very easily). I have a whole host of brain disorders, a broken back, and a bunch of other physical maladies. I’m severely agoraphobic and I can hardly walk. I get $124 from disability each month from the state, and about $150 in food stamps. This has to go to cover everything - food, bills, medications, soap, toilet paper - everything. I have Medicaid, but they specifically do not cover HRT meds or Schedule 1 medications, such as the ones I take to keep myself from stroking out again. Last year, I was bashed by the local police. You can read the full story of my assault and subsequent treatment at the hospital here.

My wife is also disabled. We don’t get our food stamps until the 7th. We need donations, from you, the person reading this. A dollar, 10 cents, whatever you can spare, it’s a literal life-saver.

Roland Barthes, “From Work to Text” (via heteroglossia)

Daniel W. Smith, “Deleuze and the Question of Desire: Toward An Immanent Theory of Ethics” (via autonomistgoth)