There have been a lot of upsetting things going on.
These police-involved shootings are so tragic and unnecessary ... I'm feeling tired and hopeless about it, and I cannot imagine how much harder it is on others whom it affects more personally.
I shared a Luvvie post on FB about what white people can do, but nobody's reacted to it.
I know a bunch of us in the NYC/NJ area were unnerved by the pipe bombs last week.
I see so much garbage when I click on Twitter hashtags and Facebook trending topics. I've tried to respond where I can, but many people have private accounts so they can just weed out the people who don't go along with them.
There's so much hate. Has it always been this bad? Is it getting worse, or is social media just making us more aware?
It feels like we're getting nowhere as a society. How do we move forward?
On top of all this, I know some of us have personal issues going on.
Post by laurensmomma on Sept 21, 2016 11:22:47 GMT -5
I read the Luvvie post, and thought it was great. I also saw a post where people were posting positive images of black men, like with their families (the video was of a dad brushing his child's hair and their conversation). It is beautiful and I hope we see more of that.
And yes, I think it has always been this bad, we (white people) have just had our heads buried in the sand.
As a native Charlottean, my heart is so heavy. These acts are hard to face when they're outside your community, but even harder when they're 30 minutes away.
My heart is heavy for other reasons as well. It's just a hard day.
Post by irene adler on Sept 21, 2016 11:32:05 GMT -5
I am so angry and heartbroken.
We are prepping a show right now that is so timely with everything that is happening, and it has been great to start conversations with students. I appreciate the articles that are posted here, because it allows me to direct people to get more perspectives. But so help me if one more person says they are too busy to pay attention to this. THIS IS IMPORTANT, ASSHOLES. AND IT IS HAPPENING RIGHT HERE TOO.
Pull your head out of your ass, pay attention, start the conversation, sometimes fuck up, apologize, do better, repeat. This is the mantra I keep repeating.
As a native Charlottean, my heart is so heavy. These acts are hard to face when they're outside your community, but even harder when they're 30 minutes away.
My heart is heavy for other reasons as well. It's just a hard day.
Post by explorer2001 on Sept 21, 2016 11:41:17 GMT -5
It's horrible, tragic and sadly not new - just we are finally seeing it. I posted on MM moms news post about how the news is celebrity crap and it all smacks of Fahrenheit 451 - distract people with bull shit so they ignore meaningful issues.
I have been talking to my young black coworker about what's going on. The same young man who asked for help talking to his white friend about white privilege. It is ao hard because he sees me a privileged white woman as someone who gets it and is supportive. While I'm glad he feels comfortable with me, it's also so sad that he doesn't have more people he feels he can talk to who are supportive. I know I don't get it 100% but I try and admit I don't get everything and that's better than he's getting from others including his "friend".
It's heartbreaking to see innocent people shot and killed with no consequences. The police figured out how to shoot but not kill the NY/NJ bombing suspect while he was shooting at them - so you would think someone standing with their hands up shouldn't be too hard to manage with 4 officers.
Personally - still struggling. Work issues I won't get into. Struggling with cutting off my family but I have too. My doc doubled my anti depressant/ anti anxiety meds yesterday. So yeah it's been a lot of a lot lately. But to end on a happy note Fiance thanked me after we got back from his birthday weekend get away for the two best birthdays in his life (last year's superhero party and this year's get away). So I must be doing something right.
There's so much hate. Has it always been this bad? Is it getting worse, or is social media just making us more aware?
It feels like we're getting nowhere as a society. How do we move forward?
I've thought about this a lot. I want to feel hopeful, I want to see the good in the world, but I just feel beaten down. And this entire election season and how Trump has seriously tapped into a group of people who are just ANGRY .... it scares me. people who hate have been given a voice and they are using it.
It feels like people are emboldened to spew more hate than ever and it seems spurred on by that dirt bag Trump and his hate culture. It seems worse, but I am sure it has always been this horrific for POC. My white privilege bubble has made it too easy to ignore until we start making the effort to see.
My heart is heavy this week between the happenings literally just down the road from me to the senseless murder of innocent men. Just now, not even 10 minutes ago on my way home, I saw police questioning a young Black man on the street. He didn't have a car, so I don't know why they would have a reason to question him. I can only guess as I saw they asked him to show him what is in his bag he was carrying. Again, this was literally down the road.
Edit: In reading the Luvvie article, I should have gone with my gut and pulled over and watched. I am ashamed that I didn't. I have a million excuses but none of them matter.
explorer2001 you are absolutely correct - they managed to injure but not kill the bombing suspect, why can't we say the same for the men killed recently?
I am also still dealing with a lot on a personal note and it's been so hard.
Also, please tell me if my annoyance is misplaced here, but where are the "usual" posters we have around here? I know it has been slow lately, but not this slow.
Post by compassrose on Sept 21, 2016 13:54:45 GMT -5
I find myself repeating 'WTF is wrong with people' multiple times a day. I alternate between frustration, despair, and hope. I do think the world has always been like this, but it's a lot more in my face lately. I'm glad on one hand, because my hope is that making people uncomfortable will lead to change. But on the other hand, given the normalcy of everyday "benevolent" racism, change feels a long way off.
Also, please tell me if my annoyance is misplaced here, but where are the "usual" posters we have around here? I know it has been slow lately, but not this slow.
I think some people are gone due to recent events. And I think people still here are also posting less, at least on more frivolous topics (lowering the overall volume).
rootbeerfloat , @foodielicious , I guess I am just hoping to see more of a dialogue here and that's not really happening. I know it feels tiresome to talk about since we don't have the right answers and yes, life does go on*, but it's hard to see a post on a topic such as thing get a handful of responses while others get more traffic.
* = trust me, I know. I am juggling a metric ton of stuff at home but I still want to have these conversations.
Post by LoveTrains on Sept 21, 2016 14:32:58 GMT -5
This board has been very slow for a while now. If we are slow because racist posters have left, good. I would rather be slow than be the board that we were 3 years ago which while active was not great for being an inclusive community. And I'm not an innocent bystander in that previous atmosphere.
My heart hurts in regards to so many current events these days.
My Lean In group has been debating causes we'd like to get involved with, and I think we've decided on BLM. One of our members is acquainted with activists nearby, and at our Lean In meeting this weekend we'll be receiving more information about how to get involved.
My heart hurts in regards to so many current events these days.
My Lean In group has been debating causes we'd like to get involved with, and I think we've decided on BLM. One of our members is acquainted with activists nearby, and at our Lean In meeting this weekend we'll be receiving more information about how to get involved.
I was sick today when I read about the racist shit that went on at EMU.
Also, please tell me if my annoyance is misplaced here, but where are the "usual" posters we have around here? I know it has been slow lately, but not this slow.
I hang out on CEP more often than MM these days and it's been slow there, too. I don't check ML or others to see if it's a bigger issue.
I do think a lot of people are feeling down and less like posting as a result.
My heart hurts in regards to so many current events these days.
My Lean In group has been debating causes we'd like to get involved with, and I think we've decided on BLM. One of our members is acquainted with activists nearby, and at our Lean In meeting this weekend we'll be receiving more information about how to get involved.
I was sick today when I read about the racist shit that went on at EMU.
Uh oh. I haven't heard anything. Link?
ETA: Nevermind, I just Googled. That's disgusting. EMU had many controversies when I was there, and adminstration handled most by sweeping things under the rug. One president was fired for shredding details pertaining to a murder on campus. I don't remember many racially based incidents though.
There's so much hate. Has it always been this bad? Is it getting worse, or is social media just making us more aware?
It feels like we're getting nowhere as a society. How do we move forward?
To answer these questions specifically, I say yes, it has always been this bad. I think that people have reached the tipping point though and are saying enough is enough. They are tired, they no longer want to have to explain themselves especially to people who don't think there is a problem (which there are a lot of).
My fear is that it will get worse. The Trump effect if you will. People think that it is OK to say these hateful thoughts out loud because this man running for president says this same crap all day and even when he is called on it, life goes on.
How do we move forward? We do a lot of what Luvvie said. Speak up, make your voice heard. Challenge someone who is spewing hate. Make your voice heard when you go to the polls this November. It's going to be a long, hard road, but I think many of us are up for the challenge.
Post by followyourarrow on Sept 21, 2016 15:11:25 GMT -5
My heart breaks over horrendous shootings that have occurred in the last few days, and well, all of them really. I read the Luvvie post and found it to be very useful on what I, as a privileged white woman, can do.
I do think it's always been this bad, we just weren't as aware. I remember some particularly awful things happening in my hometown around the time I was a freshman, but odds are that's simply when I was old enough to be aware and get it.
My questions are sadly almost rhetorical these days - why in the hell do they have to shoot to kill? Why can't they use their taser? Why can't they shoot them in the shoulder or something? (Or not shoot at all?!)
I guess I know the answer. PP was right, hard to have a conversation about something like this.
My questions are sadly almost rhetorical these days - why in the hell do they have to shoot to kill? Why can't they use their taser? Why can't they shoot them in the shoulder or something? (Or not shoot at all?!)
I guess I know the answer. PP was right, hard to have a conversation about something like this.
When I taught at predominantly black high schools in NC we had police officers on campus full-time. They would use tasers and pepper spray to break up fights. It seemed excessive; the fights had to be stopped, and this kept the officers a a safe distance, but it still contributed to the overall aggression and was disturbing to see.
My questions are sadly almost rhetorical these days - why in the hell do they have to shoot to kill? Why can't they use their taser? Why can't they shoot them in the shoulder or something? (Or not shoot at all?!)
I guess I know the answer. PP was right, hard to have a conversation about something like this.
When I taught at predominantly black high schools in NC we had police officers on campus full-time. They would use tasers and pepper spray to break up fights. It seemed excessive; the fights had to be stopped, and this kept the officers a a safe distance, but it still contributed to the overall aggression and was disturbing to see.
Post by mrsfarmer on Sept 21, 2016 17:15:56 GMT -5
I'm having a hard time digesting recent events. I live close to the mall stabbings and my SIL was in the mall when it happened. I've been fighting the good FB fight to promote unity in the community and there seems to be a good vibe to it but of course there are some real jackasses as well.
There was also a sad resolution to the 27 year disappearance of Jacob Wetterling and the media released the most horrid details in that case.
I'm left wondering if the media really knows what's appropriate reporting and newsworthy.
Post by liveintheville on Sept 21, 2016 20:12:12 GMT -5
I just can't wrap my head around all of it. Seriously. The trump rhetoric plays into a lot of this. The fucking ku klux klan is now speaking out and idiots are listening! The state of the world is appalling. It makes me so angry. More angry than sad. I also post on the frivolous posts because why shouldn't I? Doing so doesn't take away from my rage.
raangoli, I will admit I miss GBCN being a platform for distraction at work and as a resource for MM/MMM matters. And I do agree with the sentiment that GBCN can and does and should "mean" different things to different posters -- i.e., maybe this is just an outlet for silliness for some of us, while others want it to be more meaningful and a place to instigate change. And that should be OK -- forcing anyone into an unwanted dialogue feels inappropriate and it makes the resulting dialogue hollow, meaningless and illegitimate. But given everything that's happened, and reading some of the horrible things that have been posted and the way some ladies have been treated, the way they have been outright attacked, no, it doesn't feel right that we're not all here reading and responding and registering outrage over this shit.
I also feel incredibly inarticulate and uninformed these days. My "bubble" feels huge. Even if it is filled with fairly liberally minded people, my closest friends are mostly white and we're all the same SES status as far as I can tell. And I am privileged and my privilege is showing of late. So I have been posting less and reading more and trying to educate myself. I just finished reading The Sisters Are Alright (we should do an MM book club on this) and am hoping to squeeze another one of the recommended books re: race/race identity/etc. before DD2 comes. But I also know I'm about to go down the spiral of newborn hell in about a week or so and I won't be doing much of anything other than keeping my head above water with 2u2. And that's completely selfish, but it's my reality right now. I don't know what else I can do right now to start a dialogue, to be an ally, to educate myself given that reality. But in the long-term I will try to do more. And to answer mbcdefg's question, I don't want to "like" ECB and Pom's observations, but I agree with their statements. Trump has given angry, hateful people, who have always been angry and hateful a platform to spew hate. It's now "OK" to say this shit. And the anonymity the internet offers allows people to say whatever the hell they want without recourse. Look at the shit that's being spewed here, FFS.
One random observation I've had is that the NYTimes used to dedicate the far left side of the homepage to anti-Trump articles. Exclusively anti-Trump, every morning a new one. It was great. Preaching to the choir given their readership profile, but still great. Now it seems they're dedicating that side of the homepage to articles about all the shootings and/or articles about the attacks in NY/NJ. And that is so crushing. Why is this happening? Is this our new reality? We open the paper and find fresh tragedy every day?