harm reduction coalition

Dems hint at flexibility in budget talks - Business - Wire - Macon.com

Let’s make sure Democrats remain committed to protecting women’s health. Come with us to DC.

(via standupforwomen)

The R-Word: Why “Rigorous” is the New Black « The Crunk Feminist Collective

I have seen the bolded part *repeatedly* throughout the feminist blogosphere. where everything in the *world* is analyzed together *except race*. where intersectionality is used to understand being a cis woman and straight—but race or the aspects of racialization (i.e. citizenship, language,etc)—it’s like they don’t exist. 

(via bunnehears)

also. it *seems* like to me, that in certain feminist spaces the mainstream feminist blogosphere intersectionality becomes nothing more than “i’m white, AND i have a disability so i totally get oppression!!!!” or something. or “i’m half Italian, so i *totally* get how annoying it is when someone asks me where i’m from!” it becomes this thing where……intersectionality is in part supposed to make you aware of your own positionalty, right? that you are of this race and of this class etc and thus you’ve been given privilege and faced oppression in various and varying ways. but that’s not the only thing it’s supposed to do. at least they way i understand it, intersectionality might start with the personal but it extends to the systematic. it helps you to understand how systems work so that you can recognize them in everyday life. these privileges and oppressions we all have and experience didn’t just spring out of a bluebird’s ass one balmy spring day, okay? they are the result of a system. a system that assigns power and benefits depending on your place within that system, and on how closely you match its ideal. intersectionality illuminates for us how power works, and ultimately, i believe, intersectionality demands an intervention. so it might start with the personal, but that’s not where it ends.

but its like f*eminists get stuck on that part. they’re like that kid who only went to class for the first to weeks and then dropped it, but keeps going on and on about it and spouting off terminology like they had been there the whole time. so it becomes this things where all that’s required is a hyper-awareness of your positionality, and that’s it. the whole hegemonic system thing and transformative change things just goes….just goes. it’s not there. so that you don’t have to change anything really, you can say whatever cisnormative racist classist abelist bullshit you want, as long as you start by saying “as a cis white straight able bodied middle class woman, understand i have privilege but i feel that *insert opression here*.” or just again, you know, complete erasure of the systematic nature of things: “i totally know how you feel about people touching your hair without permission, because my hair is really really straight so people play with it all the time!” (actually said to be by a white feminist, yes.) intersectionality is reduced from a wrecking ball to a window dressing.

(via so-treu)

well—that’s it isn’t it. it’s not just about being “Inclusive” it’s about how recognizing a mulitplicity of identities *will lead to solutions and answers that are liberatory and transformative*. inclusivity is fundamentally necessary because it provides the most holistic approach to solutions. the women of color in 60s who considered this theory didn’t just want to be able to march down the streets for abortion with white women, they wanted the focus on “access” to change at it’s core level. and that might mean instead of marching, providing how to clinics so that community women can give other women abortions. 

because for an undocumented person—legality of the proceedure is an issue, of course—but more so is the issue of not having to give “address” and “driver’s license” the person performing the abortion.

(via bunnehears)

This commentary and the original piece are so amazing. So much yes and love. xx

(via leonineclaire)