Oh America 💔

I don't normally make political posts but after the last 24 hours I felt had to say something, especially towards those who voted for Kamala Harris.

I'm both heartbroken and angry as fuck for all of you, knowing that the next four years (and beyond) is going to be a real shit show especially for women and the LGBTQIA+ community. You all deserve to live authentic and truthful lives as well as have the freedom to do as you please with your bodies. Yet here we are staring down the barrel of a gun loaded with fascism, racism, homophobia and misogyny to name a few ready to be fired at us come January 2025. I might not be an American, but the decision thats been made today will have repercussions for the entire world and thats terrifying right now. So to anyone who voted for that shitbag... fuck you. You've just turned back the clocks on a lifetime of political and historical decisions that will impact all of us and future generations for decades to come.

If you disagree with my opinion on the US Election results, please unfollow or block me immediately.

Normal fashion posts will resume shortly. 💜

Poetry Collection Analysis & Review: Blood Dazzler by Patricia Smith

On August 25th, 2005, the tropical storm named “Katrina” was upgraded to a hurricane. Three days later, it would become a category five storm and go on to destroy the city of New Orleans, resulting in over 1,800 deaths. Poet Patricia Smith, takes this tragedy head-on in her collection, Blood Dazzler, which came only three years after the natural disaster. Blood Dazzler uniquely focuses on the events of Hurricane Katrina by personifying the storm and telling the story primarily from "her" point of view. From the prologue “And Then She Owns You” to the ending poem “Voodoo VIII: Spiritual Cleansing & Blessing,” Smith provides an emotional, devastating, grim, and impactful collection that forces readers to see Katrina’s impact, both good and bad.

At the time of Blood Dazzler's publication, the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina was still being felt in the United States, with many, if not the majority, still struggling to recover. Although there were three years between the release of Blood Dazzler and Hurricane Katrina, the United States would still be investigating how it responded to victims and the storm itself. Specifically looking into President Bush and the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) lack of response to the threat that Hurricane Katrina posed. Due to their negligence, many citizens in New Orleans disregarded Katrina as just another tropical storm. This dereliction of duty is highlighted by Smith throughout the collection. To further immerse readers in the tragedy, along with Katrina’s narrative, Smith provides stories of citizens who lived through and experienced the storm's wrath firsthand. Often told from a first-person perspective, the book switches from Katrina’s point of view to the victims and members of FEMA. This choice is effective as it provides the reader with every side of the story, all just as emotionally gripping and tragic as the last.

In the very first poem of Blood Dazzler, “5 p.m. Tuesday, August 23, 2005,” readers are provided with a line that easily summarizes the character of Katrina: “every woman begins as weather”. With just these five words, the reader is able to understand Katrina’s thirst and desire, along with gaining an understanding of her narrative. Despite Katrina not being an actual human, she is the center focus and “character” of the collection. When observing the character of Katrina more closely, readers see that she is a ruthless, restless, and self-righteous "force.” Katrina states unequivocally what she wants and that nothing will stand in her way. The first four poems in the collection focus on the days leading up to Katrina's escalation into a Category 5 hurricane. These poems are crucial to her character development and the collection as a whole, as they establish her "hunger," as Smith often describes it. In "5 p.m. Tuesday, August 23, 2005," the narrative begins in third-person, describing Katrina's transformation from “a muted threat of gray light” into “a mouth.” Following this opening, the perspective shifts to the first person with the line, “I became a mouth, thrashing hair, an overdone eye,” signifying Katrina's takeover of the narrative. She is here to tell her own story, inviting readers along for the journey.

Blood Dazzler emphasizes the emotions of those within the storm by providing personal accounts from citizens. We get our first glimpse into the life and logic of the local M'dear in the poems "Won't Be A Minute" and "Inconvenient." She appears unfazed and, quite frankly, bothered by the fuss the hurricane is causing around her, like many were at the time. Moreover, through M’dear’s southern dialect, readers are reminded more than ever of where and who Katrina is up against: the locals. Determined to protect what is theirs, the locals of New Orleans refused to leave, and although they would suffer, they never thought they could lose.

As the collection progresses, we further understand Katrina’s relationship to others, including the citizens of New Orleans, America, and most interestingly, other hurricanes. The poem “Siblings” lists major hurricanes that have occurred in the United States. Each letter is given a name, apart from "K,” which is given its own stanza. Smith’s choice to give intel regarding Katrina’s character towards the end of the collection reminds the reader that Katrina is human, in a way. That she, too, experiences neglect and acts out because of it. It is apparent that her rage overpowers her, and even though Katrina claims she is “in control,” that is not the case. One can imply that, given her torment from others—her siblings, men, politicians—she is tired of being taken advantage of, for lack of a better phrase. Katrina is angry, yes, but she also wants others to see and recognize her. Whether it is her siblings, men, or other women, Smith makes the effort to explain Katrina’s thoughts after all is said and done, after she is "finished.”

 In the second-to-last poem of the collection, "Katrina,” it reads: “All I ever wanted to be was a wet, gorgeous mistake, a reason to crave shelter.” After that point, we are never to hear from Katrina again, and for me especially, these last lines felt quite unsatisfying. After all the destruction, pain, and overconfidence, we receive a version of Katrina that is just as pathetic and yearning as she was when she started. While it isn't unlike someone to regret their destruction, the idea that “every woman begins as weather” becomes “I was a rudderless woman in a full tantrum” feels somewhat unnerving. I’m not sure if I enjoy the end of Katrina’s narrative ending with this regret or sloppy justification of her actions. Despite this disappointment, Smith accurately depicts the response of someone who has done such harm. Especially since Katrina is the younger sibling who has always been overlooked and blamed. There is an inherent guilt that affects those who are used to this slight cycle of abuse. It is also worth mentioning that Smith’s decision to rarely have Katrina’s poems follow a traditional poetic structure is telling of the nature of her character. Katrina’s poems are often freeverse, sporadic, and tight, which represents the way she is not only a character but also a storm.

Blood Dazzler is unique in how it decides to portray the destruction and horror that Hurricane Katrina caused to the citizens of New Orleans, a place of faith and love. By using poetry. Smith explores the ways in which Katrina stripped the people of their homes but was never able to destroy their love for it, no matter how belittled they became. Even so, when one comes to the end of the collection, they are left just as distraught and even angry as they were when they picked up the book. Perhaps that was Smith's intention all along: to provide a fresh perspective on Hurricane Katrina, both the storm and the victims, while raising empathy and awareness for how we failed to help those in need in 2005. Blood Dazzler will always stand as a collection we should revisit to be reminded of Hurricane Katrina and to continue to remember those lost.

Or the older-person version: no they didn’t, because we didn’t know yet.

There are definitely things my teachers mistaught me that were pushing an agenda (hi, “you can catch AIDS from sharing towels”!), but here’s an incomplete list of stuff I had to learn later because nobody knew in the 00s:

—there were multiple cradles of civilization, not just the Fertile Crescent

—my eye color isn’t a mutation actually, there are five genes controlling it not two and that does in fact allow for weird in-between colors like mine

—clear photos of Pluto (I grew up with the pixelly one we all marveled at because WOW, we got any kind of picture at all from all the way OUT THERE)

—five different species of genus Homo

—Einstein was wrong and there are absolutely no hidden variables driving quantum entanglement

—there is actually a smoking gun that the Kennedy assassination didn’t go the way it’s commonly told

—the FBI tried to drive MLK to suicide

And I could keep going. The older you are, the more pronounced this effect gets; my dad is 69 and could contribute “everything we know about the human genome,” “duck and cover is only marginally effective actually,” and “anything we learned from any space mission past Apollo 13.” (Yes, I realize those dates seem to not add up. He dropped out at 16 and went back later for his GED.)

This is why, when you hear something you previously didn’t know, you should 1) cross-check it against other sources to be sure the facts are correct, but 2) never assume it’s wrong just because that’s not what you learned in school. Because let me tell you, if I stopped with only what I could learn in public school by 2006, I would still believe the Egyptians hadn’t developed pulley systems before building the pyramids, that plasma can’t exist on earth outside of extremely carefully controlled lab conditions, and that Kosovo isn’t its own country.

Fauci claimed AIDS was airborne. I am sure loads of teachers were falsely informed thanks to him.

In the first year of study he said it MIGHT BE passed by close familial contact BUT ALSO required more study. That was twenty years before I took sex ed. My teacher was a devout Christian who was openly pissed off she had to teach us about condoms—in other words, she was one of you.

Shut the fuck up, magat.

Another factor is that textbooks and curricula get updated at irregular intervals, and you're learning a snapshot in history. My second grade science textbook identified mushrooms and fungus as a form of life called "protist" which was a school of thought in the sixties that lasted juuuust long enough to make it into my textbook.

That doesn't even begin to get into the politicization of textbooks-- sometimes it wasn't in your textbook because the people who chose your textbook didn't want you to know it.

Transcript: It reminds me of the “bike to work” movement. That is also portrayed as white, but in my city more than half of the people on bike are not white. I was once talking to a white activist who was photographic “bike commuters” and had only pictures of white people with the occasional “Black professional” I asked her why she didn’t photograph the delivery people, construction workers etc… id. the Black and [Latine] and Asian people… and she mumbled something about trying to “improve the image of biking” then admitted that she didn’t really see them as part of the “green movement” since they “probably have no choice” - I was so mad I wanted to quit working on the project she and I were collaborating on. So, in the same way when people in a poor neighborhood grow food in their yards… it’s just being poor- but when white people do it they are saving the earth or something.“ -comment left on the Racialious blog post “Sustainable Food and Privilege: Why is Green always White (and Male and Upper-Class) (via meggannn). END TS

the same thing when you look at the ~tiny house movement~ versus, say, people living in trailers, or even just renting in apartments or sublet housing

This this this this

Breaking news:

New York, Illinois, Massachusetts, and California state AG’s are already stating they will REFUSE any Trump effort to do mass deportations, attacks on reproductive rights, or attacks on LGBTQ+ rights.

These states will not allow him to enact any harmful legislation without a fight. Other blue run states are expected to join them.

Sources:

New York: https://ag.ny.gov/press-release/2024/attorney-general-james-and-governor-hochul-commit-protecting-fundamental

Illinois: https://www.chicagotribune.com/2024/11/07/gov-jb-pritzker-has-warning-for-donald-trump-you-come-for-my-people-you-come-through-me/

Massachusetts: https://www.latintimes.com/massachusetts-governor-vows-refuse-trump-request-help-mass-deportations-absolutely-not-565052

California:

One of the first things I said Wednesday morning was that I needed a statement from the Governor of New York (where I live) that the state would throw down to protect the people here and I'm so relieved that she and Letitia James wasted no time making such a statement.

[Source]

Bonus:

Meta Masterpost✨️💖

Finally put together all my metas through the years!!!

(ALL CONTAIN SPOILERS)

My Hero Academia 

Subtle Dehumanization: Titles Instead of Names 

(This also includes the Harry Potter fandom and Star Wars fandom)

Deku and Rei: Having No Agency

Why Hawks Is Against Stains Ideology

Hawks and Redemption 

Hawk’s Motivation

The Fandom Misinturprenting Hawks The same Way TLOV Misinterpreted Bakugou 

Dabi Being a Daddy’s Boy

Dabi Being a Daddy’s Boy Pt2

My Feelings on Natsuo

My Headcanons on Shinyo Takami 

(Shinyo Takami is an oc character of Hawks dad made by) @sleepwalkersqueen

Star Wars

How I Got into Star Wars: Reylo

Kylo Ren’s Abuse by Snoke

Harry Potter

Why We Be Congratulating Men for Doing the Bare Minimum?

Severus Snape Canon vs Fanon

James Would Have Been Blacklisted If Severus Were Female

“But James Changed!”

A Song of Ice and Fire

Game of Thrones could have been great

Gendrya in GOT Was Screwed from the Beginning

Stranger Things

The Silenced Victims

Billy v Jonathan: What Comparing Victims Really Means

Lack of Self Defense Skills and Real Weapons

What Was the Point of Billy Being an Abuse Victim?

Black Panther

Why Namor x Shuri Makes Sense In Terms of Story Structure

In General 

Redemption and Forgiveness

Bad Victim Mentality 

(Includes examples in the HP fandom, Star Wars fandom and Bnha fandom)

Ali from Euphoria: Society and Redemption)

Face card is lethal