turkey and azerbaijan are attacking armenia right now, and it’s 1915 all over again because the world is distracted and people are too busy wondering if they’re gonna live or die, and who gives a shit about my country anyway? my mum told me to tell my friends and explain to them what’s happening and that we are the victims in this war because azerbaijan is spreading lies and people are believing their lies and i told her, what good is that going to do? do you think anyone’s going to come to our aid? is russia going to help us? is america? is england? erdogan said they will finish what their ancestors started, and he means genocide. he means ethnic cleansing. he means to massacre every last one of us. and in doing so admitted to the very same thing turkey has spent 105 years denying. i don’t know who to tell and what good telling people will do because we’re a small, insignificant country, and we have nothing to offer to the people in power, the handful who rule the world. so i sit here with my pain and i feel helpless. i know there’s twitter threads and links to petitions and people being urged to contact their senators, and sorry if im being pessimistic, but azerbaijan has been attacking us for the last 22 years, and though we defend ourselves, we can’t do anything to stop them. they’ve violated ceasefires (and geneva conventions) multiple times. i don’t think they’ll rest until every last one of us is dead.

we just want peace. we just want to live peacefully. we’re not asking for a lot here.

hey either reblog this or unfollow me

Watching this happen I’ve been so scared there is going to be another genocide and nobody would notice. My whole life I’ve hated how forgettable armenian people seem to be to the world. Protect armenian people or rot, please don’t turn a blind eye to us again. And same as above, reblog or unfollow.

here are some cold hard facts for those interested:

1. after losing the war in 1994, the az government spent the next nearly 30 years on a) dehumanizing armenians, b) blaming armenians and losing the war for the terrible socioeconomic state of the people in this oil-rich country while president and his family steal all of the money their oil produces, c) pushing armenophobic propaganda on the population since kindergarten age, d) oppressing and humiliating the other ethnic minorities living on its territories, e) regularly violating the ceasefire of 1994 whenever the internal situation get tense and the ppl get angry, f) selectively sending the youths of said ethnic minorities to the bloodiest parts of the frontline whenever said ceasefire violations happen, g) suppressing free speech, arresting journalists, harassing and threatening those who dare to voice their discontent, etc.

2. in early 1920s, josef stalin, in order to appease the new turkish “republic” and its leader ataturk, with the hopes of using turkey as the base for spreading the communist revolution further into asia, passed artsakh (also known as nagorno karabagh) with its 95% ethnic armenian population onto the new created turkic azerbaijan republic (a country that did not exist before 1918, that’s what newly created means), despite the opposition from the people of the region in question and the republic of armenia.

3. during the 70 or so years that artsakh was part of the azerbaijan republic as an autonomous region, the gov of azerbaijan did everything they could to a) suppress the development of the region, b) change the demographic of the region by moving turkic population to artsakh

4. in 1980s, the people of artsakh, utilizing their rights stipulated in the soviet constitution, petitioned both moscow and baku to be allowed to reunite with armenia. as a response to this, the azerbaijan government started large-scale repressions against the organizers and activists of the reunification movement. arrests on made up charges, threats and violence followed (more info on all that in the link provided below)

5. the people of artsakh then held a referendum as was their right under soviet constitution, and more than 90% of it’s population voted in favor of seceding from the azerbaijan republic. the response to this were the anti-armenian pogroms in baku and sumgait ( https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1990-01-18-mn-305-story.html)

6. all this grew into the first artsakh war, which azerbaijan lost, as mentioned in point 1.

to sum it up: artsakh was never a part of the independent azerbaijan republic, during it’s brief 70-year forced az control its indigenous armenian people were oppressed via various government policies, the people of artsakh deserve to live a free and happy life in their homeland, free of threats and fear of annihilation that is sure to happen if azerbaijan takes control of the region

to them, it’s just a territory and they want that territory without the people.

for further reading, check out this comprehensive timeline of the artsakh history up to 2017( when it was written)

https://www.evnreport.com/spotlight-karabakh/spotlight-karabakh

then, this: on what actually happens to armenian lands and cultural heritage when it’s in azerbaijani hands

https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2019-11-07/armenian-monuments-azerbaijan

while you are at it, read up on the armenian genocide and keep in mind that turkey, specifically for this war, moved syrian jihadists to azerbaijan to fight against armenia and artsakh. read up on the kind of internationally banned ammunition azerbaijan has been using against the civilians in artsakh capital, and then maybe make your judgement.

oh, and if anyone tries to frame this as an islam vs christianity thing, send them to hell, regardless of the side they claim to support, bc this isn’t it.

I reblogged a post about this yesterday, but is there something we can do other than spreading awareness?

spreading awareness is HUGE because azeris are spreading lies (mainly on twitter bc apparently thats the only social media they’re allowed to use atm? i haven’t verified this but it checks out with the dictator in powet lol) and it’s really really really important for us to counter their lies with FACTS. like there’s far few of us and we don’t have any bots lmao so it’s really hard to get people to listen to us.

cardi b apparently made a post about it, talking about how there’s a genocide going on in armenia, and azeris started harassing her so she sort of backtracked and said something like “i didn’t know there was two sides to this” and like it’s not the only person they’ve done this to!

this video on twitter actually explains their tactics (the girl in the video is basically translating azeri post) how they target people who speak out in support of armenia and make them rescind their support.

so yeah. it’s important for us to fight against the misinformation. and i think i have no respect for any armenian person who chooses to not engage because the internet is our battlefield. this is where we fight because it’s the least we can do. (note i said armenian person, because i don’t think its fair to ask this of people who don’t have a personal stake in this war).

you can also donate here: himnadram.org

terfs do not interact

update: genocide watch has declared emergency in Artsakh, placing azerbaijan at stage 9 (extermination) and stage 10 (denial)

when we say we are being threatened by genocide, we are not exaggerating

source: genocidewatch.com

System of a Down just released 2 new songs, their first new music in 15 years, to raise money for the Armenia Fund. Go to their Facebook page or https://systemofadown.bandcamp.com/ to purchase the songs for a donation as little as $2 USD or more of your choice

#Repost @prisonbreak.hun (@get_repost) ・・・ World Mental Health Day is observed on 10 October every year, with the overall objective of raising awareness of mental health issues around the world and mobilizing efforts in support of mental health. The Day provides an opportunity for all stakeholders working on mental health issues to talk about their work, and what more needs to be done to make mental health care a reality for people worldwide. ▪️ ▪️ #mentalhealthday #worldmentalhealthday #mentalhealth #awareness #depression #suicide #anxiety #prevention #youarenotalone #talktosomeone #youareloved #support https://www.instagram.com/p/B3cC26cgKsd/?igshid=x27vdfx1gguq

Please help raise awareness about a serious illness that hides in plain sight

My name is Ang. If you’ve been following my story then I’m sure you’ve heard about this, but I’ve come down with a chronic illness. I have severe-spectrum MECFS. Myalgic Encephalomyelitis, or cruelly called Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, which downplays how much of a devastating, horribly disabling and terrifying disease this is.

It is an illness that affects millions, leaving a good portion of us housebound or bedbound, some so sick they are paralyzed and need to be tubefed and others die from the illness or complications.

I’ve been bedbound almost 3 months now since my illness has been progressing (which is nothing compared to how quickly it can become years), so sick some days I cant lift a spoon to feed myself, talk, or tolerate light and sound. I can’t draw anymore which was my passion in life as an artist, let alone take care of myself. I can’t even tolerate watching TV or play games most days to distract myself from the trauma caused by being confined to a bed in this sort of agony.

I got ill like this after getting the flu in January, and it’s been downhill from there as I started having bizarre neurological symptoms and collapsing episodes where I was unable to move, the energy draining from my body as the days went on until I needed a cane to walk, then a walker, then I was housebound with a wheelchair, and now I am bedbound and the severity steadily worsens with no let up so far despite doing everything I can to stop or slow the progression.

It is a level of sickness that is overwhelming me and my life is uncertain, but it’s looking grim from this point. I’m in severe pain constantly, on top of having horrible dysfunction in every other part of my body. I’ve only been steadily declining.

I lost my entire life right as it felt like it was starting. I was an artist working my dream job at Cartoon Network, and now I may never be able to return to the animation industry or live out my dreams of telling the stories I wanted.

The worst part is this illness could have been treatable by now! But it’s not, due to a deliberate choice of abuse and neglect by medical institutions. Most doctors aren’t trained to treat or diagnose M.E. and it gets practically no funding. Most sufferers are told it’s all in our heads (wrongfully diagnosed with conversion disorder or functional neurological disorder) even with evidence coming out that it’s a physical neurological disease and the only treatment we are given is get told to take anti-depressants, see a therapist, and exercise (despite exertion intolerance being the hallmark symptom and dangerous).

So the only way people like me have any hope of getting better is if we get a surge in awareness and understanding, and hope it leads to more funding and research. With decades of neglect and lives lost, this can’t go on.

At first I asked for donations when I was trying to figure out what was happening to my body as I threw money at doctors appointments begging for help only to get turned away and given no help, dwindling away my savings from when I used to work. And while donations were loved and helped significantly in my financial situation, it will not give me access to effective treatments if they don’t exist.

That is why I am asking you to help spread awareness. Please educate yourselves and donate if you can to organizations that research M.E.

People like me are suffering with a monster illness as debilitating as late-stage AIDS or cancer, hopelessly sick and dying with little help and living in severe medical neglect. I can’t even get a caregiver which I need now because my family can’t care for me longterm, all because my illness isn’t taken seriously by health insurance companies!

We need help. People with M.E. need help so bad because a lot of us are even too sick to advocate for ourselves.

If you want to know more there’s a wonderful documentary on Netflix made by M.E. sufferer, Jennifer Brea called Unrest (2017). Please give it a watch.

Here’s the trailer:

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=JvK5s9BNLzA

You can also see her speaking here on TEDtalk.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Fb3yp4uJhq0

Here are organizations you can donate to:

https://solvecfs.org/donate/

https://www.meaction.net/donate/

Please share this. I am one of the #millionsmissing and while I have not been suffering with M.E. for very long compared to others, the trauma and destruction this illness brings is great and no one should have to go through this. I would not wish this suffering upon even my enemies.

We need awareness. We need advocacy. We need understanding. We need funding. We need diagnostic markers. We need research. We need effective treatments and hopefully one day a cure.

I may never have my old life back, and I don’t want anyone else to keep suffering the way I have since I’ve gotten sick. The pain is indescribable. I want one day for someone to get sick like I and others have, only to learn they can be diagnosed and effectively treated or cured.

Please help bring our stories to light. Please help save our lives.

Thank you.

I also want to add that sites like Mayoclinic and Wikipedia do a horrible job at giving accurate, up-to-date information about M.E. Most of it doesn’t remotely cover the extent, symptoms or severity of the illness, and lists harmful and outdated treatment options.

If you want to understand M.E better I reccommend ME-pedia.

https://me-pedia.org/wiki/Myalgic_encephalomyelitis

Also CDC recently updated their page on M.E.

https://www.cdc.gov/me-cfs/index.html

I fucking hate it when you’re in such a fantastically giddy mood and then you see one simple little thing that makes you think, “oh” and then you just get this empty feeling in your chest and you get nauseous and the world just crumbles and you want to just lay under a blanket and close your eyes and fall asleep and never wake up. 

From what my therapist told me, this happens because our emotions aren’t really on the ‘opposite’ ends like we tend to think of it. Happiness is not ‘up’ and sadness is not ‘down’-. In a way they’re actually right ‘next’ to each other.

If you’re super happy, it can turn into super sad very easily, because your emotions are already highly elevated and it’s only a very minor shift as far as your brain is concerned.

Knowing this can help you fight it, and it can help you be more aware of what’s going on while you’re happy and help avoid shifting towards misery.

I used to always wonder why it seemed like my happy days ‘couldn’t last’ or that bad things would ‘always’ happen when I was happy. It’s not that happiness is doomed to fail, it’s that emotions are volatile. I hope that helps people who experience this too- when you understand what’s going on more it’s easier to manage.

Since there’s OP didn’t include a caption, here are some links to fundraisers to help our tribe! Thank you!

Navajo Relief Fund: http://www.nativepartnership.org/site/PageServer?pagename=nrf_index

Navajo Water Project: https://www.navajowaterproject.org/

NavajoYES (youth organization): http://www.navajoyes.org/donate/

Super fun thing that happens every now and then, people coming into my inbox to tell me there’s no “hard science” to prove something I have said pertaining to my health issues, only “anecdotal accounts”. Like the one I got right this second telling me there’s no “hard science” confirming that chronic fatigue isn’t a mental illness so my advice to people to rest when they need to is “harmful” and encourages mental illness and I should just shut up except oh, wait

There is. (WebMD source dated 2015)

And also the treatment of it for the last two decades (or if we’re being really accurate here: eighty four years when it was “discovered”  and previously known as ME or myalgic encephalomyelitis), such as forcing yourself to stay awake and to exercise daily, is actually harmful and has been retracted by the CDC as a recommended form of treatment as of 2017. 

It’s almost as thought those anecdotal accounts from the people suffering from the illness were actually accurate. Weird.

Also, just so we’re clear. The medical community fucking up on diagnosis and the treatment of SERIOUS medical conditions, is nothing new. MS (Multiple sclerosis) perhaps one of the best known immune disorders, as well as being the most common to affect the central nervous system, (and known about since the 1800s) was once considered a form of hysteria and classed as a form of  conversion disorder (hysteria resulting in physical symptoms) and treated as such, a trend which continues to this day in early stages of seeking diagnosis, primarily because MS is more common in women.

So yea. Thanks buddy. But I’ll keep talking if it’s all the same to you.

Turban By All Religion 

Photography By A. k. Sandhu 

Via Estee Klar: “Please share! Especially in disability studies and education where autism is still not understood! And if you know how, also make available the link to Part 2 that I put in the comments section. I’m going to post this at least once or twice a year. It is documentary Postively Autistic from CBC news from 2007! It features younger versions of Ari Ne'eman, Michelle Dawson, Amanda Baggs, Adam and myself. It needs more mileage folks, because the message is so old and yet so few even know about it.”

Part 2: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=muTl2U-bE9o

I understand the push back against describing trans guys as “cute little soft boys”, but honestly I’ve gotten a lot of comfort and validation out of the concept and I don’t think it should be entirely laid to rest. 

I’m cute. I’m not super masculine. I’m little. I’m soft. I don’t actually mind these things too much, especially when I can see them through the lens of androgynous transmasculinity. Guys can be soft and sweet and cute and effete – and that includes trans guys. Just as trans women can be butch. 

Of course, we shouldn’t equate being a trans guy with being soft and tender and cutesy and little – just as we shouldn’t assume all trans women are butch – but it’s not necessarily infantilizing or invalidating to describe individual trans guys with that language. Manhood doesn’t have to be defined by strength or size or brusqueness. Softness isn’t childishness.  Describing certain men – including certain trans men – with language that celebrates their delicateness, their beauty, their squishiness, and their gentleness is a blow against the gender binary. It shouldn’t be imposed on a guy just because he’s trans. But it shouldn’t be withheld from trans guys either. We don’t have to prove we’re conventionally masculine. Our soft traits can be definitive of our manhood. Shit’s complex. 

speaking out against ableism & even just pointing out instances of ableism & calling them by name is so CRUCIAL because institutionalized ableism is so deeply engrained in our culture, in a multitude of cultures, that although every disabled person experiences the effects of ableism many don’t even realize that discrimination against disabled people is a Thing until someone else proposes the idea, we simply believe that the horrible problems that ableism causes for us are a natural & inevitable result of disability, that it’s just what we get for being Broken People so don’t shut up about ableism never shut up about ableism flood your blogs with posts calling out instances of ableism because somewhere out there there are disabled people who desperately need to hear that being treated this way is not their fault

For those who didn’t know, Intersex Awareness Day is October 26th!

Reblog intersex posts! Share our stories and hear our voices. No more acting on misconceptions. Use this day to educate yourself on intersex issues and to recognize us within your spaces, and more importantly within other marginalized spaces.

Remember this date and November 8th, Intersex Day of Remembrance/Intersex Solidarity Day too.

Fun fact: some countries recognize the bridge between these two holidays as the 14 Days of Intersex.

DeafBlind Organizations

June is DeafBlind Awareness Month. This post are links to different DeafBlind Organizations, yes they exist!

Canada: The Canadian National Society of the DeafBlind

Canadian DeafBlind Association (Ontario Chapter), but this goes by chapters. Ontario is the most popular place where DB individuals are located mostly. Canadian Helen Keller Centre - Resources for DeafBlind individuals. Services provide such as American Sign Language, Tactile Sign Language, living with DeafBlindness and information.

Alliance for Equality of Blind Canadians  Resources and information for DeafBlind individuals.

Canadian National Insitute of the Blind (CNIB) USA: The American Association of the DeafBlind  List of DB Organizations by State National Family Association for DeafBlind

National Center on Deaf-Blindness DeafBlind Retreat - Camp

International: DeafBlind International

Updated the list :)

The hijab Q&A that nobody asked for but everybody needs

hi okay if you don’t know any hijabis/muslims personally, you might be wondering how it “works” and im here to answer ur questions!!

Q: Do you like.. wear it all the time?? (re: do u shower in it?? do u sleep in it?? when was the last time u sAW UR OWN HAIR??? ) 

A: Nope! To put it simply, we wear the hijab when we are around strange men. And by strange I mean men who are not directly related to us. That means I can show my hair to women (does that include trans women & nonbinary women? thats up to the individual hijabi). It also means I don’t have to cover from my brother/father/uncle/grandfather/child. I would have to cover from my male cousins because you can technically marry them (note: this is only one of the reasons we cover! it’s not only to cover from possible suitors lol. Just bc I wouldn’t marry a gay man, doesn’t mean I don’t have to cover from him. The quran says to cover from men and not from women. that’s pretty broad and open for interpretation. I keep it simple for myself- I cover from all men and do not cover from any women, regardless of sexual orientation. This could differ from one hijabi to another). I also would not have to cover from my husband if I were married. Lastly, we don’t have to cover from any young boys who haven’t been “through puberty” yet. I guess it’s up to the individual to decide when that is as well. 

Q: It seems kind of sexist to me that men don’t have to wear hijab, but women do…

A: Actually, men have their own hijab. (It’s not the turban you may see some men wearing, they are Sikhs, an entirely different religion.) Men have their own modest dress code to follow and are expected to follow the same rules the women do action-wise. Remember that equal does not have to mean identical. It wouldn’t make sense to ask men to cover their boobs or women to grow beards (we’ll come back to that later). 

Q: I always hear about women being forced to wear it… That’s oppression and wrong.

A: I completely agree. “There shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the religion” (2/256). That’s taken directly from the Quran. Forcing someone to wear the hijab is a sin. Furthermore, many Muslims believe that hijab is not required/is only preferred/is optional. There’s a lot of interpretation involved in religion. It totally depends on the person and their own beliefs. 

They way a Muslim chooses to wear their hijab also differs from person to person. Some women choose to cover their entire body. Some wear abayas (the black dress) and niqabs (the veil that covers the face). Some wear a simple scarf to cover their hair and dress “modestly” (this, again, depends on your interpretation of what modest means). Some just cover their hair. Some show a some of their hair. Some wear turbans. Some dress modestly, but don’t cover their hair. Some only wear it on certain occasions. (more here on the diff types of cover)

For men, some choose to grow beards (many believe this is just “sunnah” which means it is preferred, but not compulsory). Lots of men don’t follow the rules set for them. That can be due to personal beliefs, but I won’t deny the misogyny apparent in the Muslim culture (note: culture, not religion) probably has a lot to do with that. 

Q: Do women only wear hijab for religious reasons? 

A: No. I mean, that’s probably one of the most prominent reasons women choose to cover their hair, but there are many different factors. In many cultures, hijab is considered a thing of beauty. It’s a fashion statement. It’s tradition. It’s a part of their identity. It keeps them in-tact with their religion and it identifies them as a Muslim to other Muslims. The reasons are endless, but I think you get the picture. 

Q: I heard hijab is just keep men away.

A: As @angrymuslimah put so eloquently: Hijab is not to prevent men from looking at women or “protect them” from men. Hijab is not for men, or to help men control themselves - it’s for women themselves, to empower women. Men in Islam have a responsibility to lower their gaze and respect a woman no matter what she is wearing or what she looks like. 

Q: Can women ever take the hijab off for safety reasons? (ie: heat exhaustion/possible attacks by islamophobes) 

A: Totally! You’re obviously never supposed to compromise your health for anything, regardless of your religious beliefs. I once got asked if it would be okay for a women to remove her scarf when playing soccer in serious heat and my answer she could if she wanted to (again, she can do wtvr she wants), but playing soccer is optional. there’s a difference between wanting to play soccer and really having your life in danger. If hijabis choose to wear the hijab while playing soccer in 100 degrees, they’re badass and props to them for sticking to it even when it got hard, but that’s kind of the point of hijab. Again though, your health always comes first. 

Q: I see hijabis sometimes and I want to compliment them/tell them it’s pretty, but I don’t want to be disrespectful. 

A: It’s totally okay to compliment us! Please do! I live for the validation of strangers! For real, though. Just think about it this way, if you can say it to a non-hijabi and not offend her, you can probably say it to a hijabi. You can compliment anyone on their scarf regardless of where it is on their body. 

Q: Can I wear the hijab if I’m not Muslim?

A: There is no specific way to wear a hijab. there is no specific fabric. We get our scarves from h&m and forever 21 like everyone else. There is nothing that identifies a hijab as a hijab except the wearer. So if you want to cover your hair for your own religious/personal reasons, you can do it! That doesn’t make it a hijab! The only thing that makes it a hijab is the wearer labeling it as a hijab. As long as you aren’t doing that, you’re not being disrespectful or appropriating our religion. (wearing it out of respect if you’re in a mosque or a predominately muslim country is also okay!)

I would however, advise against wearing it as a fashion statement. It’s not a style or accessory. 

/So this got really long and I’m stopping here but I haven’t even really made a dent in the hijabi discourse. If yall have any more questions, you should ask your friendly neighborhood Muslimah! I promise, we won’t be offended, we just want yall to know the truth. 

Have you ever met someone with schizophrenia or a schizophrenia spectrum disorder? Have you ever seen a post talking about our struggles and throwing numbers at you in that old fashioned, block o’ text style and think “that’s a lot to process.” Well, have no fears, because here’s your handy dandy aesthetic summary to the mental illness that 1% of the population suffers with. ( All statistics compiled from schizophrenia.org, NIMH, Mayo Clinic, and various other scientific journals ) 

Awareness vs inclusion

Something has been bugging me for a while. Every patient organization I know is busy raising awareness. But who does that serve? Is it important that everyone knows what our specific illness or disability entails? Is it reasonable to expect people to know about ALL the conditions out there? I think not… All we’re doing with this fight for awareness, is race for the most attention and drown out the smaller and/or financially worse off groups. I want my doctors to know everything about my condition. I think that’s reasonable and something we should fight for. But every person on the street? No. What I want is to be treated like a fellow human being, to be treated with kindness and respect. People don’t need to know what’s “wrong” with me for that. No matter if my condition is visible or not, if it’s mental or physical, well known or obscure, people should be decent to me. And to you. That’s what we should fight for. Inclusive acceptantce. If we do that, if we unite instead of fighting for attention at each other’s expense meanwhile reinforcing ableism (it’s not okay for people to see us as walking diagnoses), then maybe we can really get somewhere. Together.

Awareness campaigns are often based around pity and trying to get people working for “a cure,” also. Which is appropriate for some conditions and inappropriate for others, but either way doesn’t do much for the big problem with people on the street, which is ableism.

It would probably be way more useful to run an awareness campaign about etiquette surrounding mobility aid users (eg. some wheelchair users can walk sometimes; don’t touch people’s equipment without asking, that’s a part of their body; etc) than to run an awareness campaign about curing fifteen different diseases that sometimes cause people to need mobility equipment.

I know some diseases do need more medical research – but the average person can’t do much about it. They can do something about harassment.

Also, basic awareness about other accessibility would be nice. Like why having handrails can be vital to some people, or that text-to-speech and screen readers exist.  Or about photosensitivity and how random flashing lights can mess things up.

But a lot of “awareness” now is a bunch of high-level medical data mixed in with stereotypes and these giant waves of glurge and tragedy and pity. 

I’m actually relieved when someone says they haven’t heard about my conditions, because it means there’s less chance they think they “know it all” when what they know is stereotypes.  It means we can have a conversation. 

And being able to listen (without preconceived notions) when someone explains what their life is like sounds like a pretty good form of awareness to me.

I get impatient with a lot of what passes for gastroparesis awareness. Because a lot of it seems to be “imagine you couldn’t do all these things. That’s my life. Feel really bad for me, please?” It enforces the idea that the only response we can have to our disease is to suffer. That some of its, yes even those of us who have feeding tubes, are quite happy with our diagnosed. I don’t want it so people will feel bad for us. I want awareness so people can be properly diagnosed. Plus I worry anything that promises pity from others also promotes self pity in us. And therefore promotes misery.

And also like… it promotes the idea that some lives aren’t worth living without a cure.

That’s pretty much the worst thing anyone could do for the wellbeing of disabled people.

It’s close to impossible for anyone, even paid medical professionals, to be aware of every single medical condition in the world and how it affects people. But it’s easier to be aware of stuff like “don’t make unfounded assumptions”, “try to give accomodations to people who ask for them,” etc.

« The Real Africa : Fight The Stereotype » by Thiri Mariah Boucher

P.R.E.A.C.H.

I personally love this.

Someone finally said it. People act like Africa is one big country with one race. 

Boo-hoo, invisibility … ?