a terf? that's someone who hates men, right? transmisogyny? yeah we experience that too, it's a flavor of misandry I assure you. feminism? it's been good and bad at the same time, I wanna say! too many times it left men behind. patriarchy? yeah it sucks. it's like 5 rich people who force men not to cry and hide their emotions. and oppresses women who are also complicit in it as mothers I guess.

the constant censorship of trans lives, art, & love on social media is vicious & purposeful btw. i cannot stress how important it is that you share trans voices, frequently & loudly

the amount of trans people i know who have had their accounts suspended, targeted, restricted etc is staggering. mostly for just existing

Loving animals is a privilege. To see the richness and beauty of their lives. It's in every cat sitting on a windowsill. It's every dog that people are walking. It's also the flies that lose their way in my apartment. It's the spiders that used to scare me. It's the hope-you're-safe I sent towards the rat I saw crossing the road. It's happy cows and pigs and chickens. It's all the animals that I know I'll never see, but that do exist in all their splendidness. All these individuals, all these lives, all these minds.

Loving animals is also hard. It's seeing their dead bodies plastered on billboards. On people's plates. In the butcher's window just around the corner. It's 90% of the grocery store I refuse to buy. It's knowing there is a street in my town where in one building they're saving animals deemed worth saving, and in the one next door their throats get slit. It's animal abuse that only counts when it's an animal we think is cute. It's fish not even getting the respect of being count as individuals. Loving animals means living in a world full of murder. A reality so inescapable the only safe space is my own house. And the people I love are all complicit.

Gaza Online is calling for direct upload of eSim QR codes from Nomad, Holafly (Israel and Egypt), Airalo, Sparks, and Numero. A detailed guide of how to purchase eSims and get QR codes for all of these apps (and desktop sites) can be found here.

See which eSims are needed here

Upload a QR code here

Donate funds instead

I would argue this isn't "People are just too fucking stupid" rather it's "policing exists primarily to enforce terror on parts of society and our community they deem undesirable"

this Conversation pit is ruining my life

platforming palestinian joy is just as important as sharing the suffering they're enduring during this genocide. despite continued displacement and bombardment, you cannot steal their joy and spirit. happy birthday to this sweet baby 🖤🇵🇸 may they grow up to see a free palestine

this beautiful baby is the son of ibrahim abu raida, the 25 y/o executive director of the al nasser charity in gaza, an organization working to distribute food to the displaced. they have many different ways to donate linked on their instagram (linked above) and also have a personal gfm to help with their own rebuilding efforts that is over 80% of the way to its goal.

Sudan still desperately needs aid--it needs a lot of things, but it is approaching a dangerous point with famine and mass death due to hunger imminent.

These are the kinds of headlines we're getting now:

Here's an ongoing fundraiser:

I linked it before, to help with Ramadan, but it's an ongoing initiative, the need has not stopped.

I picked this gofundme because it's been boosted by people I trust and you can see pictures online of the food they've provided, e.g.:

But I also picked this because you can see the amount of donations. It's 2pm ET on Saturday, April 20th right now? For the next week, whatever's donated, I'll match for a total up to $2,000 (we'll say 2,750 CAD, since the gofundme is in Canadian dollars).

You don't have to send me a receipt, I just ask that you donate and boost.

Edited on 2024-04-22:

We've met and passed the goal! Feel free to donate further, but I've gone ahead and donated the $2,750 matching already. :)))

Guys, we did it!

I really didn't think we'd get even close to $2k in a week and was just planning to quietly donate my $2k on Saturday but you guys did it in TWO DAYS!

I've gone ahead and donated my matching:

I've also edited the original post so that people might see my matching goal was already met, but of course people can continue donating, this was just my own personal matching target.

It might even be better to just donate a small but regular amount, I've heard that that's much better for things like abortion funds or so on, where there's an ongoing need and they need more sustainable funding than just the amounts that come in fits and bursts based on headlines. But of course you have to balance that against the urgency... and there are so many people and groups in need. Well, y'all pick what works for you.

You know, I'm just really marveling at people's generosity. :') I've been feeling pretty down for a while and they say the way to counter that is by actually doing something productive. I was already going to donate but I talked this over with my friend, how maybe it'd flop and make me feel even worse, but then I was like, even a dollar extra donated would be worth it. And look at us now. :)))))

Join us as we hold an event in support of the women of Gaza.

We will be hosting former Nobel Peace Prize nominee & founder of Humanity Auxilium Dr. Fozia Alvi and Palestinian American OBGYN and member of PAMA board of directors Dr. Maram Said.

Also hear from Dr. Majdi Abu-Salih president of Al Huda Foundation on what our community is doing and can do to help with the efforts.

Hear our speakers while enjoying a traditional meal and partaking in a silent auction of Thobe dresses.

Thobe hand embroidered dresses will be brought in by Palestinian designer and business owner Ghada Daoud from Chicago.

All proceeds from the event will be divided between two nonprofit humanitarian American organizations with medical teams currently on the ground in Gaza.

People of all genders and faiths are welcome to our event to support the women of Gaza.

My mind is not going to be changed on Biden no matter how many white queers yell at me, sorry idk who you’re trying to convince. Go yell at Biden if you’re mad that Palestinians hate him for partaking in genocide

Stop pretending you care about Palestine.

You just want Trump to win.

I don't know, don't care why.

But stop lying. People like you don't give a fuck about Palestine.

And to add to this, a world without borders is ideal but cannot be seen until all indigenous peoples are free, until Palestine is free. Palestinians have the right to their land, before anybody else, as Native American peoples do to theirs.

The Toronto Public Library has removed "If I Must Die" by Palestinian writer, poet, professor and activist Refaat Alareer from its display.

If you're an author, writer, academic or reader you can contact TPL to voice your opinion on this decision to censor Palestinian poetry. Who to email here and here.

UPDATE: Even More Vegetables for Rafah Camps!

Amazing news!! This time, Hussam put together the biggest round of packages for the people of the camp and surrounding areas! He and his team put together 350 packages of veggies, each with 10 kilos of assorted vegetables, and to pair with that he also distributed 350 cans of feta cheese!

As you can see in the video, so many people are coming together to help these efforts, all thanks to your donations in HelpGazaChildren! Please continue donating and spreading the word — every penny means so much! Feel free to share our campaign link to other platforms as well!

Donate to our GoFundMe which goes directly to Hussam, who manages camps in Rafah, with NO middleman in between!

HelpGazaChildren Notion Site || #helpgazachildren tag

GoFundMe Link

A father's appeal for his children's peace

Imagine a world where instead of raindrops falling from the sky, bombs rain down, and instead of soothing lullabies, the sound of warplanes fills the air. This is the harsh reality for my children, Lama (8) and Hussam (5), and their soon-to-be-born sister. We live in Gaza, a place where hope seems to fade away.

I'm Hamdi, their father, and I feel the heavy burden of ensuring a better future for them.

War has taken away my job, our home, and the very essence of our existence. We now live in makeshift tents, sharing what little we have in this besieged land. Yet, amidst all the destruction, my wife's pregnancy brings a glimmer of hope.

Her growing belly symbolizes hope in this bleak environment, but I can't help but worry about the world we're bringing our child into.

Friends in Egypt have offered us a chance to escape this nightmare, but the path to safety is blocked by a daunting barrier: the border crossing demands $5,000 for each life to pass through.

I plead with you, don't let my children become victims of war.

Your contribution, no matter how small, could be the key to unlocking a future free from fear and filled with opportunities.

Your assistance could mean the difference between life and death for my family. With your help, we can secure safe passage out of Gaza and begin the journey toward a better future. A future where peace and prosperity prevail.

Thanks for your support, and I'm grateful for any help you can give me during this difficult time.

Paypal Link || GoFundMe Link

[Image description: Text on the left says: "Help my family to evacuate Gaza". On the right is a picture of Hamdi's two children, Hussam and Lama. End image description.]