Works revealed!

Surprise! All of the exchange works have been revealed (a little bit early due to peer pressure and because I was just too excited).

You can find all of the lovely, amazing fics and art in the exchange collection here. Go check them out!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the exchange! You all did such an amazing job, please enjoy your gifts.

[Image ID: A screencap from Attack of the Clones. Obi-Wan stands in a room in the Jedi Temple, surrounded by a holoprojected map of stars and planets. He is pointing at an empty space just above and in front of him. Text reads, “Obi-Wan Kenobi Disability Exchange”. End ID]

So, so many thanks to @temporaryuniverse-writing for organizing this wonderful exchange. It made me feel so validated and represented and it was just lovely 🥰

My fic can be found here:

It features Obi-Wan post-Melida/Daan getting diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME/CFS) and coming to accept using mobility aids and pacing and other changes in his life.

There are some absolutely amazing fics in the exchange so I recommend checking them all out!!

[Podfic] life in the hyyperlane (AO3 Link)

Fandom: Star Wars

Writer: @calltomuster

Text: life in the hyyperlane

Reader: Kittona

Rating: G

Length: 00:18:34

Summary:   Anakin had come to the very obvious conclusion that Obi-Wan Kenobi was completely, horribly inept with technology.

Obi-Wan had come to the even more obvious conclusion that his Padawan was the most gullible and unobservant person in the entire galaxy.

note: this one was so much fun! I had so many line retakes because I was laughing so hard XD

THE BOGA CROCHET PATTERN IS FINALLY HERE!

It's available here on my ko-fi as a pay-what-you-want (including for free!) in both UK and US crochet terms!

It's taken me way too long to write this up, but I hope it's worth it and you can all make your own versions of her! I've included photos and diagrams too, but please don't hesitate to message me though if you need any help or notice any mistakes in it!

Happy crocheting!! :)

my claim to fame is that eliott sent me a boga for my birthday (the second one in the world!!) and then also made everyone in our SWC group a little baby boga on a keychain

i have the best and most talented friends ever. THANK YOU ELIOTT!!!

Hello and welcome to the Obi-Wan Kenobi Disability Exchange!

Find the AO3 collection here!

This is a disability-positive fic and art exchange created to bring more disabled Obi-Wan content into the wonderful world of fandom. To participate, you will need a registered account on AO3. If you don't have one, send me a message here and I can get you an invitation to register. If you want to participate as a pinch-hitter or beta-reader, please fill out this google form.

A few ground rules:

-If you have questions about the exchange itself, check the AO3 Gift Exchange FAQ first, and if they aren't answered there, send an ask. If you have questions about your specific fic or assignment please use DMs or email owkdisabilityexchange@gmail.com.

-As this is a disability-positive event, ableism will not be tolerated. Please be respectful and sensitive about the subject matter. Ableism will be allowed in the content of the fics provided it is not supported by the narrative and is treated appropriately (i.e. the character may face stigma or internalized ableism, but this is resolved in a positive way without the character being 'cured'). If you have concerns send a message here, and I will do my best to answer them.

-Disabilities include but are not limited to: chronic illness (e.g. epilepsy, diabetes, fibromyalgia), physical disability (e.g. mobility issues, blindness, deafness), and mental/intellectual disability (e.g. autism, adhd, schizophrenia). You could even do a Force-related or in-universe disability, although what this would look like is up to you.

-Obi-Wan must be disabled in some way, even if he is not the main character, but other characters are also welcome to have disabilities.

-The minimum word count for fanfics written for the exchange will be 500 words. Fanart must be completed.

Schedule

-Sign-ups begin on Sunday, April 9th and end on Sunday, April 23rd (4/9/23 - 4/23/23)

-Assignments are sent out Sunday, April 30th (4/30/23)

-Assignments are due Sunday, July 2nd (7/2/23)

-Pinch-hits are due Saturday, July 8th (7/8/23)

-Works are revealed Sunday, July 9th (7/9/23)

INTEREST CHECK

Considering hosting an event: LESSER KNOWN STARS

A fanfic/fanart challenge focused on secondary/tertiary/obscure women of STAR WARS.

Running March 1-31st (Women's History Month), the challenge would offer writers and artists the chance to pick OR be randomly assigned a lesser known Star Wars woman to craft a fanwork around.

THIS IS AN INTEREST CHECK TO SEE HOW MANY WOULD BE DOWN. And since we love polls...

Disabilities exist in Star Wars. Period.

This post is dedicated to certain specific people who say they are not be able to reconcile service animals in Star Wars, especially Jedi, since the Force and technology exist. These people seemingly have never seen Star Wars, where disabilities not only exist but feature prominently in many cases — yes, even in Jedi. So let us prove them definitively wrong here.

From the very beginning, disabilities have existed in Star Wars. In fact, one could argue a feature of a disability is one of the most iconic things about Star Wars. Even people who aren't Star Wars fans, or who haven't seen the movies at all, know the sound of Darth Vader's breathing. Darth Vader -- Anakin Skywalker -- is unable to breathe on his own and needs to be constantly hooked up to a life-support system simply to stay alive. This in itself is an answer to the argument that the Force compensates for everything. Perhaps you might want to say it is the Force that lets him stay alive beyond what would kill someone else, but still it cannot take the place of functional lungs, or grow back missing limbs, etc. Anakin Skywalker is one of the most powerful Force-sensitives to have ever lived, and yet he can still be disabled and need assistance. (Also, because sometimes I see people making the argument that because of all the pain that Anakin is in, he should be forgiven for his actions, let me say this: Anakin Skywalker can be disabled and still be villainous and make choices that hurt untold billions of people. Being disabled does not absolve you of your bad decisions. Disabled people are people too, and all people make choices and that is what determines the kind of person they are. But that's another post.)

Another example of the Force not compensating for everything is Yoda. We see Yoda using mobility aids multiple times throughout the OT and the PT, from a cane to a hoverchair. He is known as one of the wisest and most powerful Jedi ever, and yet he still uses mobility aids. "Yeah, well," you say, "he still fights with his lightsaber and does all those flips, so that doesn't count." This is the same stupid argument that people make against ambulatory wheelchair users. Needing to use a mobility aid does not mean you need to use it all the time. Total paralysis is not the only thing that makes people need to use wheelchairs or similar mobility aids. Often, people are technically capable of walking or moving around or even fighting and doing backflips in Yoda’s case, but the amount of pain and decreased function that such actions would cause are not worth it except for short amounts of time or in dire circumstances. This does not make them less disabled, or mean that they are faking it. 

“Must be a Jedi thing,” you say. What about Chirrut Îmwe or Kanan Jarrus, who are both blind (or become so). The Force does not give them their sight back (aside from a certain final scene in Rebels). “It’s only for Force-sensitives, then,” you try next. Try looking at Saw Gerrera, who needs oxygen assistance and wears a pressurized suit over his body. Or how about 99, a disabled clone who helps in brothers and is commended as “a true soldier” upon his death? The clones are excellent examples, for that matter. Wolffe is missing an eye, Gregor has a traumatic brain injury, Echo uses extensive cybernetics to function, among many others. 

Maybe still you want to argue that sure, someone might have a limb chopped off or whatever, but technology has come so far in Star Wars that they're not really disabled. Hear me now when I say: having accommodations that help you function in everyday life does not erase a disability. Go back and read that a few times if you need to, because it’s important. 

Now, to be clear, I’m not at all saying Star Wars always has amazing disability representation. I know that’s not the case in many, many regards, and I will link below references that discuss it in more detail. But to say that something like a service animal does not belong in Star Wars is, frankly, extremely idiotic and ableist and ignores the long history of disability in the GFFA. Disabled people have always existed in Star Wars and other sci-fi/fantasy media and they always will. 

Further reading and other perspectives:

This post was written largely in response to a comment left on a fic in the Service Animal Boga AU, so if you would like to read fics about disabled Obi-Wan with a service animal, please consider supporting us there. :)

I made this post five months ago and I remember feeling so strongly about it, so fired up, so passionate, so angry -- as I should have, as anyone should, as I still do -- and it's a little funny to think back on what's happened since that time. Namely my health getting much worse to the point where I had to finally stop ignoring the worsening symptoms and go seek diagnoses. Turns out I have quite a lot of chronic medical problems that severely affect me on a daily basis and I am disabled. It's really quite something to read back this post, almost like my past self was not only arguing with ableism in the real world but also internalized ableism or an inability to comprehend that the label of disability could apply to me too. This is the sort of post that means a lot to me reading now, makes me feel seen, and yet when I wrote it I thought I was writing to an outside audience. Which I was, I definitely was, there are a lot of ableist people in the fandom who need to get this beaten into their brains, but it was also past me writing to future me and that's pretty wild.

With this new perspective in mind I want to add on a point that I think it's good for everyone to have in mind -- in fandom/fic and just in general.

You never know if someone is disabled or not. You wouldn't know it from looking at me that my entire autonomic nervous system is faulty and it affects things like my heart, my brain, my digestive processes, my thermoregulation, etc. You might see me taking a priority seat on a bus and think I'm just a lazy entitled young person, but you don't see the fact that my brain is literally not receiving enough blood to function properly and it's hard to even sit up right now. You might see me get up extra slowly and think I'm just weak, but you don't see the fact that my heart is having to overcompensate from the change in position and is spiking as much as 60bpm in less than a minute. You might hear me complain about the heat and not realize that my body cannot regulate its own body temperature well and the heat is making me physically sick. You might watch me get in an elevator instead of going up a few flights of stairs and think I'm weak and lazy, but you don't know that even going up a few stairs makes me feel dizzy and almost pass out. You might see me struggling to pay attention in class and assume I'm just a bad student, not knowing that my brain is being starved of oxygen because I've been upright for too many hours and that's why I'm having trouble concentrating.

These are all just examples, and they're only a few of the things that many people with invisible disabilities and/or chronic illnesses face. You just can't tell from looking at them! And that's the point re: Star Wars. You. Don't. Know. So, so, so many people are disabled and it's not visible. That exists in the GFFA too. Don't forget us when writing disability rep! Tell me the stories of a Jedi youngling with chronic pain and hypermobility who learns how to adapt katas for herself, of a Mandalorian with an NG tube who hooks up their feeds through their helmet, of a clone with epilepsy who has to avoid flashing lights from blasters because of photosensitivity. Tell me the stories of a Jedi Master who uses a hoverchair when going to the Senate because he can't stand for long periods of time, of a pirate queen with fibromyalgia who channels her pain into destroying her enemies, of a trainer with lupus who loved living on Kamino because there was barely ever any sunlight to hurt her skin. Tell me the stories of a Jedi Padawan who cries tears of happiness when they finally get diagnosed because finally, someone believes them, it's not their fault. Because nothing looked wrong with them and for so long they even believed themself that they were just faking for attention, just lazy and trying to get out of things. But they're not.

When I wrote the original post, I was focusing on the disabilities that we could plainly see in Star Wars, because I couldn't comprehend how someone could deny their existence when they were right in front of their faces the whole time. Now that it's been a little bit, I want people to remember that disabilities exist even when you CAN'T see them, even when you wouldn't know it from looking at a person, even when someone doesn't announce their disability or health status or medical records. There are so many disabilities in Star Wars, more than you would ever know. Don't forget them either.

Further reading:

Once again, if you would like to see fics of Obi-Wan with a service animal for his invisible disability written by disabled and abled people alike, consider checking out the Service Animal Boga AU, which we warmly invite anyone to write in.

Disabilities exist in Star Wars. Period.

This post is dedicated to certain specific people who say they are not be able to reconcile service animals in Star Wars, especially Jedi, since the Force and technology exist. These people seemingly have never seen Star Wars, where disabilities not only exist but feature prominently in many cases — yes, even in Jedi. So let us prove them definitively wrong here.

From the very beginning, disabilities have existed in Star Wars. In fact, one could argue a feature of a disability is one of the most iconic things about Star Wars. Even people who aren't Star Wars fans, or who haven't seen the movies at all, know the sound of Darth Vader's breathing. Darth Vader -- Anakin Skywalker -- is unable to breathe on his own and needs to be constantly hooked up to a life-support system simply to stay alive. This in itself is an answer to the argument that the Force compensates for everything. Perhaps you might want to say it is the Force that lets him stay alive beyond what would kill someone else, but still it cannot take the place of functional lungs, or grow back missing limbs, etc. Anakin Skywalker is one of the most powerful Force-sensitives to have ever lived, and yet he can still be disabled and need assistance. (Also, because sometimes I see people making the argument that because of all the pain that Anakin is in, he should be forgiven for his actions, let me say this: Anakin Skywalker can be disabled and still be villainous and make choices that hurt untold billions of people. Being disabled does not absolve you of your bad decisions. Disabled people are people too, and all people make choices and that is what determines the kind of person they are. But that's another post.)

Another example of the Force not compensating for everything is Yoda. We see Yoda using mobility aids multiple times throughout the OT and the PT, from a cane to a hoverchair. He is known as one of the wisest and most powerful Jedi ever, and yet he still uses mobility aids. "Yeah, well," you say, "he still fights with his lightsaber and does all those flips, so that doesn't count." This is the same stupid argument that people make against ambulatory wheelchair users. Needing to use a mobility aid does not mean you need to use it all the time. Total paralysis is not the only thing that makes people need to use wheelchairs or similar mobility aids. Often, people are technically capable of walking or moving around or even fighting and doing backflips in Yoda’s case, but the amount of pain and decreased function that such actions would cause are not worth it except for short amounts of time or in dire circumstances. This does not make them less disabled, or mean that they are faking it. 

“Must be a Jedi thing,” you say. What about Chirrut Îmwe or Kanan Jarrus, who are both blind (or become so). The Force does not give them their sight back (aside from a certain final scene in Rebels). “It’s only for Force-sensitives, then,” you try next. Try looking at Saw Gerrera, who needs oxygen assistance and wears a pressurized suit over his body. Or how about 99, a disabled clone who helps in brothers and is commended as “a true soldier” upon his death? The clones are excellent examples, for that matter. Wolffe is missing an eye, Gregor has a traumatic brain injury, Echo uses extensive cybernetics to function, among many others. 

Maybe still you want to argue that sure, someone might have a limb chopped off or whatever, but technology has come so far in Star Wars that they're not really disabled. Hear me now when I say: having accommodations that help you function in everyday life does not erase a disability. Go back and read that a few times if you need to, because it’s important. 

Now, to be clear, I’m not at all saying Star Wars always has amazing disability representation. I know that’s not the case in many, many regards, and I will link below references that discuss it in more detail. But to say that something like a service animal does not belong in Star Wars is, frankly, extremely idiotic and ableist and ignores the long history of disability in the GFFA. Disabled people have always existed in Star Wars and other sci-fi/fantasy media and they always will. 

Further reading and other perspectives:

This post was written largely in response to a comment left on a fic in the Service Animal Boga AU, so if you would like to read fics about disabled Obi-Wan with a service animal, please consider supporting us there. :)

I made this post five months ago and I remember feeling so strongly about it, so fired up, so passionate, so angry -- as I should have, as anyone should, as I still do -- and it's a little funny to think back on what's happened since that time. Namely my health getting much worse to the point where I had to finally stop ignoring the worsening symptoms and go seek diagnoses. Turns out I have quite a lot of chronic medical problems that severely affect me on a daily basis and I am disabled. It's really quite something to read back this post, almost like my past self was not only arguing with ableism in the real world but also internalized ableism or an inability to comprehend that the label of disability could apply to me too. This is the sort of post that means a lot to me reading now, makes me feel seen, and yet when I wrote it I thought I was writing to an outside audience. Which I was, I definitely was, there are a lot of ableist people in the fandom who need to get this beaten into their brains, but it was also past me writing to future me and that's pretty wild.

With this new perspective in mind I want to add on a point that I think it's good for everyone to have in mind -- in fandom/fic and just in general.

You never know if someone is disabled or not. You wouldn't know it from looking at me that my entire autonomic nervous system is faulty and it affects things like my heart, my brain, my digestive processes, my thermoregulation, etc. You might see me taking a priority seat on a bus and think I'm just a lazy entitled young person, but you don't see the fact that my brain is literally not receiving enough blood to function properly and it's hard to even sit up right now. You might see me get up extra slowly and think I'm just weak, but you don't see the fact that my heart is having to overcompensate from the change in position and is spiking as much as 60bpm in less than a minute. You might hear me complain about the heat and not realize that my body cannot regulate its own body temperature well and the heat is making me physically sick. You might watch me get in an elevator instead of going up a few flights of stairs and think I'm weak and lazy, but you don't know that even going up a few stairs makes me feel dizzy and almost pass out. You might see me struggling to pay attention in class and assume I'm just a bad student, not knowing that my brain is being starved of oxygen because I've been upright for too many hours and that's why I'm having trouble concentrating.

These are all just examples, and they're only a few of the things that many people with invisible disabilities and/or chronic illnesses face. You just can't tell from looking at them! And that's the point re: Star Wars. You. Don't. Know. So, so, so many people are disabled and it's not visible. That exists in the GFFA too. Don't forget us when writing disability rep! Tell me the stories of a Jedi youngling with chronic pain and hypermobility who learns how to adapt katas for herself, of a Mandalorian with an NG tube who hooks up their feeds through their helmet, of a clone with epilepsy who has to avoid flashing lights from blasters because of photosensitivity. Tell me the stories of a Jedi Master who uses a hoverchair when going to the Senate because he can't stand for long periods of time, of a pirate queen with fibromyalgia who channels her pain into destroying her enemies, of a trainer with lupus who loved living on Kamino because there was barely ever any sunlight to hurt her skin. Tell me the stories of a Jedi Padawan who cries tears of happiness when they finally get diagnosed because finally, someone believes them, it's not their fault. Because nothing looked wrong with them and for so long they even believed themself that they were just faking for attention, just lazy and trying to get out of things. But they're not.

When I wrote the original post, I was focusing on the disabilities that we could plainly see in Star Wars, because I couldn't comprehend how someone could deny their existence when they were right in front of their faces the whole time. Now that it's been a little bit, I want people to remember that disabilities exist even when you CAN'T see them, even when you wouldn't know it from looking at a person, even when someone doesn't announce their disability or health status or medical records. There are so many disabilities in Star Wars, more than you would ever know. Don't forget them either.

Further reading:

Once again, if you would like to see fics of Obi-Wan with a service animal for his invisible disability written by disabled and abled people alike, consider checking out the Service Animal Boga AU, which we warmly invite anyone to write in.

the only part of the internet worth salvaging are youtube comments under woodworking/blacksmithing videos written by boomer dads

this is what the internet was supposed to be for. where did we go so wrong?

I dont know who needs to hear this

But I sure did:

You can and absolutely should modify the chore/self care task if it makes life easier. Sit on the floor while doing laundry. Clean dishes while in a chair. Sit in the shower.

Save your spoons. Accommodate your fatigue rather than fighting it.

I'm seeing people use the term "chronic fatigue" incorrectly all of a sudden lately. Granted, I've only seen it on Twitter, but I still want to talk about it here. If you're using the term improperly, I'd like it if you'd stop and inform yourself on the subject.

Chronic fatigue is not just being very tired, in case you're not aware. It disables you and comes with cognitive dysfunction (persistent state of confusion, inability to focus, inability to process new information or articulate your thoughts, poor memory, and more).

Chronic fatigue especially ISN'T being tired due to punctual external reasons that'd tire any person without a preexisting condition and it DOESN'T go away with proper rest. Proper rest simply avoids worsening it, and even that can fail, seeing as obtaining proper rest when you have chronic fatigue ranges from very difficult to Not Happening.

Not everyone's chronic fatigue is equally disabling, some people can lead a "normal" life at a great cost (and risk of permanently making it worse) while others are bedridden, but it's not a tiredness caused by a factor that if you remove it, will fix it, unless of course you find effective MEDICAL TREATMENT that makes it go away AS LONG AS YOU KEEP TO YOUR MEDICAL TREATMENT, or get a specific SURGERY in case yours comes from tethered (spinal) cord and/or CCI. This surgery consists on fusing some of the vertebrae of your neck permanently, by the way.

Some conditions that cause chronic fatigue; your brain being deprived of enough oxygenated blood (orthostatic intolerance, anemia, hypotension), your immune system attacking your own body (autoimmunity), metabolic issues on a CELLULAR level (ME/CFS), gastrointestinal issues, chronic pain, and a long, long etcetera. Mine comes from a combination of a genetic mutation that makes ALL my organs function poorly, orthostatic intolerance and autoimmunity.

It's a disabling condition nearly impossible to combat and even more impossible to push through. I've been trying to treat mine for 3 years, researching and trying new things non-stop for 3 years, and I'm still housebound and unable to work.

Please, I beg you, don't trivialize the term "chronic fatigue". The medical establishment and society at large already don't take it seriously, believe it can be cured by positive thinking/CBT or exercise, or believe it's a myth to justify laziness.

Please, don't turn "chronic fatigue" into the next "gaslighting" or "emotional labor". The harm that'd cause to the disabled/chronically ill community would be unmeassurable. We deal with enough disbelief and lack of care as is.

ppl take blocking so seriously. i block ppl every day. ppl ive never interacted with. they make a dumb comment on someone elses post and i block em. prevent any future encounters!

Disabilities exist in Star Wars. Period.

This post is dedicated to certain specific people who say they are not be able to reconcile service animals in Star Wars, especially Jedi, since the Force and technology exist. These people seemingly have never seen Star Wars, where disabilities not only exist but feature prominently in many cases — yes, even in Jedi. So let us prove them definitively wrong here.

From the very beginning, disabilities have existed in Star Wars. In fact, one could argue a feature of a disability is one of the most iconic things about Star Wars. Even people who aren't Star Wars fans, or who haven't seen the movies at all, know the sound of Darth Vader's breathing. Darth Vader -- Anakin Skywalker -- is unable to breathe on his own and needs to be constantly hooked up to a life-support system simply to stay alive. This in itself is an answer to the argument that the Force compensates for everything. Perhaps you might want to say it is the Force that lets him stay alive beyond what would kill someone else, but still it cannot take the place of functional lungs, or grow back missing limbs, etc. Anakin Skywalker is one of the most powerful Force-sensitives to have ever lived, and yet he can still be disabled and need assistance. (Also, because sometimes I see people making the argument that because of all the pain that Anakin is in, he should be forgiven for his actions, let me say this: Anakin Skywalker can be disabled and still be villainous and make choices that hurt untold billions of people. Being disabled does not absolve you of your bad decisions. Disabled people are people too, and all people make choices and that is what determines the kind of person they are. But that's another post.)

Another example of the Force not compensating for everything is Yoda. We see Yoda using mobility aids multiple times throughout the OT and the PT, from a cane to a hoverchair. He is known as one of the wisest and most powerful Jedi ever, and yet he still uses mobility aids. "Yeah, well," you say, "he still fights with his lightsaber and does all those flips, so that doesn't count." This is the same stupid argument that people make against ambulatory wheelchair users. Needing to use a mobility aid does not mean you need to use it all the time. Total paralysis is not the only thing that makes people need to use wheelchairs or similar mobility aids. Often, people are technically capable of walking or moving around or even fighting and doing backflips in Yoda’s case, but the amount of pain and decreased function that such actions would cause are not worth it except for short amounts of time or in dire circumstances. This does not make them less disabled, or mean that they are faking it. 

“Must be a Jedi thing,” you say. What about Chirrut Îmwe or Kanan Jarrus, who are both blind (or become so). The Force does not give them their sight back (aside from a certain final scene in Rebels). “It’s only for Force-sensitives, then,” you try next. Try looking at Saw Gerrera, who needs oxygen assistance and wears a pressurized suit over his body. Or how about 99, a disabled clone who helps in brothers and is commended as “a true soldier” upon his death? The clones are excellent examples, for that matter. Wolffe is missing an eye, Gregor has a traumatic brain injury, Echo uses extensive cybernetics to function, among many others. 

Maybe still you want to argue that sure, someone might have a limb chopped off or whatever, but technology has come so far in Star Wars that they're not really disabled. Hear me now when I say: having accommodations that help you function in everyday life does not erase a disability. Go back and read that a few times if you need to, because it’s important. 

Now, to be clear, I’m not at all saying Star Wars always has amazing disability representation. I know that’s not the case in many, many regards, and I will link below references that discuss it in more detail. But to say that something like a service animal does not belong in Star Wars is, frankly, extremely idiotic and ableist and ignores the long history of disability in the GFFA. Disabled people have always existed in Star Wars and other sci-fi/fantasy media and they always will. 

Further reading and other perspectives:

This post was written largely in response to a comment left on a fic in the Service Animal Boga AU, so if you would like to read fics about disabled Obi-Wan with a service animal, please consider supporting us there. :)