*insert less self conscious title here*

[sqbr]

I'm pretty sure I've said this before but I was probably obscuringly wordy about it so (lol, not like this post): I choose to use my lj to talk about social justice (especially race) a moderate amount.

I think this is the right thing for me to do for various reasons and will argue against anyone who says it isn't.

But that doesn't mean I think you all should do it, and are bad people if you don't. People use their ljs for different things, and are suited to different types of conversation, and have different focii and numbers of spoons.

And I don't assume that level of posting = level of caring or level of action outside lj. That certainly isn't true of me.

Also I am TOTALLY not in a position to be smug about how I'm Making The World Better.

For a start, I'm a lot worse at actually speaking up to people one-on-one or taking any real life action than I am about making vague lj posts. And many of those posts are, in retrospect, full of ill-thought-out crap (that's kind of the point: I say my crap opinions and you tell me why I'm wrong) And I am still, despite my best intentions, kind of racist.

And then when you get to other Important Causes (the environment for example) well..let's just change the subject.

On the whole I do think australians and fans etc as a group should pay more attention to this stuff. But that doesn't necessarily translate linearly to more lj posts, and certainly doesn't mean I can be all judgmental about any individual's choice(*).

It kind of relates back to my previous post about judging people I guess. (And, as it came out in comments, the fact that I tend to err on the side of "assuming the best of people")

Oh and if you're curious where this came from, there's been a flurry of "I feel pressured to talk about RaceFail09" posts and in general I get the feeling every now and then that people feel like I'm Judging them. (Which I am, sometimes, but not mentioning particular topics on your lj is not one of the things I get judgey about :))

I have a sneaking suspicion this all comes off as horribly pompous, but I'd rather look like a self important idiot than inadvertently make people feel guilty when I don't mean to.


And while I'm at it: If you feel like you should be doing something but don't think posting is it, here are some positive easy somewhat-fannish anti-racist things (3 of which I discovered in the past 2 days :)):
verb_noire (who are taking donations), racism_101, 50books_poc, 12films_poc and The Indigenous Literacy Project.

(*)Ok, if you write a long rant about how racism doesn't exist or whatever, I will be pretty judgmental about it. Just so you know. But hopefully you get my point :)

Comments

[stephbg.livejournal.com]

I do care what you think of me because you're an intelligent and interesting friend, but I've personally never felt any pressure from you or anyone else to write anything in particular on my lj. Whenever I get all serious I become much more aware of my rambly style, and that tends to put me off because I don't have the energy to write "properly".

My profile says that this is where I let my hair down, and that's what works for me.

I'm more than happy with my flist's efforts.

[tevriel.livejournal.com]

I consider you a friend, therefore of course I care about what you think of me.

However, I'm pretty sure you don't think I'm a racist, so.

(As far as the RaceFail posting pressure things go - I really don't feel the need, personally, because if someone doesn't know me well enough to make a call on whether I'm a racist or not, they don't know me well enough for me to care about their opinions, and if they do know me better than that, I think my record of behaviour speaks better and more convincingly than any post I might make to LJ.)

[warpwind.livejournal.com]

My decisions are my own. I wouldn't worry about influencing me. I certainly don't want to take an active part in RaceFail. (side note leah is tired and hungry this may come across wrong).

[http://users.livejournal.com/peasant_/]

Yeh, there's an awful lot of tension and pressure slopping around LJ at the moment, and I know people who are responding to it with just about every strategy possible. That's good, because although there do seem to be some people trying to call for consensus there is enough variety of responses that everyone has somewhere to go if they need to.

But for the record, I personally haven't felt Judged by you :)

::discreetly pushes white pointy hat out of sight under the bed::

let me get all esoteric

[danamaree.livejournal.com]

I have conflict sometimes within myself, because of my personal philosophy, which I borrow a lot from Taoism/Zen/Buddhist teachings.

One of the core tenents for me is that the world is as it is, and my struggle is to accept that the world is as it is, and that it's not about changing the world, it's about changing how I see the world and changing my own actions and reactions to the world. I cannot control others, I do not want to set out to change others, I must focus on myself first and foremost. People do not make me feel anything, what I feel is my own responsibility, I alone control my emotions, I alone control how I react to external forces. In the end how I react, or how I feel says more about me, then it says about others - and my personal journey is to be able to take absolute responsibility for myself. And by contradiction, that is how I change the world. (your consciousness determines your reality and the ideals of wu wei)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu_wei#Philosophy

ETA: (picking and choosing the right place, and right time to exert agency).

My personal struggle is that I really wish others would do the same thing, it's like 'I'm trying to take control of my feelings and perceptions here, I know shit happens, but I take power from controlling how I react, why can't other people do the same thing?'. (whine, whine, whine, moan). I know right?! - (ETA, how hypocritical am I in thinking this, completely.)

I know that everyone has to go through life dealing with their suffering (because everyone suffers, I accept that), in their very own individual way, it is not for me to 'judge', it is not for me to control how they do this.

So it's an fundamental conflict within myself, I sometimes think it's a struggle between accepting Taoist teachings, Karma, wu wei (which is to me as an individual resonants my own truth) and worldly western ideology. Between focusing inwards and worrying about others and how they feel about me.

It's bloody hard. And racefail has really tested that, but in some ways, I think it's reinforced my personal truth, and I how I deal with myself and my journey and as a way of being true to myself, not worrying about others, and living a life which gives fundamental respect to all beings.

(or you know, I'm completely full of bullshit here, whichever comes easiest, because I fail so much sometimes).

IE, you cannot make me feel anything Sophie, I take responsibility for my own reactions, and internalising and processing my reactions to your posts have been extremely challenging. But I think that's a very, very good thing.

[ataxi.livejournal.com]

One Massive Very Nice Qualification. :-)

For what it's worth I don't feel at all judged by you, although on one or two occasions I've been judged by some of your more aggressive commenters. I know what judgemental behaviour is like, I have to live with myself.

[callistra.livejournal.com]

:-)

[stephbg.livejournal.com]

I do care what you think of me because you're an intelligent and interesting friend, but I've personally never felt any pressure from you or anyone else to write anything in particular on my lj. Whenever I get all serious I become much more aware of my rambly style, and that tends to put me off because I don't have the energy to write "properly".

My profile says that this is where I let my hair down, and that's what works for me.

I'm more than happy with my flist's efforts.

[tevriel.livejournal.com]

I consider you a friend, therefore of course I care about what you think of me.

However, I'm pretty sure you don't think I'm a racist, so.

(As far as the RaceFail posting pressure things go - I really don't feel the need, personally, because if someone doesn't know me well enough to make a call on whether I'm a racist or not, they don't know me well enough for me to care about their opinions, and if they do know me better than that, I think my record of behaviour speaks better and more convincingly than any post I might make to LJ.)

[warpwind.livejournal.com]

My decisions are my own. I wouldn't worry about influencing me. I certainly don't want to take an active part in RaceFail. (side note leah is tired and hungry this may come across wrong).

[http://users.livejournal.com/peasant_/]

Yeh, there's an awful lot of tension and pressure slopping around LJ at the moment, and I know people who are responding to it with just about every strategy possible. That's good, because although there do seem to be some people trying to call for consensus there is enough variety of responses that everyone has somewhere to go if they need to.

But for the record, I personally haven't felt Judged by you :)

::discreetly pushes white pointy hat out of sight under the bed::

let me get all esoteric

[danamaree.livejournal.com]

I have conflict sometimes within myself, because of my personal philosophy, which I borrow a lot from Taoism/Zen/Buddhist teachings.

One of the core tenents for me is that the world is as it is, and my struggle is to accept that the world is as it is, and that it's not about changing the world, it's about changing how I see the world and changing my own actions and reactions to the world. I cannot control others, I do not want to set out to change others, I must focus on myself first and foremost. People do not make me feel anything, what I feel is my own responsibility, I alone control my emotions, I alone control how I react to external forces. In the end how I react, or how I feel says more about me, then it says about others - and my personal journey is to be able to take absolute responsibility for myself. And by contradiction, that is how I change the world. (your consciousness determines your reality and the ideals of wu wei)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wu_wei#Philosophy

ETA: (picking and choosing the right place, and right time to exert agency).

My personal struggle is that I really wish others would do the same thing, it's like 'I'm trying to take control of my feelings and perceptions here, I know shit happens, but I take power from controlling how I react, why can't other people do the same thing?'. (whine, whine, whine, moan). I know right?! - (ETA, how hypocritical am I in thinking this, completely.)

I know that everyone has to go through life dealing with their suffering (because everyone suffers, I accept that), in their very own individual way, it is not for me to 'judge', it is not for me to control how they do this.

So it's an fundamental conflict within myself, I sometimes think it's a struggle between accepting Taoist teachings, Karma, wu wei (which is to me as an individual resonants my own truth) and worldly western ideology. Between focusing inwards and worrying about others and how they feel about me.

It's bloody hard. And racefail has really tested that, but in some ways, I think it's reinforced my personal truth, and I how I deal with myself and my journey and as a way of being true to myself, not worrying about others, and living a life which gives fundamental respect to all beings.

(or you know, I'm completely full of bullshit here, whichever comes easiest, because I fail so much sometimes).

IE, you cannot make me feel anything Sophie, I take responsibility for my own reactions, and internalising and processing my reactions to your posts have been extremely challenging. But I think that's a very, very good thing.

[ataxi.livejournal.com]

One Massive Very Nice Qualification. :-)

For what it's worth I don't feel at all judged by you, although on one or two occasions I've been judged by some of your more aggressive commenters. I know what judgemental behaviour is like, I have to live with myself.

[callistra.livejournal.com]

:-)