ARTIVISM 4-18-13
PHILOSOPHACTIVIST
Soothsayer Soil Only the soil knows What I am Capable of A witness of Centuries past The same “soil� That soothed The blistered feet Of my great-great- grandparents Trampled by time And inappreciative first world Inhabitants intellectuals only the earthen clay of my foremothers knows my capacity Diplomas and degrees All shaped from foliage now fettering my future with fake promises Only the dirt that Kissed by the sun birthed edible evolution has any inkling of my hopes and dreams a continuation of the aspirations of many Peoples not meant to survive who now lay unwillingly blanketed by the land they once toiled
Only the soil Holds the answer I’ve searched for For far too long In ivory towers Where it is swept awayA nuisance.
Post-Racial Who? What can I saysometimes I feel down being brown in this supposedly god fearing town nobody ever gave me the lowdown that no matter how much education and experience I accumulate I'll get shot down In the 2 minutes before the interview even starts Doesn't matter the size of my portfolio how packed and pretty the resume doesn't matter if I'm extremely smart Cuz though I can change my clothes and walk the walk fortunately but unfortunately this brown does not come off I can- change my ethnocentric name to play the game but dreads, braids no sirthe white managers will all confer and concur
that I'm not a “good cultural fit� see, too much culture gives the vultures ulcers and frankly I'm tired of it-
Tired of working 5 times as hard only to be the first to be scarred Marred by the rampant racism cataclysm between brown and white The overseer never died he just changed face, still subjected and subjugated to micromanaging oversight because of my race I'm battling perceptions pre-dating my birth There's a whole society out there who claims to already know my price tag, my worth And being queer is only the icing on the cake, because institutions go out of their way to pay us less tell us to give them even more as they take, take, take I'm brown so I deserve less It's expected that
I will live a life of stress expected to suppress not express invisible tattoo on my chest My back's a bridge I'm paid a smidge And people may say we're in a post-racial society but clearly they don't peep the vestige of 400+ years of captivity and 60 years of feigned freedom excuse me for my negativity but it's hard to smile when all the while the white man's foot is on my neck and I can't get an ounce of respect and don't even have time to reflect and time is a resource that I'm afraid I can't cover with my miniscule or nonexistent check No we can't afford to leave work early go in late grassroots organize while our kids sit at home with empty stomachs and plates We have other prioritiesThat will not be met With unemployment because of Discrimination
Condemnation Segregation Homophobia Xenophobia Degradation and a whole list of -Isms is it these isms that got young brothers not driven opportunities not given silent doors no knocks but next door chicken joints and shops that sell glocks easier to get and kill two for the price of one yet white people swear to me that racism is steadily being undone this whole talkin out the side of their face while getting a facial that this society is post-racial that it doesn't dictate how I talk where I walk where's available to shop
their stealth stares my health care If I'll ever be chair if I can make it there If this society is so interstitial and the power is flowin' equally from individual to individual Can all I just said be superficial? If so,
here. sign over your first born signature and initials.
What is Radical? Radical is acceptance, not tolerance. Radical is not some inaccessible knowledge or terminology that is only available to White, upper middle class liberal arts students or hipsters, manarachists and dropouts. Radical is when you tell that transboi razor in hand, poised at wrist That he CAN make it through another day Radical is when you smile warmly at that schizophrenic on the sidewalk that is talking To himself and hasn’t eaten in days but spent twenty years in ridiculous wars fighting for the honor of a country that left him battered, bruised and living in alleyways, Radical is when you set aside your politics and pride and bridge the gap between the right and the left, the conservative and the liberal , queer and LGBT, the black and the white, the Pakistani and Indian, South Asian and East Asian, Puerto Rican and Mexican, Jewish and Palestinian, male, female, and genderqueer, young and old, able and disabled so that we can build a better future in which no one is discriminated against because they are “Other” Radical is stepping outside of yourself, your politics, your circle, your lifestyle to be an ally to the person or group that you least expected. Radical is realizing your privilege whether it’s due to race, class, education or ability and using this privilege to empower the marginalized. Radical is when white allies go to doctors appointments with people of color so that they can get the service and treatment they deserve. Radical is adopting and foster parenting children who are stuck in a system that is not equipped for kindness, compassion, or equity. Radical is not only picketing and speaking out but making the connections you need to make in the community to pass policy, change laws, and create movements that will rock this nation to its core and rip open the social fabric built on racism, xenophobia, homophobia and sexism. Radical is knowing the blood, sweat, and tears that go into the produce and products that you’re
eating, the clothes that you’re wearing. Radical is knowing and owning your part in the displacement of communities of color i.e. gentrification- whether you are white or a person of color. Radical is being intuitive. Looking around your circle and noticing which voices aren’t present and working to get those voices heard. Radical is when you no longer seek bridges…burn bridges…but build bridges because you realize that bridges are all we have. Gloria Anzalduadijó “Caminante , no hay puentes, se hacepuentes al andar” Translation: Traveler, there are no bridges, one builds them as one walks. Traveler there are no bridges, one builds them as one walks. Traveler there are no bridges, one builds them as one walks. Traveler there are no bridges, one builds them as one walks. Are you radical?
Survivin’ Tired of survivin'/strivin'/ bribi'n ...you to see my potential/credentials/my mentals/tired of survivin'/strivin'/to stay alive when/some peeps got this privilege/and all I got's my soul to give/never thought about sex work til the economy tanked and went bisserk/became comfortable in my gender/inhabiting spaces/places/you wouldn't wanna be/havin' brown skin and bein' queer/you can't see me/invisible/and divisible/my community -is...tired of survivin'/strivin'/hard to stay alive when...all you ever hope for is to take another breath/that you don't catch your death/no time to worry about cultural theft/bereft/of heritage/society's no longer sparin' kids/so why me? You buyin' beamers a schemer with an HDTV and all I wanna do is breathe/some fresh air/eat food with no toxicity/complicity/you blame us for/but this capitalism is pimpin' you/yep you’re the whore/and ...my people...are...tired of survivin'/strivin'/to stay alive when you got ends and wealth/but we have to live our lives in stealth and assimilate/to keep food on our plate/fork and knife/we get tired of life/strife/ all these signs/the confines/bein' on the grind/ and you can't see the injustice/ of the majority of brown men bein' in the prison system/ and you pushin' for the expansion of 'isms/ DAMN I'm JUST tired‌tired of survivin/strivin'/to stay alive when all you can think about is amassin wealth and gettin benefits/when the only benefit I get is grime and grit/and my will to uplift/my people/to awaken sheeple and white zombies/but you want to be wearin' abercrombie/and handin' us your truth/ while poisonin' our youth...Man I'ma survive/stay alive/fight with each breath til the day that I die/for justice/and the end to your privilege/and white-given birthright/til the day we all know we're descendants of kings and queens/and our spaces reflect this/til poverty and inequality/we wreck this/check this...you got a powerful enemy...but if you wanna work through this you got a friend in me...cuz we will survive! And with each death we cultivate the will to stay alive/your foot won't be on our neck for long/ we're gonna right all these wrongs/ this isn't rhetorical/or metaphorical/ this sh* is going to end/the patriarchy, xenophobia, homophobia, racism, will fall...it's up to us brown folks to pick up the phone ...answer the call Get involved, get this sh* solved..we barely survivin' but without comin' together we can't run...but crawl.
I own these stars They are Me I remember My spirit composes Every ring of Saturn Every moon Of Jupiter
I own this galaxy Turn me inside out And see the milky way, The entire Cosmos.
My Creation was Not without a purpose.
I didn’t spontaneously Appear on the sceneI thought and willed
myself into existence.
I own this planet These constellations This galaxy So why shouldn’t I be able to Have what I need? Accomplish anything I put my mind And heart into? When this place was crafted by Me.
These worlds are collectively Created and ruled by Us.
We are kings and queens Blinded by the duty at hand Misunderstanding our Creation.
Tangled up in stories of Wealth and poverty, Tales of white, black, red, yellow, brown Queer and straight Power and privilege Waste And waste not, want not Difference and deviance,
But we all made these stars, We are all comprised of These galaxies,
Love the only thread Keeping these components From spinning apart castastrophically Colliding and combusting.
If we made this world, Quark by quark, atom by atom, Molecule by molecule, Cell by cell, stone by stone, Tree by tree, cloud by cloud, , Planet by planet, Galaxy by galaxy,
If we made these problemsWe can create solutions. I can help with these solutions. You can help with solutions.
We’ve always known the solutions.
Thousand Petalled Lotus Blossom Thousand Petalled Lotus Blossom Growing unceasingly in the Murkiness of society Bloom On Look on unaffected As the world around you- a Quagmire of Injustice and Indecency Attempts to penetrate your Beautiful, Silken petals Though Immersed in a Pond of Conformity Do not forget Your Breathtaking Beauty and Individuality, Delicate and unscorched By the Sun’s Radiance You shall endure even the Conflagration of Ignorance For even if poison be Poured into the Depths of your subsistence You Metamorphose Venom into Vaccine Poison into Prescription Malady into Medicine Pure, Untainted, Tangible Vision
Awaken your Dormant roots before your Exit from this world.
Rise from the Existential mud of Humanity and Realize your Magnificent Nature Look into the pond at the Reflection of the Sun Realize your Brilliance Do not confuse yourself with the Bottom of the Pond Though it be your Foundation Let your blossom soar above the Bedlam that is Attachment and desire You ARE Luminous Omnipotent and Omnipresent Especially Splendorous Courageous and Compassionate Indomitable and Intrepid You Admirable, Unaging, Aquatic Lion/ess, Do not doubt your Self For You have already Won
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A story of Rebellion, Resistance, Reclamation, Revolution, and espĂritu/Spirit. A collective of brown, radical gender/queers find that to continue to protect and heal their community that they must discover their innate super powers tied to their indigenous spirituality and the wisdom of their ancestors. Notes from an Afro-Genderqueer Philosophactivist
A collection of blogs, essays, and articles addressing intersections of race, gender, sexuality, ability, antiracist organizing, organizing within queer people of color/people of color communities, and much, much more. Written by a brown, genderqueer. Notes from an Afro-Genderqueer Philosophactivist 2 Volume 2 of your favorite brown, queer anthology.