…when your head is buzzing with stuff you need to say but your brain is telling you ‘what’s the fucking point’?
If your mental health isn’t being questioned you’re being judged as ’sexually repressed’ or ‘right wing’ or ‘lazy’ or ‘attention seeking’ or ‘missing the big picture’ or some other crazy stuff that simply serves to illustrate that only a few of the people who look at what you write actually read it. What exactly is the point - when people seem all too willing to box off your thoughts, ideas, opinions and life experience in order to make you fit into their own neat, predesignated little categories?
Being angry and showing it doesn’t mean you’re insane, does it? Arguing that women’s bodies and our right to our own, individual sexualities aren’t commodities for purchase and exploitation doesn’t mean you’re an anti-capitalist prude, does it? Opposing libertarainism doesn’t mean you’re some kind of fundamentalist, does it? Being unable to work for health reasons doesn’t mean you’re lazy, does it? Writing about your life experience doesn’t mean you’re seeking attention, does it? Focussing on one aspect of your life - maybe the one that’s affected you most, that you care about most deeply - doesn’t mean you can’t join the dots and locate your experience in the big picture, does it?
You’re saying “no” to all these questions? Do you have a feminist blog? How long have you been blogging?
Seems to me that, whatever you say, someone will show up with “you think you’re oppressed? What about race/age/ability/sexuality/HIV status/mental health/sex workers rights…” yadda, yadda, yadda… And, yes, I get that we’re all fighting our own particular corner and that every single one of those corners matters. None of them ‘trumps’ another - any feminist worth her salt will have examined and come to understand the system of oppression within which we all live, how it works, how it sustains itself - and our own place within that system.
Racism, sexism, ageism, sizeism, ableism (physical and mental/emotional), poverty, religion, even language ffs - all of these and more have to be included in a feminist analysis of our oppression, surely? I mean, if you’re looking at the big picture, you can’t help but see how it all joins up, can you?
With so many pre-formed judgements about what you say, it’d be nice - once in a while - if someone just actually read it; left their own agenda at the foot of the stairs (so to speak) - and just read it with no ‘trumps’ involved.
Just saying.
22 responses so far ↓
Sam // March 11, 2007 at 7:52 am
“your head is buzzing with stuff you need to say but your brain is telling you ‘what’s the fucking point’?
Every day, dearest witchywoo, I struggle within myself between believing what I have to say is important for others to hear and thinking I’m too insignificant and the enemies too numerous to make a damn bit of difference anyway so why not enjoy a more blissfully ignorant life. On my feminist watch these past five years the organized rapes of children in prostitution has exploded around the world and I burden my heart with story after tale after testimony of what men do to prostituted kids and women knowing the problem is getting worse right this minute. There are a thousand rapists for every one feminist.
Ralph Nader says the alternative to working against oppression is giving up and that is not any kind of alternative and Susan B. Anthony says failure is impossible. I repeat “SwedenSwedenSweden” to remind myself that life for women doesn’t have to be so completely shitty, but some days there are no words that can comfort the ache of knowing what you know. All I can do is hope that what I’ve written might be read on one of the days when such words as these soothe the sore a little.
RenegadeEvolution // March 11, 2007 at 9:39 am
sure Witchy, daily really, just from the other side.
Kim // March 11, 2007 at 11:14 am
I read this Witchy — READ it, you know, the way you wanted it to be read. No trumphs. Just a lot of head nodding and actually a kind of peace. You’re right. And sometimes, hopefully, the “deadness” is just the brain taking a well-deserved rest before starting anew. (I hope.)
sarmorrow // March 11, 2007 at 12:02 pm
“If your mental health isn’t being questioned you’re being judged as ’sexually repressed’ or ‘right wing’ or ‘lazy’ or ‘attention seeking’ or ‘missing the big picture’ or some other crazy stuff “
Yep.
eilidh70 // March 11, 2007 at 12:04 pm
There are always those who would rather use their energies in trying to silence others than in doing anything productive. Yes, there’s a big picture and lots of things to be angry about, and we don’t usually have to look too far to find someone more oppressed than we are…..doesn’t invalidate anything. We need to pick our battles. Fighting each other because we chose different ones? That’s a waste of energy.
Pippa // March 11, 2007 at 12:24 pm
Fuck, yes!!! This is such an amazing post Witchy….
“Racism, sexism, ageism, sizeism, ableism (physical and mental/emotional), poverty, religion, even language ffs - all of these and more have to be included in a feminist analysis of our oppression, surely?”
Absofrigginglutely.
sarmorrow // March 11, 2007 at 1:06 pm
!if you’re looking at the big picture, you can’t help but see how it all joins up, can you?”
Damn right my sister.
But although I can get angry about all of them, I haven’t lived all of them, I don’t understand it completely. Hell, I don’t understand myself and my own oppression sometimes. So how can I fight those battles properly? I can support and include those battles as part of the ongoing war, but my front line is not there. We’re on the same side surely? Just fighting the battles we can can, making a difference where we can.
Some of us (thinking of YOU here WW) make more of a difference and lead the way. For that I thank and applaud you.
Bea // March 11, 2007 at 3:31 pm
We were at a meeting last week and one of the women there said something really simple that, for me, tied up a lot of loose ends. She said ‘all resistance is good’. Those words have stayed with me and I keep hearing her say them.
dreamy5 // March 11, 2007 at 4:05 pm
Witchy…devil’s advocate here. Each of us have our own strengths, our own, issues, our own periods of growth. We all come together in our own way and some ways are different than others.
Interpersonal differences–we have to take them into account. Some people just aren’t suited to the overt fight. Let’s accept the more quiet, understated support they offer. If they’re not harming us, maybe some day they’ll join us?
Intrapersonal differences–we must consider those too. It could be that tomorrow’s most vervent “freedom fighter” is today quietly working through her/his own issues and getting to a point where she/he can fight the fight.
Any thoughts?
I’m just saying…You know.
dreamy5 // March 11, 2007 at 4:08 pm
I’m a bit jet-lagged, btw, and need to point out I was responding specifically to the challenge “do you have a feminist blog?”
v // March 11, 2007 at 4:39 pm
thank you witchy woo.
apostate // March 11, 2007 at 6:17 pm
A blog is an interesting medium. It is difficult to present your views in a cohesive fashion sometimes, as individual posts are necessarily somewhat piecemeal. A non-sympathetic or un-careful reader can judge one’s work from a few posts on the first page, instead of all you’ve said and thought on the issues.
And that’s never good to see. It’s not fun to be misunderstood. Writing is hard enough: To do justice to one’s own thoughts in their complexity is hard enough. To keep having to tie it all together for an impatient reader is well, impossible.
So just write. I see my blog as, really, a journal. I try not to judge other blogs until I’ve read everything they’ve ever written, or at least a large part of it. In this quest, I’ve spent the time to read archives of blogs whom I’ve really wanted to ‘penetrate.’ I don’t presume others will do the same for me - it’s too much to ask for. So I just write - and if right wingers link to me, or if anti-feminists think I’m not much of a feminist, or whatever - that’s just fine. I’m writing mostly for myself, not didactically.
And debate is good. Division is good. Diversity is good. (The three D’s!) And if people say silly things, ignoring them is good.
Gayle // March 12, 2007 at 2:04 am
“Being angry and showing it doesn’t mean you’re insane, does it?”
No, it most certainly does not! Anger is often the sanest response. And (despite its reputation) it can also be a force for good as it spurs us to take positive action.
I’m so sorry you’re feeling down. Seek comfort in your allies, Witchy. You have so many, including semi-lurkers like me
Sending much support from this corner of cyberspace,
Gayle
spottedele // March 12, 2007 at 4:29 am
“What’s the fucking point?” is a perfectly logical response. But, oh is it deadly. It’ll take you right out of the fight, and we need women like you witchy!
You’re so right-having your personhood, your sanity questioned because of something you wrote-it’s a violation.
(((witchy)))
Amy's Brain Today // March 12, 2007 at 4:46 am
Oh witchy, are you reading my mind?!?!?!?!?
sparklematrix // March 12, 2007 at 3:41 pm
“What’s the fucking point?”
Isn’t that the desired mood these accusations are designed to engender?
womensspace // March 12, 2007 at 10:11 pm
Yeah, witchie. I think it’s intentional, meant to wear us down, shut us down.
Won’t work. But it is wearying.
Heart
Laurelin // March 13, 2007 at 11:24 am
I’m convinced it is intentional, too. We’re meant to be constantly backpedalling to say ‘Nooo, I didn’t mean you’ or ‘i’m so sorry that my evil radfem ways meant that I pissed you off’. It’s meant to keep us constantly agitated and remourseful I believe, nad while it certainly isn’t going to work, it is still fucking frustrating. It’s the lies and distortions that get to me. I can cope with people disagreeing, or accusing me of things that I’m guilty of, but refusing to read me properly and then issuing bullshit charges really pisses me off.
v // March 13, 2007 at 12:42 pm
i dont like liars either. i can deal with people misunderstanding, we all do that sometimes. but i dont have time for people who deliberately tell lies to manipulate other people and situations.
Pony // March 13, 2007 at 3:33 pm
Not sure what you’re referring to, so I guess I can’t make any statement about my thoughts.
Hello.
Liz // March 13, 2007 at 4:13 pm
I’ve been feeling like this recently - not having the energy to write or blog but having a lot of things buzzing around in my head. Sometimes all I want to do is just let out a large resonating yell of anger and frustration that will be heard and understood by everyone.
But I think all our voices together are loud, despite what some people want us to think. We do get heard, people do read our blogs and think about what we’ve said and what we’ve done activism wise.
I think its perfectly fine if you don’t want to constantly write, sometimes I just can’t always focus on it all, because I want to write about too many things at once.
And yes - we all of us examine these things to some extent. But none of us can be an authority on everything - we all bring our own experience to this. We all have things to say. Not everyone feels the same - I think it’s important to express our thoughts and feelings, no matter whether someone will agree or not.
Amber // March 13, 2007 at 11:00 pm
I’ve been having that feeling lately to, of things that I’d like to write about but on the other hand, I feel like, “Why bother?” because I know they will be intentionally misconstrued. I’ll get over it at some point - as I’m sure you will too, Witchy - but it can be a really stultifying feeling.
I think, really, the most important thing we can hope to do with blogs (and I’m speaking as much to myself here as anyone else) is to just speak our truth. Each individual, speaking the truth of his/her life and his/her experience - I think that has the potential to be hugely powerful.
I admit I wonder, though… if maybe some folks aren’t ready to hear it?
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