the elephant in the room when it comes to the “we must protect our children” objections by conservative politicians is that they are not referring to living, breathing children, but a platonic concept of “a child” that children are coerced into emulating through abuse kneaded by both the state and their parents. The lack of rights children possess is to render them unable to object to what adults claim to do for their own good, which oftentimes are merely just means to maintain them as property than help them as people. The idea that teaching 6th graders very basic, very clinical sex ed is child abuse stems from the fear that their parents lose some control over their child’s autonomy by having the child know things (which, statically, also makes them more likely to tell someone when they are being abused by an adult. Interesting) that the parent has not sanctioned as a part of their person. Conservatives accuse everyone else of child abuse not because they care that a child is being hurt, but because hurting children is only their god given right.
civilty in US politics is fu*cking bonkers man you can have a preacher at a town hall calmly calling for gays to be publicly executed but if a politician responds to him “FUCK YOU” that politician would be the subject of a week-long tirade about some bullshit “this is a dark day in american history. i cannot believe a politician would say the f word. we are a country of people who respect others’ opinions uwu”
I made this post before beto o’rourke most recently called someone a motherfucker for laughing about children being killed in a mass shooting but this is the exact kind of thing I’m talking about
On this day, 15 August 1970, Black Panther Party co-founder Huey P. Newton delivered a speech in New York City where he criticised the previous attitude of the party, and other left groups towards women and LGBT+ people.
He criticised homophobia and sexism in revolutionary movements, commenting that “homosexuals… might be the most oppressed people in… society”, and called on the left to desist using homophobic language to describe “enemies of the people” like president Richard Nixon. He argued that all radical events should include “full participation of the gay liberation movement and the women’s liberation movement”.
The move came after the foundation of the Gay Liberation Front, which supported the Black liberation movement, and militantly raised issues such as homophobia within radical organisations.
We discuss that in our podcast episodes 25-26 about the GLF and the Stonewall rebellion: https://workingclasshistory.com/2019/05/13/e21-22-the-stonewall-riots-and-pride-at-50/https://www.facebook.com/workingclasshistory/photos/a.296224173896073/2058647807653692/?type=3
The United States constantly accuses its adversaries of holding political prisoners, while insisting it has none of its own. But for its entire history, the U.S. government has used incarceration of its political opponents as a tool to crush dissent and advance the interests of economic elites.
