Enthusiastic Encouragement and Dubious Advice Vol 5, Res 4: KOSA. Again. Still.
This is a public issue of Enthusiastic Encouragement & Dubious Advice. Feel free to share it!
Hi friends. I’m just under one month out from the one-year anniversary of losing my mom and I’m extra tender right now. The murder of Nex Benedict has hit me exceptionally hard. Just when I think I don’t have the capacity for any more rage or sadness, that I have maxed out and that I’m the angriest and most heartbroken that can ever be possible, people call my bluff. I initially typed out “the universe calls my bluff” but no, it’s people. It’s hateful people and not just the students that did the physical violence. It’s the people who have power who did nothing or made the decisions to harm. It's the people who gave these people power. Yes, the systems are to blame but so are the people who are upholding those systems.
It is, admittedly, difficult to keep abreast of all the fucking horrors. Today for resources I will remind you that KOSA, the “Kids Online Safety Act” is still a thing and it is still incredibly dangerous. When I used to teach with a nonprofit, one of the things we would teach is if a law says it’s “for the children” then that is a giant red flag because it will never actually help children and will most likely harm many marginalized people, children included. I wrote about KOSA a bit in “Vol 4, Res 16: KOSA, Covid Resources, & a Bonus Funsie.” Here is some news on KOSA from this week from the Electronic Freedom Foundation (EFF). EFF also has an easy way for you to email your reps about this. Don’t forget about the 5 Calls app that I wrote about here that makes it super easy to call your reps (supplies numbers, scripts, and more).
The past many months I have found myself overwhelmed around what to do about any of the horrors. I need to remind myself (and maybe you, too) that we don’t all have to do everything, nor can we. But we can all at least do something. I just linked some really easy things in the prior paragraph. Let’s all lift a bit together.
Unrelated: A small joy
Got my septum pierced last weekend. It suits me. It hurt, I lived. That being said it has been a constant battle to not mindlessly touch, poke, or rub my nose while I’m trying to heal. I cannot say I always win this battle. Also, this week's podcast episode is titled, "Burnout is Not Your Fault" and you should definitely give it a listen. We're also working on getting the show onto YouTube, if you are a person who frequents over there.
Recent & Current Reads
Inclusion of a book in this section is not necessarily a recommendation and these books won’t necessarily be added to my Bookshop.
Recently Read:
The Butcher of the Forest by Premee Mohamed (out 2/27)
A Renaissance of Our Own: A Memoir & Manifesto on Reimagining by Rachel E. Cargle
The American Daughters by Maurice Carlos Ruffin (out 2/27)
Queen B: The Story of Anne Boleyn, Witch Queen by Juno Dawson
Currently Reading:
Infinity Alchemist by Kacen Callender
Us by Sara Soler, lettering by Joamette Gil and translated by Silvia Perea Labayen
Out There Screaming: An Anthology of New Black Horror edited by Jordan Peele & John Joseph Adams (Yes, I am still working on this)
That’s it for this week! You can shop many books I’ve mentioned in this newsletter at my affiliate shop, The Infophile’s Bookshop, and support independent bookstores. In fact, any Bookshop, Amazon, or Etsy links in this newsletter are affiliate links so if you shop through those, it helps support my work. Or you can leave me a tip on Ko-fi, Paypal, or Venmo.
If you want to send me some snail mail, you can find me at P.O. Box 21481, Oakland, CA 94620-1481.
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