Volume 2, Resources 21: Article Access and Queer & Trans Black People Exist
Hi friends! Recently I’ve been coming to terms with the idea of “when things slow down” and it being a lie. Things will never slow down because of capitalism. Putting off things I want to do, things that will bring me joy or peace, until “things slow down” just means I will never do those things. I will always be busy unless I make myself otherwise. It’s not going to magically happen on my own. Forcing ourselves to go on vacation brought this into stark relief for me. I hadn’t gotten everything done at my day job before we left and even if I did, you know what? Things picked right back up when I got back. No time to breathe. You’ve got to take rest, take joy, take peace for yourself. No one is going to hand it to you.
So, that’s what’s been on my mind a lot lately. How can I make more space for the things I want to do because the space isn’t going to miraculously appear.
It’s a resource week so I’ll get to it after the jump!
Resource #1: Article Access
Whenever I share resources, I try to make sure that they are free or close to free so that everyone can access them without paying. I want to remind you that you can easily and freely access articles behind paywalls, like New York Times articles, via your public library. I wrote about it in my big library post back in March.
If I were perhaps a more radical librarian, I would not hesitate to have you also look here or here or at this scandalous resource or this article that certainly makes me clutch my pearls or maybe this one. But I am just a boring book jockey and I’m clearly too much of a rule-follower to share anything like that.
Resource #2: A Reminder that Black Queer & Trans People Exist
Stand-up “comedian” Dave Chappelle has a special on Netflix where he shits on pretty much all my communities (If you’re new here, I’m queer, Black, and Asian and married to a trans woman). I do not have the spell slots or the stomach to get into much detail but further information on this is easy to find. I wanted specifically to call attention to this op-ed by Roxane Gay, “Dave Chappelle’s Brittle Ego,” and this one by Saeed Jones, “Dave Chappelle’s Betrayal.” Both writers are Black and queer and it is very important in these situations to listen to Black queer voices.
I also want to bring attention to this list of Black Trans-led and Black Trans-serving Organizations and Initiatives from Raquel Willis.
That’s it for this week! You can shop any books I’ve mentioned in this newsletter at my affiliate shop, The Infophile’s Bookshop, and support independent bookstores. If you want to send me some snail mail, you can find me at P.O. Box 21481, Oakland, CA 94620-1481. If you want me to send you some happy mail, feel free to give me your address.
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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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