The caption reads, “The map of racist tweets in Virginia made me think it might be a good idea to make a map of reverse-racist tweets for Virginia. The reason there are no reverse-racist tweets noted on this map is that reverse racism isn’t a real thing.”

This image was not created by me.

“Reverse-racism” is the idea that rudeness, bias, or prejudice against white people constitutes systemic abuse and oppression. Rudeness, bias, and prejudice do not constitute racism unless they are backed by power structures which affirm the prejudice. United States power structures affirm prejudice against everyone except whites.

7:37 pm  •  19 May 2013  •  5 notes

On Tuesday, May 21st, at 7pm, in the library of the Midlothian High School (401 Charter Colony Parkway, Midlothian, VA), there will be a meeting of the Citizens Standardized Testing Group, a group against standardized testing.

From the event description:

“VCU Professor Lara Coggin, who teaches freshman at VCU, will speak about her experience with the readiness of students who are entering college, in terms of writing and critical thinking skills.  We also hope to have some current and recent college students to discuss their experience and whether the standardized movement has adequately prepared them for college. In addition, SOLS are in full swing, so come share your current SOL stories with others.

An organized group can make a difference!”

6:09 pm  •  19 May 2013  •  2 notes

mokarnage:

March Against Monsanto - Meet at Floyd and Thompson near Post Office at 1:30 pm Sat. May 25th

Update:(****Start Location Change*****) March Against Monsanto: Richmond In solidarity with ‘consumers’ across the WORLD, Richmond citizens are going to March Against Monsanto. On Saturday May 25th…

2:39 am  •  19 May 2013  •  6 notes

Demand the equal enforcement of new hospital regulations in Virginia. This public comment period ends on May 26th.

TRAP rules- Targeted Regulations of Abortion Providers, passed without grandfathering amendments last month- can’t be enforced exclusively on clinics which provide abortions, unless Virginia is able to prove that abortion care carries special risks that can only be mitigated by state-mandated outdoor awnings and compulsory linen closets.

If they want to run women’s health clinics out of business with spurious regulations, they’ll have to risk losing dentist, orthodontist, and cosmetic surgery clinics, too.

11:53 pm  •  14 May 2013  •  2 notes

Below is a message communicated by a leader of the recent Wallens Ridge Hunger Strike.

“I’ve attempted numerous time to send my love and solidarity, but these plantations keep me under extreme censorship, due to my activist activities and my political beliefs. I’ve been in segregation now since the summer of 2012 for attempting to kill a pig at Red Onion, while simultaneously organizing a hunger strike to address particular circumstances and conditions there…That plantation felt that they couldn’t let me back on the yard, because of my organizing and a pig’s life being in jeopardy, so they sent me to this plantation around winter time.

“The circumstances here were worse, due to the mentality of these pigs and the injustices and mistreatments they subject the prisoners to, directly and indirectly…I’ve just recently organized a hunger strike of about 20, a small scale hunger strike, out of desperation, because the issues addressed needed immediate attention…We were semi-successful.

“At the very least, the objective was to bring some attention to the treatment of the prisoners. We did that, bring about some changes, got internal affairs and the Director of Operations for Public Safety involved. The struggle continues and we haven’t even begun to look at the surface yet…”

“Plantation” is common parlance for “prison,” referencing mass incarceration’s use as a weapon against communities of color in America, especially black communities. “Pig” is a common, disrespectful term for a police or corrections officer.

11:47 pm  •  7 May 2013  •  2 notes

Last month, the Virginia Board of Health, under pressure from anti-abortion politician and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, passed a package of regulations specific to clinics which perform abortions. These are colloquially called TRAP, Targeted Regulation of Abortion Providers. The regulations are prohibitively expensive to implement and unrelated to patient health, mostly specifying architectural standards, and are expected to cause the closure of 18 of Virginia’s 22 clinics which perform abortions. The first has already closed.

This will mean that there will only be 4 remaining clinics in the entirity of Virginia for low-income women and trans* folks to receive abortion care, cancer screenings, prenatal care, STI tests, family planning consultations, and other services. This was the intention of the supporters of the rules.  

But why are these regulations being mercilessly applied to clinics that provide abortions only, rather than similar outpatient facilities like dentist’s offices, the offices of plastic surgeons, orthodontists, and more?

The answer is that these rules were intended to shut down abortion clinics only, regardless of the existance of other similar facilities which do not perform abortions- but for the sake of regulatory consistancy, shouldn’t other facilities be subject to the same rules?

And if those rules are judged to be too unreasonable for a dentist or a cosmetic surgeon to abide by, they are, logically, too unreasonable to enforce on a clinic at which abortions are performed.

A public comment was initiated by an individual who had this same thought- if these rules are so necessary for abortion clinics to abide by, they should apply to all outpatient medical facilities, and if they are not necessary for all facilities, they should not be necessary for abortion clinics.

The comment period begins today, May 6th, and lasts until May 26th. RSVP through the title link, to help organizers keep count and to invite your friends, and submit your comment here.

Share as widely as possible.

5:50 pm  •  6 May 2013  •  8 notes

Saturday, May 18th, all 35 Virginia State Parks are offering special youth programming for National Kids to Parks Day.

Consult the link to find a park near you.

Richmond-based folks, here are the events at Lake Anna State Park, about an hour from the city, and Pocahontas State Park, about half an hour from the city.

Lake Anna State Park: 10-11am: Fishing 101. $2 per person, $6 per family, register at the Visitor’s Center. Learn the basics of fishing, 1-2pm: Orienteering. Free, no registration required. Learn to orienteer using a map and a compass, 3-4pm: Gold Panning. Free, no registration required. Learn to pan for gold like a prospector. See here for more information.

Pocahontas State Park will offer a fuller day of events, from 10am-5pm, including recreational tree climbing, fishing, canoeing, animals, kids mountain bike obstacle course, entertainment, crafts, face painting, and more. See here for more information.

11:30 pm  •  5 May 2013  •  2 notes

Wednesday, May 8th, from 7-9:30pm, at the Gay Community Center of Richmond (1407 Sherwood Avenue, Richmond, Virginia 23220), there will be a candidate forum, hopefully featuring all candidates running for the positions of Virginia Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General. A straw poll will be conducted at the conclusion of the evening.

RSVP through the link. Free and open to the public. For more information, call 804-247-3926.

11:58 pm  •  1 May 2013

The Spring issue of the Virginia Defender comes out Thursday, May 2nd.

To volunteer to help distribute, call 804-644-5834 or email DefendersFJE@hotmail.com.

10:59 pm  •  28 April 2013  •  2 notes

You’ve probably seen these little inchworms around town, hanging from their silk lines or inching along on vegetation, the ground, or even you.

But don’t be alarmed- these small creatures are harmless, and neither bite nor sting. They are the larvae of an order of moths called Geometer, which come in various shades, from white to gray to brown.

One of the most famous Geometer species is the Pepper Moth, seen here:

5:11 pm  •  26 April 2013  •  4 notes