Read Persephone Magazine’s epic take-down of the bullshit being peddled by this mythical bootstraps college student.
Plus some other powerful perspectives on the riots in the UK…
“Riots polarise opinion and instant analysis is a dangerous game.” -
“Images of burning buildings, cars aflame and stripped-out shops may provide spectacular fodder for a restless media, ever hungry for new stories and fresh groups to demonise, but we will understand nothing of these events if we ignore the history and the context in which they occur.” - Nina Power
“Riots are about power, and they are about catharsis.” - Laurie Penny
“Savagery is a possibility within us all. Some of us have been lucky enough not to have to call upon it for survival; others, exhausted from failure, can justify resorting to it.” - Camila Batmanghelidjh
“ And while those working to improve access to healthcare and the status of women may be frustrated that we are portrayed as “not caring” when they care deeply and devote their lives to this movement, let’s be aware that there is a lot of privilege that goes into our ability to be responsible, that something like the Why The Fuck Should I Use Emergency Contraception? speaks to young women who aren’t career activists, that social justice isn’t about proving ourselves to be deserving so much as it is about defending our right to not be perfect.
— Lena Chen has some smart words on why getting real is the first step of activism.
