Cass Dash

It does not matter at all what Mahmoud Khalil has said. The government does not get to black bag a legal permanent resident for their speech. We have a 1st Amendment right to free speech that forbids the government from punishing people for it. That's a solid red line that should never be crossed.

Got a printer? You can start fighting fascism. Here's a thread of things you can print and distribute. 👇

I promise doing something--even this--feels better than raging silently. And maybe it'll show you that standing up is possible and open you up to more things you can do.

two panel comic with crudely drawn stick people Panel 1: A grayscale person is talking to a green person. Grayscale: "You know, if anyone can just turn themselves green, there's lots of problems there. For example, I would stand at intersections so people would see a green person and start walking, causing traffic deaths!" Panel 2: The grayscale continues explaining while the green person watches in the foreground. Grayscale: "And you know, that really says something about green people. And their fundamental murderous immorality." Green: "No, I. I think it says something about you, actually."

immorality

Alt text: A tweet from Christopher F. Rufo (@realchrisrufo) posted at 5:00 PM on February 25, 2025. The tweet states that Tulsi Gabbard is preparing a memo directing all intelligence agencies to identify employees who participated in the NSA’s "obscene, pornographic, and sexually explicit" chatrooms. The memo also calls for terminating their employment and revoking their security clearances, with a deadline set for Friday. The tweet has 254.7K views, 397 replies, 3K retweets, 12K likes, and 335 bookmarks.

This is a full purge of every single LGBTQ employee at the NSA. Rufo is falsely mischaracterizing a LGBTQ employee resource group as a "sex chat" to create pretext to fire every single member in it.

This is a playbook they will run to purge the entire federal government.

History is repeating itself.

There were more LGBTQ people removed from government during the lavender scare than were suspected communists during the red scare. They only really taught the latter in history classes.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lavende...

Ok, I'm doing a version of this thread for 🧪 who are new to political conditions where info security is a safety issue:

1. Don't make public lists of people who are engaging in acts of resistance
2. Be weary of calls to advertise acts of subversion
3. Don't live post resistance meetings

The young men cheering on fascism seem not to know that young men are fascism’s favorite food.

It may save its favorite longer than the rest of the meal. But only to relish it more.

The removal of a transgender reference from the National Park Service’s Stonewall website wasn’t done by NPS staff. Elon, care to elaborate?

Fantasy fiction doesn’t need reclaiming for women – they already write and read it | Letters Letters: Responding to an editorial about the surge in romantasy books, James Latimer writes that romance isn’t only for girls, and Yvonne Williams talks about the synergy of dragons and sex

James from Swindon giving the guardian a bit of a well-deserved slap for their dumb editorial last week

"Sorry to have to mansplain this to you, but from what I’ve seen the [women] writers themselves are too tired and appalled at having to continually wage the battle of the sexes to take up arms once more. Dragons are easier to defeat, it seems."

Amen.

I'm gonna be a broken record about it. Feeling down? Do something. Feeling helpless? Do something. Feeling scared? Do something.

(Yes, yes, yes, do what you need to not burn out, and to make life worth living / keep culture alive and vibrant.)

Action empowers. It refreshes. It builds community.

What we’re seeing is not the pendulum swinging back toward the right after the left went too far. We’re seeing a moral panic, a society-wide assault on a phantom leftist who wants to ban Dr. Seuss and arrest you for using the wrong pronouns and put kitty litter boxes in classrooms.

The Brides of High Hill by Nghi Vo (latest in the Singing Hills cycle.)

The Brides of High Hill by Nghi Vo (latest in the Singing Hills cycle.)

On Organizing time to level up / an early draft of a playbook

So, I read smart people.

There is a playbook for this next chapter.

I believe we can do this. It won’t be easy, but the map is there.

Featuring resources & wisdom from Dr. Erica Cheoweth, @prisonculture.bsky.social @mskellymhayes.bsky.social, @jaclynf.bsky.social & more.

Where would you recommend someone begin if they’ve never read any Tanith Lee? I’ve heard the name but didn’t know she wrote queer characters, and now I want to check her out!

I keep thinking about this:

When the Dems won in 2020, we danced in the streets. Spontaneous parades, parties, cheering, hugging, music in every city.

In 2024, none of them even seemed to smile on 11/6. They didn’t dance. They didn’t sing. They showed no joy.

They won, & they *seethed*

Did your child lose their book collection in the Los Angeles fires? Are you a teacher at a school that lost its library or your classroom library? Whether you need one book or a whole library, we can replace your books. 📚

Everyone else, please boost this post so we can connect with those in need. 🙏

I don't care what bathroom bans they pass, I will never comply. They want us afraid and submissive to their authoritarian attacks on our existence. Don't give it to them. Be ungovernable.

🧵Hey pals, in these days before the new year, I want to tell you that we don't need A New You, we just need you, & anyone who tries to shame you for the body you have either a) makes bank by making you feel bad or b) has been taught unkind things about themselves or c) both.

A page from GALAXY: THE PRETTIEST STAR by Jadzia Axelrod, Vash Taylor and Ariana Maher, where Taylor Barzelay and Kat Silverberg go to Homecoming together. Kat says "You ready for this?" "I've never been ready for anything that's ever happened to me jn my entire life. Hasn't stopped me yet."

Taylor Barzelay you will always be famous.

It continues to amaze me a little bit that public libraries exist, and offer SO MANY free resources, and you can support them by... using those resources. Like surely I'm getting away with something here

I used to have a hard time doing this (it felt presumptuous to me), until *multiple* librarians I'm friends with told me that requesting stuff makes their jobs easier. They have budgets for acquisitions, and if users don't request enough things, they're left guessing what people might want.

YouTube video by Greenleaf Productions When I Grow Up - Matilda the Musical!

And on a similar note, the song “When I grow up” from Matilda the musical, written by Tim Minchin (this makes me cry every time)

youtu.be/6Y82wktAEmQ?...

Growing Up by Marchette Gaylord Chute

“When I grow up I'll carry a stick
And be very dignified
I'll have a watch that will really tick
My house will be tall and built of brick
And no one will guess that it's just a trick
And I'm really myself inside.”

You're going to die one day.

What do you want to leave behind in this world?

Do you want people to remember you as a force for unity? For compassion? For care?

Or do you want be known for arguing over stupid junk with wolves at the gate?

None of us knows how long we have.

Consider your legacy.

I mention “only men in power” because it was a simple fact. I’m of the persuasion patriarchy hurts everyone, including men, women can be complicit, and none of the answers are simple because they become systems of power, which preserve themselves

But step one is naming them
bsky.app/profile/swil...

so stop waiting for someone smarter to fix things

start fixing them