I should be writing about TUC Congress and the latest state racism from France which is utterly shameful!
First protest I photographed - Sept 2007 outside Burmese embassy
But at the moment can’t get my head around to write much… Anyway, Sam has tagged me to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. And well, because I have got a bit of blogger’s block at the moment this is a good distraction and well, I can also bore the readership about myself….
1. I joined the “Famous Five” fanclub when I was 8. I liked Blyton’s “Famous Five” and this was before I developed a political consciousness.
2. I was born on the 23rd December the due date was the 24th December.
3. Involved in the mental health user movement during most of the 1990s.
4. Been a vegetarian for around 28 years.
5. Spent much of my childhood in and out of B’ham Children’s Eye Hospital.
6. Don’t particularly like doctors (bad experiences in childhood).
7. Likes running (sprinting particularly represented school in that specific field… and won sometimes….)
8. Wanted to be an artist when at school specialising in painting.
9. My school art teacher exhibited some of my art work when I was around 14 to some dignitaries who were visiting school.
10. Brought up in the protestant faith. Though my mother was a devout catholic as a teenager yet decided to become a protestant in later years and brought me up in that faith. Don’t know why she rejected catholicism, she never explained.
11. Secular and an atheist from the age of 12
12. Went on the first anniversary protest at Wapping in early 1987. First time I ever personally witnessed police brutality and violence.
13. First demonstration I ever went on was at 15, anti-apartheid protest in B’ham.
14. Did my “O” Level History project on the General Strike in B’ham.
15. Joined the Labour Party at 15, along with YCND.
16. At that point in my life described myself as a Socialist feminist.
17. Prefer cats to dogs.
18. First union I ever joined was Nalgo
19. I once wrote a leaflet about mental distress, stigmatisation and the workplace (a kinda “what to do” for someone experiencing distress in the workplace). Later received a letter from someone who was feeling isolated and being bullied in the workplace due to their mental distress, they read my leaflet and it gave them the strength to find support/solidarity and to speak out. The letter was to thank me for helping them to overcome their isolation. I still kinda treasure that letter and reminded me why I am a Socialist and that I had an impact on someone’s experiences.
20. First experienced depression and anxiety when I was 8 years old (prescribed medication). Still experience mental distress.
21. My favourite women photographers are Nan Goldin and Jo Spence.
22. Read Communist Manifesto when I was 14.
23. Became a Trot at 16. Still call myself a Marxist. Still an activist and trade unionist.
24. Glad I took up photography (advice from a good GP)
25. Very pleased and flattered that one of my photos has achieved something positive.
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I like this kind of meme (hope that’s not just ‘cos I’m a nosey bugger!).
Damn well done re: 19.
Cheers BenSix!! Did wonder whether I had 25 things but once you start…. and was worried it might seem egotistical.
Anyway you should have a go!!
Have done so with late gusto…
http://bensix.wordpress.com/2010/09/21/self-constructing-fun/
Ah, yes. State racism from France. Because they are so racist, aren’t they? They are deporting people who have broken laws (the clue is in the words ‘illegal settlements’). Racist. Just racist.
It’s a good job you didn’t write about it. There’s always the risk that you might draw attention to sexist, racist and homophobic attitudes among the travelling Roma, or their deliberate refusal to allow their children to get an education and then trying to portray this as something the state is withholding from them. And what if you inadvertently, in a moment of weakness, pointed out that underage marriage is against the law? Heaven forbid, you could illustrate the level of harassment that members of the public have to put up with on a daily basis from a group that will not abide by the laws of the country they are in. Doing that might make people think ‘Yes, racist harassment must feel pretty much the same, except the National Front don’t normally get bloggers and human-rights activists dribbling their bleeding hearts all over them.’
And what if all that human trafficking were picked up on by a reader with some level of critical thinking? You’re right. Keep to the Student-Union-level list article instead.
Nice to meet you, Harpy! Do you mind if I ask – are you still an atheist and why did you become an atheist? For me, I just can’t make my mind up!
Thanks Tim,
No, don’t mind in the least you asking. I am still an atheist. There wasn’t a sudden decision to dismiss my beliefs, evolved a bit over time. I was very religious as a child, but one of the reasons I questioned my own beliefs was when I was 11, my aunt died of cancer which distressed me as she was a lovely woman, kind and nice (to be honest, I kinda wished she was my own mum as she was so utterly different). When she died I was devastated, cried a lot and prayed a lot, why did she have to die, I would ask and horrible oppressive people like Thatcher were still alive and kicking…. That was my own rationale when I was 11 and then it suddenly dawned on me….maybe God doesn’t exist!
Then it also dawned on me how organised religion can dictate your life, oppress, control and be so intrusive. I started to reject religion and recall telling my mother I was an atheist her reaction was like I had said the biggest nastiest swear word ever and she also squirmed as well. Her reply was “Don’t say that, he might hear you”….
What about you?
Thanks for your reply, Harpy. I’ve only got a netbook at the moment (main computer down) so I’ll tell you about my fling with religion tomorrow. I’ve had too much beer, oops! But what you said about Thatcher and your nice Aunt reminds me of a quote from King Lear:
Why should a dog, a horse, a rat have life, and thou no breath at all?
(No offence to dogs, horses and rats!
)
Neither of my parents was religious but I grew up when Christian teachers ran school Assembly and everybody carried on as if god exists.
About 5 years ago I briefly ‘found god’ as a way of dealing with possible depression and exaggerated feelings of guilt – Jesus took the burden. But it wasn’t long before I realised that was a cop-out and also there was the problem of hell – torture doesn’t become less immoral just because god is doing it. I ended up hating religion for a while.
After a year or two of calming down I realised it was a mistake to throw the baby Jesus out with the bathwater – there are still many lessons of value in the bible.
So here I am, a soft atheist who sees a good metaphor in Christianity.
Hi Tim, hope you haven’t got too much of a hangover
Many, many years ago when I was a day-patient in the local psych bin, a number of the people there were religious, or had found religion. In many ways it was, I think, to do with feeling islolated, alone, stigmatised, alienated and so on… the many feelings/experiences that go with mental distress… so many people there turned to religion (the two religions there was catholic and protestant…!!!! Nothing else…..) possibly as well found comfort and understanding.
The various representatives of religion (like I said catholic or protestant) would come to visit, I found them rather scary as like they were waiting to swoop on people’s distress and to exploit it for their own advantage encouraging people to believe in something that doesn’t exist. They tried it with me and I said no.
I suppose I can/could understand why people turned to religion as a comfort but for me it meant nothing coupled with the fact I would have felt controlled, believing in something that just didn’t exist. Also, fundamentally my politics kept me “sane” to some degree… religion would have increased my distress by being opposed to the doctrine of organised religion that does control, and oppress and exploit.
Well, they say Marxism is a kind of religion
Also, with the deaths of my parents (esp. my mother) it has kinda opened the floodgates (my GP warned me this would happen….and I saw the signs unfortunately led to a breakdown during the past couple of months) as for the past number of years I have repressed a lot of things.
One thing being my mother’s religion. The one thing we had in common certainly when I was a kid was religious faith of some kind, my other siblings weren’t interested in religion I was the only one who was even in childhood. From watching “Songs of Praise” (my mother’s favourite programme on telly) to reading bits of the bible together. That brought us together. An uncomfortable truth to admit, but it seemed the only time my mother liked me the rest of the time she was appallingly cold and undermining and hurtful.
And then I became an atheist which certainly shut off any connection, she certainly hated coming into my bedroom as she loathed the posters on my walls along with the bks I read. I don’t regret becoming an atheist, it kinda made sense and I felt comfortable with myself for the first time. But it certainly had an impact on my relationship (if I had one in the first place) with my mother). Looking back I felt overwhelmed and overpowered by religion, I couldn’t breathe, when I rejected religion I felt I had thrown off something that had pushed me down felt kinda liberated, if this makes any sense….
Sorry… sounds rather all personal this but kinda grappling with all this stuff that I had pretty much suppressed for many years.
Nothing to be sorry about, Harpy, I find it helpful sharing stories like this – internet is an absolute boon for deaf people. On religion, perhaps sometimes people fall too much in love with the metaphor and as a result neglect what the metaphor is supposed to denote, if that makes sense?
That does makes sense, Tim
Got me started now Tim……
“On religion, perhaps sometimes people fall too much in love with the metaphor and as a result neglect what the metaphor is supposed to denote, if that makes sense?”
I do think that’s true, possibly as well with my own upbringing I believe that my mother sought solace in religion because of her own powerlessness. It’s hard trying to understand someone’s actions when they concentrated on undermining your own.
Like I said before kinda grappling with all this and making sense of it.
I want to do it, can I?
You are officially tagged comrade!!
Go right ahead!!
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