tippi

people (i'm mostly talking about liberals here) have been arguing in favor of optical politics since time immemorial and it might just be the most annoyingly oppressive framework they have to be honest. the idea that "bad optics" are a bigger threat to a movement or marginalized identity group than the actual systems oppressing them is really more of a valuing of those systems over valuing those movements/groups. it's inherently about denying change and justice in the world and the entire concept needs to be dismantled. anyone whose political philosophy is secured by "professional appearances" truly has no idea what they're talking about whatsoever

been thinking about systems that replicate prisons a lot lately and i'm wondering to what extent traditional american schools emulate carceral ideology. the school to prison pipeline is absolutely real and i see it distinctly when i'm collaborating with other teachers at my elementary school. i notice a lot of the ways they act towards students are ways doctors acted towards me when i was in a psychiatric ward, they're condescending and controlling and irreceptive to feedback when the students advocate for themselves (all factors heavily associated with prison environments). approaching any child as a "problem" is not going to do anything but dysregulate them and cause them to lash out at you because they do not feel safe. it is always always always always ALWAYS about safety. if a child comes up to you and says something you think is rude it is because of either the environment they live in or the environment you are creating for them and neither reason should be strictly punished, they should be treated with curiosity about how you can make the environment more fair to them. listening to the children and treating them equitably is the ONLY successful way you can create an environment that fully facilitates their growth and learning