The whole point of the Mass Effect series was to fight for humanity’s right to live, be it red, green or blue. In America, the vote for human rights went to red.
The harrowing sound of the Reapers would seem like a blessing to those who suddenly have buyer’s remorse after their president-elect started to dismantle their healthcare.
Aside from the healthcare debacle and Agent Orange, marginalized groups have been fighting with each other to uphold their own privileges.
The fight to “prove” your worth in a society that deems any variation from the norm as the “wrong way” to live YOUR life, makes living exhausting. The constant need to “prove” yourself to people who do not matter when it comes to your own happiness, drains whatever spark you had for living the life you dreamed off, to living off the flame of worthiness.
Parents from marginalized groups force “normal” onto their kids who dare show interests in things not meant for their “gender”. They force “normal” onto their queer children, because not being heterosexual is grounds for kicking their children out of the home, so they stay quiet.
To fight for your humanity against people who had to do the same but find your humanity “not right” has killed more minds and spirits than any school bully has. When your own family deems your humanity as less than, suddenly the world seems colder than you remember it. The taste of your favorite food changed. The way the light shines through your window isn’t how you remember it.
However, their disdain for your humanity has woken up something in you. The need to prove to them that just because you’re different, that doesn’t mean you’re less than. After the knock down, your first step into rising up and proving your worth and your humanity to those who thought mattered, is to smile in their face whenever they try to demean you. Even if you’re crying because of their abuse, smile in their faces. Smile in their faces as you turn the anger and hurt you endured from them into rage and laugh like a villain. Become the evil they think you are. Make them HATE you because you refuse to back down from who you are.
How dare they try to say you’re worthless because you’re gay, because you’re a woman, because you’re genderfluid, because you’re expression of self isn’t the norm.
When you decide to clapback at those who have wronged you, don’t be discouraged if they cry and pout that you hurt them. They will run to their privileged friends and tell them what you did, leaving out the harm they did to you. They will spin their abusive story to paint themselves the victim. Fucking let them. Let them spin a web of lies until it breaks from other people piling their truth on it.
Your humanity is not negotiable to those who oppress you. They will do everything in their power to kill your flame, but what they WON’T do is extinguish it. What they WON’T do is take their insecurities about themselves and force you to keep your humanity down because they don’t want you to do better than them.
I hope you all realize that your humanity is valid, no matter how you express it.
N O O N E gets to tell you how to be, even if they are a marginalized person themselves. Take solace in people who are like you and those who are trying to find ways to express their own humanity. Be loud and angry when someone tries to tell you what you’re doing is wrong. And if they tell you to stop being hateful, laugh in their fucking faces.
Robin's Writings 