Recently, I was
accused, on this website, of being both prejudiced and racist. In the first
instance, I made a comment to another writer with regard to my own personal
experience with Schizophrenia. In the other instance, I wrote a sexy love poem
to a former lover, who happened to be Spanish, and who happened to have
introduced me to his mother's delicious homemade gazpacho. I have never tasted
anything quite the same since.
Apparently, we have,
as human beings, have reached a point where we are no longer able to
describefacts or observations that
involve specifics about a particular group of people, without offending
someone.
Really? I have
anxiety, depression, and mild OCD tendencies, I have lived with emotional
abuse, and with people suffering from Schizophrenia and Bi-polar disorders.
Yet, if I try to talk about it, I may inadvertently offend all mental illness
sufferers with my opinion of my own experience.
I had a boyfriend
from Kenya once. Oh no, I guess I shouldn't talk about that either. And
lord knows (oops, Catholic girl, shouldn't
have said that either) I better pull down the dozen or more poems I have
written to my current love, who happens to be Irish. I better root out that old
poem I wrote about my Kiwi love too …
When we, as human
beings, are asked to scrub clean our every thought, our every emotion, our
every experience, we lose our souls.
There is a
difference between being politically aware, not using racial slurs in a hurtful
context rather than a conversation about a racist person, and taking the bite
out of everything you write for the sake of not wanting to offend others …
And on that note,
please, if I genuinely offend YOU, as a person, as a human being, and there is
a real reason behind it, have the courtesy to please private message me, we
will discuss it, and I either will remove or edit my post to reflect that feeling.
I will not, however,
be bullied into restraining my thought. Besides, my international list of loves
is too delicious to censor, and one of the many reasons I find the particular
accusation of racism most offensive and untrue.
I think that as writers, we are the most racially diverse people. I did not take any sort of offense to your comment & I believe some people are just in search of attention. However I do love the elegance of your essay. I for sure side with you on the points you made in here. Nicely done dear.
Posted 7 Years Ago
7 Years Ago
Thank you very much for reading and reviewing this one.
Oh, KL, I hear you sister! I am constantly being "edited" in my real life... I have LOTS of experience with things that aren't exactly what anyone would call PC. I won't get into my own experiences here, but I can really relate to the frustrations of being censored because I've offended someone's delicate sensibilities simply by talking about the truth of my own experience and what I know to be true. I refuse to have my sharp edge dulled though. They can suck it. Oh wait, is that hurtful?? ;)
Posted 7 Years Ago
7 Years Ago
Thanks so much. I do appreciate. I think the discussion is overdue on here.
It is reprehensible that anyone should feel so constrained by such political correctness. We as erstwhile poets and artists should understand and support this notion better than most. However the drive to be sterile of feeling, emotion and the expression of our rich experiences is an overpowering demand within present day society. So we should love ISIS, the traffickers of refugees and young people, the violence in our cities, the deforestation of rain forest, the suppression of democracy, the reality of the aetiology of many of these crimes in the name of political correctness. F**k off!
Posted 7 Years Ago
7 Years Ago
Thank you for your unedited unscripted response.
7 Years Ago
The last bit was not directed at you 'M' simply at the system of political correctness!
Maybe the problem isn't the author, but the reader, KL...And I say that as someone who has been known to rub people up the wrong way, both on here and in reallifedotcom. I think there is a lot of people out there who have there own agenda and quite stupidly believe everything they think as gospel truth. These people used to be known as asshats, brats, etc etc and were never told to think before opening their mouth....Or typing in this case.
No matter what the subject, they'll find a problem with it, it's just sad that you have had to write this to defend yourself, to someone who doesn't deserve the time or effort.
I usually find that saying to them "How can I be a racist/bigot when I hate everyone equally....that usually shuts them the hell up. :)
Posted 7 Years Ago
7 Years Ago
Thank you. I do believe that we have to stand up for good taste and freedom of thought at the same t.. read moreThank you. I do believe that we have to stand up for good taste and freedom of thought at the same time.
I write under a pseudonym.
I don't do Read Requests, but you can PM me if you want me to read something specific. I make friends with people who I read and interact with. I won't accept random reque.. more..