Liberty Hub: A Space for Leftists and Post-Leftists

The sidebar is already long so I don't want to add this, but I feel like I need a rules breakdown:

1. No oppressing other users (bigotry is oppression).

This includes any form of oppression, including disseminating fascist ideas like a "border crisis" or defending capitalism, but also any form of bigotry or hate against marginalized groups.

2. No defending oppressive systems such as capitalism or the US “democracy.”

This is pretty much an extension of rule 1, but specifically includes defending the systems of genocidal/racist/colonial/imperialist nations such as the United States or Canada. It's okay to point out good and equitable movements within or aspects of such states, but spreading misinformation like "the US is not a racist nation" is prohibited.

3. No uncivil or rude comments to other users (politicians and capitalists are fair game).

If you think something is inappropriately posted, you can report it and I'll have a look at it. Don't gaslight other users or put words into their mouth. If you're confused by their post, don't fabricate your own interpretation of it in your mind. Ask.

4. No ax murderers, serial killers, neoliberals, torturers, cops, cryptobros, debatebros, or similar.

I think this speaks for itself. There are users in the fediverse who've made it their mission to cloud the waters about what constitutes neoliberalism, whitewashing it to make it sound appealing. This can be cleared up and debunked easily by merely visiting Wikipedia.

Here's an even better source. If you have time and the ability/mental bandwidth, I'd recommend it.

5. Discussion, not debate. It’s okay to ask someone to elaborate on an idea, but most communities shout down leftists and post-leftists, and that’s not supposed to happen here.

One of the reasons I created this community is because I noticed that communities that try to welcome right-wingers and centrists tend to shout down leftists, attack strawpeople, and constantly "whatabout." Specifically, I've noticed a tendency to go "whatabout Trump" every time Biden is mentioned. This is not okay and will be removed on sight. This stifles discussion.

If you see a post you disagree with, or you want to make clear a certain position (e.g., you think we should vote Biden), then go ahead and make a post about it. And conversely, in such a scenario we should also stay on topic there and not put words in your mouth.

Keep in mind that many people are harmed firsthand by Biden's policies. I myself have seen family and loved ones imprisoned and deported under him. I can only imagine how a Palestinian must feel when people downplay the fact that he's committing genocide. Be respectful of this. If you are frustrated that there are people who plan to not vote/intend to vote third party, understand there is context behind this. It does NOT mean they're "privileged" -- in fact, it often means the opposite. Again, want to change their mind? Create a post.

Likewise, it's not okay to accuse someone for supporting Trump unless there is actual evidence they support Trump. If you see a Trump supporter here, please report them. They aren't welcome and will be permanently banned.

6. No genocide denial or support for genocidal entities such as IDF, ICE, the US prison system, or likewise.

I don't know what more to say about this. Don't remotely defend the existence of any of these things.

7. Transphobes eat my ass.

This pretty much follows #1, but I can't say it enough. This includes any kind of queerphobia, including that which has been expressed by certain moderators of some of the most popular communities in the fediverse, unfortunately.

8. These guidelines are meant to allow open discussion and prevent the constant trolling of leftists and post-leftists that happens in places like reddit and Facebook. Follow the spirit of these guidelines.

This pretty much describes the entire reason I made this. Other spaces are exhausting places to try to have a discussion because of the constant onslaught of pro-state/pro-capitalist nonsense that plagues most online communities. That's why this is expressly NOT a debate community.

I'm going to lock this post, but if you have questions about any of these rules, my DMs are open so I can help clear things up.

It's racism tbh. If these were white Americans or Europeans, we'd be doing everything in our power to stop it and not grossly downplaying it by saying it's "just one thing."

Source

Taken from queering the map.

These were all collected and presented in a Tik Tok, which is also linked in the post.

Preview:

Link

The whole post is good, but if I may:

Liberals, devoid of principles, would never understand any extreme, or even inconvenient form of protest

My god, so true! This is why liberals were hand-wringing about blocking streets during the BLM protests and gatekeeping what constitutes a "proper" protest, and clutching their pearls about a campaign every time the sitting president is criticized, and using inappropriate terms like "harm reduction" to refer to supporting a genocidal leader, and fundamentally being incapable of grasping the sacrifice of someone like Aaron Bushnell, and why they sit in their suburban homes and post about how someone like me is "privileged" while their dear leader imprisons and deports my friends and loved ones, while I live surrounded by fascists in a red state while our president does nothing to stop or slow the creep of fascism, but instead implements even more LGBTQIAphobic policies that bolster hate. It's projection. Look at any thread in any liberal community, and you'll find them -- the people described in this post. Palestine is "complicated" even though unprecedented numbers of children are murdered every day by Israel, the "border crisis" is something that like 70% of them have been duped into believing so therefore it's okay and must be real, and black people are supposed to protest their systemic murder in a way that's acceptable to their delicate suburban sensibilities.

Liberals are fundamentally unable to understand the left, or anyone with any kind of principles.

Source

Source

Link to OP

I've seen some pretty frequent posters on the Fediverse participating in the dissemination of anti-EZLN/pro-capitalist/pro-state propaganda, so I thought it would be a good time to repost this. Yes, I was personally concerned when I first read the article by AP News, but it turns out this restructuring has been (probably deliberately) misconstrued and presented as a weakening of the Zapatistas, when such is not the case!

Here's the original release if you'd rather read it for yourself instead of the tumblr post. I just think that tumblr blog laid it out nicely and easily.

All the other disparagements of Zapatistas that I've seen in the mainstream news are the exact same regurgitated racist/classist statements that are made by the western media against literally any indigenous group ever. Let's see if I can list them:

There's poverty

No shit. Poverty created by the Mexican state and colonialism long before the Zapatistas existed.

There's lack of access to healthcare

Oh, really? So the US media should be the arbiter of what constitutes fair access to healthcare?

There's gang/cartel activity

...which are bolstered by an inequitable capitalist system and are only able to function within the framework of an oppressive state. Again, this is remarkably not the fault of the Zapatistas.

Guanatamo Bay. Please be advised it's very upsetting, but based on comments made by influential politicians including Cheney, this is just our MO for how the US treats prisoners of war.

How's that going, Biden? Closed it yet? Oh, wait... more lies by fascist Biden. I guess 70% of his supporters think sexual assault and torture is just fine...

Also funny how they accuse tankies of denying an ongoing genocide, and yet I've seen many comments in liberal spaces denying that Israel is committing a genocide, being not only untouched by mods, but also heavily upvoted.

Link.

Friendly reminder that Democrats are only fair-weather allies who would run us over with a tank if it were politically convenient.

Considering their treatment of Palestinians and Hispanic immigrants, this should not really come as a surprise.

Link to article

Archived link

Gazal was wounded on November 10th, when, as her family fled Gaza City’s Al-Shifa hospital, shrapnel pierced her left calf. To stop the bleeding, a doctor, who had no access to antiseptic or anesthesia, heated the blade of a kitchen knife and cauterized the wound. Within days, the gash ran with pus and began to smell. By mid-December, when Gazal’s family arrived at Nasser Medical Center—then Gaza’s largest functioning health-care facility—gangrene had set in, necessitating amputation at the hip.

On December 17th, a projectile hit the children’s ward of Nasser. Gazal and her mother watched it enter their room, decapitating Gazal’s twelve-year-old roommate and causing the ceiling to collapse.

UNICEF estimates that a thousand children in Gaza have become amputees since the conflict began in October. “This is the biggest cohort of pediatric amputees in history,” Ghassan Abu-Sittah, a London-based plastic-and-reconstructive surgeon who specializes in pediatric trauma, told me recently.

Don't worry though -- I'm sure the Democrats will stand up for equity for us LGBTQIA+ people and POC, just like they've "stood up" for Palestinians in the face of genocide, just like they've "stood up" for immigrants and refugees in the face of dehumanizing fascism.