cimorene

These are the tabs that I've kept open in the past few days.

First,

tablesaw's O HAI RACEFAILZ: Notes on reading an internet conflict, about the nature of the conflict, what's happened so far, what's important about it. Also this thread in the comments, where various commenters answer the charge that it's all wank because no "lasting good" has come from it.

2ce's Maybe I'll be a Southron of Harad Someday, also about why this is important:

People of color are being systematically made to feel unwelcome and unsafe in science fiction and fantasy, whether it be as authors, as editors, or as fans. This is a major problem! It is a major problem for me and you. [...]

That’s right: This is the I ♥ RaceFail post. Some of my friends who’re aware of RaceFail ’09 have told me they’re avoiding reading about it, and I think that’s a mistake.

stewardess's Reckless Eyeballing in the 21st Century, about the broader context of racism in modern US society.

One of the handiest things about white privilege is that you can act like a complete jackhole and not even think about why, instead derailing by putting the blame on mean people of color, or on recent unpleasant events which made you cranky. To consign the derailment to the trash heap it belongs in, it's necessary to examine why white people clutch their authority so desperately. [...]

That's because Black people are still violently suppressed in the U.S. Sometimes this is called "the war on drugs," or, as Bill Clinton phrased it, "the end of welfare as we know it." The U.S. doesn't have armed slave overseers who kill with impunity any more unless you count the police. Instead, we put Black men behind bars and execute them. [...]