Calling All Brits On This Hellsite.

I’m not trying to be inflammatory, I’m just curious. How do het ace/aro people face SYSTEMATIC oppression? Gay/bi/trans people face oppression like difficultly adopting children, finding housing, they may be fired from employment because of their gender or orientation. So they are bared from normal parts of live because of their gender/sexuality. Gay ace/aro people face this too, but what do het ace/aro people experience on a societal level?

If you’d been following my blog at all or even bothered to peruse it a little before dropping this message in my inbox, you’d probably already know the answer to your question. 

You’d ALSO probably know that there are bi and pan aspecs too (e.g., I’m panromantic demisexual) which isn’t “gay” (does this term also include lesbians?) so I feel like your ask erases part of my own identity and that of others in the community.

For these reasons and more, I’d bet money that you’re not here because you’re “curious”. You’re probably here because you figure this is how you’re gonna stop a “self-imposing” aspec from speaking up for herself. 

Well guess what: That’s just hateful & sad.

Regardless though of your intentions, I’m here to say that there is in fact SYSTEMATIC oppression against aspecs. For example, Dr Gordon Hodson wrote this about his 2012 study: 

In a recent investigation (MacInnis & Hodson, in press) we uncovered strikingly strong bias against asexuals in both university and community samples. Relative to heterosexuals, and even relative to homosexuals and bisexuals, heterosexuals: (a) expressed more negative attitudes toward asexuals (i.e., prejudice); (b) desired less contact with asexuals; and © were less willing to rent an apartment to (or hire) an asexual applicant (i.e., discrimination). Moreover, of all the sexual minority groups studied, asexuals were the most dehumanized (i.e., represented as “less human”). Intriguingly, heterosexuals dehumanized asexuals in two ways. Given their lack of sexual interest, widely considered a universal interest, it might not surprise you to learn that asexuals were characterized as “machine-like” (i.e., mechanistically dehumanized). But, oddly enough, asexuals were also seen as “animal-like” (i.e., animalistically dehumanized). Yes, asexuals were seen as relatively cold and emotionless and unrestrained, impulsive, and less sophisticated.

When you repeatedly observe such findings it grabs your attention as a prejudice researcher. But let’s go back a minute and consider those discrimination effects. Really? You’d not rent an apartment to an asexual man, or hire an asexual woman? Even if you relied on stereotypes alone, presumably such people would make ideal tenants and employees. We pondered whether this bias actually represents bias against single people, a recently uncovered and very real bias in its own right (see Psychology Today column by Bella DePaulo). But our statistical analyses ruled out this this possibility. So what’s going on here?

If you’ve been following my column, you’ll recall that I wrote a recent article on what I called the “Bigotry Bigot-Tree” – what psychologists refer to as generalized prejudice. Specifically, those disliking one social group (e.g., women) also tend to dislike other social groups (e.g., homosexuals; Asians). In our recent paper (MacInnis & Hodson, in press), we found that those who disliked homosexuals also disliked bisexuals and asexuals. In other words, these prejudices are correlated. Heterosexuals who dislike one sexual minority, therefore, also dislike other sexual minorities, even though some of these groups are characterized by their sexual interest and activity and others by their lack of sexual interest and activity.

This anti-asexual bias, at its core, seems to boil down to what Herek (2010) refers to as the “differences as deficit” model of sexual orientation. By deviating from the typical, average, or normal sexual interests, sexual minorities are considered substandard and thus easy targets for disdain and prejudice. Contrary to conventional folk wisdom, prejudice against sexual minorities may not therefore have much to do with sexual activity at all. There is even evidence, for instance, that religious fundamentalists are prejudiced against homosexuals even when they are celibate (Fulton et al., 1999). Together, such findings point to a bias against “others”, especially different others, who are seen as substandard and deficient (and literally “less human”). “Group X” is targeted for its lack of sexual interest even more than homosexuals and bisexuals are targeted for their same-sex interests.

From news coverage of a recently published study (2016):

What should the average person take away from your study?

Since I first became interested in the issue, I have come to conclude that U.S. society is both “sex negative” and “sex positive.” In other words, there is stigma and marginalization that can come both from being “too sexual” and from being “not sexual enough.” In a theoretical paper, I argued that sexuality may be compulsory in contemporary U.S. society. In other words, our society assumes that (almost) everyone is, at their core, “sexual” and there exists a great deal of social pressure to experience sexual desire, engage in sexual activities, and adopt a sexual identity. At the same time, various types of “non-sexuality” (such as a lack of sexual desire or activity) are stigmatized.

For this particular study, I identified thirty individuals who identified as asexual and asked them first, if they had experienced stigma or marginalization as a result of their asexuality, and, second how they challenged this stigma or marginalization. I found that my interviewees had experienced the following forms of marginalization: pathologization (i.e. people calling them sick), social isolation, unwanted sex and relationship conflict, and the denial of epistemic authority (i.e. people not believing that they didn’t experience sexual attraction). I also found that my interviews resisted stigma and marginalization in five ways: describing asexuality as simply a different (but not inherently worse) form of sexuality; deemphasizing the importance of sexuality in human life; developing new types of nonsexual relationships; coming to see asexuality as a sexual orientation or identity; and engaging in community building and outreach.

I hope that average people would take away from this study the idea that some people can lead fulfilling lives without experiencing sexual attraction but can experience distress if others try to invalidate their identities.

Some of the social isolation we aspecs experience comes from religious communities. Indeed, the popular myth that religious people revere aspecs is very much NOT TRUE. For example, read “Myth 8″ from the VISION Catholic Religious Vocation Guide:

MYTH 8: Religious are asexual

Question: What do you call a person who is asexual? 

Answer: Not a person. Asexual people do not exist. Sexuality is a gift from God and thus a fundamental part of our human identity. Those who repress their sexuality are not living as God created them to be: fully alive and well. As such, they’re most likely unhappy. All people are called by God to live chastely, meaning being respectful of the gift of their sexuality. Religious men and women vow celibate chastity, which means they live out their sexuality without engaging in sexual behavior. A vow of chastity does not mean one represses his manhood or her womanhood. Sexuality and the act of sex are two very different things. While people in religious life abstain from the act of sex, they do not become asexual beings, but rather need to be in touch with what it means to be a man or a woman. A vow of chastity also does not mean one will not have close, loving relationships with women and men. In fact, such relationships are a sign of living the vow in a healthy way. Living a religious vow of chastity is not always easy, but it can be a very beautiful expression of love for God and others. Religious women and men aren’t oddities; they mirror the rest of the church they serve: there are introverts and extroverts, tall and short, old and young, straight and gay, obese and skinny, crass and pious, humorous and serious, and everything in between. They attempt to live the same primary vocation as all other Christians do: proclaiming and living the gospel. However, religious do this as members of an order that serve the church and world in a particular way. Like marriage and the single life, religious life can be wonderful, fulfilling, exciting, and, yes, normal. Yet, it also can be countercultural and positively challenging. It’s that for us and many others. If you thought religious life was outdated, dysfunctional, or dead, we hope you can now look beyond the stereotypes and see the gift it is to the church and world.

NOTE: YOU CAN BE A GAY CATHOLIC PERSON BUT NOT ASEXUAL, BC ASEXUALITY DOESN’T EXIST (yet somehow we’re also “most likely unhappy” and “oddities”). I sincerely hope and believe that not all religions characterize us aspecs this way. But here are some personal accounts I found on a reddit site answering the question “Do any religions have a negative stance toward asexuals?”:

Please note that the Christian pastor in the last example was fearful (or something?) that an asexual was helping to lead a youth group and kicked them out of the church as a result.

need an essay over why the 2004 hit nickelodeon tv show danny phantom attracts so many asexuals

“Am I too old for fanfiction?” I ask as I open a new 20 chapter Danny Phantom fic.

“We chose the term “asexual” to describe ourselves because both “celibate” and “anti-sexual” have connotations we wished to avoid: the first implies that one has sacrificed sexuality for some higher good, the second that sexuality is degrading or somehow inherently bad. “Asexual”, as we use it, does not mean “without sex” but “relating sexually to no one”. This does not, of course, exclude masturbation but implies that if one has sexual feelings they do not require another person for their expression. Asexuality is, simply, self-contained sexuality.”

— The Asexual Manifesto, Lisa Orlando and Barbara Getz, 1972

since it’s a scary time to be trans: refuge restrooms is an app which maps gender-neutral/single-stall restrooms. it’s community-mapped, so it’s possible you might be the first person to log the restroom locations, but hopefully it’ll help some people.

please reblog this post if you’ve got trans followers. stay safe.

Star Error VII

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6

Star investigates Danny’s glowing freckles.

-----

"Star, where have you been?" asked Kwan.

Star took her normal seat at the A-List table in the cafeteria. "Nowhere. Sorry. Just had a thing I needed to care of."

"Aren't you going to eat?" asked Paulina, taking a bite of her chicken salad.

Star looked down at the empty table space in front of her. "Oh. Uh, actually, I already ate."

"What did you eat?" Dash grinned, chewing his food as he spoke. "Fenton's face?"

Star balked. "What kind of a question is that?"

"He walked in literally a minute before you did," said Dash, looking over in Fenton's direction where he was sitting with Manson and Foley a few tables away. "His loser friends were here on time as usual, so that means he was also 'taking care of something.' That 'something' probably being you, right?"

"So you and Danny are really hitting it off, huh?" Paulina playfully elbowed her in the side.

"No!" shrieked Star. "You guys have got it all wrong."

"Star, you don't need to keep denying it." Dash took a huge bite of his burger, a glob of ketchup smearing above his lip. "Paulina's dated him, too. Clearly that nerd's got something going on you girls like."

Paulina made a face. "I don't know what you're talking about, but could you please use a napkin, Dash?"

Dash wiped his mouth with his hand. "Paulina, we all remember that week when you were attached to Fenton's hip and we had to temporarily kick Kwan out of the A-List to make room for him."

"I could never forget," sighed Kwan with a pout.

"You're all crazy," said Paulina. "That never happened."

"Come on, Paulina." Dash took another bite, even more ketchup dribbling down his chin. "Just tell me what that nerd's secret is already. I mean, why would you date him of all people before me?"

Paulina pursed her lips. "Well, for one, he's not gross."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Stop talking with your mouth full, Dash! See, Danny's not a pig like you are."

"That's because Fenton barely eats at all. He's a twig."

"He's not a twig." Paulina looked in Fenton's direction and twirled a lock of her hair. "He's put on some muscle this past year. Don't you agree, Star?"

Star rolled her eyes. "Who's keeping track of that?"

"Look, all I'm saying is, I could kick his ass from one end of this school to the other." Dash sighed. "God, I actually kind of miss whaling on him. Coach said I had to knock it off or I'd get kicked off the team."

"Does Fenton know that?" asked Kwan.

"No, and I'm not gonna tell him." Dash smirked. "I'd rather him live in fear that I could pound him any day now."

"He's not afraid of you, you know," said Star with a shrug.

Dash furrowed his brow. "What did you say?"

"Fenton's not afraid of you," said Star more slowly.

"And just how do you know that?"

"He told me."

"Oh, did he tell you yesterday on your little date?"

"It wasn't a date, as I keep trying to tell you, but yes, it was yesterday at the cafe."

"He was probably just trying to impress you." Dash laughed. "You know, act like he's tough for his new girlfriend. But I think it's real cute that you two are starting to get to know each other so well."

Star wrinkled her nose and pouted.

"So how is he?" Paulina nudged her.

"What? How is who? What do you mean?" asked Star irritably.

"Danny," said Paulina. "I mean, is he a good kisser?"

"Shouldn't you know, Paulina?" asked Dash. "Surely you sucked face with him at least once when you were dating him."

"Shut it, Dash." Paulina glared at him. "I'm asking Star a question."

Dash rolled his eyes and stuffed the last bite of his burger into his mouth. "Yes, Star, please tell us what it's like to kiss one of the biggest geeks in school. We're all dying to know."

"I just want to know if he's better than me," said Kwan anxiously. "He's not, right?"

Everyone looked at her expectantly, waiting. Star chewed the inside of her cheek as her eyes darted between them.

And a few tables over, Fenton was chatting it up with his friends, all smiley because he had the upper hand again.

And then Star got an idea.

"Well, actually…" She put her elbows on the table and leaned forward. "We haven't kissed yet. Fenton—I mean, Danny says he wants to practice a little more first. You know, to make sure our first kiss is perfect."

"Practice?" Paulina tilted her head.

"Yeah," said Star, grinning. "He has all these dolls and pillows in his room that he likes to practice on. They all have pictures of girls at our school taped to them. He says it makes it feel more authentic."

"Ew, are you serious?" Paulina crossed her hands over her chest and shuddered.

"No way, he doesn't do that, does he?" Kwan's eyes were wide.

"He's got at least a dozen of them," said Star. "He mostly uses pictures of cheerleaders."

"Oh, I have to tell everyone right now." Dash whipped out his phone and began furiously typing out a text message.

"Cheerleaders, so does that mean he has a doll or pillow with my picture on it?" asked Paulina.

"Oh, yeah." Star nodded. "I think he might practice with yours the most."

"Ugh, gross." Paulina stuck out her tongue. "But is it at least a good picture of me?"

Star's smile dropped. "Is it—what?"

"Just tell me it's not that picture of me after I ran that marathon last semester, is it? Where I'm all sweaty and my eyeliner is running?"

"Uh—"

"I know it's been circulating between all the boys, so please just tell me he's not using that one because I really hate it."

Star rolled her eyes. "He's using a great picture of you, don't worry."

Paulina sighed. "Okay, good." She also pulled out her phone. "The other cheerleaders are going to want to know about this, though."

Star smirked triumphantly as Dash and Paulina busily typed away on their phones, then she turned to look at Fenton across the way, catching his eye after just a few moments. She waved at him and flashed her most dazzling smile. Fenton's brow furrowed, his bottom lip sticking out slightly in a puzzled frown.

Star flipped her hair over her shoulder as she turned away. The game was back on.

Hey it’s ace week and you’re local ace has something to say! I’ve been out as ace for 3 years now and it’s still a big part of my identity that I’m proud of so here’s a lil something for those who need it!

USA people! Buy NOTHING Feb 28 2025. Not anything. 24 hours. No spending. Buy the day before or after but nothing. NOTHING. February 28 2025. Not gas. Not milk. Not something on a gaming app. Not a penny spent. (Only option in a crisis is local small mom and pop. Nothing. Else.) Promise me. Commit. 1 day. 1 day to scare the shit out of them that they don't get to follow the bullshit executive orders. They don't get to be cowards. If they do, it costs. It costs.

Then, if you can join me for Phase 2. March 7 2025 thtough March 14 2025? No Amazon. None. 1 week. No orders. Not a single item. Not one ebook. Nothing. 1 week. Just 1.

If you live outside the USA boycott US products on February 28 2025 and stand in solidarity with us and also join us for the week of no Amazon.

Are you with me?

Spread the word.

Do you have any DK17 fic recs? I have a need to read more of the Duck family

I'M GLAD YOU ASKED!!! :D

(Also a lot of the fics I'm about to list were written by authors who have a lot of other good DT fics, so check those out, too! I'm just listing a few of my favorites here :] )

On Our Own by Godsliltippy

Unintended Consequences by Godsliltippy

Keeping the Balance by Sand_wolf579

Rose By Any Other Name Still Has Thorns by Seiicubus

help us to hear you by phillipAsoo

always here by phillipAsoo

thank you for being here by phillipAsoo

you're not broken by phillipAsoo

DT17 Magic AU by twilighteve

louie’s christmas list: reasonable, boring, scarves by Humanities_Handbag

hear these words and have faith by Rehearsal_Dweller

Stars Above by Rehearsal_Dweller

Problem Children by mandaree1

I'm a little sick right now... by ToshiChan

Huey Duck's Non-Comprehensive, Ever Growing List of Reasons Why Being a Triplet is Awesome by Nebulous_Bounds_of_Bad_Taste

AND NOW MY FRIENDS CAUSE THEY'RE AMAZING:

Turbulence by CalamityOfColors

Build a Bridge, then Burn it Down by sodaschemes

Truth Serum by ReesieReads and sodaschemes

Stargazing by ReesieReads

Sacrifice 104 by ReesieReads

Shovels, Spiders, and Corn, Louie Duck’s Recipe For Disaster! by ReesieReads

Bad kid by Lunellyn

Blank by cookies_loves_duckies

Sewing. by cookies_loves_duckies

back to who I was, on to find my future by AuthorUnkind

Soaring, flying by AuthorUnkind

Crushing by Josecarioca

I'm sure that there's a lot of other great fics out there, but this is what I came up with this time! Again, make sure to check out the other DT fics that these authors have written!! And if anyone wants to, feel free to add more to this :]

(Hi @staarshiine @ninja-go-to-therapy @reesiereads @lunellyn @cookies-loves-duckies @nblaunchpad @nonbinaryboyd ily all <33)

Catch these fuckin’

Danny Phantom One-Shot Recs

I’m gonna plug my own one-shot in here first, then go in reverse through my history. This list is probably gonna have more fics, so buckle up. There’s (surprisingly) only one crossover, and I’ve also put the GothMoth fics into a section by themselves. Because they’re special.

Coincidentally by Dragoknitter - Miles and Tucker are cousins, and Tucker basically says, “Y’all need a support system, lemme hook you up.”

Is This Just A Thing that Girls Do? by newdog14 - Middle school girls are terrifying, and this is definitely something I might’ve done if given the right motivation.

Pushing Buttons (Until They Break) by ObsidianCreates - Danny’s parents aren’t the best at feelings, and press on way too many sore spots. But! There’s a sequel and they make up for it!

Day Three: Cryptid by JadeNoRyuu - Astraphobic Danny + supernatural thunderstorm + helpful senior student = a fun little story that is just *Pacha 🖐👌Meme*

The Green Gremlin by NikaylaSarae - Some top-notch character building for Dash, although this author mostly writes for Sanders Sides

Parental Woes by DarkNymfa - Very nice premise! Clockwork and Pandora are awesome, but don’t really Get human stuff. Danny is embarrassed.

Of Tweets and Twats by DarkNymfa - Twitter convos discussing Amity Park, featuring people from Amity Park!

Flickering Yellow and Green by dragonrayy - Danny gets hit with something by Technus that messes up his eyes, so he goes to a ghost optometrist.

Grabbing Smoke by thatgirl_youknowtheone - Lovely characterization for Kitty! Also has Jewish Sam!

Growing Pains by ayjayar - Ghost puberty! Ghost puberty! But not for Danny

What Can Be Found by ajility - Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt. Or, in this case, a dream ship in the Ghost Zone.

Facing Facts by ajility - I get the feeling this author just likes writing Danny in denial about his parents’ neglect…

The Things We Hold Dear by Alana_Kitty - Nice little story about Danny fixing Ember’s guitar!

Bang Babies got nothin’ on the Ghost Kid by anthrop - Look. I loved Static Shock as a kid and seeing him completely overwhelmed by Danny’s OP ass is wonderful.

Core by GhostWriterGirl1 - F in the chat for Danny. Boi gets messed up by a solar flare. The author added in the reasoning behind the headcanon too, so that’s neat!

Shots Fired by RedGhost1010 - This is definitely NOT what you should do in the event of a school shooting, but who cares about that when you’re immortal?

Lightning Scars and Listening Ears by GoingDeceased - A little angsty, but hey! Danny finally has some adults on his side!

Electricity by lexosaurus - Danny has PTSD, and peer pressure is a bitch

GothMoth Fics

Spooky Sin Scholar - Danny is a polyglot and teaches classmates to swear in Ghost.

The Fright In Halloween - Danny is a little shit, but what else is new?

Mimicry - Mostly just shitting on radical Christianity’s policy of “unnatural things must be eradicated, we must send them back to Hell where they belong”, at least that’s my takeaway

Fashion Flame War - Uniforms are only convenient for schools, and are a crime against expression of self. Casper High can never do things the easy way, though.

In My Veins Flows Chaos, But I Could Do Without It Being This Obvious - *plops ectoplasm into Danny’s hands* He glows!

Nip Trips Nips - Ah, ghost nip. And implied Val/Ellie! (Ellie is my preferred name for her because Dani and Danny is just so confusing)

Ecto Upgrade Start - Ghost puberty, for Danny this time!

Gala Glamour - Richness and pettiness are a given combination, after all, why shouldn’t Vlad use his ridiculous wealth for the entertainment of teenagers?

Poised To Go Splat - Don’t drink glow sticks, kids. Or let your insane ghost-hunting parents make an anti-ecto fog machine for the school dance.

What Qualifies As A Few Too Many Words? One - Ah, the unfortunate circumstance of a ghost needing Danny’s help, luckily (or unluckily) the ghost doesn’t speak English.

Would You Like Some Bullets With That, Sir? - Vlad is insanely rich. People don’t like him. Failed assassinations are just annoying when you’re immortal.

Phabulous Phashion - Danny should not be allowed to shop for clothes by himself.

Little Nibblers - Accidental ghost edible consumption, and baby fangs.