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katharina90's review
4.0
The essays touch on many facets of the Indigenous lived experience, both past and present, while also highlighting other interconnected issues from capitalism and state violence to homophobia and transphobia.
Because the author has lived in the US and Canada, off and on reservation, and is a biracial individual with the ability to pass, I think she brings a unique perspective to the conversation.
I really enjoyed her comparison of nation states/governments to abusers who dehumanize and gaslight whomever they don't view as people, in order to extract from them.
"We're here, in diaspora on our own lands."
"What do you want? Are those desires based on extraction? Are they dependent upon capitalism or colonialism?"
"Racism, for many people, seems to occupy space in very much the same way as dark matter: it forms the skeleton of our world, yet remains ultimately invisible, undetectable. This is convenient. If nothing is racist, then nothing needs to be done to address it."
"No, 'diversity,' as Tania Canas so succinctly puts it in her essay 'Diversity is a White Word,' is about making sense of difference "through the white lens…by creating, curating and demanding palatable definitions of ‘diversity’ but only in relation to what this means in terms of whiteness." It’s the literary equivalent of 'ethnic' restaurants: they please white people because they provide them with 'exotic' new flavours, but if they don’t appease white people’s sensitive taste buds they’re not worth a damn."
Graphic: Genocide, Mental illness, Police brutality, and Colonisation
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Suicide, Transphobia, Murder, and Gaslighting
Minor: Addiction, Eating disorder, Fatphobia, Slavery, Torture, Religious bigotry, and Cultural appropriation
bookishmillennial's review against another edition
This collection of essays by Alicia Elliott did not let me catch my breath for one moment. I feel like I highlighted so much throughout the book, probably every other page, if not every page 😭
Alicia comments on and asks questions about so much: colonization, capitalism, racism, misogyny, desire, selfies, “reality” tv, truth versus opinion, familial dynamics, indigenous practices, and so much more.
I desperately want a print copy of this now, as it was such an important read. Capitalism and colonization has brought so much horror to the world, and the solutions will not be found with them. I look forward to reading more from Alicia Elliott and I am so grateful that I read this book.
Moderate: Ableism, Addiction, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Genocide, Mental illness, Racism, Sexism, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and Classism
ivi_reads_books's review against another edition
3.75
The author doesn't tell the reader what to do or think. She rather observes what happens and what doesn't happen. What gets said and what doesn't and thus encourages readers to self-reflect on their own behavior
Graphic: Mental illness, Racism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Genocide, Gun violence, Hate crime, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Grief, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Alcohol, Sexual harassment, and Deportation
Minor: Police brutality
paperbackportals's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Physical abuse, Racism, and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Body shaming, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Pregnancy, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
isabeldotml's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Addiction, Mental illness, Forced institutionalization, and Alcohol
iambartacus's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Addiction, Mental illness, Rape, and Colonisation
eve81's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Violence, Medical trauma, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, and Colonisation
remimicha's review against another edition
4.75
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Body shaming, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Fatphobia, Genocide, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Violence, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Colonisation, and Classism
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Eating disorder, Gun violence, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Vomit, Medical trauma, and Toxic friendship
ltulisiak's review against another edition
5.0
Additionally, the author is originally from Buffalo, NY, and was partially raised in the greater Cleveland, OH, area, so I felt a geographical connection with her, as well.
Graphic: Addiction, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Colonisation, and Classism
Minor: Suicide attempt
gnosila's review against another edition
4.5
Graphic: Mental illness
Moderate: Alcoholism, Domestic abuse, and Rape
Minor: Addiction and Suicide