A Series of Links for General Discussion

The following links were ganked from, I believe, ithiliana and rm, respectively. I've had some interesting discussions about them (well, about the first one; for the second, I more or less seethed in silence) on my Facebook profile, and I wanted to bring the discussion over to my LJ, to see what y'all thought.

First link: The Radical Masculinity blog discusses why the term "ally" is problematic. There are a lot of reasons why I think this essay is interesting and crucial, but the topic I wanted to bring to my LJ is this: how does the meaning of "ally" differ depending on the community one allies oneself with? Do all marginalized communities require the same things of their allies?

( Further thoughts: we cut because we care. )

The second link is less abstract, but nonetheless broke my poor little politically charged fangirl heart. It's about how Torchwood is apparently a pro-American neoconservative show that is all about how Europe needs a more or less constant dose of tough American love to stay afloat. It's also apparently about: a) Jack Harkness mounting a War On Terror against the evil alien hordes, staying the course and never questioning his tactics; c) people of color embracing the American melting pot ideal and never once "complaining" about the impact of racism on their lives; c) advancing a pro-life agenda.

( OMG YOU GUYS, I DO NOT EVEN KNOW WHERE TO START. )

Thoughts, y'all?