Hi all! I’ve just joined this app (like 30 minutes ago lol) and an still figuring out how everything works. Does anyone know how (if it’s possible) to change a cover on a book?

I’m loving the asethetic and the ease of communication with others so far (as a girl coming straight from goodreads haha)

Thanks all! Can’t wait to connect and see what everyone is reading

another sticking point about this book is the way that history gets taught in disconnected, nebulous events that have start points and end points. i've always imagined history as separate points on a map, on a timeline, disconnected from everything else, but obviously that isn't true. in this chapter particularly about Asian history, it recontextualizes everything as continuous and ongoing. the throughline between the Opium War and the War on Terror becomes face-palmingly obvious

and that's the thing, is that history is intentionally taught this way (at least in the US), and time is intentionally obscured. this is literally how we learn in schools; studying "units" as disconnected eras and events and then moving on to the next. we don't see history as multiple events happening within the same context and the same throughline

there's also the fact that we are taught to look at countries as separate from each other (because of the colonial idea of borders and separation), especially with the caveat that the US is magically removed from everything happening outside of its borders. for example, the Opium Wars having nothing to do with the United States despite the fact that the US encouraged refugees from the war to move to their newly settled territories in order to bolster colonial rule against the indigenous populations + for labor

i think this is especially true for Asia, in the US we see them as fragmented regions with little to nothing in common, as if they are separate rather than intimately connected through intertwining histories. and of course, this fragmentation is extremely intentional

THEN on top of what's happening in this chapter with recontextualizing Asian history, you realize that this is true for everything we've learned thus far. the imperial project has been the same, since the mythologizing of Columbus and the genocide of the indigenous people. all of this history is connected, building on top of each other to create the reality we have today. not only that, but much of this was happening at the same time

THEN THEN, it all comes back to the issue of passive language. "The Chinese Exclusion Act was passed" is a lot different than "the United States intentionally excluded the Chinese people because of their fear of communism and the white people's racist fears that the Chinese people would outpace & surpass them"

when we teach history this way, without emphasizing the fact that their histories are more connected than we think, what narrative is that serving? what are we leaving out when we intentionally create gaps between countries and their histories? what is the empire's goal in teaching history this way, how does it interrupt our ability to engage in solidarity with each other?

Levi’s lightbulb moment realizing that if he doesn’t like the way guys talk about his sister, he should be equally upset about the things they and he say about all girls… 🤦‍♀️ come on, dude. It seems so dumb, but I can totally see a teenage boy not connecting those dots until someone points it out to him