Ilyanposting - You Just Gotta Keep Livin Man

one of the legendary copypastas of the russian internet, courtesy of 2ch

translation:

My dad creates some fucked up dishes.

Here’s an average recipe, since there are a lot of variations.

There’s soup, the soup isn’t heated, heating isn’t what my dad is all about. He takes this soup, dumps it into the pan and starts frying. Adds tons of onions, garlic, bell and black peppers, FLOUR!! for viscosity, tomato sauce on top. This is all fried until it starts smoking. Then it’s taken off the fire and cools down on the balcony. Then dad brings it back and, after generously pouring mayo over it, starts eating. He eats it directly from the pan, scraping it with a spoon. Eats it and half-whispers “oh fuck”. While he’s doing all that he even starts sweating. Sometimes he graciously offers me some, but I turn him down. Do I even need to say what wild farts he has afterwards? The stench is so bad, it peels the wallpaper off the walls.

*displays textbook symptomatic behavior of my own disorder that I am well educated on* what’s my deal why am I like this

so this is just, by the way, like incredibly insanely transphobic

bro LMFAOOOO

Sure, boss, I’d still be ya henchman if you was a woim

scared about my horrible life. oh well at least there is arts and crafts

As a trans man and as a Ukrainian Jew, I cannot stress how important it is for us to know our history.

LGBTQ representation in Slavic countries is almost nonexistent. The ubiquity of gender norms is so often baked into our culture and societies. The looming threat of violence if we don't comply is so omnipresent that it prevents us from forming a strong community. Our stories are shared privately, hushed, with bated breath from friend to friend.

Far too much, i've witnessed the loneliness and alienation of people like me, the paralysing fear in parents' eyes for the fates of their children. I still cannot share my transness with my closest friends or relatives. People I have known since I was a child, whom I've shared my whole life with.

Imagine how many of us are living in the exact same circumstances. But we can never appease them enough, no matter how much we bend and mold ourselves for a semblance of normalcy that never existed.

It does not have to stay this way. Through making our history known, we must stay alive and stand united now more than ever.

We have always existed, and we aren't going anywhere.

Queer Jews Project Day 8 - Berel-Beyle

We only know about Berel-Beyle through Yeshaye Katovski’s letter to the Forward in 1936 about “the girl who became a man.” To summarize: Berel-Beyle was AFAB, grew up in Krivozer, Ukraine, left home for Odessa, transitioned to a man, went back to his hometown, was accepted by his community, and married an old girlfriend, Black Rachel.

To quote the letter, “In our shtetl, Berel-Beyle always had a good name as a fine, upstanding Jew.”

I wish we knew more about this trans ancestor, but I’m glad we know about him.

Learn more about Berel-Beyle here.

Queer Jews Project