Sumae! It's Finally April At Long Last

So far this year, I have not posted on LGBT identity days as I have done in years past. I'd like to ask- did you enjoy those kinds of posts? Are they something you'd like to see more of?

I've made a poll. Would you like the identity day posts to return?

Please reblog! Diolch!

We cannot keep telling disabled and mentally ill people that "maybe someday, if you work really hard, you can become a valuable person." We're valuable NOW. Even if we can't work. Even if we can't study. Even if we need help. Even if we can't provide for ourselves. Even if we struggle. Even if we fail. Our worth is inherent because we're here and we're human and we cannot live a happy life on the hope that maybe someday we can become good enough for society. We're already worthy and valuable as we are and we need y'all to acknowledge that.

@staff hey watch this

PLEASE REBLOG THIS TO GET MORE VOTES.

Y llyfr heddiw yw 'Don't Ask About My Genitals' gan Owen Exie Hurcum, a gyhoeddwyd yn 2022.

Mae'r llyfr hwn yn torri tir newydd mewn cyhoeddi anneuaidd. Disgrifiodd Hurcum ei mhlentyndod* fel person dirywedd a rhyweddgwiar (dan yr ymbarél anneuaidd). Yn benodol y anneuffobia a thrawsffobia mewn cymdeithas. Er enghraifft, y cwestiwn trawsffobig "Pa organau cenhedlu sydd gennyt ti**?" yw'r ysbrydoliaeth teitl y llyfr.

Darllenais rywfaint o'r llyfr hwn, ond nid wyf wedi ei orffen eto.

[*Rhagenwau Hurcum yw ei/nhw (they/them yn Saesneg), felly mae'r treiglad trwynol yn dangos ei fod yn niwtral (ddim yn wrywaidd nac yn fenywaidd).

**Nid oes unrhyw drawsffobwyr neu anneufobwyr yn gofyn y cwestiwn hwn gyda pharch, felly ysgrifennais 'ti' ac nid 'chi'.]

Ydych chi wedi darllen y llyfr hwn?

/

Today's book is 'Don't Ask About My Genitals' by Owen Exie Hurcum, published in 2022.

This book breaks new ground in non-binary publishing. In it, Hurcum described their childhood as an agender and genderqueer person (under the non-binary umbrella). With a focus on exorsexism(1) and transphobia in society. For example, the transphobic question "What genitals do you have?" serves as the inspiration for the book's title.

I read some of this book, but I haven't finished it yet.

[*Hurcum's pronouns are they/them, so the nasal mutation in the Welsh shows that the ei pronoun is neutral (neither masculine nor feminine ei).

**No transphobes or exorsexists ask this question respectfully, so I wrote 'ti' and not 'chi'.

(1) exorsexism = one of many terms for anti-nonbinary predjudice].

Have you read this book?

bathroom sink

Its a tough pill to swallow but we aren't free of British biases just because we are Welsh / speak Welsh. You have to do the work to actively remove these biases from how you approach the world.

Hating England isn't a substitute for freeing yourself of British arrogance. Unfortunately, if you're born on this island, you're gonna pick up some bad habits. And they are not bad habits unique to England either. Nor have they been imported from England. They can be and often are home grown.

Change starts with those of us who recognise our blind spots and actively work to remove them. If we don't, we risk falling into the same pitfalls of arrogance which we decry in our English neighbours.

Project Update

Bore da! Coming to you today with a little update

As explained in my September Update, I have been focusing on my mental health these past few months due to various life events I've been dealing with, namely;

In mid-March my long-term relationship came to an end and I had to make an emergency move into a new flat due to no longer being able to afford the rent. I was then in hospital due to ketoacidosis (a buildup of ketones in the body which causes the body to be too acidic, which can be life threatening). In April I lost my job due to whistleblowing health and safety concerns (and also experienced direct disability discrimination. I will be taking my former boss to tribunal over this). In July I briefly had a new job, however, due to poor mental health I could not carry on in the role. And in July I was informed that a family member has been diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Despite all these major life changes, I'm still determined to keep on doing what I love (my research) and sharing it with you all. These events have taken their toll, however, and I'm struggling to make ends meet without a job (I have enough in savings for three months of rent, excluding bills and food). I have applied to many jobs in and around Aberystwyth and I hope to hear from one soon.

August was exhausting, after the events of the past few months. But I'm finally feeling well enough to write and create again. I had struggled for months to format my undergraduate dissertation but as of last week I was finally able to finish making edits. I'm happy to announce that I have made it available on a pay-as-you feel basis (you can pay as little as £1!) to help support me in the interim. The link to get a copy is here:

Gumroad

What drove the development of Welsh-language LGBTQIA+ terminology 1972-2022?

After a long wait, I'm finally ready to share my undergraduate dissertation on Welsh-language LGBTQIA+ terminology! It's pay-as-you feel, bu

Researchers are welcome to email me at lub57@aber.ac.uk for a free copy.

In addition to this, I'm going to be launching some Welsh-language/Welsh themed LGBTQ+ prints! If you enjoyed my queer Welsh county pride flags, my Welsh Gilbert Baker flag design or my Cardiff pride flag mashups, I will be making these into physical prints (UK, EU and US shipping available) very soon, so do please keep an eye out for that!

Hwyl a diolch yn fawr am darllen,

Luke

Announcement on Prosiect Llyfr Enfys!

Bore da! I am delighted to announce that I have started a patreon for Prosiect Llyfr Enfys. I've created the patreon as a way for you to be able to support the project and have a say in blog posts, video content and much more! Becoming a patron will help support me in my research for the dictionary and help me make it the best dictionary it can be.

Patrons will have early access to blogs, video content, physical media and will be able to vote on what they would like to see next.

Tiers start at £3.20 a month and LGBTQIA+ Welsh speaking patrons can request access to the patrons only channel in the Enfys Draig discord (links available for the server upon request!)

I would like to thank each and every person who supports my work and the project- your support genuinely means a lot and the excitement for the project is really heartening to see!

If you join today, there is a poll to vote in, two blogs ready to view and an early access post for patrons, with more content planned for the end of March. Diolch o galon am ddarllen / thank you very much for reading!

Luke (he/him), LGBTQIA+ writer and creator of Prosiect Llyfr Enfys

(Please share this post so it can reach other LGBTQIA+ Welsh people or people interested in the Welsh language. Diolch!)

Do you know any free and/or online resources to learn Welsh?

Hello @runin-reads Just getting round to this ask now but there's a few things I know of which might help. Followers feel free to add on any more as well!

Resources:

Free Welsh coursebooks from DysguCymraeg available to download on their website

Free collection of Welsh dictionaries available to view on The Internet Archive

Cysill and Cysgeir are free to download here. Cysill is a Welsh grammar checker that checks for correct spelling, mutations etc. Cysgeir is a Welsh dictionary app. Both were developed by Bangor University and are free to download on Windows.

Gweiadur is a free online Welsh dictionary which not only has a comprehensive guide to Welsh words, but also provides example sentences, idioms and conjugation tables.

Followers add on any more if you can think of any!

[URGENT] UK NHS consultation on puberty blockers

VERY SHORT DEADLINE! (Tuesday 1st November 2023)

The UK's National Health Service (NHS) are about to ban puberty blockers for all trans adolescents, except for a small group who are eligible and willing to be research subjects.

"As part of this NHS England-led process, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) was commissioned to review the published evidence. Overall, there was no statistically significant difference in gender incongruence, mental health, body image and psychosocial functioning in children and adolescents treated with PSH." -- 6-page introductory PDF to consultation

That's because puberty blockers don't change gender characteristics by definition, you absolute donuts.

They're carrying out a consultation on this because they have to, and there's only two days left. If you are in the UK and you are a young trans person or know any young trans people, please check out this consultation.

Here's the first question, to help you work out if you're in the target group:

In "other", you could put anything like "friend of a trans adolescent", "family member of a trans child", etc. If you're a trans adult who was on blockers or who would have been on blockers if waiting lists had been shorter or family/doctors had been more supportive etc, choose "patient".

Click here to participate.

Deadline: Tuesday 1st November 2023.