someone who is more left-wing than me explain this please

Obā-san

Klinotaxis

• it should be Amerikkka
• vespucci was a tool of the kyriarchy
• the americas should be united as they are linked by a landbridge; the division is essentially an artificial one of the bourgeois north from the rest
• compasses are bullshit

lee4hmz

amerikkka's most wanted

Klinotaxis

this is fucking me up it's on like every page of the site with no explanation

the "about" page says "With the understanding that States are an arbitrary concept with real implications we did our best to make categories that reflect the complex cultural trends inside the anarchist movement. We recognize that there are implications of being from a certain place and that affinities may not follow the lines we have created." which is all well and good* but "North America" is pretty obviously usable as a geographic category without political implications

plus they have a "Pacific" region which is Hawaii + Alaska, what kind of fuckkkin division is that, what are they going to commiserate on? How glad they are that the government can't march in troops, they'll have to use boats?

*actually it's weenie as heck

Tatterhood

Klinotaxis said:

vespucci was a tool of the kyriarchy

My best guess is that it's actually this one, i.e. colonialism is bad and continents shouldn't be named after white people who found them. (Unless they are okay with the term "America" in other contexts in which case idklol.)

If it's that, the general sentiment is not so bad but it's pretty silly here given that the native peoples almost certainly didn't have a word for the entirety of the Americas before Europeans showed up anyway.

Tatterhood

Upon googling it is definitely that, and some native folks prefer to refer to North America as Turtle Island I guess.

If it's actual native people behind it I can't say that I see anything wrong with calling it that (even though it's not an island), but just calling it "so-called North America" everywhere is still weird.

Salix Babylonika

Turtle Island! I love it.

Imipolex G

I'm ok with Turtle Island

Crystal

Turtle Island sounds amazing.

glennmagusharvey

I like the name Turtle Island.

Bee

Problem: there is also a Turtle Island in Fiji.

LOAD Cherry

Tatterhood said:

Klinotaxis said:

vespucci was a tool of the kyriarchy

My best guess is that it's actually this one, i.e. colonialism is bad and continents shouldn't be named after white people who found them. (Unless they are okay with the term "America" in other contexts in which case idklol.)

If it's that, the general sentiment is not so bad but it's pretty silly here given that the native peoples almost certainly didn't have a word for the entirety of the Americas before Europeans showed up anyway.

The funny thing about that is that Asia and Africa are named after Roman colonies on the respective continents

Princess Alice

Bee said:

Problem: there is also a Turtle Island in Fiji.

And in Lake Erie.

Which, incidentally, is also an American Indian name.

Klinotaxis

Bee said:

Problem: there is also a Turtle Island in Fiji.

I think we already fucked that one up with the west indies

Odradek

Tatterhood said:

Upon googling it is definitely that, and some native folks prefer to refer to North America as Turtle Island I guess.

If it's actual native people behind it I can't say that I see anything wrong with calling it that (even though it's not an island), but just calling it "so-called North America" everywhere is still weird.

Is that from the myth of when the whole earth was water, and the animals needed to dive down to get ground to create land, and the otter tried and couldn't do it and some duck tried and couldn't do it, and then a turtle dived all the way to the bottom of the ocean to get dirt, and then America grew upon his back?

Tatterhood

Odradek said:

Tatterhood said:

Upon googling it is definitely that, and some native folks prefer to refer to North America as Turtle Island I guess.

If it's actual native people behind it I can't say that I see anything wrong with calling it that (even though it's not an island), but just calling it "so-called North America" everywhere is still weird.

Is that from the myth of when the whole earth was water, and the animals needed to dive down to get ground to create land, and the otter tried and couldn't do it and some duck tried and couldn't do it, and then a turtle dived all the way to the bottom of the ocean to get dirt, and then America grew upon his back?

I think so, yeah.

Well, iirc, there are several different native groups with myths along the lines of the land being on the back of a turtle. But that's one of them anyway.

Bee

Also happens in ancient Chinese mythology.