What's Going On: July 2020
We’re half way through the year now and much has happened. Despite all the turmoil and change in the world, we’re making progress.
Last month was the long awaited Pride month and it was unquestionably overshadowed. This is AUREA’s second Pride month since we started and, in the beginning, we imagined Pride growing bigger and brighter for aromantics with every year to come. When we put together the recap of all the aro related things that happened at Prides across the world in 2019 it was bittersweet. Aros were all in the right places, doing impressive things, and yet the article mentions less than ten notable events. We wanted more and we thought 2020 would provide that.
And yet now our priorities couldn’t be more different. The Black Lives Matter and COVID-19 virus movement are taking charge at the moment, for better and for worse. As objectively disappointing it is that there’s no cool and loud aro rep to point at, we have more immediate concerns. Yasmin Benoit wrote an article for Pride titled: As A Black Woman, Celebrating Pride This Year Has Been Hard and she says everything that needs to be said. We highly recommend our non-Black audience reads this.
We’ll keep doing what we’re doing here, for our aro cause, but it’s important that aromantics continue to pay attention to what’s going on in the world. If we want to claim our place in the community, it’s important that we realise when we need to take a step back, and promote the voices of others. To that end, we realise that there’s more to be done. We’re looking to share more resources and articles that cater to aros that are Black, Indigenous, and/or People of Color. If you have any recommendations or are interested in volunteering some way, send us an email via contact@aromanticism.org.
Are you online?
Carnival of Aros concluded last month on the topic of ‘Most Precious’ with some great reads. July’s topic of choice is being hosted by Zazz and is centered on ‘Music’. Tired of long songs? Got a vent in you? Have you been looking for an excuse to make an aro playlist? This is the event for you.
A call for those interested in creating an Aro Zine has recently been published here and here. This project is in the very early stages of life and needs everyone from managers to artists. If you’d like a hand in this the interest form can be found here.
#AggressivelyArospec had their wonderful week at the end of June as always. The week concentrates on fanworks and if you’re interested in seeing what was made check out the #AggressivelyArospec blog or their 2020 tag here. While you’re there have a look over their Aro Movies Monday and Aro Tunes Thursday events! It’s always a good time on their blog.
Aromantic-Official had their list of prompts in the Pride month ring. To see the responses given by the aro community, check out there blog here and for general Pride click here.
We are in the final few days of accepting submissions for Aromantics Create Pride. If you have a piece of work or art that you’d like to share and get some love for, enter now!
Aros in the media
What It Means To Be ‘Aromantic,’ According To Experts by Alison Goldman and Anna Medaris Miller
It’s not the same as being asexual—or single.
A well researched article that introduces people to the concept of aromanticism accurately. One of the AUREA team members was interviewed for this piece, as an aromantic expert. .
What Alterous Attraction and Aromanticism Tell Us About Love by Benedict Tetzlaff-Deas
Love may be everywhere, but romance isn’t universal
A frank conversation that analyzes perspective, interpretation, and deeply respects the gray areas that make up human connection. Our treasurer, Neir, was interviewed for this piece.
We Need More Asexual and Aromantic Representation in Television by Princess Weekes
...for queer people, seeing yourself represented in media matters–not just to you, but for the people around you.
This article is written by someone who is neither aromantic or asexual, mostly talks about asexuality and does seem to believe aromantic is an asexual identity. However, while the understanding of aromanticism is lacking, the overall message of the article is important, and it is valuable that this is coming from a voice outside our community.
Aromantic and Asexual Book Recommendations! by Em Rowntree
As we come to the end of a Pride month without Pride events, here are some books with aromantic and asexual main characters to remind you that you’re not out here alone.
A list of book recs, four of which have a main character on the aromantic spectrum.
8 Asexual books to help you celebrate Pride month by Nicole Hill
These eight books with asexual characters give voice to an often underserved and misunderstood portion of the queer audience, exploring and celebrating a variety of aro-ace identities.
The article is written with the assumption that aromantic is an asexual identity. There are three books listed that have a main character on the aromantic spectrum.
Deep Space Nine’s Aromantic Love Story by Abigail Dillon
How Star Trek made space for a queer woman like me.
An emotional analysis of an aromantic-coded character and the respect given towards his boundaries. This article is hosted on the official Star Trek website.
The Mystery Of Asexuals And Aromantics by Sruthi P Nambiar
...today we are here to solve a part of that confusion. We are going to explore the wondrous letter A in the LGBTQIA+ community.
An illustrated article that answers all the questions we’re tired of receiving from the uninformed.
A freelance writer is looking to interview demi and grayromantics about misconceptions they face. If you’re interested, more information can be found here.
Aromantics Address
Do aros and aces have a style and certain presentations, like lesbians have flannel and bisexuals have peace signs? Here’s a 15-30 minute survey that is looking to hunt down the answer.
While this isn’t a discussion it is a cute comic that normalises aros being in relationships and that’s important too.
And in these changing times here’s a meme that brings to light one of the concerns caused by being an invisible orientation.