Things that have actually happened in band
A drummer climbed into the ceiling in the band hall and then fell through it
A flute player left their flute at home when we were at a FAR away game, so they had to march and pretend to play a ‘flute’ that was actually a drumstick
We played Seven Nation Army as a warm up before a concert contest and then got three points added for creative warm up
Our band director duct taped our drumline captain’s legs together for yelling cuss words
A saxophone player slept in the storage area inside the bus on the way to a football game
Our entire drumline fell in a domino-like way due to a passing cat at the front of the line
When the band came to attention at a marching competition, a slide from a trombone went flying across the field because it wasn’t locked
imagine a parks and recreation-style show but set in the ministry of magic
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The way that we learn about Helen Keller in school is an absolute outrage. We read “The Miracle Worker”- the miracle worker referring to her teacher; she’s not even the title character in her own story. The narrative about disabled people that we are comfortable with follows this format- “overcoming” disability. Disabled people as children.
Helen Keller as an adult, though? She was a radical socialist, a fierce disability advocate, and a suffragette. There’s no reason she should not be considered a feminist icon, btw, and the fact that she isn’t is pure ableism- while other white feminists of that time were blatant racists, she was speaking out against Woodrow Wilson because of his vehement racism. She supported woman’s suffrage and birth control. She was an anti-war speaker. She was an initial donor to the NAACP. She spoke out about the causes of blindness- often disease caused by poverty and poor working conditions. She was so brave and outspoken that the FBI had a file on her because of all the trouble she caused.
Yet when we talk about her, it’s either the boring, inspiration porn story of her as a child and her heroic teacher, or as the punchline of ableist, misogynistic jokes. It’s not just offensive, it’s downright disgusting.
the reason the story stops once helen keller learns to talk is no one wanted to listen to what she had to say
how’s that for a fucking punchline