This is hard to read if you know anything about abuse. But it makes a point that had never occurred to me before. Fuck the carceral state, fuck patriarchy, and fuck all state violence. Which are all the same thing, obviously.

As always, if you like what you read and you can afford a subscription to The Flytrap, please sign up and help us keep making this kind of content!

And OF COURSE, we couldn't forget about Grammy-winning film Sinners! @freeblackgirl.bsky.social  wrote about the film & Ryan Coogler's depictions of Black southern intimacies.

First up, we decided to drop the paywall on @kwanetaharris.bsky.social's piece  because it's so powerful and urgent. Kwaneta writes about how the state is her abuser as an incarcerated woman. Read for free here: 

Mailbox! My @404media.co zine came so fast! As a print die-hard I’d love to see more indies doing this. (Please subscribe to @theflytrapmedia.com so we can do something like this!!)

Last year, @yourombudsmom.bsky.social wrote about National Prayer Breakfast day and had some pretty gnarly (and unfortunately correct) predictions. Recap at the link:

Looking for sharp commentary mixed with social justice analysis without a paywall? We got you! We have three free posts this week, for limited time only!

Who’s your go-to for well-written, independent journalism with integrity? Beyond @democracynow.org , lately I’ve been reading @truthout.org @theflytrapmedia.com & @boltsmag.org Who else do you recommend? In the U.S. and beyond!

"When a corrections officer sexually assaults me, ain't that intimate partner violence? When a guard uses his authority to coerce me, ain't that abuse of power? When the state denies me protection from violence, ain't I a woman who deserves safety?" www.theflytrapmedia.com/aint-we-wome...

This story from @theflytrapmedia.com is free, no paywall to read!

The only path forward for journalism is something nonprofit and reader-supported like @texastribune.org, @texasobserver.org, & @texassignal.bsky.social or worker-owned like @theflytrapmedia.com. Anyone rich enough to buy an outlet outright is rich enough to want to gut it for their own enrichment.

This part, so much. I love all the independent journalists I follow, but I may not be able to continue paying all of you going forward. We need more journalist-owned and run collectives like @defector.com and @theflytrapmedia.com.

all necessary mumbling!

The Flytrap is doing vital feminist journalism. Please read this and support them (and Kwaneta Harris) if you can

ok well i just subscribed to @defector.com & @boltsmag.org, already subscribe wired & @theflytrapmedia.com, donate to npr/pbs, & get newsletters from the handbasket & 404 media....what else am i missing

Indie media 100% gets scoops, embarks on complex investigations, holds people to account, and instigates change, but it's so much harder to do on your own, and so much harder to get wider circulation. There are a lot of problems with legacy media but killing legacy media won't solve them.

We had to turn down an amazing pitch at @theflytrapmedia.com last year because we lacked the resources for a deep investigation that needed support staff and, really importantly, lawyers. A few outlets are building up these resources for themselves, but they still have to reckon with tight margins.

So many people doing great work here; many of us were caught in layoffs repeatedly or squeezed out of traditional staff jobs. I value the indie media ecosystem so much but there's also a critical need for newsrooms and their resources: Some stories need a lot of support, especially investigations.

May the Flytrap be part of the revolution that ends the death grip of legacy media

big fan of @racketmn.com @404media.co @coyotemedia.org @defector.com @theflytrapmedia.com and the new gourmetmagazine.net

A reminder that we have three free posts this week. If you're looking for sharp criticism mixed with social justice, stay tuned for the next few posts!

"It only makes it worse that we have been abandoned by advocates on the outside. Movements supporting survivors have every tool at their disposal to help us. [...] They just choose not to fight for us." - @kwanetaharris.bsky.social in @theflytrapmedia.com www.theflytrapmedia.com/email/bb3a7b...

Read this by our worker-owner @sesmith.lol and be as weird as your heart desires!!

As always, if you like what you read and you can afford a subscription to The Flytrap, please sign up and help us keep making this kind of content! www.theflytrapmedia.com#/portal/signup

And OF COURSE, we couldn't forget about Grammy-winning film Sinners, which @freeblackgirl.bsky.social wrote about in the context of Ryan Coogler's depictions of Black southern intimacies. Free to read this week at the link: www.theflytrapmedia.com/sinners-cele...

In honor of Bad Bunny's victories at this year's #Grammys, we dropped the paywall for @nicolefroio.bsky.social 's review of THE ALBUM OF THE YEAR, Bad Bunny's DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS: www.theflytrapmedia.com/deb-tirar-m-...

We decided to drop the paywall on @kwanetaharris.bsky.social because it's so powerful and urgent. Kwaneta writes about how the state is her abuser as an incarcerated woman. Read for free here: www.theflytrapmedia.com/aint-we-wome...

“For women in prison, one abuser is replaced with another. The U.S. calls this ‘justice.’” Read Kwaneta’s latest in @theflytrapmedia.com www.theflytrapmedia.com/aint-we-wome...

times are tough, but if you can, please support The Flytrap!!

A vital, necessary piece asking why so many groups that advocate for survivors are silent on incarcerated women—and we lifted the paywall so everyone can read.

We are delighted to announce that we have three free posts this week. If you're looking for sharp criticism mixed with social justice, stay tuned for the next few skeets!

From @theflytrapmedia.com: "I'm writing this from inside a women's prison, where every single behavior indicating intimate partner violence happens daily. Not from intimate partners, but from the mostly male staff paid by the state to 'supervise' us."

Today @theflytrapmedia.com published a really powerful piece by @kwanetaharris.bsky.social on gender-based violence against incarcerated women. She writes: "We become perfectly obedient victims of intimate partner violence, except the violence is legal and the abusers wear badges."

"When we ignore the abuse of incarcerated women, we establish that certain populations are outside the realm of human rights." This is so so important. When you pick and choose who has rights, who's human enough to protect, you open the door to fascism. We *all* deserve to be safe.

Today's post is urgent: @kwanetaharris.bsky.social writes about her abuser as an incarcerated woman: the state. Isn't she, as a woman, worthy of being defended and protected? www.theflytrapmedia.com/aint-we-wome...

Flashback to the time @theflytrapmedia.com cofounders @andreagrimes.com @nicolefroio.bsky.social @tinavasquez.bsky.social @thebugbeardispatch.bsky.social and I got so mad about Neil Gaiman in Slack that we put it on the internet for everyone to enjoy.

THESE ARE NOW FREE TO READ, NO PAYWALL!!!

"The Black South is hallowed ground, that which deserves to be both revered and interrogated for the ways in which Black people’s blood, dedication, and sacrifice has been used to justify continuing indignities."

"The nostalgic title of Bad Bunny’s latest album, which translates to, “I should’ve taken more photos,” is a promise for the future, during a present when Puerto Rico’s continued colonization by the U.S. threatens to erase everything Puerto Ricans hold dear about their home and culture."

HAPPY MONDAY!! Time to take advantage of the #Grammys algorithm! First up, @nicolefroio.bsky.social's review of THE ALBUM OF THE YEAR, Bad Bunny's DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS: www.theflytrapmedia.com/deb-tirar-m-...

for an example of a feminist journalist collective not run by a transphobic bozo who previously wrote for the fucking guardian , i suggest subscribing to @theflytrapmedia.com.

As always though, if you CAN afford a subscription to The Flytrap and you enjoyed @katelynburns.com 's essay--why not support the work we are doing by signing up?

We decided to drop the paywall for this Heated Rivalry essay by @katelynburns.com so more of you could read it: www.theflytrapmedia.com/icy-hot-heat...

tomorrow's post is so good and so urgent. stay tuned.

ICYMI, a fresh reprint about the Helen Keller conspiracy theory:

I have never used the Chinese platform, never will.

Really glad this article was republished. A fun fact that this article was accepted during the January 6 insurrection.

Remember when TikTok was full of videos talking about how Helen Keller was a fraud? Today's BitchxFlytrap reprint delves into how this conspiracy theory follows the ableist playbook, by @juliametraux.bsky.social :

hey have you read about gay desire in sports and coming out of the closet today? WELL HERE'S A TREAT FOR YOU: www.theflytrapmedia.com/icy-hot-heat...

Also the OG sourcing of that video was pretty fucking hard to find; I'm citing it in an upcoming @theflytrapmedia.com piece and it was a real bitch confirming its origin and making sure it made sense to share at literally any time. Cites and documentation, every time, please!