Whining

[elainegrey]

Inclusiveness, is it so hard?

Yes, it is. I know it is. Still.

I am feeling crinkly around the edges when thinking of the Meeting retreats that are now announced as having vegetarian options, but if you have any other food issues, bring your own.

I experience that as a big, "Fuck you and your needs if you are different beyond being a vegetarian."

I am sympathetic with the need to set boundaries and express limits. I sense the statement is really a statement of personal limits: more, "The organizer is able to ensure there are vegetarian options but does not have the spoons to deal with any more than that," less, "You needy folks with food issues should just get a grip."

How do i express *my* limits? And am i inadvertently telling folks that i don't think it's worth my effort to include them?

Comments

[laughingrat]

I personally never feel like you're doing that, but who knows. It's hard, because we can't control how other people perceive us, although we have a duty (I think) to try and be sensitive to others' feelings. But you know, that takes spoons too. Sometimes asserting a boundary at all takes up too many spoons to leave much for anything else. *sigh* That said, on the food thing, your sense of not being cared-for makes sense to me. Maybe they could phrase it better, like "Vegetarian options available; if you have food allergies or other requirements, please contact [organizer] ASAP to discuss options." I mean, just something that indicates that there's an awareness and a concern.