Acecetera

From Asexual Awareness Week to Ace Week: Why We Changed Our Name

Image transcript below the cut:

To clarify, as there have been a few people asking about this, when we say that asexual is a specific identity, we are referring to the fact that not all gray-asexual and demisexual folks identify as asexual. Some might, and we absolutely affirm their right to do so! An asexual person is someone who identifies as asexual, and we are firmly against any gatekeeping of who is allowed to identify as asexual.

We use the word ace to refer to all identities under the asexual umbrella, and we hope that this change makes those aces who disidentify with the term “asexual” feel more welcome and included in Ace Week.

[ID: A graphic in various shades of purple. At the top of the image is the Ace Week logo, which consists of an ace flag the shape of a speech bubble and a purple square with the text "Ace Week." In large font in the middle, it says "What are you doing for ace week?" and in smaller text at the bottom, "October 24th - 30th, 2021"]

What are you doing for Ace Week?

Do you have an event or other project (such as a blogging or fandom event) planned for Ace Week? We want to promote it! Click the link below to share it with us:

You are in a kitchen, opening a pantry door. It contains every brand of cereal in existence.

Libido- How hungry you are

Sexual Attraction- How appealing each cereal is to you

Sex-Repulsed- The mere act of eating cereal disturbs you. You flee the kitchen to watch Netflix instead.

Sex-Indifferent- Someone brings you a bowl of cereal. Even though you don’t crave cereal, you decide to eat some anyway. Maybe because you want the person to feel happy you’re eating something they provided you. Maybe you’re just that hungry. Regardless, you’re fine with eating it since it’s already there. If it wasn’t, you wouldn’t care either.

Sex-favorable- Though you don’t particularly crave cereal, the act of eating cereal is enjoyable. So enjoyable, you go through the trouble of picking a brand to eat.

Asexual with low/no libido- You are rarely hungry, and none of the cereal appeals to you.

Asexual with average/high libido- You are often hungry, but none of the cereal appeals to you.

Aegosexual-  Eating cereal sounds fun in theory but not in practice. You certainly have no interest in eating cereal yourself. You’d rather fantasize about other people eating cereal, thankyouverymuch. 

Gray Asexual- You only like Lucky Charms and Apple Jacks. And maybe Fruity Pebbles but you’re not quite sure.

Demisexual- You see a box of Trix. You are familiar with the rabbit on the box, due to the commercials you’ve seen. You always sympathized with the rabbit for never getting any Trix. There are things in life you’ve wanted but have never gotten. You feel a bond with the rabbit. Suddenly that box of Trix looks tasty.

Fraysexual- You see a box of Cocoa Puffs. You have never heard of Cocoa Puffs in your life. But something about it is oh-so-appealing. You pour yourself a bowl. As you start to eat, you catch a commercial for Cocoa Puffs on TV. You now know what the mascot on the box is like. You lose interest in Cocoa Puffs for reasons you cannot explain.

Lithosexual- You notice a box of Fruit Loops. You feel an urge to eat it. Toucan Sam comes to life and asks you to eat them. This makes you uncomfortable, so you leave to watch Netflix with the sex-repulsed ace.

Reciprosexual- You have no interest in any of the cereal. Not even that box of Frosted Flakes. But Tony the Tiger shows up wanting you to eat the Frosted Flakes. Now that he wants you to eat Frosted Flakes, you want to eat Frosted Flakes. 

Cupiosexual- You want to eat cereal, but none of the cereal looks appealing. Maybe if you grab that box of Corn Flakes, it’ll become appealing to you later? It’s happened to other people. You consider grabbing that box of Corn Flakes, just in case.

Orchidsexual- Some of the cereal looks appealing, but you have no interest in eating cereal.

Aceflux- None of the cereal looks good, so you close the pantry. A few days later, you decide to open the pantry again. Now, some of those brands look appetizing. You check the pantry again the next day. None of the cereal looks good anymore.

Caption: [So here’s something no one’s gonna tell white asexual and aromantic kids. Most of your fears for your future are rooted in capitalism and white supremacy. American white supremacy and American capitalism created this essential need for the nuclear family. And this idea that that is the only place you can get your care and resources and love.

That’s why so many of us are worried about who’s gonna take care of us if we’re elderly or disabled. It’s why we struggle to find single person housing. It’s why it’s not seen as normalized to have close relationships with your family and friends. There are so many examples around the world and throughout time where that was not the norm.

HAPY PRIDE MONTH!!! For all those still in the closet you are valid!! I hope you have an awesome rest of pride month!!

♡*･゜ﾟ･*:.｡..｡.:*･'(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)'･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*♡

But it made me even happier to see that the aces were TURTLES

WE HAVE AN OFFICIAL DAY! April 6 will be the first ever International Asexuality Day! I’m so pleased to finally announce the birth of this amazing occasion. Myself and many other activists and ace organisations from across the world - have been working together on this for almost a year! I’m proud of what we have managed to accomplish. The day is designed to complement other ace events like Ace Week (the last week in October), but with a special emphasis on the international community, going beyond the English-speaking and Western sphere that has so far had the most coverage. The day can also serve as a focal point for giving asexuality some visibility in the first half of the year, useful for countries for which the end of October (Ace Week) is a difficult time of year for ace advocacy. To find out more information, please check out @iadofficial, the official website internationalasexualityday.org, or click the link in my bio! Let’s spread the word far and wide in preparation for April 6! 💜