#arosandarrows

here’s my late comic for the 18th: “What do you wish people knew about being arospec? Make or design a sign with an arrow + a message.” I still don’t really know what kind of partnership I want, if any, but I’m just going with the flow and enjoying the lovely people in my life

image description under the cut!

So, I’m getting into this year’s Aromantic Spectrum Awareness Week a bit late, but here’s my contribution for Day 2: Pride. It’s my collection of aro enamel pins so far (though I’m waiting on a few more from kickstarter). I included links to all of them; most are currently available for purchase, but a few seem to have been kickstarter exclusives. (also, the images, especially the first one, are clearer if you full-screen them)

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Ice Cream Cone, by TheGeekStudio

Wing Set, by JackalandhareArt

Abstract Shape, by BiancaDesignsCo

‘Aro-venant’ Ghost, by CunningLinguistCo

Heart Shape, by Compoco

Aromantic Salamanders, by MorningWitch

Longbow Aro, by Foxflightstudios

Aro-gator, by Gay Breakfast

Mouse, by toripng

Star Wars Rebellion Emblem, by Gilles Bone

Jar of Origami Stars, by Mei Snyder

Carousel Pony, by starsalts

Axolotl, by Megan Baehr

Cake Slice, by BunMuffin

Mermaid & Unicorn, by Miskelle

'Roll For Pride’ Dice, by Becca Farrow

Planet, by ZealoApparel

Aro-space Engineer, by gloriousweirdo

Anatomical Heart, by SyppahsArtStudio

[ ID: A series of 10 images titled “Aro Facts” and numbered 1-10. There is an arrow pointing up on the right, and both the demiaro and aro flags at the bottom. Each image has the tiny text “Arospec Week 2020″ at the very bottom.  At the top left is the text on each image:

#01 Aro Facts: “All Aro people are not asexual. While many aro people also identify as ace, many of us do not. Allosexual aro people are completely valid and need more support from our communities. It’s okay for us to experience (and act on) sexual attraction without wanting a romantic relationship. We are not slutty and it’s not low self-esteem.”

#02 Aro Facts: “Aro people can feel love and other/intense feelings. Romantic love is not the only kind of love. There are many different kinds of love, and the love and other/intense feelings we experience are just as important and valid as romantic love.”

#03 Aro Facts: “Some Aro people don’t experience love or other/intense feelings. Some of us don’t experience any kind of strong emotions, and that’s okay. We are healthy and worthy of respect even if we don’t experience love or other/intense feelings. Our lack of these feelings does not make us broken and is not a mental illness.”

#04 Aro Facts: “Aro people can have friendships that include sensual/sexual intimacy. We get to decide what our friendships (and all our relationships) look like, and we may choose to have sensual or sexual elements in our friendships.”

#05 Aro Facts: “Aro people belong in the LGBTIQA+ community. We belong here. Our experiences as Aro people have commonalities with the experiences of alloromantic LGBTQIA+ people.”

#06 Aro Facts: “Aro people are not just bitter or jaded from bad relationships. Some Aros may have experienced bad relationships, but identifying as Aro is not out of bitterness from bad relationships. We don’t just need to ‘find the right person.’ We are whole and complete without romance.”*

#07 Aro Facts: “Aro people can be polyamorous. Being Aro can often mean operating outside of common ideas about relationships, and that includes monogamy. It’s totally possible for Aros to be involved in polyamorous situations and relationships.”

#08 Aro Facts: “Demiromantic people still experience stigma like Aro people. Our relationship with romance is different, but we still experience stigma, alienation, and the messages that we are abnormal or broken. It’s important for demiromantic people to have a place in the Aro community.”

#09 Aro Facts: “Demiromanticism is different than being alloromantic. Demiaros can experience romantic attraction after there’s a close, emotional bond. This might seem like the same thing as alloromantic people, but can actually be very different, especially when it comes to the order people expect in stages of a relationship.”

#10 Aro Facts: “Demiromantic people don’t think they’re better than alloromantics. Not experiencing romantic attraction until we have a close, emotional bond isn’t something we choose and doesn’t mean we think we’re better than other people. It’s just how we’re wired.”

*Note for #06 Aro Fact -- It’s totally valid for someone to identify as Aro because of having a bad or traumatic romantic relationship.  This is only meant to say that all Aros aren’t Aro due to bad relationships, and that “good” relationships are not something Aros “need” in order to be “fixed” -- because there is nothing wrong with us.  I just wanted to clarify because there’s not really enough room on the image, but I want to be sure that Aros who identify as Aro specifically because of bad/traumatic relationships know that you are valid and you belong in our communities.

A quick, shitty edit but no less true.

We are not broken.

We don’t need to be fixed.

We are not selfish.