it's weird how much more defensive i got of the south once i wasn't living in it anymore, but then again, there's a real different vibe when somebody living there makes fun of it vs somebody who'd never even deign to visit south of the mason dixon

i actually intentionally started using "ain't" and significantly increased my "ya'll," because I find that intentionally marking myself as somebody from the south decreases how much shit they talk about it in my direct presence or to me

don't get me wrong, the south has massive structural inequalities that we must fix in this generation, grinding horrible poverty and acidic bigotry that consumes and destroys lives - but maybe y'all need to work on the bigotry in yr cities right here before you look south, YK?

Cuz so does the fucking north.

And the east, and the west; the great lakes, the plains and praries and every other square mile of this misbegotten nightmare we live in. Wherever you live, I PROMISE there is enough work for you to spend the rest of your life fighting bigotry and inequality in your current zip.