cn tw food allergies

People who have dietary intolerances and/or allergies do not suddenly magic them away when thy are self isolated and need help getting supplies.

I was told to sign up for a care package due to my status. There was no means of opting out of the dairy, gluten etc
(I am not allergic btw, just noting for others who are)
It contains things i do not eat on faith grounds.

Now i get that in a time of shortages one might eat things you would choose not to, its not about that. We dont have shortages, only supply chain issues.

I feel it would be immoral to accept something i can only use a 3rd of, and i dont have the access to donate what i cant consume beyond.

I dare not ask for mutual aid group support as i have already seen a vegetarian dogpiled for not wanting a meat hamper sent to her. (She was Hindu btw)

Whether is faith grounds, allergies, the needs of autistic people to have the specific brand and style of something in their very limited diet etc... We can 100% accommodate that as things are, so why choose this time to be disablist and anti difference?

Once again a community says it pulls together but in fact lets absolute weapons have their sport in acting like Daily Mail comments section at people deemed to be a bit different.

I used to get a Tescos once a month when my DLA came in, to get in bulk the basics and then use the local cash and carry Asian supermarket for fresh via my carer.
I miss my autonomy.

I miss the luxury not only of choosing my own diet but also that no-one had the power to enact their entitlement to judge.

I'm seeing Coeliacs being called "fussy eaters", people in recovery from ED being told to 'accept what you are given', vegans told 'well you choose to be awkward', people of faiths told to 'suck it up',

Parents with autistic kids told "just give them something else, they'll eat it if they are really hungry!", people who politely decline a meal delivery offer because they cant eat what the person offered told they cant really be in need etc.

This pandemic is being utilised as sport by a minority to enact their fantasies of getting to attack anything and anyone that is a tiny bit different. It makes aid groups that let it run rampant completely inaccessible.
We wanted to ask for help, not bullying.

I am really lucky, i can make my own soya milk until the dried beans run out which will be in about 2 weeks. A local Queer collective have brought a meal when my carer needed a night off. My carer is feeding us out of the Asian shops as best he can, i'm not going to starve.

But my nutrition has taken a hammering because i dont have the agency to choose my own food anymore, and if something happens to Ursula I will only have the kangeroo court of 'local support groups'. Which is terrifying.

Where does this drive to compel others to consume things they literally cant stomach come from anyway? Why can we not cope with a little bit of difference? Why are they so excited to give someone pain or kill them when they claim to be helping?

(dont @ me, i do know :P )

Things you can do to help -
if you are not gluten intolerant, do not buy foods specifically made for those who are. I know the normal pasta is gone, left the gluten free on the shelf

If you are a mod of a mutual aid or support group, delete posts attacking anyone for dietary preferences or needs - do not discriminate between the two concepts.

When someone says an autistic child will only eat "Sainsburys spiral pasta" believe them and try to hook them up with some. Dont tell them you know best and that the child will eat what you say. You clearly have no idea how likely it is the child will choose starvation.

See the slights and jibes at faith-based dietary issues as quite often the racism it is, shut that down

If you cant make that space for people with dietary differences within your group, make separate spaces for those people to access the resources you are hooked up with.

Mutual Aid is a concept borne out of deprivation within marginalised non-white communities, often as a result of white supremacy ghetto-isation. Please do not colonise this idea and replicate oppressive systems, its not mutual aid if you do.

Othered people often avoid asking for help because they know its a risk of judgement and further othering. I literally have to medicate to do it, it causes me such anxiety and spikes my cortisol levels. There are people who cant even medicate their fear away, and the fear is real

This is not some passive aggressive request for personal help.
No-one can deliver me agency and independence and its that i miss more than the products i used to consume to support my illness and be as well as possible.
I just want folks to see the divisions being made.