What's Going On: October 2020

Are you online?

We often receive messages about aros wanting to be more involved in community activism and we’re always happy to point you in the right direction. We’re currently working on a ‘Get Involved’ page for our website where you can get straight to work if you see something you like. For now keep an eye out here.

For those in the U.S. the Equality Act is a proposed bill which will amend the Civil Rights Act, Fair Housing Act, and adjust other laws to explicitly include protections for sexual orientation and gender identity. Unfortunately the text prioritises the term “sexual orientation” which legally covers just that and when elaborated on within the Act specifically means ‘homosexuality, heterosexuality, or bisexuality’. If you’re interested in making this bill more inclusive of the oft forgotten orientations and have it recognise how fluid identity can be, more information can be found on the Inclusive Equality Act Discord. 

Breaking news! Tomorrow The Aro and Ace Advocacy Project (TAAAP) will be contributing to an online workshop at the Careers in Sexuality Conference. The discussion will be about the identity development of ace and aro people. While the conference is intended for educators and therapists, anyone is welcome. To find out more about the schedule or RSVP, click here. 

TAAAP, busy as always, focused their last weeks Pride Chats on platonic attraction, aplatonicism, and how that intersects with aro and ace identities. Sign up here for their next conversation and find out what topic they will be covering next! If you’d like to know more about Aplatonicism, check out our latest article.

Community progress is a beautiful thing and when that pairs with allyship, there’s no stopping that kind of growth. Aro Recommended is a grassroots resource that aims to boost providers, professionals, and content creators to other aros. There’s little to see right now, but that’s where you come in. Go recommend something or someone and start networking! 

Last week’s Carnival of Aros was on Change and the topic responses will be posted shortly. We will update here when that list is compiled and when this month’s topic is revealed. 

Aros in the media

Take Me to Your Nerdy Leader by Hailey Gonzales is an upcoming novel described as a ‘twenty-first century, coming-of-age story brilliantly explores the anxiety of standing out and the thrill of fearlessness’. Our main character Paige is reportedly aromantic, an artist, looking for friends, raring to talk about anime, and is ready to have sex! A further synopsis can be found here. The book will be published on the 20th of November - add it to your to-read list, this is going to be a fun one!

Minerva Cerridwen says her book, The Dragon of Ynys, ‘...is the fairy tale I wish I could have had as a child. Now I’ve written it for all of us.’ If you’re looking for a kind story about a dragon with a hoarding problem, a long-suffering village knight, and a quest for the truth, this could be the book for you. This piece is described as aromantic and/or asexual, and trans representation. More information on the book can be found here. 

Books are what it’s all about at the moment! Annalisa Ely, a book reviewing Youtuber, has put together a video on seven a-spec books including Loveless by Alice Oseman and Deathless Divide by Justina Ireland. If you’re the kind of person who likes to research a book before reading, here’s a great place to start. 

When Romance and Sex Aren’t The End Goal: What It’s Like Being Aromantic and Asexual by Matilda Gerrans 

“I just forgot that sex and romance are things I’m supposed to want,” they say, “They’re like that one tv show you keep meaning to check out because you’ve heard it’s really good, but you don’t care enough to actually sit down and watch it.”

An interview piece about being aro and/or ace, queer community relations, and exclusionism. 

Nik Hampshire has released a video titled “Dating” for his alloaro audience this time. He talks about his experiences with dating and how it can be difficult, but still possible if that is something you want. 


For Queerious Minds our copy editor, Alex Crook, was interviewed all about aromanticism.

“I’ve been through a few identity crises. Originally, I thought just bi, then aro/bi, then I found out about asexuality…I just kept questioning and I got to a point where I just didn’t have an answer – and I didn’t care. Aromanticism is really what I feel best describes me.”

This is both a 101 piece for those new to the concept and a lovely read for all us aros out there who like to see a little of themselves out in the world.

Aromantics Address

Papo Aromantic