Amelvis Villafane, Intervention Two

 Heartstopper Intervention Two Video

Amelvis Villafane

            In my intervention project I am drawing inspiration from the Staceyann Chin videos where she discusses social issues with her daughter and posts them regularly on Youtube. In this intervention I am incorporating something already in my routine with my nieces. I took something I have done with them in the past, introducing them to new ideas like queerness, feminism, patriarchy. In this particular video one of my nieces, Mikeyla, and I are discussing the graphic novel and Netflix television show called Heartstopper. In the video we are discussing the LGBTQIA+ community, issues that are common amongst the members in the community, and the importance of a diverse school. 

We break Heartstopper into different categories. One is explaining what Heartstopper is and what the cover of the books look like and where anyone could look for the show if they are interested in watching it. Second is us breaking apart some of the characters. The next category is us discussing why Heartstopper is so important and why I choose to share the narrative with her. We also go a little into depth about the plot, etc. A lot of this series uses events that actually happen in the real world. Scenes are inspired by things that go on in the real world, like Charlie dealing with bullies at school and hiding himself away from everyone. The show uses performance as a perfectly innovative way to teach realities. “Performance is useful for dramatizing what already exists. Sometimes reality needs help.” Page. 106 Chapter 3 History

Heartstopper is a great topic for my intervention because in it they are not just explaining what Queerness is but how it affects everyone and how being queer affects a person’s life. It discusses the challenges with coming to terms with your sexuality, coming out, bullying, eating disorders, mental illness, diversity, societal treatments towards transgenders, and includes a mainly diverse cast. I had first noticed how uncomfortable the idea of queerness made my nieces, trying to explain the concepts was hard for them, a lot of the time they didn’t understand. So I had seen a Youtube video talking about how great it is, and one day we decided to watch it. After watching the show you can see how it goes from them thinking it’s weird to them finally understanding it. 

This is just one of the videos we have planned to talk about, we wanted to go in depth about each topic and this video was for introduction purposes. We had decided to try and post videos once a month talking about different social issues and how to explain them to a child in a simpler way. The biggest importance of Heartstopper for me was how it felt like a creative joy way to embrace, celebrate and inform about the queer community. While reading the books and watching the show aren’t really me being an activist but the fact that I am always talking about, recommending it, I share it with the younger generations around me. It made the process of educating more pleasurable and creative. “It’s easy to get dispirited as an activist. Because of this, it is important to bring creativity, joy, pleasure, and play into activism. Not only because it is a more effective way to get our message across and entice others to join us, but, equally important as, because it’ll keep us doing the work that needs to be done, not as a chore, or a burden, but as invigorating, energized, creative play.” Page 128.  Chapter 3 History in The Art of Activism textbook.

References

Duncombe, Steve. Lambert, Steve. The Art of Activism. OR Books, 2021.

Oseman Alice. Heartstopper. Volume 1. Hodder and Stoughton 2019.