FAQ: Scream Helplessly at the Sky NYC
Hi there,
I’m the guy who started the NYC iteration of “Scream helplessly at the sky on the anniversary of the election.” Its an event that should be pretty self-explanatory.
Since its inception the event has garnered the attention of many trolls and just generally indignant people. So this is an imagined interview with all those angry people personified into one.
Why did you start this?
I thought it was funny. I saw a woman had created the original event in Boston. There was no NYC iteration, so I made it.
I love that you had to say “a woman.”
Yeah, I didn’t want people to think I was taking credit as a white male for what I thought was a great idea invented by a woman. But the tone of your text makes it seem like I was wrong. If you tried some constructive criticism that would be more helpful…
So, what? You’re just gonna scream for an hour?
That would be insane and bad for your vocal chords. We’re definitely gonna get a good scream in, then we’ll have a moment of silence, then Joan Baez is gonna lead us in a mournful rendition of “Kumbaya” on her autoharp BECAUSE WE’RE ALL JUST A BUNCH OF LIBERAL STEREOTYPES.
I’m gonna go just to laugh at you.
As is your prerogative. It is a public park after all. Though I’m surprised to see you stepping foot into a public park, which is a decidedly socialist venue.
And I’ll bring pacifiers for all you babies.
Make sure you have enough for the whole class. There’s like 2,000 of us so far. Maybe Gerber will sponsor us.
Wait, so are you actually doing this?
Hell yeah. The only thing I don’t joke about is dedication to a bit.
But why are you doing it? What’s it for?
SNL summed it up nicely when they said, “I just want one day where I get a news alert that doesn’t scare the hell out of me.”
Listen, there’s a lot of shit I care about: a guaranteed living wage; universal healthcare; that everyone (and definitely Trump) see a therapist; for people to literally just recognize that Puerto Ricans are Americans??; the admittance of and restitution for decades-old police brutality in the black community; the wish for like one fucking law to pass about gun regulation…
But frankly, I can’t keep up with it all. Every time I think of the laundry list of social injustices on top of my own shit like my actual laundry I get overwhelmed. Every news notification on my phone is a reminder of something over which I am powerless. And I think a lot of people feel that way. So fuck me for thinking it’d be nice to yell about it.
Why don’t you try DOING something instead of being a crybaby?
It’s like you’re not even listening and you’re only here to antagonize people… Why’re you aggressive? We really need some universal mental healthcare in this country and some anger management, while we’re at it. Which is kind of what this event is. It’s group anger management. No one’s crying. No one’s demanding anything. It’s a collective expression of frustration. It’s like… it’s like the feeling you have when you’ve been building Ikea furniture for three hours, and it’s late, and you feel like you’re getting nowhere, and you were almost done, but then you realized you put a piece on backwards and you have to take almost the entire thing apart and you just wanna fucking SCREAM. That’s what we’re doing — we’re screaming because living in America feels like building ikea furniture.
Secondly, I am doing something.
Oh, okay. Name one thing you’ve done.
Well, this is a demand based on the construct that I owe you something, which I don’t. And frankly, just not being an asshole (unlike basically everyone who’s mad about this event) is doing something. But the most simple and basic thing you can do is vote in your local elections, which I do.
Is that it?
You can donate money to organizations and causes that you trust and believe in. But also, just because someone doesn’t have the means to donate doesn’t mean they’re not doing anything. Just being open-minded, listening and educating yourself is half the battle.
Ha. Stupid liberal.
Wait… because I advocate listening and learning?
This is what I’m talking about. Forget trying to solve immense social injustices if we can’t even have a goddam conversation. Are we done here?
Get a job!
I have one?
Have fun with your little temper tantrum you liberal cuck!
Okay! See ya!
