Joseph A Marchal
@jamarchal.bsky.social
author, Appalling Bodies (OUP)
co-editor, Trans Biblical (WJK)
founding co-editor, QTR: A Journal of Trans and Queer Studies in Religion
counter-kyriarchal killjoy
professor, religious studies + women’s and gender studies
a bit of a mess here
co-editor, Trans Biblical (WJK)
founding co-editor, QTR: A Journal of Trans and Queer Studies in Religion
counter-kyriarchal killjoy
professor, religious studies + women’s and gender studies
a bit of a mess here
it’s been a rough year, but so grateful that *Trans Biblical* was a best seller for 2025!
www.wjkbooks.com/productcateg...
www.wjkbooks.com/productcateg...
WJK Bestsellers - WJK Books
WJK Bestsellers
www.wjkbooks.com
December 31, 2025 at 2:30 PM
it’s been a rough year, but so grateful that *Trans Biblical* was a best seller for 2025!
www.wjkbooks.com/productcateg...
www.wjkbooks.com/productcateg...
i mean, totally checks out…
I mean it about the ND thing tho
- his shoes are too tight
- his head isn't "screwed on quite right"
- he has resting bitch face
- he can't stand the noise noise noise noise
conclusion: the Grinch is not merely a childfree anticapitalist hero but also an ND icon
- his shoes are too tight
- his head isn't "screwed on quite right"
- he has resting bitch face
- he can't stand the noise noise noise noise
conclusion: the Grinch is not merely a childfree anticapitalist hero but also an ND icon
December 31, 2025 at 2:27 AM
i mean, totally checks out…
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
okay here's the thing
the Grinch is maybe Jewish
he is almost certainly ND and queer
I have given this a LOT of thought
but regardless of what else he has going on, the Whos down in Whoville need to take about 20% off the top
the Grinch is maybe Jewish
he is almost certainly ND and queer
I have given this a LOT of thought
but regardless of what else he has going on, the Whos down in Whoville need to take about 20% off the top
In the grinch’s defense the whos do seem really fucking annoying.
December 31, 2025 at 1:57 AM
okay here's the thing
the Grinch is maybe Jewish
he is almost certainly ND and queer
I have given this a LOT of thought
but regardless of what else he has going on, the Whos down in Whoville need to take about 20% off the top
the Grinch is maybe Jewish
he is almost certainly ND and queer
I have given this a LOT of thought
but regardless of what else he has going on, the Whos down in Whoville need to take about 20% off the top
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
Humanities programs have ceded scholarship of the premodern to bad actors on the right. This is a serious problem, not only because it represents a loss of current and future knowledge, but also because it enables white supremacists and Christian nationalists to twist history to their own ends.
Three, it is a big problem for the humanities that the only programs that appear to be robustly hiring medievalists and classicists are places like the Hamilton Center and its sister programs that are sprouting up at campuses across the country.
December 30, 2025 at 6:16 PM
Humanities programs have ceded scholarship of the premodern to bad actors on the right. This is a serious problem, not only because it represents a loss of current and future knowledge, but also because it enables white supremacists and Christian nationalists to twist history to their own ends.
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
In America, where irony is dead, a hotel chain uses a policy denying shelter to local people, for fear of accidentally housing homeless persons…
To deny a reservation to the author of a much-lauded book on how American economic unfairness forces working people into homelessness.
To deny a reservation to the author of a much-lauded book on how American economic unfairness forces working people into homelessness.
A Hampton Inn in Asheville just canceled my family's reservation because our address (incorrectly) showed Asheville—and the hotel bars locals within 50 miles.
When I asked why, they said, "because of our homeless population," adding that most hotels here have similar policies.
This is outrageous.
When I asked why, they said, "because of our homeless population," adding that most hotels here have similar policies.
This is outrageous.
December 29, 2025 at 2:46 AM
In America, where irony is dead, a hotel chain uses a policy denying shelter to local people, for fear of accidentally housing homeless persons…
To deny a reservation to the author of a much-lauded book on how American economic unfairness forces working people into homelessness.
To deny a reservation to the author of a much-lauded book on how American economic unfairness forces working people into homelessness.
This isn’t a crisis in teaching, it’s an attack on learning
It is EXHAUSTING not only being made responsible for coming up with new kinds of assignments for our students; it's also tedious reading op-eds that suggest the core problem is a crisis in teaching. But, as Chris and I lay out here, this isn't a crisis in teaching; it's an attack on learning.
"We envision a resistance that is...a repudiation of the efficiencies that automated algorithmic education falsely promises: a resistance comprising the collective force of small acts of friction."
"How to Resist AI in Education" by me & @cnygren.bsky.social
www.publicbooks.org/four-frictio...
"How to Resist AI in Education" by me & @cnygren.bsky.social
www.publicbooks.org/four-frictio...
December 27, 2025 at 2:35 PM
This isn’t a crisis in teaching, it’s an attack on learning
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
CBS didn't run the 60 Minutes segment on CECOT, but over here at @propublica.org we've been working on the story since March, including finding out who each and every man sent to that maximum security prison was.
You can see our reporting here: www.propublica.org/series/depor...
You can see our reporting here: www.propublica.org/series/depor...
Deported and Imprisoned Archives
A case-by-case investigation that examines the Trump administration’s claims that these immigrants are all “sick criminals” and “terrorists” and that shows what they suffered during months in one of t...
www.propublica.org
December 22, 2025 at 4:08 PM
CBS didn't run the 60 Minutes segment on CECOT, but over here at @propublica.org we've been working on the story since March, including finding out who each and every man sent to that maximum security prison was.
You can see our reporting here: www.propublica.org/series/depor...
You can see our reporting here: www.propublica.org/series/depor...
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
“I’m gonna force a trans person to read a paper about how trans people are demonic hee hee hee trolling is so fun wait how dare you make me experience a consequence”
December 25, 2025 at 8:26 PM
“I’m gonna force a trans person to read a paper about how trans people are demonic hee hee hee trolling is so fun wait how dare you make me experience a consequence”
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
Professor's pro-tip for anyone with college-age kids: Tell your kids go to class. It's really that simple. If you show up, you'll do okay. You don't have to be smart, you just have to be there. Maybe stay off your phones for 50 minutes. Just listen. You'll absorb something. I have data to prove it.
December 15, 2025 at 8:42 PM
Professor's pro-tip for anyone with college-age kids: Tell your kids go to class. It's really that simple. If you show up, you'll do okay. You don't have to be smart, you just have to be there. Maybe stay off your phones for 50 minutes. Just listen. You'll absorb something. I have data to prove it.
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
*youth pastor voice*: do you know who else was in a heated rivalry?
December 25, 2025 at 12:27 AM
*youth pastor voice*: do you know who else was in a heated rivalry?
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
If you’re wondering why your friends in academia are a little on edge right now, it’s because an eighteen-year-old who hasn’t done the reading, doesn’t look at the assignment, and has does no critical thinking skills more complex than “because I think it’s in the Bible” can literally end your career
The University of Oklahoma has removed an instructor who was accused by a student of religious discrimination over a failing grade on a psychology paper in which she cited the Bible and argued that promoting a “belief in multiple genders” was “demonic.” https://cnn.it/4b6g3rd
Oklahoma instructor removed from teaching for failing a Bible-based gender essay | CNN
The University of Oklahoma has removed an instructor who was accused by a student of religious discrimination over a failing grade on a psychology paper in which she cited the Bible and argued that promoting a “belief in multiple genders” was “demonic.”
cnn.it
December 24, 2025 at 6:21 PM
If you’re wondering why your friends in academia are a little on edge right now, it’s because an eighteen-year-old who hasn’t done the reading, doesn’t look at the assignment, and has does no critical thinking skills more complex than “because I think it’s in the Bible” can literally end your career
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
The person who added the grid to the back of wrapping paper has done more to improve the human condition than everyone working in generative AI.
December 24, 2025 at 5:11 PM
The person who added the grid to the back of wrapping paper has done more to improve the human condition than everyone working in generative AI.
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
it's truly wild how institutions are like it's cool, we never wanted to do this teaching and learning stuff anyway
December 24, 2025 at 6:16 AM
it's truly wild how institutions are like it's cool, we never wanted to do this teaching and learning stuff anyway
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
I don’t mean to sound extreme, but I don’t think we should have torture camps for people with criminal records either.
December 23, 2025 at 1:51 AM
I don’t mean to sound extreme, but I don’t think we should have torture camps for people with criminal records either.
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
Since it’s official. Thanks 🙏 @newyorker.com. This feels pretty surreal.
December 23, 2025 at 2:34 PM
Since it’s official. Thanks 🙏 @newyorker.com. This feels pretty surreal.
This looks legitimately to be the spiked 60 Minutes segment
And should outrage anyone with a conscience
And should outrage anyone with a conscience
BREAKING: WATCH the full 60 Minutes CECOT segment here. This was sent to me anonymously. It appears to be the segment CBS' Bari Weiss killed. www.muellershewrote.com/p/watch-the-...
WATCH: The 60 Minutes CECOT Segment
I was sent the CECOT segment anonymously in a group chat.
www.muellershewrote.com
December 23, 2025 at 2:38 PM
This looks legitimately to be the spiked 60 Minutes segment
And should outrage anyone with a conscience
And should outrage anyone with a conscience
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
it’s unsettling how many USians seem to think CECOT is unlike that prison your uncle works at in Colorado or Virginia or California or Alabama…
humiliation, deprivation, isolation, sexual violence…constant torture inflicted on people who both have & have not committed harm—that’s…prison.
humiliation, deprivation, isolation, sexual violence…constant torture inflicted on people who both have & have not committed harm—that’s…prison.
December 23, 2025 at 2:12 AM
it’s unsettling how many USians seem to think CECOT is unlike that prison your uncle works at in Colorado or Virginia or California or Alabama…
humiliation, deprivation, isolation, sexual violence…constant torture inflicted on people who both have & have not committed harm—that’s…prison.
humiliation, deprivation, isolation, sexual violence…constant torture inflicted on people who both have & have not committed harm—that’s…prison.
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
We at ProPublica obtained internal government data in May that showed the Trump administration knew the vast majority of Venezuelans sent to El Salvador had not been convicted of violent crimes. Our reporting is featured in Frontline. Read our full coverage: www.propublica.org/series/depor...
December 23, 2025 at 1:41 AM
We at ProPublica obtained internal government data in May that showed the Trump administration knew the vast majority of Venezuelans sent to El Salvador had not been convicted of violent crimes. Our reporting is featured in Frontline. Read our full coverage: www.propublica.org/series/depor...
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
when some people choose between a weekly injection or daily pill to regulate their hormones so as to align their body with their desired appearance i guess it's no big deal
U.S. regulators on Monday gave the green light to a pill version of the blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, the first daily oral medication to treat obesity. n.pr/4pNYnVN
U.S. regulators approve Wegovy pill for weight loss
U.S. regulators on Monday gave the green light to a pill version of the blockbuster weight-loss drug Wegovy, the first daily oral medication to treat obesity.
n.pr
December 23, 2025 at 2:26 PM
when some people choose between a weekly injection or daily pill to regulate their hormones so as to align their body with their desired appearance i guess it's no big deal
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
When they ask me what radicalized me
December 23, 2025 at 2:17 AM
When they ask me what radicalized me
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
"You have to use AI."
...why?
...why?
December 12, 2025 at 4:40 PM
"You have to use AI."
...why?
...why?
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
I don't have to use it and neither do you
December 22, 2025 at 12:47 AM
I don't have to use it and neither do you
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
Here’s the thing: we don’t have to use AI. And every day we don’t, you preserve skills that other ppl are progressively losing.
We are also keep the tech bros from making money on this garbage.
And it’s eating them alive that they can’t coerce us.
We have the power to ruin them.
We are also keep the tech bros from making money on this garbage.
And it’s eating them alive that they can’t coerce us.
We have the power to ruin them.
December 22, 2025 at 1:49 AM
Here’s the thing: we don’t have to use AI. And every day we don’t, you preserve skills that other ppl are progressively losing.
We are also keep the tech bros from making money on this garbage.
And it’s eating them alive that they can’t coerce us.
We have the power to ruin them.
We are also keep the tech bros from making money on this garbage.
And it’s eating them alive that they can’t coerce us.
We have the power to ruin them.
Reposted by Joseph A Marchal
Another way to restart the world’s idea machine is to restore funding and grants to universities, researchers, and artists.
America, you have spoken loud and clear: You do not like AI. But what if AI is the way to restart the world’s idea machine?
We’re running out of good ideas. AI might be how we find new ones.
What if the best use of AI is restarting the world’s idea machine?
www.vox.com
December 16, 2025 at 3:35 AM
Another way to restart the world’s idea machine is to restore funding and grants to universities, researchers, and artists.