OWLS: Otaku Warriors for Liberty and Self-Respect

Just like some other anibloggers out there, after the recent news going on in the United States, on Election Day and the post-Election Day, there has been some controversy on the votes and many voters of Trump and Hillary are waging in a violent battle. Just like the American Civil War, there has been an increase of violence and hate towards each other based on beliefs, ethnicity and race. This is hate has gone too far and it’s up to us to stand up against this hate. This is battle in which we shouldn’t be against each other.

After receiving a message from Kauses from Otaku Gamer Zone (OGZ), other bloggers including myself have gathered together for a special project in which we can use our skills of writing to spread the awareness of our humanity with anime/manga and real life situations.

Sites

Blog

Twitter

Facebook

Who are we?

We are the Otaku Warriors for Liberty and Self-Respect (OWLS)! And we are a group of otaku bloggers who believe that all individuals – regardless of race, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion and disability – are human, should be respected as such, and deserve love.

Blog Tours

As part of the OWLS, it’s our duties to spread awareness. It’s our job to write and create special blog posts in which we tackle in some social issues that needs attention. There will be posted monthly and it will be provided by the members themselves. It’s not required but it would be nice to see some participation.

Membership

Want to join? Follow these guidelines:

Requirements:

  • Must be an otaku blogger or vlogger/content creator (I mean, we do need you to have a place for others to stop at, right?)
  • Must be passionate about our cause!
  • Must participate in blog tours (again, you don’t have to participate in all of them, but we do need you to be active ^^)

Rules:

  • Be respectful. We are spreading awareness, respect, and love for all individuals. So it would follow that being respectful to our group mates and readers is a given. Please don’t use derogatory comments or belittle the groups we are fighting for
  • Be an active member. We understand if you can’t join all our blog tours, but please put in the effort to join as many as you can and spread the word. You are joining OWLS for a reason, right?
  • Be responsible. Blog tours require quite a bit of planning and advertising. If you can’t make a deadline, inform our secretaries Arria Cross and/or Crimson ASAP. We do have a “3 strikes you’re out” policy
  • Have fun. As much as we want to spread awareness and love, we are blogging because we love it. Be passionate, proud, and “Free to be ME!”

So far, here is the team and the members:

Officiers

Members

OWLS 2017

January 2018 Blog Tour

Revival

A new year implies “new beginnings.” Yet, rather than discussing the “new,” we will be discussing the “revival.” “Revival”  has multiple definitions, but the meaning we will be focusing on is the improvement, development, or refinement of something. Our posts will be about characters that undergo a positive or negative transformation and what we can learn from them.

February 2018 Blog Tour

Competition

In honor of the 2018 Winter Olympics, this month topic will focus on the theme, “Competition” because the Olympics is where athletes from all countries join together to compete in sporting events. Through these events, we see how “competition” brings out the grit, the teamwork, and the competitive spirit within athletes. This month, we will be exploring anime and pop culture media that discusses the good and the bad when it comes to competition and what it can teach us about ourselves and the world around us.

March 2018 Blog Tour

Squad

“Although some people may like to be alone at times, we all have that one special friend or a squad of friends who we kick it and have some good laughs and fun with. However, there are friendships that don’t last a lifetime and usually, they end due to a falling out or a misunderstanding. For this month’s topic, we will be exploring some of the best friendships in anime and pop culture as well as the friendships that ended suddenly. We will talk about what a true friendship means to us, what we learned about ourselves and others through broken friendships, and our definitions of a “good friend.””

April 2018 Blog Tour

Melody

In one way, music is form of healing and self-expression. For this month’s topic, we will be exploring some of our favorite musical pieces (anime/drama OSTs, movie soundtracks, music genres and etc.) and how it has impacted our lives and/or reasons why we enjoy listening to it.

May 2018 Blog Tour

Movement

“We join movements, organizations, and systems that align with our own personal values and beliefs. Sometimes we join these groups because they believe in doing good and making positive changes in society. However, these movements can turn sour when a dictator arises or behind the good intentions, there’s a hidden agenda of oppression. It is in these groups that individuals start to shape their identities by questioning their values and beliefs or conforming to the system. This month, we will be examining “real and/or fictitious” movements, organizations, or systems in anime and other pop culture mediums, and the positive and negative effects they have on individuals and society.”

June 2018 Blog Tour

Pride

In honor of “Pride Month,” we will be discussing the word, “Pride” and its meaning. We will be exploring pop culture characters’ most satisfying and joyful achievements or skills that they possessed and whether or not these qualities could be seen as a positive or negative aspect in their personal lives and/or society.

July 2018 Blog Tour

Pride

Throughout our lives, we might have encountered someone that we admired as a role model or has guided us in some life dilemma. This mentor could be a teacher at school, a coach, a boss or team leader at work, or a family friend. Whoever it is that person impacted your life in a positive manner. For this month’s OWLS topic, we will be writing about mentors or mentorships in anime and other pop culture media. Some topics we will be exploring include how a mentorship impacted a main character’s life, the types of mentor relationships a person could have, and/or personal stories about mentors or mentorships.

August 2018 Blog Tour

Journey

“We have all heard this saying in some shape or form: “Life is a journey.” We travel down a path in hope that we reach a goal or destination, but the travel in getting there isn’t always easy. Along the way, we encounter some personal struggles. It is in those moments where we must overcome an adversity to complete our journey or take a different route or path instead. In this month’s OWLS post, we will be discussing the personal journeys of pop culture creators, icons, and characters. We will explore the journeys that these characters went through, discuss the process and experiences they had on their journeys, what they discover about themselves, or share our own personal journeys.”

September 2018 Blog Tour

Self-Care

In favor of positivity and good mental health, we will be exploring the importance of self-care. Sometimes, we are lost in our thoughts and emotions that it can cause a negative impact on our lifestyle and our relationships. For this month’s topic, the OWLS bloggers will be exploring the mental health of pop culture characters and how their mental health affects their environments. We will explore the dangers of mental health illnesses and how it might lead to self-destruction and/or how one has the power to overcome their demons. In addition, we will share our personal stories and struggles about mental health and discuss positive ways in handling mental health issues.

October 2018 Blog Tour

Grotesque

In honor of Halloween, we will explore what we find vile and ugly in pop culture.  For this month’s topic, OWLS bloggers will be exploring characters or aspects of the grotesque in a piece of media and how it is a metaphor or allegory for society, human nature, or some other philosophical or humane idea.

November 2018 Blog Tour

Thankful

Here at OWLS, we are pretty thankful that we are able to come together as a community and share a love and appreciation for anime and manga. This month we will be showcasing our appreciation by giving a shout out post to our favorite manga artists, creators, production companies, and writers who produced some of our favorite works. We will be discussing our favorite works by these creators and our reasons as to why we appreciate them.

December 2018 Blog Tour

Miracles

Tis the season where miracles happen. For December’s theme, we will be exploring faith in anime and pop culture. We will discuss some of the miracles that enter a character’s life during their darkest moments. Some of their questions we will explore is how does a “miracle” change a person’s life? How do we define miracles? Can miracles only happen due to a legend or a mystical being? Or do miracles happen every day, but we just don’t see it? We hope that you enjoy this holiday season! Happy Holidays! –  the OWLS Team ❤

January 2019 Blog Tour

Metamorphosis

A brand new year means new beginnings and opportunities. We have a tendency to embrace the new year because it’s a time when we can start fresh. For this month’s topic, we will be exploring our favorite dynamic characters who undergo changes for better or for worse. We will analyze these characters’ transformations and how these transformations benefited or minimized these characters’ potential in becoming “great people/beings.” We will also use these characters as a way for us to reflect on our own lives and who we want to become. Lastly, we would like to say “Happy New Year, everyone!”

February 2019 Blog Tour

Adore

In February, we will be exploring love and romance. The word selected is “adore” because it has two main connotations: to be loved and respected or to feel worshipped. We will analyze characters that give us a feeling of admiration and explain why we love those characters. We will also be exploring different forms of love (familial, friendship, and even self-love) and how those types of love influence our lives.

March 2019 Blog Tour

Feminism

In honor of Women’s History Month, the OWLS bloggers will explore the concepts of femininity and feminism. We each have our own definition of these two terms and we will explore our definitions using “feminine” characters from various pop culture fandoms. We will discuss how these characters are “feminine” or show signs of a feminist agenda. We will also share our personal stories about the amazing women that supported us in our lives as well as sharing experiences involving women’s rights, oppression within the patriarchy, and/or issues of growing up as a woman or having a feminine persona.

April 2019 Blog Tour

April Blog Tour Round Up

May 2019 Blog Tour

Happiness

September 2019 Blog Tour

Lover

When it comes to romantic relationships, what do we look for in a partner? What core values do we seek when it comes to building a healthy and loving relationship? For this topic, we will be discussing some of our favorite couples in pop culture and what they have taught us about love and relationships, the good and the bad.