Discussion
every time you read or boost a post about the great space here, how copacetic this network this is (noncommercial! for the conscientious and discerning internet user!)
please take a moment to think about who's writing these posts
and who is not
and who has left here due to racism
Yesterday when I posted this I was pretty quickly bummed because I was getting Fedi/FLOSS 101 replies immediately, which just underscore what's wrong with here. Today the balance has tipped into people being much more thoughtful and self-aware about dynamics here (thank you, folks). I boosted some of the replies not to stoke piling on but because I really was impressed and happy to see them 💚
Also thank you to @bright_helpings who said something that really resonated for me yesterday:
https://mspsocial.net/@bright_helpings/117124435282289016
@inquiline Aww! I owe a lot of credit to the "Everyone good is necessary" sticker thst I had on my laptop for many many years. I got it from one of my best friends, who got it from here. https://pioneerspress.com/
Not sure if that displayed? Anyway:
"I've been trying to work out a reply about how there are so goddam many of this kind of guy, it can lead one to despair. But it also makes me so deeply appreciate the distinctiveness, the intense individuality, of everyone here who understands and cares about the problems these guys don't. And I'm so glad to know so many people living lives of diversity and joy and the glimpses we get of a better world that way.
Everyone good is necessary" TY, Erik!
@inquiline yeah it probably doesn't, my instance has authorized fetch on so it's hard to link to stuff (worthwhile for the safety benefits, but a pain at times like this!)
@inquiline denden is the bestest because everyone's chill and nicies to me and also im brown irl
@inquiline always glad to find new people to block
@zeblarson it’s amazing sometimes
@inquiline I struggle with not having any traction on these problems
But one thing I CAN do is refrain from gaslighting or ignoring the people who raise them!
well this puts you in the top 2% of fedi users, it seems
@inquiline Fediverse is decentralized, anyone can host it, publish and subscribe content. The Fediverse is not a safe space. But it is a space for everyone: the good and the bad. As always it is up to the people to cancel the reach of the bad actors, racist or other. Choose a safe server or host your own. Block prejudice, unfollow toxic contents, be the master of your home feed on the Mastodon client. There's no algorythm, no sponsored content, no ads. Read what you choose as best. Your Fediverse is what you make of it.
@mjlmo @inquiline Water torture? Pffft just wipe the drop off bro it's just a drop of water. They make TOWELS for that.
@mjlmo Or, alternatively, we could
1) demand the servers we're on strongly moderate on bigotry and
2) mercilessly hunt and mock every flavour of bigot untill they flee and tell all their friends to stay away from the Fediverse and
3) explain people that banning the intolerant is not a paradox but an essential part of keeping a space free and tolerant.
Ozzie lad, this is a sophisticated version of victim blaming. Don't want to be run over? Don't ask for safer streets, just look both ways when crossing! Don't want to eat toxic food? Don't look to regulation, just smell it and then test it in your home lab! Don't want to experience racism? Don't look for a stronger social moderation structure. Just block all the racists.
IT DOES NOT WORK.
We do not have time to work on every social failure as a personal project.
@mjlmo @inquiline Or we could all work together to address the issue instead of outsourcing the emotional and technical labour of both dealing with racism and fixing the racism to people of colour when it's not them who are creating the problem?
this is a really condescending answer, and this kind of attitude is a significant part of the problem
see also:
https://gts.superseriousbusiness.org/@dumpsterqueer/statuses/01KCGJ720Z98BCXVRWY3Q73YDE
@inquiline I don't understand the question "who's left here due to racism?"
The contraction *is* confusing. I think it's supposed to be "who has left here", not "who is left here". And yes, I've heard the reports of horrendous racial harassment that most of us (other than the targets) can't see due to quirks of federation.
Thanks.
(I would suggest, BTW, that the same questions are at least as telling for social media platforms with a central moderation authority as they are for the Fediverse, albeit with the mechanisms of racialized exclusion being a bit different in the two cases.)
really? you may need to look around a bit more?
this post which i happened to see right after i wrote mine says it quite well:
https://gts.superseriousbusiness.org/@dumpsterqueer/statuses/01KCGJ720Z98BCXVRWY3Q73YDE
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