Twitter has now lost a bunch of people (to account deactivations) that I really enjoyed following. These weren’t celebrities, just people in my field or adjacent fields that I knew mostly online. It feels like doors are closing :(
And most of them aren’t on here. Or at least I can’t find them.
But here we are, Muskyman has created a situation of urgency, and this has to be dealt with. So...
1) If you are white, please shut up when #BIPOC folks talk about their experiences. Just fucking listen. Don't explain, or minimize, or ask for proof or examples. We are the ones who are targeted.
2) There definitely isn't a #BIPOC consensus about the use of CWs for #racism. If you are white, and don't want to see racism, do some self-examination. You are not the target.
3/
I've been reading and thinking a lot about what's been happening on #mastodon around questions and issues of #racism, #moderation, #contentwarnings, etc. I have a few thoughts.
First, I'm old. I mean OLD. My first internet experiences were as an adult academic in the mid-late 80s. As a Black person (and at the time, a woman) it was not unusual to be met with micro-agressions, harassment, and incredulity when I was online.
Thus, I have never expected, nor found, truly safe space online. 1/
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