My out of office auto responder:

Hey friends, I'm out this week for the holiday. Please do hesitate to reach out.

If you know my mobile #, you may send me Beyoncé gifs. I will try very hard to not look at my email until I'm back after Thanksgiving.

It’s important, if you can, to give the new folks a little bit of grace

They’re coming from the most toxic place on earth, a carefully perfected hate engine

They’re expecting everyone to be horrible to them, for many, that’s all they’ve ever known of online interaction. They’re expecting to be manipulated, dogpiled, and abused.

Some folks will slip into their new place and fit right in, others might be a little feral at first

I’m not saying to ignore abuse or bad behavior, I’m just saying, WE can do a lot to show folks how this place works and what we expect from each other

And remember, they’re coming up from the bottom of a cold crushing sea

There’s a lot of nitrogen still dissolved in their blood, and they might need some time to decompress

@carrideen @BlackAzizAnansi

♥️♥️♥️ Replying only so that I can boost the reply from Carrideen. Please read their whole thread and replies.

The clarity of thought and clear description of what's going on, coming from a longtime Mastodon admin experienced in making space for marginalized folk online, is what gives me hope about this place.

I'm staying.