Notices by Ro (are0h@ubiqueros.com), page 8

We're not losing anything by blocking instances that make space for hateful bigots out of some juvenile sense of fairness.

In fact, we're creating more space for better instances to thrive.

This isn't Twitter. We don't have to be patient with a damn thing.

The fedi is changing, and it's changing for the better.

Some people like that, and some don't, but the beauty of this place is that there is more than enough room for people to have whatever experience they want.

We need better tools (specifically around safety and managing access), but that will happen. Hell, it's already happening.

A big part of the conflict I've seen as more and more people migrate over is trying to enforce, and in most cases in the most bigoted ways possible, what they feel the fedi should be, which is, of course, ridiculous.

We've barely scratched the surface of what the fedi can do to build communities and share information. Yes, it's cool to be able to replicate centralized platforms, but the fun part is when we start to go beyond those paradigms and explore.

That's the reason I'm still here. We are having some hard conversations, but that's how you get to the good stuff.

Some people will stay stuck in the past, but there is a very cool future right before us.

What we're doing right now has never been done before. That's pretty awesome.

I've been watching everything Halo lately.

I think I'm just in an epic sci-fi mood. I'll probably watch the Expanse over the weekend.

Full support for .art’s silencing of mastodon[DOT]world.

Twitter style moderation and a refusal to adapt to the different needs of different cultures is just poor management and potentially damaging.

The fedi has to get serious about people’s safety and not treat it like a hobby.

https://www.patreon.com/posts/76284786

I went to my social club this morning for an event, and when I got there, this white dude was already opening the door, so I figured I would walk in after him. I know he saw me, but he basically just let the door close, so I had to catch it.

When I get in there, he stops and says, "Hey can you sign in?" Not hello. Not good morning. Not how long have you been a member here? He just assumed I *wasn't* and acted on that premise.

I kind of just gave him a stern look and kept walking, and he looked stunned. I half expected him to snitch to the owner, but he saw me start talking to other members and got embarrassed.

People always wonder why I'm so adamant about dealing with racism and hate, and it's because white people do not take breaks from their aggression. The way they just assume we don't belong in specific spaces is a constant microaggression we have to deal with.

And to keep it real, today's experience reminded me a lot of how the fedi has been since the big migration.

We all need to choose what kind of environment we want to be a part of and the kind of communities we want to build.

I'm proposing a new tag because whenever I encounter the vilest and most ridiculous racism, #ItsAlwaysPleroma

White nationalists, racists, sexists, TERF, and every other shithead on the web loves Pleroma.

Tumblr joining the fedi?

Woo boy. The OMG CW YOUR LIFE crowd is about to be Big Mad™

I will never understand why people are so averse to diversity.

I like seeing trans people speaking to each other with idioms I don't get, cute girls speaking a language I can't recognize, or gay dudes priming and posing in random pics.

Seeing shit that is not for me makes me feel like I'm part of a much bigger world that still has space for me to learn and grow.

That's a big place of comfort for me. The bottomless nature of the human experience means we all have space to be fully who we are.

That's pretty cool.

Wooo boy, white people do not like when you interrupt their self-righteousness about oppression and injustice in Muslim countries and remind them of the oppression and injustice in Western ones.

Ha, I'm always tickled by that dynamic.

Look, I understand people's beef with Qatar on their hosting the World Cup. The lead-up to this one was really ugly.

But so was the one in L.A as was the Olympics in ATL. All of those events have resulted in mass displacement and brutal crackdown on workers and populations.

If we're going to criticize Qatar, as we should, why is no one talking about the trend of how this happens at most international events. Qatar is not unique, it's just the latest.

Not watching the World Cup because of Qatar's human rights infractions is fair. But let's keep that same energy when these events happen in Western countries as well.

All I'm saying is be fair.

Don't get me wrong; I love the fedi. The potential for shifting online community norms and experiences is compelling and bottomless.

I don't love people obsessed with building their fiefdoms in the image of what we already have, trying to dictate our expectations because they lack imagination.

Something I want to point out around the discourse of CWs is that we should all be paying attention to how much ideological space and grace white 'progressives' give to people who are attached to the demonstrably flimsy 'free speech' excuse to express hate versus the often aggressively hostile and rude demands they hurl at Black folks and POC for talking about their experiences.

The great Maya Angelou told us what to do when people show us what they are.

Just getting the word out that I'm looking for a new gig.

Ideally, I'm looking for product manager roles, with a particular interest in tech manager because of my background, but I'm open to doing some part-time web design and/or development work as well.

For a bit more detailed breakdown, check this out: https://roiskinda.cool/profile.html

This mother fucking random ass white man tried to equate my thought around creating an accessible database of known bad actors who have been causing harm for years to the darkest moments in the history of oppressors gathering and exterminating innocent people.

White people are insane. Even when we try to protect ourselves, they frame it as moral wrongdoing.

Expecting targets of violence to just meekly keep taking because bigots are afraid of consequences is racist as fuck.

I tried to be patient with this person but their inability to see the difference between self-defense and straight-up oppression pissed me the fuck off

RE: https://williamsonday.buzz/users/billday/statuses/109325723267594925

Threads like this are why I dismiss white ruminations on how to deal with racism because they almost always result in them trying to shield the worst people from the consequences of their actions.

And that's some bullshit.

This is one of the whitest, most absurd statements I've seen on the fedi.

And this is the dude that builds Mastodon.

This is pure denial. And we cannot expect adequate solutions from someone who refuses to see life outside of their own bubble.

RE: https://mastodon.social/users/Gargron/statuses/109323056922301691

I don't dislike Eugen. You have to give him credit for building Mastodon, which has turned out to be a catalyst for introducing decentralized to the masses.

If I had to name a feeling, it would be disappointment. Mastodon represents a massive opportunity to make different decisions about engaging and building community.

Unfortunately, he has chosen time and time again to stick to a myopic view of the fediverse that makes people unsafe and replicates the issue of significant platforms because of his juvenile sense of fairness.

Where is the centralized database of bad actors that instances can integrate into their platforms to check and warn people at the server level? Where is the support for instances that prioritize safety over engagement? Where is the input from targeted communities that could diversify the experience?

Time and time again, he has shown he does not want Mastodon to be an example of what social media could be because he is captivated by his vision of what he feels should be.

And as any non-white man will tell you, his decision-making has left every community that does not look like him vulnerable.

He is simply replicating an open-source version of the social media platforms we are trying to escape.

Here's one absolute truth I know about the fedi.

Bigots have more support and acceptance than progressive, and forward-thinking people do. There is a reason so many Black and Brown instances have come and gone, but the domains on many blocklists are so consistent.

No technology on Earth can fill that gap.

With so many new people coming in, the fedi is at a crossroads and needs to decide what kind of culture it wants.

Either it's going to be a space where bigots feel comfortable, or it's going to be a place that actively supports new and fresh ideas where people from any background can come and find community.

It cannot be both.

Don't get me wrong. I appreciate all the thoughts and well wishes I've gotten about PV as more Black and Brown folks come to the fedi.

But one thing I want people to understand is how demoralizing it is to see places like Gab have virtually unlimited resources and support despite being a platform that enabled the most deplorable and violent hate. The push it took to get them taken down is something my former instance experienced regularly.

I've heard for years how people love my work, but it was always a struggle for support and resources. If it weren't for a dedicated few, I would not have been able to keep it up and running for as long as I did.

I get PV was a point of note for many people for the fedi, but for my team and me, it was grind and a constant experience dealing with the worst people on the fedi day after day after day. Let that part sink in.

Am I proud of Play Vicious? Very. But for as much people talk about how much they loved us, it did not translate to the support we needed to be a permanent place in the fedi.

That context is why I'm adamant about not wanting to start a new public instance unless the fedi proves it can support a place dedicated to safety and equality.