An Issue I’ve Encountered In Online Discourse A Lot Recently Is The Fact That A Lot Of People Excuse

An issue I’ve encountered in online discourse a lot recently is the fact that a lot of people excuse their behavior with the fact that they’re part of a certain group.

Examples would be: “I’m a minor”, “I’m an abuse survivor”, “I’m a POC”, “I’m mentally ill”, “I’m lgbtq+”…

The moment someone finds your anon or your post, telling them to hurt or kill themselves, they don’t care about whether you’re black or white, 14 or 41, bi or straight, trans or cis, or whether you were diagnosed with depression or not. You said something harmful. And wanting to excuse that with stating that you’re part of a specific group doesn’t make it any better. In fact, you’re making it worse for your fellow people.

It’s completely ok to be part of a minority. It’s completely ok to find comfort in specific spaces and feel uncomfortable in others. But the internet is not a safe place, not for you, not for anyone. You will sadly never be able to rid the internet of everything and everyone who could potentially harm you.

Predators and abusers lurk everywhere. Not just in specific spaces. Not all Proshippers or Antishippers are bad. Not all cis or trans people are bad. Not all minors or adults are bad. People can say whatever they want on the internet. Maybe that mixed person you met and really resonate with is actually a nazi in disguise. Maybe that 30 year old Proshipper you met is actually an underage person invading an adult space. Maybe that sweet trans guy who understands your struggle merely has the intention to groom you. Maybe that minor who suicide baits for fun is an adult hiding behind an excuse. Maybe that abuse survivor is just saying that for sympathy points.

I’m not saying everyone is like that, not at all. I’m just saying that it is possible. And I’m asking you to please be careful with throwing certain statements around, and please be careful with who you trust. You don’t need to label yourself a specific way in order to be a good person. You need to prove it by acting like it.

Online discourse is a dangerous game that nobody ever wins. Please, be safe.