T.e.n
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Hi there. Oh, and welcome.
Hi there. <3 Welcome to CHAnges; a thread who's expressed mission statement is to be an environment where individuals can feel welcome and open to participate in friendly chatter and criticize the white-supremacist-heteronormative-fatphobic-ableist-transphobic-transmisogynistic-capitalist-classist-settler-biased-patriarchal-binary-centered-kyriarchy that we live in. Thusly, if you choose to participate, members of this thread will assume a number of things;
A) You recognize the existence of institutional, interpersonal, cultural and internalized racism, sexism, ableism, classism, homophobia, cissexism, fat hatred, & binarism and are sympathetic to the plight of people at the hands. You actively denounce such systems and the harm they cause.
B) You admit your mistakes, misgivings, and confusions to the best of your ability, and work through them - either privately or publically - in order to maintain an open, harmonious and nurturing thread environment.
If you're good with such, then feel free to join us. You don't have to be the most ardent activist or even open as such; but if you are someone who feels that any of the above -isms have a justified existence - then it may be best to leave, since we are not in the business of being teachers or the like. If you are genuinely interested in learning about anything concerning the above, there are resources available at the bottom of this post for you - so feel free to delve into those. The reason we aren't teachers or the like is simply becuase - for the rest of the time, we have to consistently justify and explain who we are to the rest of the world. Here, we don't have to.
We're all friends here to try to be to the best of our ability; and even though we may not stay in contact as much as we may like - we recognize that we all have active obligations and duties outsife of ourselves. This is a thread where we feel no need to make ourselves smaller in order to be accepted.
This also connects to our openness with our interests - many of us are big gamers, or comic fans, or anime fans, or sci-fi fans or what have you. Many of us are also interested in history, sociology and anthropology alongside other things. We will be open about such as well, and we hope you are as well (no matter how 'out there', or 'unknown' they may be).
All of this said, there isn't a stringent or single topic matter. This is a place where the people whom identify as above can feel free to speak about what they wish. Please feel free to bring up whatever you want if there isn't really a conversation going on, but it is distracting if there are conversations going around and a user simply posts whatever they wish (and rude as well). Spam isn't tolerated, and excessive links can be distracting so please avoid them as such.
So if you've read as such and still feel comfortable posting here, feel free to do so!
Here are the rules in a point-form format. Some of these have been described in the above message, but nonetheless - here we are.
IMPORTANT: Please note that these are subject to change at ANY time. We will post in the thread title if there has been a rule change and it will be left there for about 3-4 days.
Now, all of Gaia's TOS and Rules & Guidelines are in effect. In addition to those -
No flaming or wanton insulting of any kind.
Flaming or wanton insulting (a post that belittles someone, either intentionally or unintentionally) is not tolerated. Terms that you may find personally acceptable (in that they don't hurt anyone) but have a history of being aligned with hateful or oppresive speech are not acceptable. Exceptions in place affect language that are currently being re-appropriated within their cultural bounds.
No advertising, spamming, bumping, or l33t 5p34k (leet speak) (unless it's a joke).
Spam and advertising aren't tolerated. Bumping isn't either, and while the intent is appreciated - we don't need nor want it. l33t is distracting unintentionally. Please avoid as such unless it's demonstrating humour.
If you are to engage in a debate, remember to keep said debate focused on debate topic.
If you end up arguing with someone about a manga/comic/show/movie/something other than a person, stick to it. Make sure you're wording is clear and above all else, make sure it never delves into personal attacks. Ad-hominem is a no no.
Try to use the best grammer, spelling and communication skills you have (for the most part).
If English is your first language, you have no excuse for posting messages that are almost completley unreadable. If English, isn't your first language - then try your best. If you're actively subverting classist English-based institutions with your choice of diction and the like, that's alright. We do understand that English is inherently difficult and frustrating to learn, and we appreciate the effort of you attempting to interact with us in a language that isn't your primary one.
That being said, there are times when users will kind of throw themselves into an ALL CAPITAL LETTER mode or 'posting like this lol', and that's alright.
If you are involved with an/other active user/s in a romantic relationship, then please keep all romantic gestures considerate to other users.
Just a kiss at most, really (and I mean no frenching or so). While we really do believe in romantic relationships and the like, it can unintentionally make other users uncomfortable. Thus, anything above a kiss is not appropriate.
I don't understand ____________ism/why this is offensive/etc. . Could you explain it to me?
Before you even begin asking that question, please make an effort to visit these blogs and do some reading. More will be added as I come across their amazingness, but for now these six should do well. Also note that some of these are marked as ADVANCED; this is to say that these sites specifically do not have introductory FAQs. All of the sites linked cover advanced theory, but also offer introductury-level writing as well.
Questioning Transphobia: How to check your cis privilege
Tobi Hill-Meyer's No Designation: What Transmisogyny Looks Like
