“The gays aren’t gonna get banned!”
That is a real comment I just read on a post about the Tiffany G situation regarding this years OTW election.
It astonishes me to this very day that there are people who aren’t aware of the history of fandom purges. Like hello?? It’s happened with FF.net twice, once in 2002 and again in 2012. All NC-17 works were removed without warning because they were deemed as “too mature.”
The reactions to Tiffany G’s comments are not unjustified. People who have lived through purges know what it’s like to loose thousands of fanworks within a blink of an eye. That’s entirely why AO3 was created, to give authors a place to post without the fear of removal. Fandom was kickstarted by adult women, that is a fact.
Censorship is not cut and dry. It has many oversights, like determining what is considered “bad.” Who’s to say works containing underage wouldn’t also fall under age difference? Oh, you don’t like non-con? Well, it was nice knowing A/B/O…
Tagging is a godsend, and AO3’s system works as intended. Exclude tags with things you find uncomfortable, but most of all, don’t read things you don’t like.
I’m gonna end this mini rant on one major point: fictional, written characters are not the same as real life children being harmed.
