[[ I'd rather not get embroiled in this but I am, quite frankly, super tired of this incredibly harmful mentality that's so prevalent on Tumblr, and as such feel compelled to say something about it. But please, take care of yourselves first and foremost, don't read this if you can't handle it. ]]
I've taken the time to look at both sides of this mess, and yes, this is an incredibly important issue to discuss, to keep minors safe and to keep innocent adults out of jail. I am not trying to diminish that. I wouldn't dream of it, I am incredibly aware of the damages adults can inflict on children, especially accidentally. But I have to say I am incredibly disappointed with the rp community right now, specifically the way they're handling this and what it's focusing on.
First off, why is the (at the time) minor named in some of these posts. As far as I can tell, they aren't actually involved in this conflict, they didn't reach out to the community to make this known, someone is doing it for them. I'm willing to bet it's without their blessing either, because this could ruin their life just as easily as it could ruin Little's. Has no one on the callout side has considered this? It immediately undermines their claim that this is being done to defend minors at the very least.
Second, why is any of this labeled 'pedophilia.' The ATTM was either 16 or 17 at the time in question (accounts vary) not prepubescent. I'm not saying that makes it okay, but it's a very powerful word being swung around thoughtlessly and incorrectly, and it's giving bystanders the absolute wrong impression, especially with the child pornography and offending pedophile crackdown going on right now. Spreading information requires accurate information; how are others supposed to learn and grow otherwise?
Third, why is there so much focus on Little's art and artblogs? I understand why it's being brought up, as pornographic art was shared with a minor, but that's where it should end, as that's all that's relevant. The fact that it was of an underage mun's character only affects the potential for grooming, of which I've seen no proof or even mention so far, so what purpose does focusing on it serve? Beyond that, there is absolutely no need to discuss Little's artistic ability, nor claim any of his art has been traced. How does this help keep minors safe and adults aware of the law and potential harm they could do, which is what this is supposed to be about?
Fourth, why isn't there more focus on how Little handled the situation? What he's done should be every child activist's dream: he accepted he wasn't properly informed without a fight, made an effort to understand what and why this was a problem, and changed his behavior. No other incidents are coming to light, no accusations are being made from other minors or ATTMs. Why is this being treated as anything other than the unfortunately harmful mistake it seems to be?
It's that last point that's mostly why I've been compelled to say all this. This has become a personally fueled witch hunt focused on hurting Little instead of helping children. That's all the related movement has become on Tumblr at large, wounded folks attacking the imperfect (and often just as wounded) as if they themselves have never made such a mistake, while pedophile rings freely hurt children out in the open.
It saddens me that a community that has unfortunately been greatly affected by these kinds of actions and far, far worse has turned on each other instead of focusing on helping others, learning together, and remembering that love and empathy is what holds back the evil in this world. Perhaps we could all take a bit to calm down and come back when we could be objective, and not ruin lives with displaced heated emotions and misinformation? Please consider this, and above all else, be kind today.
