Hello everyone, I hope you are all doing well. This is my final message before leaving Tumblr for a while because Iāve realized that itās not worth losing my mental health over. I admit that I was legitimately scared to write anything about all this, and I am well aware that I donāt have the power to change anyoneās mind, but this has been wrongfully affecting my artist friends and Iāve had more than enough. They shouldnāt be attacked for a misunderstanding that started with me. So here are my sincere words, please read carefully.
Most of you are probably aware of the controversy surrounding my recent AU. The gist of it is that by giving Julian (a Jewish coded character) black wings and making him a fallen angel in my comic, I have portrayed him in an antisemitic manner. This caused outrage among some users in the community, so I would like to apologize, and explain myself a bit.
First: I had absolutely no idea that some people viewed him as Jewish coded. I personally believe that the arcana is just a fantasy game with no parallel to the real world or any type of religion, as stated by them here. The charactersā races and backgrounds are intentionally ambiguous so that the user may identify with them more. This means that the Devorakās Jewish features are both intended and endorsed (as expressed by the devs here). So itās okay to view and identify him as Jewish but itās also completely fine not to. Heās a fictional character, in a fictional world under fictional circumstances. That said, I know representation is very important to a lot of people, and can understand them being upset by seeing a character in a potentially offensive situation.
After doing some research, there have been a few Jewish people expressing that they donāt take offense from my comic, but evidently some do, so I will refrain from using Julian in my comic any further (which was my original plan since he wasnāt even going to be a part of the main story). I advise others to also be careful about portraying Julian, in a potentially offensive manner (fallen/demon, a sinful person in need of being redeemed). All of this applies to Portia as well. If you want to participate in the AU and want to use him in your story/drawing, please keep this in mind.
Second: My intention for the AU was for it to have a highly videogame fantasy-like atmosphere rather than a religious one. Itās why the gods are the major arcana, and why theyāre in a celestial realm rather than actual heaven. However, I do realize that by using words like āsinā and āredemptionā it still made it feel that way. Despite this, the only reason I made Julian a fallen angel was because, well I thought black wings looked cool. Especially since it was reminiscent of his actual reversed form in the game. I gave the wings to other characters as well, as I didnāt intentionally choose Julian or singled him out. I didnāt intentionally choose anybody.
Third: I am of a Protestant religion and a Latina who grew surrounded by a highly diverse culture. When I was little, I was taught to always respect everyone no matter what. Even if you disagree with them, even if they have different opinions : it shouldnāt matter because weāre all different, we all have different views and thatās okay.
My point is, you guys will see things that you disagree with: things that are hurtful, things that are offensive ALL the time. But how can you expect to help the community if all you do is try to correct others by publicly spreading hate yourselves? By spreading hate, all youāre teaching others is that if you donāt like or agree with something, you should immediately call that person out. Things should be handled privately and with care. DM the person, and donāt make it public because doing so puts the person under a certain amount of pressure, even if thatās not the intention, and it might even affect their answer. I willĀ NOT point fingers at anyone because I truly believe that this was all a just big misunderstanding due to lack of proper communication.
I joined this fandom because it seemed so fun, diverse and inclusive. Everyone had such creative freedom and it was amazing to see, so I apologize if I made anyone uncomfortable with my comic. I meant absolutely no harm, and I will try to think more carefully about what I post in the future. Please know that Iām not perfect, but those who truly know me also know that I would never want to offend anyone. So if you ever see me posting something that might seem offensive or harmful, please, just DM me rather than making it public, and Iām certain we could come to an agreement.
And hereās one last message: Please, please, please, be more aware of the words and comments you use and spread around, and always make sure to learn both sides of the story before you start making assumptions about someone, because you donāt know what mental/emotional state that person might be in, and you donāt know who you may be hurting along the way. Learn to handle things more carefully, and privately. Talk to and try to get to know the person if you see them doing something wrong or offensive. Be the better person, and most importantly, always strive to spread love, not hate.
Thank you for reading, I hope you all have a lovely day š
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