Think, People

Before I could blog about it, things on TikTok devolved further. 

There was an accusation made by a creator with millions of followers. She suspected a well known and loved member of the LGBTQIA community with over 600k followers of their own... of grooming children and seeking to be alone with them for purposes of abuse. She strategically edited some of his posts to support her theory.

Thousands of people chimed in with their own opinions and videos, some accusing, some defending each party. Anger, hate, fear and ignorance flooded in. The issues began to pile up in layers. 

I gathered some facts and prepared my own response, but then the video I was going to directly react to disappeared. In its place was the original accuser in tears. According to her, she received a threat of harm in an email and the threat included knowledge of her personal information and that of her two children. She seemed visibly shaken and in distress. She said that she had taken down all her accusation videos and issued an apology, saying she wished she and her family to not be harmed.

This added even more layers to the entire series of events. I stitched my own response:

1. THREATS ARE NOT OKAY.

2. TARGETING INDIVIDUALS IS NOT OKAY.

3. FALSE ACCUSATIONS, OR ACCUSATIONS WITHOUT PROOF, ARE NOT OK.

4. PEOPLE ARE NOT GUILTY UNTIL PROVEN INNOCENT. They are INNOCENT until proven otherwise.

5. Fear and assumption does not warrant public accusation.

6. Hate does not help.

7. People tend to rush to judgement instead of seeking to understand and gain knowledge.

8. With a large following, comes responsibility. 

9. Karma WILL COME FOR YOU.

10. There are many facts about the LGBTQIA community that escape others' attention.

11. Misinformation spreads like wildfire.

12. Algorithms perpetuate conflict and the engagement that comes with it.

I could go on and on. Can we PLEASE seek to understand each other before we go rushing to judgement? It is WAY too easy to put others in danger and people in the LGBTQIA community already face danger.

Click here for: thetrevorproject.org

It is an unfortunate and tragic fact that some children need to seek help escaping from the adults who physically and emotionally abuse them. If you suspect abuse - report it to authorities immediately. Wild and public accusations, without any proof, can be extremely dangerous. If someone makes you uncomfortable because of the way they look and you can't understand them, there is an incredible opportunity for you to learn something. The world will be a better place when we first seek to understand each other. People in the LGBTQIA community are NOT DANGEROUS by virtue of the facts of who they are. To assume so is ignorant and hateful.

Please think. 

Be safe,

Love,

T