Nevanna's Forest of Stories

These are some of my current guiding principles for how I engage with politics and social justice on the Internet (primarily Tumblr and Facebook, though obviously you can find me here and on AO3 as well). Most of them have evolved over the years and will probably continue to evolve in the future, and some of them are subject to exceptions. Also, I am neither telling anybody else what to do nor trying to claim that I’m Your Real Ally Unlike Those Performative Fakers Over There. I’ve set these guidelines for my own mental health first and foremost.

1. I am more likely to discuss, or share content about, Terrible Things Happening In The World, if I can include a specific action that my readers can take to help. (And I am more likely to do that if I have already taken that action myself – donated, voted, committed to an event, practiced a form of self-care or community care – or if it is feasible for me to do so.) Sometimes I’ll share a post or article that discusses world events in a way that particularly resonates with me, or that I think might resonate with others, but if the primary goal of the writing is to induce guilt or fear or despair, with no actionable steps to take in response, I will think twice about sharing it.

2. I am unlikely to share “news” in the form of screenshots of headlines or tweets from people reacting to events, unless an accompanying link is available.

3. I avoid posts that guilt-trip people for what they do or don’t post/share/reblog, use manipulative language like “nobody is talking about this” or “I’m judging you if you don’t share this,” or attempt to dictate which demographics “can” or “should” share the content, and what they “can” or “should” say when they do. Similarly, I avoid posts that encourage readers to risk their physical or mental well-being in the offline world (“punching Nazis” is the most extreme example but not the only one) on the grounds that it’s what a True Ally would do.

4. I won’t share posts that suicide-bait or threaten violence, even as a “joke.” This rule is not subject to exceptions.

5. I try not to make promises that I can’t keep. Whenever I see a variation on “Share this post if [marginalized group] is safe with you/on your blog…” I recognize that I can’t decide or guarantee that! While I certainly try to behave in ways that demonstrate my good intentions toward marginalized groups, only people from those groups can decide whether to trust me, and to what degree.

In general, it is really important to remember that someone’s engagement with politics or social justice doesn’t necessarily begin or end with what they talk about online.

If you have any similar personal guidelines (or just want to be salty about toxic Internet culture), feel free to comment.

Non-American readers, please bear with me on this one.

1. If you live in the U.S., vote if you haven't already. Refusing to do so will not change the current system, no matter how much you dislike it.

2. It's possible - even likely - that all the election results won't be decided tonight, so we should be prepared for a lot of uncertainty over the next few days. But after the polls close this evening, voters will have done everything we can, so it's understandable that a lot of people will be on edge today in particular. It might help to think about what kind of emotional support you might need from others and what you can offer them in return.

3. Many methods of activism and community care exist, some of them more obvious or direct than others. Hopefully some of these methods, in addition to voting, will be available to you no matter who ends up running the country where you live. (You will probably have more options, and more energy to pursue them, if a wannabe dictator is not running the country where you live.) Only you can decide what you can contribute, and that decision should be based on your capabilities, not the capabilities of some Ideal Morally Pure Social Justice Advocate that may or may not exist in real life. This post about working together for sustained change over time was very helpful to me during the first few months of Biden’s presidency.

4. Doom-scrolling is not activism, and wanting to unplug or distract yourself doesn't mean that you (or your friends, or strangers on the Internet) don't care about what's going on in our country or our world. If you're glued to the news or to random online arguments, check in with yourself from time to time to figure out if it's causing you unnecessary stress. Making yourself feel awful is not inherently virtuous.

5. Similarly, once the results are finalized, you don’t have to listen to anybody who tells you that you are celebrating or mourning “the wrong way” as long as your feelings – and, more to the point, what you’re doing with them, because feelings on their own can’t harm anyone – aren’t hurting yourself or anyone else.