alexandra<p>normally, i don't get involved in anything that doesn't directly concern me, & i never post things like this because it just invites more drama & fuels flames. i have to speak up as this can have rippling effects across the independent web. i'm so sorry, but it's pretty long.</p><p>i followed the micro.blog saga with <span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://social.lol/@adam" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>adam</span></a></span>, & i felt like adam was handling it pretty well, because he is a wonderful ally. if you missed it, long story short from what i *publicly* saw: a dev for the micro.blog platform (vincent r., who also runs tinylytics) complained about pronouns in a video game on some platform. nobody on the MB team addressed it when folks were vocally upset, the apology (for getting called out*) was not great, & there was never any explicit support stated for LGBTQ+ folks by micro.blog until adam began publicly calling them out. there might be more that micro.blog users saw that i've seen in blog posts, but i can't speak to those. i did see vincent's apology, however, & it was difficult to see if he was actually atoning for his behavior or appeasing the masses. as a queer person, and having heard similar statements throughout my life by people who have disappointed me with their homo/transphobia, it felt very much like the latter. adam took the platform to task for this inaction & wanted the platform to explicitly state its support of LGBTQ+ folks and draw a line in the sand, using his voice.</p><p>now, those blog posts, him standing up for others, are gone due to a cease & desist that was delivered to him by a party only known to him. it might not have been micro.blog. we don't know.</p><p>but i'm so livid right now as an indieweb participant, <a href="https://tilde.zone/tags/webdev" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>webdev</span></a> hobbyist, former journalist, and a community leader of the <a href="https://tilde.zone/tags/32bitcafe" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>32bitcafe</span></a>.</p><p>this is why: weaponizing lawyers and cease-and-desist letters to an indieweb developer--one that, imo, has done incredible work in expanding the small web & making it more accessible & inclusive--for their opinion about you, your business, or how you operate said business, is deplorable &, frankly, completely goes against everything building personal websites & disconnecting from the corporate web MEANS.</p><p>how fucking dare the lot of you. you should be ashamed of yourselves.</p><p><span class="h-card" translate="no"><a href="https://manton.org/activitypub/manton" class="u-url mention" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">@<span>manton</span></a></span>, this is cowardly work. even if it wasn't you that did it, the fact that it was CLEARLY done on behalf of your platform shows me the lack of respect you/your team have/has for open dialogue on the personal web. if you actually wanted to do better, you wouldn't be silencing anyone nor would you have anyone be silenced on MB's behalf. you would be actively doing the work to face criticism, take it on the chin, & work towards understanding any remaining issues with the people who you are alienating and marginalizing.</p><p>sending a cease & desist is not doing better. </p><p>the 32-bit cafe does a lot of outreach and we are constantly adding folks who are new to building websites to our membership. we are often asked for recommendations for <a href="https://tilde.zone/tags/blogging" class="mention hashtag" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">#<span>blogging</span></a> platforms. our personal web recommendations list alone receives thousands of unique visits per day.</p><p>the 32-bit cafe already removed any & all recommendations to micro.blog & tinylytics due to our large LGBTQ+ community (including myself) and the lack of clear messaging from micro.blog about its stance until it finally became more public. now, in addition to that, i will be actively discouraging people from using the platform micro.blog or tinylytics due to the overzealous actions of *someone* with stake in MB's or vincent's reputation.</p><p>the truth is not defamation, & i am not scared of you, whatever shadowy figure did this, or any lawyer who might be seeking to bully, harass, or intimidate by threatening baseless litigation or by asserting wholly unmeritorious claims.</p><p>send me a C&D for this: i do not like you, or your platform, due to the actions you have publicly taken, the words on your blog, and the way micro.blog & you have responded publicly to multiple criticisms & complaints about the platform YOU run. this is my opinion & not an assertion of fact.</p><p>from where i'm standing, your platform is not safe for people like me, allies, & my trans friends, no matter how many times you say it *now*. it is not safe to approach you with criticism. it is not safe to bring problems of YOUR platform to you. and i came to that conclusion based on the waffling & hand-wringing YOU did in public in response.</p><p>micro.blog looks like it stands for silencing critics of its platform, grandstanding, rainbow-washing, & taking zero accountability. if you didn't send the C&D, find out who did & publicly denounce it.</p><p>> TL;DR: micro.blog devs and/or anonymous C&D sender, go fuck yourself. you want to protect your reputation? EARN IT. disgraceful.</p><p>P.S. adam has said he wants to move on, but again, i'm sorry--i want to say something because this can embolden others to weaponize the legal system against personal website owners (esp. ones with low income), & we're not laying down for that shit without speaking up.</p>