none of my black friends want to use mastodon
@bleak Is there anything I/we (the mastodon community at large) should do or stop doing to make them feel more welcome?
@thethinktanker basically what i'm saying is this place exists in a culture of white supremacy whether gargron likes or knows it or not and he is in a position to push back against it and instead he's been (accidentally? intentions are irrelevant here though tbh) leaning into it so far. i got sick thinking about it which is why i made the original toot in the first place
@bleak I will keep an eye out for this behavior and encourage him to push back instead of doubling down. What should I do to ensure minorities feel listened to and respected other than not being disrespectful or challenging their perspectives simply because they're different from mine?
@thethinktanker that's the trcky part. asking these questions is a good start but in all honesty this (read: drawing attention to heretofore disregarded community concerns and doing open Q&A sessions to address them) is community work that i should be getting paid for. i and many others (trans, poc, disabled, poor, any permutation of these) face struggles that are more immediate but no less threatening, which is why the onus can't always fall on those who are aware to do that work freely.
