Thread by @PantheaLee

I gotta say, while there were many gems in the #NewPublicFestival session on online safety, watching the convo dynamics was v uncomfortable, even triggering. Without meaning to, it illustrated why moderating just “for safety” is not enough.

That said, some points that stood out:

On being asked to choose b/w "creative tension" of online spaces optimizing for inclusive presence vs for courageous engagement, @natematias notes research shows without spaces where folks feel truly welcome, they cannot engage courageously. (So we all lose.) #NewPublicFestival

.@Anasuyashh made many excellent points (+ much needed rebuttals) but I'm most grateful for her reminder that our modern day digital public squares are built on slave labour. Content farms are exploitative and dehumanizing, with profits to Western corporations. #NewPublicFestival

“The person that is first to feel unsafe is the person that has traditionally been the most marginalized.” @Anasuyashh

Which is why these communities must be driving design. Not as research subjects but as full designers. (And not just for online spaces.) #NewPublicFestival

.@krmaher noted in the common calls to “creating welcoming spaces”, we assume that there are those that are “the welcomers” and those that “get welcomed”, which reinforces traditional powerful hierarchies.

We must break down these lines. #NewPublicFestival

Helpful framing: "Norms come from the unspoken, aggregated behaviors of those with privilege & power. Rules are built off these norms.” @krmaher

Internet has replicated inherited norms w/o critically interrogating them; we can't continue building unless we do. #NewPublicFestival