It's interesting to watch the debates about blocking in #Mastodon.
I'm guess I'm a very stereotypical CIS white developer. I have a knee-jerk negative reaction to features that block people based on who they are or what group they associate with.
I'd like people to be judged based on their actions/words alone.
Obviously software can't do that, so #Mastodon is under a lot of pressure to let people define their in- & outgroups and only see *people* they like.
I would find that difficult.
@herrabre @boots If implemented from the top-down, and for the public space, from a position of power, then yes absolutely they can be used to oppress, but without room where abusive behaviour can be consistently and efficiently be shut out, there's no room for minority positions, especially vulnerable minority positions.
I agree it's not immediately obvious that there's no risk to it, and it's definitely possibly that it'll shut out _everything_ controversial, including socialist and anarchist positions, from larger or more commercialised instances, but keep in mind that basically all the large monoliths like Facebook, Twitter and Reddit have large and active communities fully formed around being abusive towards minorities.
I agree it's not immediately obvious that there's no risk to it, and it's definitely possibly that it'll shut out _everything_ controversial, including socialist and anarchist positions, from larger or more commercialised instances, but keep in mind that basically all the large monoliths like Facebook, Twitter and Reddit have large and active communities fully formed around being abusive towards minorities.
@boots I know.
I'm not objecting to the direction things are headed in, I would just find it philosophically difficult to implement those features myself.
To me they look just like the features used to oppress minorities - but maybe that's where my CIS whiteness is blinding me in some way.
Or maybe I'm right and everyone else is wrong. 🤠