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Do you feel like the fandom is more divided than ever? Like its tearing itself apart? Like its impossible to just enjoy the community without running into drama anymore?
If you're wondering these things, this thread is for you. I'm going to break things down and give my take.
If you're wondering these things, this thread is for you. I'm going to break things down and give my take.
For many years the pony fandom has been a decidedly neutral, "apolitical" one. Even with its origins on 4chan, there was a sort of innocence and naivete that pervaded the fandom, and even the internet as a whole. Hell, even the 4chan of 2010 hardly resembled the 4chan of today.
For a while there things held steady. Most bronies kept their political ideology out of the fandom. Even events like the Down with Molestia controversy and Derpygate didn't really change things (although it did instill an "anti-SJW" attitude in the fandom.
Then in 2016 something happened that would transform both 4chan and the fandom forever, even if most bronies wouldn't realize it for years. The polarization of politics reached its peak with the election of Donald Trump. Right-wing populism entered its heyday, with 4chan in tow.
Only a year later another event happened, almost in tandem with the first.
For April Fool's 2017 4chan's then admin moot thought it'd be hilarious to combine several boards together. As a cheap joke, he combined My Little Pony and the political board into one entity.
/mlpol/
For April Fool's 2017 4chan's then admin moot thought it'd be hilarious to combine several boards together. As a cheap joke, he combined My Little Pony and the political board into one entity.
/mlpol/
It was supposed to be a joke. The two communities should have hated each other. A fandom of full of guys who idolized a girl's cartoon show, and community of far-right fascists LARPers who idolized hitler and wanted to massacre jews. But a strange thing happened.
They got along.
They got along.
You see it just so happened that a fandom full of disaffected white guys seeking an escape from the outside world was the PERFECT recruitment ground for white nationalists. And with a bit of spin (The ponies run an ethnostate, Celestia is white, etc) MLP was marketed to nazis.
For the next few years, the pony fandom was quietly subverted both overtly and discretely by far-right ideology, memes and propaganda. The pony fandom's apolitical nature made this almost TOO easy to do.
Most people thought it was all just a funny joke.
Most people thought it was all just a funny joke.
The effects of this weren't immediate. For a while it was easy as an apolitical brony to ignore it. But sometimes the effects of it slipped into the wider fandom.
Remember the infamous Nazi salute at Babscon a few years back?
Remember the infamous Nazi salute at Babscon a few years back?
This is not to say that more politically inclined people weren't aware of what was going on in the fandom. But they were mostly relegated to the fringe, decried as paranoid SJW tumblrites and ignored.
But the combination of far-right ideals and MLP continued to grow.
But the combination of far-right ideals and MLP continued to grow.
For a while though it seemed like the wider culture war raging around outside the fandom was far removed from ever tainting My Little Pony. If you didn't go on /mlp/ chances are you wouldn't even know about any of this. The fandom was disconnected enough to have its own bubbles.
That all changed when Twitter grew larger enough to effectively become the public square. Now all the different sects of the fandom could clash. And more importantly pony content was once again thrust into the wider world, just like it had been in 2012.
Enter Anontheanon.
Enter Anontheanon.
Like many creators in the fandom, he started out creating content for the /mlp/ crowd. The insular nature of 4chan meant that people who spend a lot of time there have a certain kind of humor, influenced in part by /pol/ cross-contamination. Some can hide it better than others.
Now what happens if you take someone drenched in /mlp/ shitposts and culture, with enough actual skill in their given trade to actually achieve crossover success?
You get a culture clash. Suddenly humor that is barely considered risque on 4chan is exposed to the wider world.
You get a culture clash. Suddenly humor that is barely considered risque on 4chan is exposed to the wider world.
You get a creator with enough raw talent to be a mainstream animator, but with the sense of humor of your average /mlp/ shitposter. The perfect vector for political extremism to enter the fandom.
This picture has thrown the pony fandom into the wider political culture war.
This picture has thrown the pony fandom into the wider political culture war.
And the funny thing is, Anontheanon most likely did it by complete accident. Unlike actual right-wing extremists and bigots, most of his art isn't trying to push a political point. He's just a shitposter, as his bio says. He either doesn't know any better, or doesn't care.
But as several recent examples on twitter have shown (the New Guy meme) artist intent counts for absolutely nothing these days. Its all in the delivery.
The post gained enough traction that ACTUAL racists and white supremacists noticed. Like the far-right artist stonetoss.
The post gained enough traction that ACTUAL racists and white supremacists noticed. Like the far-right artist stonetoss.
stonetoss uses far-right memes and humor using dogwhistles to push fascism through comics. Most of them usually require some wider knowledge of politics to work. Some don't.
In the same way, most people won't "get" the Applejack slavery thing unless they're familiar with MLP.
In the same way, most people won't "get" the Applejack slavery thing unless they're familiar with MLP.
The pony fandom, thanks to its long-time rejection of politics, is in danger of being utilized by right-wing political extremists as a sort of safe-space. And the ignorance of more centrist bronies is being used as cover. After all, its only the LEFT starting drama, right?
Well, part of the infiltration of communities involves blaming all the drama on anyone who speaks up against it, instead of the original perpetrators themselves. As long as the nazis make epic memes, dogwhistles, and """jokes""", its all good. But if you criticize it? DRAMA.
The corruption of the word "political" to only mean "things I don't like" is also a factor in this.
A neo-nazi pony talking about gassing the griffons? Not political.
Trans people, racism, gay ponies in a cartoon. POLITICAL!
A neo-nazi pony talking about gassing the griffons? Not political.
Trans people, racism, gay ponies in a cartoon. POLITICAL!
The brony fandom has long sought peace and quiet instead of conflict. Love and Tolerate. Don't make a fuss. Just talk about the cute ponies.
Even when nazis are banging on the door, still most would rather stick their head in the sand. Until you CAN'T ignore it anymore.
Even when nazis are banging on the door, still most would rather stick their head in the sand. Until you CAN'T ignore it anymore.
So, what's the solution? Is there anyway to how things were before all of this? Unfortunately, no. And part of the solution is simply acknowledging that we're apart of a wider world.
If you may have noticed recently conventions have been stepping up and speaking about bigotry.
If you may have noticed recently conventions have been stepping up and speaking about bigotry.
This has upset a certain group of people that are used to being given a free pass on their behavior in the fandom. But the only way to get back even a semblance of peace is to stand up for whats right. ESPECIALLY if you have a large platform to do so.
It'll be tough, and it'll be messy. A lot of this has been deeply entrenched in the fandom from the very beginning. But it has to be fought. It can't simply be painted over with Love and Tolerance. And the leaders of spaces where the marginalized gather must lead the charge.
This goes doubly for artists, who are the lifeblood of the MLP fandom. You don't have to accept edgy anti-lgbt jokes and racist humor. Don't be afraid of alienating the jackasses in your audience by speaking out. Alternatively, create content that re-affirms what YOU stand for.
Do NOT be afraid to be political. Whether you like it or not, the fandom is already political, and is already being transformed by the wider culture war.
Its up to you if you want it to be a community that ACTUALLY reflects the ideals of the show, or a kindergarten for nazis.
Its up to you if you want it to be a community that ACTUALLY reflects the ideals of the show, or a kindergarten for nazis.
At the same time, be smart about it. The people on the other side play dirty. They'll use every trick in the book to try to silence you.
If you run a con, tighten up your security, online and IRL. Be transparent and honest. But don't dance to the beat of trolls.
If you run a con, tighten up your security, online and IRL. Be transparent and honest. But don't dance to the beat of trolls.
If you find yourself in an online argument with a fashy brony wannabe on twitter, do NOT waste your time. Bad-faith arguments, hair-splitting, whataboutism and endless nitpicking will be used to frustrate you and get your roped in to useless debates. Block and move on.
This goes for con heads too. Nothings worse than seeing the runner of a convention arguing with a group of gleeful shitposters who's main goal is to frustrate them and get them to say shitty stuff.
Don't give them the satisfaction. Make your statement and stand firm on it.
Don't give them the satisfaction. Make your statement and stand firm on it.
A lot of this is unfamiliar territory to people. Seaquestria was caught off-guard by a disgruntled ex-staffer who leaked their google doc to a known drama-whore. This was conveniently done right after they dared to speak up about racism and intolerance.
This is our reality now.
This is our reality now.
The furry fandom faced the same struggle with the far-right, most recently culminating in political grifter Milo Yiannoupolis attempting to attend a furry convention. They were banned and denied the audience they craved. https://www.thedailybeast.com/milo-yiannopoulos-banned-from-furry-convention
The brony fanbase is next in line for this sort of political stunt. Unlike the furry community we don't have as strong of a socio-political identity, which is ironic given how hyper-focused we are on one specific media property.
That has to change.
That has to change.
Now, do we have to be just like furries? No. Do we all have to turn into antifa supersoldiers wearing Mcdonalds pony masks? That'd be awesome, but no.
But we DO have to become more aware. And more open to attempts to discuss with and educate people on right-wing radicalism.
But we DO have to become more aware. And more open to attempts to discuss with and educate people on right-wing radicalism.
In conclusion, conflict is unavoidable. Its time we stop trying to run from it. You don't have to settle for a fandom full of hate and bigotry just because you want to avoid drama.
Speak up. And if you won't, listen when others do.
Speak up. And if you won't, listen when others do.
Love and tolerance is fucking dead. Fascism, transphobia, and racism are not magic. Send it to the moon/buck it/kick its flank/whatever bronyism you prefer.
Fight against people who use MLP to spread hate. Princess Celestia is watching. (Or Twilight, depending on the season)
Fight against people who use MLP to spread hate. Princess Celestia is watching. (Or Twilight, depending on the season)
PS: Thank you to everyone who has spoken in support of this. There have been a lot of artist who've spoken with me privately and it means so much to see that I'm not alone.
Likewise I support you! Friendship is Magic.
Likewise I support you! Friendship is Magic.
PS PS: This doesn't even have to be necessarily a left/right thing. I don't care if you're a conservative christian or a hardcore anarchist. I would hope that there are certain things we can agree have no place in ponies.
(Also moot wasn't in charge in 2017, it was hiroyuki. I apologize to all the nor/mlp/eople who are incensed by this error.)
Also! The guy who did the nazi salute is not actually a nazi. He just took the memes too far and he deeply regrets what he did. Don't go witchhunting him.
The point in his inclusion was to show how far-right ideas travel through memes and jokes until they blow up and blossom.
The point in his inclusion was to show how far-right ideas travel through memes and jokes until they blow up and blossom.
