LETTER TO MY FELLOW HALO BEARERS (7)
Fan Letter, Guest Author, Warrior Nun Fandom
Dear Halo Bearers,
As a fandom, the Warrior Nun community has been through so many things in the months we have been together. We have had the good, the bad and the ugly. Like every other fandom, we are all humans and as such, we can't be perfect.
As we all know, Kristina Tonteri Young (KTY) who plays the role of Sister Beatrice in Warrior Nun deactivated her account last weekend. Even though we have no way of knowing for a fact if it was the reason, some of her personal photos, which were found on family members/friends' social media accounts, were shared on Twitter/tumblr by a fan. Regardless of whether or not it was the reason for her deactivating twitter, it’s a good opportunity for us to reflect about our behaviors as fans. It is especially important that we think about boundaries and how we can better react to situations like this in the future.
So then, what is acceptable to share and what is not acceptable to share? And what is the best way that we as a fandom react to things like this?
PRIVACY AND BOUNDARIES
The internet is a huge place. Most times, it is a confusing space to navigate. The thing is, there are no rules on the internet. Basically, anything and everything goes. There are no strict do's and don'ts. What this means is that it is up as individuals to be aware of what they share.
If a picture wasn't shared by them on their public profiles, then it should be considered private. Searching through social media and digging up old pictures, especially not on their page, can be considered to be invasive. Also, going to message or stalk or disturb the family and friends of our cast and crew is a big no. Keep their family and friends out of it. That is a grave invasion of privacy.
It is also okay to share their photo shoots and other media used for their publicity such as pictures used on websites, magazines, etc. I know sometimes, we love seeing pictures of our beloved cast and crew that we haven't seen before. But getting those never before seen pictures at the expense of their privacy is not something that we should do. I know we all want to see more of our idols, but what they give us should be their prerogative. Getting “never seen” content from them at the expense of their privacy is not something that should be even considered.
It’s fundamental that we remember that, even though artists have their lives on display, it’s their prerogative to choose what part of their lives is kept private. As fans, as people, it’s our responsibility to respect people, their choices, their privacy and their space, particularly of people we claim to love and care for, like the cast and crew.
HOW WE REACT TO THINGS
Nevertheless we can’t control what other people do, so if someone chooses to blur the lines of respect, we can only control how we react to this. While our first instinct may be emotional, in our attempt to protect those we care about we may actually cause more harm. Our emotional response might be angry, which may lead to a flood of insults, finger pointing, witch hunting and so on.
When you see someone blurring the lines of respect and privacy, like sharing private pictures, correct them. Remind them of why we’re here and how we aim to treat each other, the cast and the crew. Remind people of what is okay and not okay to do, remind them to be respectful. But do remember to be respectful yourself. Inform, educate, communicate. We may not be able to stop these types of things from happening on the internet, but we certainly make it even harder when we react poorly as a first instinct.
Aim to be better.
MOVING FORWARD
This is not the first time something has affected the fandom this way. It will not be the last time either. There will be ups, there will be downs. However, how we react to what happens in our community is important. How we react is a representation of who we are. How we react to situations, the good and the bad, makes up what type of community we want to maintain.
We got through this. What I would like is for us to be better and continue to reflect the change we want to see in our community.
m.e.stanley