7:29am July 17, 2013

➸ Taking on the Trolls: Why the Online Race-Hatred Against First Nations?

Whenever an article is posted on Idle No More, treaty rights or First Nation poverty, the comments section is quickly overwhelmed with abusive attacks. In cyber space the racists are loud, proud and determined to define the terms of discussion on First Nation issues. Now I know that online commentary isn’t generally known for its erudite reflection. After all, troll culture seems to revel in trashing everyone. Thus, some might say, First Nation readers shouldn’t be so sensitive. But if you read through the comments it is impossible not to recognize a relentless pattern of malevolent attacks that would be considered inexcusable if they were used against other social, ethnic or religious minorities.

My commentary apparently got eaten the first time, but, as usual, it’s not just the straight racism that’s appalling. This piece didn’t even mention the disgusting special vitriol aimed at indigenous women. Including ones who were killed horribly. Maybe especially murder and rape victims. I’ve gotten physically ill when I couldn’t resist reading comments on articles about the hundreds upon hundreds of missing and murdered women that nobody else much seems to care about, and/or about the appalling rates of sexualized violence from outsiders against First Nations women.

But, yeah, the trolls have no connection to offline reality. And we’re all just being oversensitive. And colonial racism is totally a thing of the past. (That’s also why American and British trolls jump into the same cesspool of vileness at every chance…)

I am really glad I’ve never tried to read that crap. Ugh.

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