Yeah not gonna lie, @nvvermore that part of those tweets you sent out really pissed me off. The CDB stuff was not by any means harassing CRWBY, and no matter how mad you are at people in the movement right now, decrying our early efforts is frankly irresponsible and dishonest. https://twitter.com/PanlieisCanon/status/1253445247394291720

The people who were a part of CDB were vocal. They were brave, fighting through the pain of grief and strongly arguing their case. When we started off, we were a collective, being careful about everything from our wording to the meat of our arguments so that we wouldn't harass.

We checked with each other and made sure we never went too far. I still take overwhelming pride in how well we publicly acted on the day of the Chris Reddit AMA because by all means, a movement so steeped in fresh grief had no right to be as well behaved as well all were.

We argued politely with those who disagreed with us, but in good faith. For those who argued with malice and dismissal in their words, we called them out for as much.

And often, our efforts came at the cost of our own mental health. Every day fighting brought back the pain of that episode. We had to relive it as we argued against the fact that it should've existed at all. And many suffered in their efforts. But we did not harass.

Harassment would've been going onto posts that had nothing to do with RWBY or CDB and bringing it up. Harassment would've been doxing. Harassment would've been intentionally sending triggers someone's way (That was actually done to one of us on I believe more than one occasion).

But we did none of that (And when we did, it was called out). What CDB did was make our voices heard when it was most needed. What CDB did was ensure CRWBY that we weren't just a small gang of angry shippers. CDB showed that there was more to Clover's death than just bad writing.

There were terrible implications to 7X12, and for a company that's often lauded as progressive for their LGBTQ+ nods, it was SHAMEFUL that 7X12 was how they chose to handle these characters after writing and marketing them in such a heavily coded way for months.

CDB exposed that CRWBY had actively and intentionally engaged in baiting, and that that baiting had HORRIBLE emotional, mental, and physical consequences for the unsuspecting viewer base that walked into that episode, giving a vulnerable fanbase horrible tropes like BYG.

CDB held a company that did a reprehensible thing accountable for their mistakes because they DESERVED to be held accountable for them. CRWBY made irresponsible choices at best and malicious choices at worst, and months later, they have yet to address that real pain that lingers.

I've watched poorly written shows and episodes before. I've not gotten ships canonized that I've wanted before. I've felt insulted by writing before. But it was NEVER to the extent that 7X12 was. No, 7X12 wasn't just insulting: it was (and still remains) traumatizing for many.

It's bad for gay people. It's bad for those recovering from long term depression, addiction, and self loathing. It's bad for people who like good stories. It's bad from every single angle. And it's bad because they KNEW we expected better of them, but took the low road instead.

If CDB didn't exist and fight as hard (and as smart) as they did, CRWBY would've gotten away with killing Clover scott free. They may have regardless of our efforts. But we showed them the pressure that poor decisions like 7X12 warranted, and showed that we wouldn't forget it.

Because of CDB, we have a fighting chance of getting Clover back. We were vocal when it was most needed, stood our ground in the face of the entire fandom coming at us like a hawk to its prey, and took care to be better in the face of those who only saw the worst in us.

Without CDB, FGW wouldn't have existed because we would've all felt alone and unheard, likely losing interest in Clover and Qrow altogether. With CDB came hope, and I am SO tired of people thinking that one doesn't contribute to the other. CDB, hope, and fanworks fuel each other.

But that's a discussion for another day.

I'm here to make it abundantly clear that being vocal and holding people accountable is not the same thing as harassment -- not by any stretch of the imagination.

Was CDB a perfect movement, even in its hayday? No, but those brief instances of us lowering ourselves rather than rising to the occasion in the wake of our circumstances were the exception to the rule, and saying the opposite was true is dangerous to all of us.

Even if we get Clover back, we're going to have to function together as a fandom because if he comes back, just as before, the larger RWBY fandom is going to come for us, and we need to have each other's backs. That's not to say we can't disagree. We absolutely should.

But we also need to pick our battles, and that tweet spurned a battle that should not have been picked.

I think it's safe to say that I stay out of fandom drama. I hate ship wars and hate the infighting. So I've stayed silent in the wake of a lot of this. It's mostly not been my business. However, this is because it concerns the thing I and others dedicated ourselves to.

That tweet took potshots at the REAL work people did when something so cruel and so unfair happened, and I'm not about to let one of our own forget where this community came from, not when it's so integral to where we are now and where we will be in the future.

Optimistically, this thread won't cause a war -- that it will be taken as intended, as an important point of discussion about a point in an argument that went too far. I want us to be better than this ceaseless drama because we have a long, painful road ahead as we wait for V8.

I'm not the petty or vague-y sort, and I'm not looking to make this personal, Ophelia (Ergo, the fact that I tagged you) -- I hope you know me better than that. But I also refuse to stay silent when something like what you tweeted is said.

Please let this not be a shitshow.