There was a time when Twitter was a space you could have uncomfortable conversations and learn about lots of things. A time when those who were problematic and hateful were being called out for crap they say (but not 'canceled') and challenged to do better.

All of us, at varying points in our lives have been problematic. It's what makes us humans--the complicated people we are. It's why human rights and social justice is so very difficult because no one is perfect. We learn every single day about these thorny issues.

I feel we have, somehow, become something else. Gone down a path where the line between justice and vengeance is blurred. So many have become so afraid to ask questions, to say what they think or how they feel, to be wrong, and to engage people publicly about difficult topics.

Oddly, in the pursuit of justice, we seemingly do not realize how the way in which we police people, shame them for being wrong and not politically correct, we silence people, force them into compliance and never truly giving space for them to work trough some of the issues.

I am not at all against people being held accountable. I feel (back in the day) many of us were able to be messy while at the same time calling each other out when they crossed 'the line.' We used those opportunities to remind people and challenge them to be and do better.

What obtains now is sometimes akin to vigilantism. There are no sticks, stones and guns but we hurls words, screenshots, gifs and memes at each other to make a point, to shame people, to remind them of their place, to let them know they're not cool and read enough to be woke.

I remember people used to trouble me about how patient I was--going back and forth with people, trying to get them to see my standpoint, to understand that we expect better of them. We can't engender a better society without dialogue. We have to have the difficult conversations.

I've had countless debates with people about homophobia, racism, classism, and all sorts of things. I've seen some of them grown and changed their opinions over the years. Equally, I've said lots of shit too and people have called me out and helped me to be better. Thank you.

Twitter has been instrumental to my growth and development over the years. I've been tweeting consistently since 2011/2012. I've benefited tremendously from the exchange I've had with folks on here. I've become a better person as a result. The same is true for many others.

Lately, I find myself so afraid of asking questions or sharing certain opinions on here. It's not that they're necessarily inherently problematic but I fear the response. I fear how people will engage me. Lots of people I know don't bother to share their opinions too.

One of the important lessons I've learnt on this platform engaging people and observing many a debate is that people are often keen to learn, to be better but the approach has to be tailored to everyone. It's no different from in person engagement.

No one wants to be constantly shamed and jeered for not being woke enough, for not speaking the vocabulary of activists, especially when they (feel?) they are trying to get it right and be on the right side of history. That's a little demotivating, I think.

What's the point of growing, of trying to be better if you will be reminded your older self said something contrary and therefore unqualified to have an opinion? Eventually, people will wallow in their problematic views because we'll troll an older version of them anyway.

Note, I am not saying we shouldn't demand better. I'm not saying political correctness isn't important and has place, currency and value. What I am saying is that we have to be more cognizant of our ways of being as we are of others. We have to do some introspection.

Vengeance and spite masquerading don't (necessarily?) engender justice. Silencing people isn't always very helpful. It leave issues unresolved. They just go underground and rise up when the opportunity presents itself. Let's try to engage each other some more.

**Disclaimer: This isn't related to any specific incident on Twitter. It's something that has been on mind mind for quite sometime. I acknowledge that I am in no way perfect and have never been. I accept that I too am equally complicit in all of this as a human rights activist.**