Ask Lemmy

Support groups are something I want to see grow on Lemmy. Anything from abuse, to mental health to chronic illness or addictions. There should also be a way to protect those communities from ableist trolls, a theoretical door so that not just anyone can see the feed. I think it's important to have that door, because there are people who no matter what you say, they will never have empathy or understanding for people going through those challenges. They will always find a way to convince themselves the person isn't worthy of empathy or respect. They will try to do harm, and so they should just be blocked out. I've sadly already encountered a bit of that on Lemmy.

But I will be honest, I don't have a plan of action laid out, I'm just throwing it out there. We saw some major platforms become null and unsafe. We should work to reestablish a safe space for folks dealing with those problems. It's even more important now while we're going through this breath-takingly crappy year. I myself do not have the skills or energy to moderate one of these groups. It would just be good to work toward having more of those here eventually.

Edit: It would also be cool if we could be more thorough about keeping out troll communities, prevent or discourage them from taking root here. For example fakedisordercringe on Reddit was a vile place. The redpill communities were bad too.