hey. I’ll be addressing a few things in this project. no, it’s not going to be “stop hating on furries” or “stop hating on lgbtq”, though those are both very valid reasons. let’s start with a personal thing. I find it horrible, that even though I think about, maybe even want to quit scratch, I can’t even bring myself to take a break. It’s horrible that this toxic website has become one of my only sources of anchoring. I hate myself for it, but I can’t tear myself off this stupid website. I hate how toxic its become, and I miss the days where there was no hostility, no toxicity, and no drama. which leads me to my next point. it seems like every other day a new drama arises in the scratch artist community. We have had many major dramas that have resulted in huge conflicts and immature actions from both sides. it honestly upsets me how much people can get riled up over a single hate comment, but it also pains me to see people actively trying to get people to do bad things, sh, or even, self ending. I wish this community was less drama filled, because honestly, it just ruins it. having to deal with the next big drama effectively without getting too upset as many people do, even if they are on the “right side” of said drama. both sides often result to rapid attacking and hating which can often make the drama a lot worse. to the people causing drama, I don’t get why you’re ruining peoples mental and physical state, and overall impacting everyone’s experience in this website for the worst. and to the people dealing with drama, props to you, you’re true troopers, but attacking is sometimes not the best way to go, though you may think it might be at times. now onto my next point - scratch’s toxicity. I find it hard to go a few minutes on scratch without finding something wrong. there are toxic friendships, liars, impersonators, and more, all on this website, and this saddens me. this kids coding website has become a battlefield. this “community” is so … wrong. it’s like people are actively trying to hurt others’ feelings, to lie to them, to manipulate them, and for what? fun? pleas remember that there is another human being behind that screen. that person who’s trust you gained before st-bbing them in the back is a human being, with feelings just like yours. you may think it’s funny, but it’s not. it’s really not. just because someone may be a little different also means that there is no right to shame them for it. and that’s my next point. people are different. that is okay. people identify as different things. people speak differently. they come from different places. they have different personalities. they may like different things. they may think differently to you. they may work in another way. and that’s okay. that’s to be celebrated. everyone is unique, and that’s what makes the world as interesting as it is. people are different, and it’s good to be different. you and your friend are not the same. you have individual personalities, looks, opinions, and so much more. but yet you are friends with them. if everyone was identical to you, the world would be a bleak place. boring. I wouldn’t be here today, typing this, if it weren’t for the people who created scratch. were they the same? definitely not. it makes me so upset to see people hating on others just because they’re not the same as them. it’s okay to be different. it’s good to be different. difference is celebrated, as stated on the scratch tos. the official scratch tos. also, another thing. there’s a lot of bias and corruption in the scratch art community. people are a lot more likely to give anyone anything based on their artstyle. people with great art styles win events with a singular piece, when people who try their very best and clearly would love to win get ignored. it’s not about the artstyle. it’s about the effort someone’s put in. how much they have tried. it’s not about the artstyle. if someone offers for your ota, and someone else offers on your ota, one with a lovely artstyle but who clearly won’t use the character, and one with a “slightly less developed” but still lovely artstyle who clearly would love to have the character and would give it a good home, who would cherish and love it. who would you choose? I would choose the person who would use it and who wants it. I love seeing my characters used, it’s one of my favourite things, and honestly, when I see some of my designs thrown away into a corner of their storage, it makes me look back on my past decisions, and go “why did I ever give that design to them? or whoever originally had the design, why did you trade it to them?” people try so hard for things like dtas, otas, dmacs, dtiys’ and many more events hosted by artists, and their hard work and efforts are rewarded with nothing, because the person who entered for the sake of it won because of bias. continue onto the notes and credits.
my next point is pop designers. when a person reaches a certain tier, they may be considered a “pop designer.” These designers’ designs are in high demand and some people will do a lot to get them. unhealthy amounts. overworking themselves, just to get a design from a pop designer, which they may not even like the design itself, but just having the name of the designer, having one of their designs. characters should be obtained because you are going to use them, regardless of who designed them. I’m not saying there’s anything against pop designers or their designs. I’ve seen people obtain pop designs and use them a lot, and that is perfectly fine. I’m more addressing the hoarders. the people who try to obtain pop designs just for the sake of the name, not because they actually have a good idea or use for the design, or character idea. these people will go to ends on ends to get pop designs, then throw them all in a big folder and never use them again. these designs may have had perfectly good uses elsewhere, with someone who would love them. personally, I dislike this idea of having “pop designs” at all, as it biases peoples decisions and choices. people are less likely to obtain designs that are not pop designs, even if they are lovely and beautifully made, because they are made by someone who’s designs are not considered of any “worth”, which is just unfair. why, just because someone has a few more followers than another person, does it mean that their art is “worse” or “worth less” and the person with more followers’ art is “worth more” or “better.” my next point it seems very unfair, this idea of “better art and worse art, hq designs and lq designs.” everyones artstyle is unique, and grading their art and artstyle is completely unfair. people have a lot more experience than some, but that certainly does not mean that their art is better. it really just means that their art is different. the less experienced person is still trying just as hard as the more experienced person. they are still spending the same amount of time producing content for people on this site and many others, and they deserve appreciation, but get none. instead, their art is ignored, hated on, purposely avoided, and it’s really unfair. in art, there is no such thing as “better art” and “worse art.” art is just different, and each artstyle should be celebrated, as it takes a lot of work simply to have the motivation to draw each day, in your own unique style, and people’s work and their own time out of their own day, should all be appreciated, instead of being run down and graded just because of a couple of irrelevant followers or a bit more experience. overall, I think scratch’s community could use some improvement. I’m not saying that it’s all bad, though. there are some very good things about this community, with strong friendships and bonds formed for life, many happy moments, laughter and joy, and it’s wonderful to see people from everywhere connecting and having fun together. if you have read this far, thank you for your time, and I hope you take this into consideration. [this post was not intended to spread any malicious rumours or hate, particularly regarding popular people. they are wonderful people and it’s more the general community’s way of reacting to them rather than them themselves, as I am friends with many “popular” people and they’re absolutely wonderful. this is addressing the community’s reaction and connotations with them, not them themselves.]
