There is no reason this thread should have been locked.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=439&topic_id=953864&mesg_id=953864

There is no specific calling out of du'ers as bigots, rather discussion about bigotry towards trans-people which occurs on DU. Saying that there is no transphobia on DU, would be an absurd claim, since even in the most liberal circles and within other sexual minorities transphobia is more than prevalent.

It also highlights the need for you guys to pick more sexual/gender minorities as your moderators.

[Skinner]

1. The problem here is not the moderators.

The problem here is the DU rules. The moderators are the ones stuck enforcing them.

When we move into our new software later this year, we are completely changing the way the site is run, and this type of thing will be much less likely to happen.

The author has reposted the thread: http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=439x955384

[La Lioness Priyanka]

2. i disagree with you. I think most lgbt people would have seen this as a legit

thread to educate. moreover the few people who were determined to take it off course should have been ignored or had their posts deleted. having that thread locked is insult to injury.

frankly, i also dont think you are at all serious about mending fences. I think you made a token effort, and have now checked out again.

[Skinner]

3. I think you missed my point.

I did not say it wasn't legit. What I said is that this type of thing is an unintended consequence of our rules-based approach. It sucks. It shouldn't have to happen. And on DU3 it (almost certainly) won't.

FWIW, I was and am serious about mending fences.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

4. Then talk to your moderators. I know you say that they are just following rules

however, even evil large corporations manage to train their managers on sensitivity around diversity issues. there is no reason you can't. expecting people who run this site, in your stead to be educated on LGBT issues and on being sensitive to issues of bias in general, is not asking that much from you/du.

if you were serious, this would have already happened.

also du3 is 6 months away still. you really think letting this go one for 6 more months is a good idea?

[Skinner]

5. The moderators are expected to be sensitive, and they are sensitive.

But we are all stuck with a shitty system that creates situations like this. Unfortunately, the instructions "be sensitive" and "enforce the rules" sometimes are in conflict with each other. In this case the moderators recognized the problem and reached out to the author of the post to discuss the issue.

I want to be clear: I think it sucks that situations like this happen. But as I said they are an unintended consequence of the way we moderate the site. My #1 priority now is completely changing the way this site is run so this type of thing does not have to happen.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

6. so this will just keep happening for 6 more months?

and in the interim you will keep insisting that you intend to mend fences, but nothing actually will change till du3?

[Skinner]

7. I hope not.

But I suspect that situations like this will continue to happen on DU2. I believe the solution is fundamental change of the way we run the site. Anything based on "Let's keep doing what we're doing but let's do it better" will not cut it. Believe me, we've been trying to do it better for a year now, and all we've done is prove that our current approach does not work anymore.

[La Lioness Priyanka]

8. I hope you are not hiding behind software and are honest about mending fences

however i dont really trust you to doing the right thing. i trust you to behaving like a politician, much like you did when you posted the "reasonable people can disagree" thread. people take cues of behavior from leadership, and in this case, the leadership on bias is lacking.

[Skinner]

9. I decided to unlock the thread.

While it is arguable that the title is a rule violation, it is obvious that the thread was posted in good faith and has value for our community.

Having said that: what I said previously in this thread is still true. This type of thing is going to keep happening as long as we continue with our current approach to rules and enforcement. It may sound like "hiding" but it is also true. I believe this will be much less likely to happen after we move into our new software.