Angela I largely agree with you.
Make sure to point out to anyone that has a problem with a reviewer at
eBird that their concerns will be heard
https://support.ebird.org/en/support/solutions/articles/48000795623-ebird-rules-and-best-practices#eBird-Code-of-Conduct
Including these solutions, in a list of resources for all community
members, would be super useful.
On Thu, Feb 25, 2021 at 9:59 AM Angela Calabrese <cbreseangela@xxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Hello all,
I posted this on my Facebook page the other day, but now that BOO is back
up, this seems like a good place to share it.
Some personal thoughts:
Birds are on the decline. We all know this.
Birds need all the allies they can get -BIPOC, API, femme, young, old,
LGBTQ+, those highly knowledgeable about birds, but also those who who
don't know the name of the species on their feeder but enjoy them
regardless.
When we let people bully, shut down, dismiss, or harass in any way,
another bird appreciator, we lose bird advocates. Why would you donate to a
conservation organization when someone in that group constantly shits on
new birders? Why would you join an organization if some of their members
are known for making women uncomfortable? Why would you go on a field trip
with an organization that constantly shuts down BIPOC members? Why would
you donate your time and effort to eBird and other community science
projects when the area reviewer thinks its okay to talk down to you? How do
we expect people to feel safe advocating for birds when the birding
community around them makes them feel unwelcome or dumb.
If someone is excited because they just learned to identify an American
Robin, that should be celebrated.
If someone uses their camera instead of binoculars to look at birds, we
should delight in their photos.
If someone is raped while birding, we should listen to their experience
and call out the perpetrator. And we should make every effort to prevent
this kind of thing from happening ever again.
If every time people discuss their personal experiences around birding, we
try to shut it down as "politcal" or "not related to birding" we are
missing out. If we allow the voices of bullies, misogynists, and racists to
continue, the whole birding community misses out. And in the end, it'll be
the birds who suffer.
Our community and related organizations can not continue to gate hold. The
only voices that should be silenced are the ones trying to silence others.
Angela
Sent via the Samsung Galaxy S8 Active, an AT&T 5G Evolution capable
smartphone
