Have been enjoying your content for over 10 years and hopefully for 10 more. Will follow you to whichever platform you’re on and I’m glad you’re keeping your oxygen mask on before you continue to help other people - I will definitely subscribe when my finances allow!
For what it's worth, I am staying, and will be writing a similar note. All this reminds me of the shit that happened here a few years ago (when I almost left, but had an absolutely terrible conversation with Ghost that forever tainted my faith in their platform).
Also, bc of my whole history with Bluestockings, I have a ~lot~ of feelings about the knee-jerk ideas connected to ethical consumerism, e.g. that boycotting anything that we learn is "bad" is immediately and always the answer. For so many of the reasons you lay out.
Anyway, I support you. We need to pay our fucking rent.
Thank you for outlining this in such detail. I know a few people who have migrated but also many that have so far stayed. These are substacks about bread, pop culture, music, literature — all across the board, really. It is a tough choice, and I will keep with your newsletter wherever you are. Despite my immediate reaction to boycott Substack, upon further reflection (as an anti-Zionist jew myself!) I am not sure it is the feasible thing to do, yet.
Thank you for posting this. I have a tiny travel Substack that I'm considering migrating to Beehiiv. Even if I do, though, I'm still subbed to over 40 newsletters on Substack that I don't want to stop reading bc they geniunely enrich my life. I don't know what to do. I think Substack as a product is great but allowing Nazis on here is disgusting. I also had no idea the founders participated in organizing a counter-letter, that's fucking gross too.
I have no real advice, but that I really appreciate this transparency <3 as a non-binary writer in community with lot of Jewish folks, I've still been considering starting my own substack, despite the being aware of the nazism and transphobia, because it seems to be the only legible option to grow a platform. So I really appreciate the upfrontness and detail of this
I'm a longtime fan who'll follow you wherever you go. Personally, I think it's important to hold Substack to account for their shitty behaviour & to demand better. A mass exodus, to my mind, serves no-one. But I also know that every writer has to make their own decision in line with what makes sense for their lives. Thank you for your transparancy on this.
“People who’ve been here longer and have larger readership bases and more secure income — like me — have a responsibility to think about our power as whole.”
Thank you for the transparency! I had no clue there was such a white supremacy issue on this platform, so I totally understand why you'd want to leave. I would love it if yqe as your supporters could also try to hold the platform accountable, so anything we can do to clear out the transphobes and racists, I'm glad to take on.
Totally get this! The thing is Substack doesn't have a competitor for its community-building features - if there was, I'd also leave. I think there's more power in influential voices staying and making a ruckus so the owners pay attention vs leave to another tech-bro run app that might also (let's face it, eventually) do some nonsense down the line, causing more admin-horrors
I moved to beehiiv, and honestly, instead of the six I have here, i have 18. I also use thesample.ai. Beehiiv also is worth it, bu you need to pay to customize you webpage layout.
If i can't moderate my own comment area safely I have no interest in staying in a platform. You aren't my reader or audience, so why are you bothering me? Talk to a brick wall.
Have been enjoying your content for over 10 years and hopefully for 10 more. Will follow you to whichever platform you’re on and I’m glad you’re keeping your oxygen mask on before you continue to help other people - I will definitely subscribe when my finances allow!
🤝❤️
For what it's worth, I am staying, and will be writing a similar note. All this reminds me of the shit that happened here a few years ago (when I almost left, but had an absolutely terrible conversation with Ghost that forever tainted my faith in their platform).
Also, bc of my whole history with Bluestockings, I have a ~lot~ of feelings about the knee-jerk ideas connected to ethical consumerism, e.g. that boycotting anything that we learn is "bad" is immediately and always the answer. For so many of the reasons you lay out.
Anyway, I support you. We need to pay our fucking rent.
Thank you for outlining this in such detail. I know a few people who have migrated but also many that have so far stayed. These are substacks about bread, pop culture, music, literature — all across the board, really. It is a tough choice, and I will keep with your newsletter wherever you are. Despite my immediate reaction to boycott Substack, upon further reflection (as an anti-Zionist jew myself!) I am not sure it is the feasible thing to do, yet.
Thank you for posting this. I have a tiny travel Substack that I'm considering migrating to Beehiiv. Even if I do, though, I'm still subbed to over 40 newsletters on Substack that I don't want to stop reading bc they geniunely enrich my life. I don't know what to do. I think Substack as a product is great but allowing Nazis on here is disgusting. I also had no idea the founders participated in organizing a counter-letter, that's fucking gross too.
I have no real advice, but that I really appreciate this transparency <3 as a non-binary writer in community with lot of Jewish folks, I've still been considering starting my own substack, despite the being aware of the nazism and transphobia, because it seems to be the only legible option to grow a platform. So I really appreciate the upfrontness and detail of this
thank you katherine! if you have any questions about newsletter stuff - i'm happy to share my knowledge with you down the line
I'm a longtime fan who'll follow you wherever you go. Personally, I think it's important to hold Substack to account for their shitty behaviour & to demand better. A mass exodus, to my mind, serves no-one. But I also know that every writer has to make their own decision in line with what makes sense for their lives. Thank you for your transparancy on this.
I respect whatever decision you make but I'll say the same thing I said to Hunter Harris:
Please don’t leave Substack. Check out what Andrew of Wordloaf had to say; he quotes Anne Helen Petersen: https://newsletter.wordloaf.org/p/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go
“People who’ve been here longer and have larger readership bases and more secure income — like me — have a responsibility to think about our power as whole.”
totally get it - and thanks for chiming in!
Thank you for the transparency! I had no clue there was such a white supremacy issue on this platform, so I totally understand why you'd want to leave. I would love it if yqe as your supporters could also try to hold the platform accountable, so anything we can do to clear out the transphobes and racists, I'm glad to take on.
Totally get this! The thing is Substack doesn't have a competitor for its community-building features - if there was, I'd also leave. I think there's more power in influential voices staying and making a ruckus so the owners pay attention vs leave to another tech-bro run app that might also (let's face it, eventually) do some nonsense down the line, causing more admin-horrors
Yeah the community feature isn’t on the other platforms the same way. Some folks use memberful but that’s not cross-publication. Alas!!
I moved to beehiiv, and honestly, instead of the six I have here, i have 18. I also use thesample.ai. Beehiiv also is worth it, bu you need to pay to customize you webpage layout.
If i can't moderate my own comment area safely I have no interest in staying in a platform. You aren't my reader or audience, so why are you bothering me? Talk to a brick wall.