In The Aftermath Of My Big Post About Censorship, Multiple People Have Left Comments That Boil Down To,

In the aftermath of my big post about censorship, multiple people have left comments that boil down to, "it's okay to show heavy topics in fiction as long as they're portrayed as bad."

Let's take a quick look at an excerpt from the full ext of the Hays Code, shall we?

No picture should lower the moral standards of those who see it. This is done: (a) When evil is made to appear attractive, and good is made to appear unattractive. (b) When the sympathy of the audience is thrown on the side of crime, wrong-doing, evil, sin.The same thing is true of a film that would throw sympathy against goodness, honor, innocence, purity, honesty. note: Sympathy with a person who sins, is not the same as sympathy with the sin or crime of which he is guilty. We may feel sorry for the plight of the murderer or even understand the circumstances which led him to his crime; we may not feel sympathy with the wrong which he has done. The presentation of evil is often essential for art, or fiction, or drama. This in itself is not wrong, provided: (a) That evil is not presented alluringly. Even if later on the evil is condemned or punished, it must not be allowed to appear so attractive that the emotions are drawn to desire or approve so strongly that later they forget the condemnation and remember only the apparent joy of the sin. (b) That thruout the presentation, evil and good are never confused and that evil is always recognized clearly as evil. (c) That in the end the audience feels that evil is wrong and good is right

This is the same Hays Code that supported Nazis. This is the same Hays Code that forced Jewish artists out of Hollywood. This is the same Hays Code that targeted artists of color, queer artists, female artists, any artist who deviated from the white American Catholic ideal. And it was explicitly Catholic, which I explained in further depth here.

The idea that art has to have a clear moral, which lines up with the dominant morals of white American Christianity, is foundational to the Hays Code. If you sound like the Hays Code, you need to re-evaluate.

Censorship and moral codes enforced on art are never used for anything other than oppression. The second you try to dictate what is and isn't allowable in art, you side with people who will enforce those rules on marginalized people with no mercy and no hesitation.

Censorship does not create healthy relationships with media, even the censorship you might be tempted to think of as "good censorship."

(And, as usual, being an independent censorship researcher does very little to pay my bills. Kick me a tip on Ko-Fi or pledge to me on Patreon if you want to support my work! <3)

don't give up

Bodily autonomy includes the right to do drugs. Yes, even the drugs YOU think are bad and scary and dangerous.

People absolutely deserve access to free, compassionate recovery resources, but ONLY if they want them and find them useful.

You have to understand just how many "rehab" programs are effectively prisons, cults, or both. You have to understand and be compassionate toward the reasons behind self-medication. And above all else, you have to LISTEN to drug users about what is actually effective, useful, and wanted aid.

Otherwise you're just part of the problem.

Art by @elgrajaz of my innocent oc son, Trouble. Trying out a cute onesie for Halloween. Look at that cherubic face. How could anyone not see an angel when he smiles? Very mean and unfair things happen in Ch 13 of Overcome.

“I don’t think you should be around Paul anymore.”

Trouble looked up at F, holding his gaze while he scraped the muzzle against his shoulder and whined.

“I didn’t want him to try and get away, but he’s terrified of me and I don’t like that.” F opened a door in the back corner of the room and rummaged around. “You understand that, right?”

Trouble whined again and twisted his wrists against the ropes.

“Did you see how he looked at me?” A rattling of chains accompanied F as he retraced his steps to Trouble. “He screamed, like I was a monster out of a nightmare.”

Trouble’s eyes went wide as he spotted the chain. He started to yank against the ropes on his arms in earnest, kicking against the ones on his ankles. He whimpered and shook his head, but F wasn’t looking.

“You wanna know what it made me think of?” F attached one end of the chain to a d-ring fixed to the floor a few feet from the couch. “When I first found this place, sometimes I would find animals caught in traps. If I found them because I heard them, they’d thrash and run, tryin’ to get away from me as much as tryin’ to get out of the trap.”

“Mmm?” Trouble’s heart raced as he watched F approach and kneel, the free end of the chain in one hand and a padlock in the other. “Mmmmmph!” He yelled into the muzzle, brushed it frantically against the chairback and his shoulder, desperate to get F’s attention.

“Yeah. I’ll take that off you, let me finish talkin’.” F frowned, his mind clearly far away as he wrapped the chain around Trouble’s ankle below where it was roped to the chair. “I helped those animals, you know? As much as I could. Some of them ran off before I could, and I hope they’re okay. Some were so small and so broken...”

Art by @elgrajaz of Trouble. He enjoys getting handsy with his food. The roped up cowboy, Paris, is a former victim and an oc of the artist. Gotta read Revenge if you wanna find out what happened to Paris. Ch 11 of Overcome is up on Ao3. Git you sum.

“Eff?” he whispered, looking up at him with a small smile.

“What is it?”

Trouble motioned with his free hand for F to lean in closer.

“What’s the matter?” F’s brow was furrowed. “You’re so quiet. Are you tired, or thirsty?”

This time, Trouble tangled his fingers in F’s hair as he pulled him into a kiss. It took a conscious effort to be gentle; he was so accustomed to biting. When F returned the kiss, Trouble whined softly, lips parting. He shivered as F’s spicy scent flooded his nose and mouth. His fingers slipped free of F’s hair so he could drape an arm around his neck instead.

“Hey.” F pulled back enough to get word out, leaving them both panting into each other’s faces. “You’re supposed to be restin’.”

“‘M lying down,” Trouble replied at once, ears relaxed back and eyes glassy.

“I meant,” F tried to straighten, but the arm around his neck flexed to keep him close, “you shouldn’t be movin’ around.”

“Then don’t make me,” he mumbled. “Come lie down.”

“What?”

“Eff.” Trouble wanted to sigh as F tensed up, but he stroked the side of his neck instead. “Don’t you like kissing me?”

“I don’t want to hurt you.”

“You’re not,” he insisted, smiling. “You won’t.”