WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.030 You know how when something really bad happens, especially in the public eye, 00:00:03.570 --> 00:00:07.589 people talk about it. They get outraged about it. They want to lift awareness for it. 00:00:07.589 --> 00:00:13.650 And then maybe a few days... a week... a month later... 00:00:14.309 --> 00:00:19.230 No matter how much we said we should all keep talking about this, we stop talking 00:00:19.230 --> 00:00:20.279 about this. 00:00:21.700 --> 00:00:26.220 Well, I don't want to. Some short years ago it was disclosed that many youtubers 00:00:26.220 --> 00:00:29.369 were taking advantage of their position. They were being abusive, 00:00:29.369 --> 00:00:32.940 they were harassing, they were assaulting. In a couple cases, they were committing rape. 00:00:33.740 --> 00:00:39.059 And these disclosures brought about the formation of an organization that is now 00:00:39.059 --> 00:00:46.590 called Uplift. Uplift! Uplift formed to combat sexual violence online. As a 00:00:46.590 --> 00:00:50.700 part of that, they put together a safer community pledge and requested that 00:00:50.700 --> 00:00:57.210 everybody take it. I have taken it the first year, the second year, and now i'm 00:00:57.210 --> 00:01:00.899 going to take it for my third year. This pledge does a good job, I think, of giving 00:01:00.899 --> 00:01:04.199 us some guidelines. And I'm happy to take it again! 00:01:05.200 --> 00:01:10.460 I pledge that I will always prioritize consent. I understand that consent is the 00:01:10.470 --> 00:01:15.390 presence of an enthusiastic yes rather than the absence of a no and that 00:01:15.390 --> 00:01:20.470 consent cannot be given when someone is asleep or physically or mentally incapacitated. 00:01:21.020 --> 00:01:23.900 I pledge that I will respect my partner's wishes and that I 00:01:23.909 --> 00:01:27.809 will not pressure or coerce them into doing anything that makes them uncomfortable. 00:01:28.300 --> 00:01:31.280 I pledge to stand with survivors of sexual abuse or harassment 00:01:31.290 --> 00:01:35.030 by showing them compassion and respect 00:01:36.060 --> 00:01:38.060 I pledge to never blame the victim for any 00:01:38.070 --> 00:01:43.550 abuse they've experienced. Sexual violence is never the victim's fault! 00:01:44.369 --> 00:01:48.899 I pledge to admit when I make mistakes and to apologize for my actions. When someone 00:01:48.899 --> 00:01:53.640 tells me that I've done something sexist, victim-blaming, or otherwise offensive, I 00:01:53.640 --> 00:01:55.640 pledge to be open to their words. 00:01:56.860 --> 00:01:59.280 I pledge to support conversations 00:01:59.280 --> 00:02:03.630 surrounding sexual abuse and harassment in a way that is respectful of my needs 00:02:03.630 --> 00:02:05.480 and the needs of those i'm speaking with. 00:02:05.760 --> 00:02:10.200 And I pledge to create safer communities both online and off. 00:02:11.220 --> 00:02:13.220 I've also been proud to help out uplift 00:02:13.220 --> 00:02:17.120 at the booths they've had at VidCon these past couple of years. This year they made 00:02:17.120 --> 00:02:21.710 and i helped to give out these Con Safety cards. I don't need to wait for another 00:02:21.710 --> 00:02:26.690 disclosure of an incidence of sexual violence on youtube to still be opposed 00:02:26.690 --> 00:02:30.770 to it happening and to still want to raise awareness for everyone that this 00:02:30.770 --> 00:02:37.790 is a dangerous thing that happens! Not infrequently! Too much! Just this month i 00:02:37.790 --> 00:02:42.560 read a Mashable article about how one of the victims of Tobuscus came forward and 00:02:42.560 --> 00:02:46.670 had to deal with the repercussions of that. Just this week I retweeted the 00:02:46.670 --> 00:02:51.200 statement that you're more likely to have your career hurt by reporting 00:02:51.200 --> 00:02:54.770 sexual harassment then by committing it. 00:02:54.770 --> 00:02:57.650 This is the world in which we live and it sucks, but it's not going to get any 00:02:57.650 --> 00:03:01.670 better if we don't talk about it, or if we don't admit that it's happening. I am 00:03:01.670 --> 00:03:05.390 aware and I admit that this platform that I'm a part of, this YouTube 00:03:05.390 --> 00:03:08.480 community, is a place where (though I'm happy to be here) 00:03:09.110 --> 00:03:13.190 it does have people committing heinous acts. And I want everyone to be aware of 00:03:13.190 --> 00:03:16.910 it, not so that they are afraid, but so that they know what to watch out for and 00:03:16.910 --> 00:03:21.080 so we can help each other to prevent these things from happening more, and 00:03:21.080 --> 00:03:24.709 from spreading, and from continuing where it's happening now. If you don't already, 00:03:24.709 --> 00:03:29.450 please follow uplift on Twitter or Facebook or tumblr or youtube. I'll 00:03:29.450 --> 00:03:34.670 include links in my description. They do good work. And if you also have a public 00:03:34.670 --> 00:03:38.720 platform where you can do this same thing, I encourage you to also take the 00:03:38.720 --> 00:03:42.240 Safer Community Pledge if you haven't yet, or if you want to take it again. 00:03:42.720 --> 00:03:46.380 That's my VEDA for today. Tell me what you think about uplift's work and the 00:03:46.400 --> 00:03:49.670 Safer Community Pledge in the comments below or tell me anything that matters 00:03:49.670 --> 00:03:52.770 to you because I want to know what matters to you. 00:03:53.500 --> 00:03:55.040 And I really appreciate 00:03:55.040 --> 00:03:58.280 you watching all the way to the end of this video. The end of my videos is where 00:03:58.280 --> 00:03:59.280 I always say: 00:03:59.280 --> 00:04:00.520 Tomorrow 00:04:00.520 --> 00:04:02.520 will be even better!