James Hare (Harej) exposes the bullying culture at the heart of Wikipedia management
Posted: Sun May 23, 2021 10:17 am
What a harrowing story.....
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?ti ... 1024435654
...but....if you feel sympathy, or even outrage, for this person, you're probably better off posting at Wikipediocracy. They'll be all over this, seeing it as an opportunity to further their fight on behalf of senior Wikipedia volunteers, in their fight against the evil Foundation. After all, it's what you would expect from a forum for senior Wikipedia editors.
My take would be unwelcome on their fan site, just as it would be unwelcome anywhere on Wikipedia.
Because here's what a serious critic who has a well rounded knowledge of the movement and no dog in the Foundation vs. Volunterrs civil war, takes from this person's "story"......
1. Serious accusations being made on WMF servers, without naming names (and with an inherent presumption that this is what WMF sservers are for, and that the BLP policy would only come onto play if he actually named names), on the clearly ludicrous basis that the WMF would supposeldy sue one of their own for making true statements about specific managers.
2. A criticism of people who have yet to obtain the job of a lifetime for their reluctance to speak to the culture of the WMF, from someone who had already obtained their job of a lifetime, and has left it, and so is only now speaking out now because he has "nothing to lose". How brave. How inspiring.
3. A criticism of the slick communication department of the WMF, from someone who is still, even now, a willing part of a movement that is all about telling it's own truth, rather than the actual truth. And as part of a post that itself bizarrely, supposedly from someone who that organisation has taken to some seriously dark places, still includes many of the talking points about what a wonderful thing it is, lies so often spread about by that very communications department. Lies are lies. Doesn't matter who is telling them. But it's surely even worse when the liar has no financial interest in doing it, but instead perhaps only has ideological reasons.
4. A specific accusation that the WMF management bullies autistic people for being autistic, with no apparent awareness, or perhaps complete ignorance of, the fact this has literally been seen happening in the manner in which the volunteers govern themselves. Newcomers who admit to being neuro atypical, have had that used against them by the community, up to and including literally citing it as the reason they should be excluded, under the toxic notion that autism affects your WP:COMPETENCE. This shit happened. It doesn't cease to be any more of an important "story" to be told on the WMF's dime just because in reality, that person has already been silenced, and in a manner that in all likelihood, would have been met with serious consequences, had it been reported to the Foundation.
Overall, while it's sad, come on. This dude's story doesn't stack up. Either he isn't as traumatised as he claims, and/or his story isn't as truthful as he claims, and/or he is blind to how pervasive these issue are in the movement as a whole, far beyond his lived experience, in paid staff and volunteers, and that he has perhaps maybe even been a part of it at one time or another.
1/2
https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?ti ... 1024435654
...but....if you feel sympathy, or even outrage, for this person, you're probably better off posting at Wikipediocracy. They'll be all over this, seeing it as an opportunity to further their fight on behalf of senior Wikipedia volunteers, in their fight against the evil Foundation. After all, it's what you would expect from a forum for senior Wikipedia editors.
My take would be unwelcome on their fan site, just as it would be unwelcome anywhere on Wikipedia.
Because here's what a serious critic who has a well rounded knowledge of the movement and no dog in the Foundation vs. Volunterrs civil war, takes from this person's "story"......
1. Serious accusations being made on WMF servers, without naming names (and with an inherent presumption that this is what WMF sservers are for, and that the BLP policy would only come onto play if he actually named names), on the clearly ludicrous basis that the WMF would supposeldy sue one of their own for making true statements about specific managers.
2. A criticism of people who have yet to obtain the job of a lifetime for their reluctance to speak to the culture of the WMF, from someone who had already obtained their job of a lifetime, and has left it, and so is only now speaking out now because he has "nothing to lose". How brave. How inspiring.
3. A criticism of the slick communication department of the WMF, from someone who is still, even now, a willing part of a movement that is all about telling it's own truth, rather than the actual truth. And as part of a post that itself bizarrely, supposedly from someone who that organisation has taken to some seriously dark places, still includes many of the talking points about what a wonderful thing it is, lies so often spread about by that very communications department. Lies are lies. Doesn't matter who is telling them. But it's surely even worse when the liar has no financial interest in doing it, but instead perhaps only has ideological reasons.
4. A specific accusation that the WMF management bullies autistic people for being autistic, with no apparent awareness, or perhaps complete ignorance of, the fact this has literally been seen happening in the manner in which the volunteers govern themselves. Newcomers who admit to being neuro atypical, have had that used against them by the community, up to and including literally citing it as the reason they should be excluded, under the toxic notion that autism affects your WP:COMPETENCE. This shit happened. It doesn't cease to be any more of an important "story" to be told on the WMF's dime just because in reality, that person has already been silenced, and in a manner that in all likelihood, would have been met with serious consequences, had it been reported to the Foundation.
Overall, while it's sad, come on. This dude's story doesn't stack up. Either he isn't as traumatised as he claims, and/or his story isn't as truthful as he claims, and/or he is blind to how pervasive these issue are in the movement as a whole, far beyond his lived experience, in paid staff and volunteers, and that he has perhaps maybe even been a part of it at one time or another.
1/2