just some context as to why i posted this on my sasi blog and not my main is because i've been in deep reflection about the different states of the sasi fandom for the past 8 years.
one in particular that has nagged me is the 2017-2019 era wherein the fandom was paraded as The unproblematic fandom, because it barely had ship wars or major fandom discourse. but that kind of bubble popped in 2020 during the pandemic + blm movement happened, because it exposed how many white people existed in the fandom that stomped over the voices of poc.
this was peak time where normies also joined fandom so that means a lot of White People. the large presence of uncultured white people within the fandom has really caused it much harm, particularly when it comes to 1.) diminished media literacy, 2.) dogshit writing for characters of color, and 3.) understanding nuance in the context of the show.
we are privileged to live in an era of sasi where we don't have to tag "sympathetic/unsympathetic" sides or "tw deceit" "dukedontlook" anymore. the clear cut, black-and-white perspectives of each character, plus the weird race stereotypes white people made for human au's, really showed that many fans didn't really care for the characters nor the messaging of sasi more than they did for moral posturing and policing.
this has caused many fans to believe criticizing a character, seeing their flaws, or having plot conflicts is tantamount to being bad. i remembered after every episode of sasi, instead of understanding why a character acted poorly in an episode (re. patton in svs.r, logan in lntao, etc.) fans would insist x character is a bad person. and i mean, there's nothing wrong about disliking characters but the black-and-white thinking a lot of fans have in regards to character flaws makes me worried about how they view Actual people, especially those with trauma or damaged by capitalism.
this is especially concerning knowing that one of sasi's main themes is overcoming black-and-white thinking. svs.r and dwit are two phenomenal episodes that examine where Exactly thomas' black-and-white thinking comes from and how it affects self-esteem and his perception of others. it especially talks about the influence of catholic/christian principles as a reason why the sides are compartmentalized as "light" sides and "dark" sides. i cannot believe how many people do Not talk about this aspect of sasi, since it has been very explicit about its criticisms of the church and its effect on our morality.
white supremacy and racism can subtly infiltrate so many aspects of fandom culture and i really wished people were more aware of that. i love sasi as a series so much but in my eight years of being here, i have witnessed so many fans of color get harassed for "breaking the peace" when trying to examine the story or fan culture more analytically.
and for an extra note, nothing now has spawned this exact thought but i just wanted to talk about it in detail because i realized it yesterday while talking with my friend. i have lived every era of Whiteness the fandom has to give. and i guess why it still matters to me now is that i've noticed many fans media literacy to be quite low :( why it relates specifically to purity culture is because the egotistical need to posture overtakes all your senses, detracting from understanding what a storyline is specifically talking about.
so — please stop infantilizing the characters. please understand sasi's themes of black-and-white thinking. for white people, please stop projecting your damn ego and feigned fragility into fandom interactions and content. white queers and disabled people, remember your whiteness also informs your existence, so don't think you're exempt from racism because of that. purity culture in fandom is its own form of prejudice that i think needs to be dismantled
