I’m going to pin this post, and keep it at “uncategorised” as while it has to do with my blog, it pretty much is a baseless accusation, and usually whenever people accuse others of “gatekeeping”, it sometimes can be considered an ad hominem fallacy; this is also a very reddit-tier accusation as well.
Use of “gatekeeping” in internet discussions
The use of the word “gatekeeping” is based on strict or arbitrary criterias that you must meet a certain label. However, having boundaries, and emphasising that words have meanings isn’t “gatekeeping”, which is why it is used in bad faith.
Why accusing others of “gatekeeping” is in bad faith
Usually, whenever somebody accuses others of “gatekeeping”, the individual might be older (say older Gen X-Silent Gen), and will have no clue what you’re on about. These individuals will often think in a very concrete, literal sense due to the fact that the word “gatekeeping” is usually a word that means somebody is guarding a gate; they keep outsiders from intruding the place. Another reason why accusing others of “gatekeeping” is in bad faith is because this individual doesn’t like this person’s opinion, so they end up attacking their character. These individuals don’t like it when you point out words have meanings, and eventually, throw the word “gatekeeping” at you. They play mental gymnastics on why what you’re doing is “gatekeeping” even though it is not meant in a malicious way; you’re just explaining what certain words mean, and what characteristics normally, but not always are found in certain groups. For example, I was accused by somebody of “gatekeeping” female homosexuality despite this individual’s delusions of using derogatory terms to describe women who even have an inkling of same sex attraction, despite the fact that lesbians aren’t attracted to men. Same reasoning with somebody who accused me of “gatekeeping” autism, despite there are other’s out there who conspire to manipulate professionals to fit them into certain diagnosis and another conspiracy for “self-diagnosing” individuals to claim it’s valid and you’re a bigot for not accepting their self-diagnosis as fact, even though it’s commonly agreed on that you shouldn’t say you have a neurological disability unless you’re professionally diagnosed. Self-suspect, is fine, but not “self-diagnose”.
Misconceptions of things that have lead to accusatory statements towards me
As somebody who owns a blog, it is expected of people to like it, and people who dislike it. As with anything, there’s going to be fans, and non-fans. However, I want to clarify that just because some people fit into one or two characteristics of something, doesn’t mean they’re a faker, pretender, or liar etc. Like an upcoming post I’ll make about sociopaths and psychopaths (related to a show I’ve watched recently; thankfully, I’ve never met any individuals with ASPD, but have met “people” with BPD, HPD, and NPD, and can write about them in more depth), but just because somebody has a trait or two with sociopathy or psychopathy, doesn’t mean they have ASPD.
Conclusion
While the word “gatekeeping” can be confusing based on the age or generation of the individual, keep in mind, one must think critically in order to accuse somebody of the internet’s definition of “gatekeeping”. Sometimes, people are just tired of individuals bending and twisting a word to fit in their mind what it is, and want to be something they’re not. Narcissists for example, will often bend and twist meanings so they can act like they’re better than everyone else. They actually from my experiences, are often people who twist narratives to make themselves look good (something that they’re not.) When you read this blog, please don’t take it the wrong way, even if you don’t agree with me.