#Facebook event visibility

[sociocosmos]

Sociocosmos is a platform designed to enhance your social media presence, particularly focusing on boosting your Facebook event attendance. If you’re looking to buy Facebook event attendees, Sociocosmos provides a service that can help you increase your event’s visibility and perceived popularity.

[genderkoolaid]

Grizzly Pines, in Navasota, Texas, reiterated its policy on banning transgender men from the campground, in an online post on Monday (31 March), which was Trans Day of Visibility. “This campground was created as a haven specifically for men who historically lacked spaces where they could express themselves openly without outside judgment, even from within the broader LGBTQ+ community,” the since-deleted post read, according to The Advocate. “We’re not anti-trans, we’re just focused on preserving this unique sub-cultural dynamic.” The clothing-optional campground’s mission was to “provide a safe, affirming and liberating space exclusively for cisgender men”, and it was “vital for guests to feel completely at ease physically and emotionally,” which included comfort with the “types of bodies, interactions and dynamics present”. Following a backlash, reviews on the campsite’s Facebook page have been removed and a limit imposed on who can comment. [...] A spokesman for The Houston Bears, a not-for-profit organisation for the Texan gay bear community, said they had severed ties with Grizzly Pines calling the ban “incompatible with our values”. A sold-out event scheduled at the campground, scheduled for next month, had been cancelled. Being “forced to tell some of our members, ‘not you’,” was not something organisers were prepared to do. “We know it is very late in the process but we believe that it is never too late to do the right thing,” the spokesman said. The RGV Bears also cancelled a summer camp event in solidarity with “our RGV Teddy Bear trans members”. Gay Camping Friends founder John Anderson told The Advocate he was dismayed by the campground’s tone and timing. “Their statement was passive-aggressive,” he claimed. “It had a lot of read-between-the-lines messaging.“ They said The Houston Bears had a ‘newfound support’ for trans people, and that sounded like mockery to me. There’s irony in saying you’re preserving a male experience while excluding trans men, who are men.”

[recycledmoviecostumes]

This Edwardian-style gown was created for the Ascot scene in the original 1956 Broadway production of the Lerner and Loewe musical My Fair Lady. The scene was filled with beautiful gowns, all in black and white, in keeping with the famous “Black Ascot” of 1910, when King Edward VII died shortly before the event, making it inappropriate to wear color. Thus, those who attended wore all black, aside from accents of white from pearls and flowers.

The gown was designed by Cecil Beaton and executed by Helene Pons based on his sketches. The cream crepe dress has black velvet stripes and an embroidered lace bib. The photo above most likely shows actress Melisande Congdon in the costume, as she performed in the play for three years.

When Truman Capote decided to throw his famous “Black and White Ball,” – he used the scene from My Fair Lady as its inspiration. Deborah Davis’ wonderful book The Party of the Century mentions that much of the gossip about town was about “who” everyone would wear. Amanda Carter Burden, daughter of Babe Paley, was able to sidestep this conversation and not commit to any one designer when she chose a gown from the film My Fair Lady. A drawing of Amanda in costume, sketched by Kenneth Paul Block, appeared on the front page of Women’s Wear Daily.

But was her gown from the film adaptation of My Fair Lady? Amanda was based in New York City, and it would have been far easier for her to obtain one of the costumes from the Broadway show.

In addition, no costume in the film accurately matches the one she wore to the ball. There is one that is similar and clearly based on the same design, but it appears to be a different piece. 

In 2015, the dress from the Broadway production went up for sale, where it sold for $1280. It contains a lace dickey that the auction house noted has been added post-production. The dickey is clearly visible on Amanda Carter in the Black and White Ball photo. While I cannot confirm for certain that she is wearing the dress from the stage production rather than the film production, I am confident that she is.

Costume Credit: Katie S.

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[hysteria-things]

✿ PROMISE? ✿ PART SIX.

ʚ♡ɞ 𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 | 𝐌𝐀𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 | 𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐘𝐋𝐈𝐒𝐓 | 𝐍𝐄𝐗𝐓 ʚ♡ɞ

𝐩𝐚𝐢𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠: chris x fem!reader

𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐲: you and chris hang out after what feels like forever, and he finds something personal of yours under the bed. because he’s nosy, he can’t help but open it.

𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬: swearing, that should be it :)

𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 2,034

𝐚𝐮𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞: changing up some things…

(dividers by @strangergraphics)

𝐂𝐇𝐑𝐈𝐒 𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐊𝐄𝐒 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐈𝐍 disbelief, the nostalgia hitting him like a truck. nothing and he means nothing has changed about your house from when you guys were little. hell, there still was the wall by the doorway where it had your heights written in pencil. it faded throughout the years, but it’s still visible. his heart hurts when he realizes it stops at age ten.

the both of you talked as if you guys didn’t stop talking at all. “let’s chill out in my room.” you say, grabbing his hand and guiding him up the stairs.

although he was in here the other day, he didn’t get to really look around until now. your room captures you perfectly. you sigh, sitting down on the mattress that is filled with stuffed animals. you pat the spot next to you for him to take, and he does. “sorry if it’s messy.” you bite the inside of your mouth before speaking again. “now what? i was never a good host.”

“whatever you want to do.”

groaning, you get up and wipe your palms on your pants. “what i want to do is go pee. i’ll be right back.”

walking out of the room, you leave chris there alone. he rose himself off the bed and slowly walked around. he laughs to himself. he realized you became more comfortable with him again in the short hours you’ve been together, despite recent events. next to the closet door, there’s a bookshelf with a ton of books on it. the same bookshelf that was filled with dr. suess and harry potter. now, it’s filled with… interesting.

he leans down, reading the spines with furrowed brows. twisted games? the nanny? icebreaker?

stay curious for this one, chris.

next to the flatscreen TV on the wall, you have a lot of other stuff hanging up, one being your varsity award for volleyball. two pictures however stood out to him — besides the dinosaur with sunglasses painting you also have hung up. one of them is a polaroid of you and nate, recently took at the local fair. chris makes a face at that.

the other photo is of these two kids, roughly the age of seven. they look like twins; boy and girl. the rest of your family doesn’t live here, hence all of the pictures of them. because chris does nightly facebook searches to keep up, he noticed these are your cousin’s twins.

smiling softly, he thinks about how much you love your family. you’ve always been a family person, even if they aren’t here. he understands what that’s like. being in L.A. while everybody else is in boston sucks, but luckily they got a few months to be back home.

as he turns around to sit back down on the bed, he sees a notebook sticking out from under it. he doesn’t want to look through your belongings, but curiosity got the best of him. he bends over to pick it up and open it while lowering himself to sit down.

there is a note on the inside of the cover.

he skims through the pages to see how much you wrote and it is a good amount. he stops when the handwriting suddenly changes, meaning that you stopped writing for a while. the other entries had smudges on them except for the ones he landed on. this one must be new.

so, he started to read.

dear journal,

i’m sorry i ditched you for about a year and a half. i don't have an explanation for it, but lately, i’ve been itching to write. i remembered i had this journal - thanks to my cousin bethany for getting you for me for my 9th birthday. i know you’re an inanimate object, but i forgot how relaxing it is to write down my thoughts for nobody except myself.

i can’t help but cringe at what i wrote in the past, and i sincerely apologize.

“i can’t wait to marry kevin one day!”

“omg, he talked to me today!”

“i think we’re going to be together forever!”

i’m gagging just rethinking that moment. come on now.

anyway, life has been crazy lately. shoutout to the sturniolos for ditching me and acting like we didn’t grow up together! appreciate you guys for real. i’m exhausted.

the thing is, i always had trouble sleeping. i know i just said i’m exhausted, but it’s 3 AM and suddenly it feels like i’m wide awake. i just know i’m going to be grumpy for the next few days. a lot has happened ever since they left. i’ve changed, and i hate/love it at the same time.

i’ve been going out more, doing shit i shouldn’t. (don’t tell my parents…) something also happened a while ago that’s still a blur. i can’t put my finger on it. all i remember is that the police came to my door and asked me a ton of questions about somebody.

anyway, life has been happening too fast. i would appreciate it if it slows down a tad. on the upside, my mom said the rest of the family is coming here soon. i don’t know when, but soon. bethany would for sure be happy to hear i’ve started writing here again.

my thoughts are draining the second i write things on this paper, so i’m going to try and get sleep. i’ll update you whenever i can.

- y/n

⋆⁺₊⋆ ✿ ⋆⁺₊⋆

dear journal,

me again: at approximately 4 AM. today has been something else, let me tell you. my mom came up to me yesterday and told me some unfortunate news. can you guess who’s back in town? if you guessed my lovely besties, you’re correct! and do you know whose birthday it is, meaning i have to go to the party? you’ve guessed it! my BFFs!

doesn’t help that i’m on my period right now. i can’t do this shit.

either way, i had to be there for nate. he’s the one that stuck around. marylou will forever be the original best friend in my opinion. she stuck around, too. it’s her children i got a bone to pick with. (except justin. he’s cool.)

seeing them in person for the first time in so long had me tweaking. i admit that i was a bitch to them at the party, and not to be a bitch now, but they deserved it. however, when i saw chris, my first thought was about how he’s such a cutie still. i hate my mind for that.

i tried to ignore them for the rest of the party, and it was semi-successful.

- y/n

⋆⁺₊⋆ ✿ ⋆⁺₊⋆

dear journal,

you will not believe this. nick messaged me on instagram saying how sorry they were and asked to meet up at my house. for whatever reason, i said yes and they came over. we sort of cleared everything. key word, sort of.

they said they wanted me back in their life and apologized for what they did. i still need to give it time, but we do want to start hanging out again soon. i missed those dorks.

that’s until chris stopped me and asked for the note he wrote to me when we were little. the note he promised me to keep, and i obviously did. i’ll tape it here.

this little piece of paper is my favorite thing anybody ever gave to me.

- y/n

⋆⁺₊⋆ ✿ ⋆⁺₊⋆

dear journal,

sorry, i left you hanging for a few days, a lot happened in such a short amount of time.

long story short, jaiden and claudia invited me to a party. chris texted me while i was there. he seemed a bit weirded out about why i was at finn yaw’s party, but i hope he knows i wasn’t there for any specific reason. i do appreciate that he cares about my well-being, even after the downfall.

i got home not long ago and he’s texting me as i’m writing this. he just asked me to hang out tomorrow which shocked me a little, but i said yes.

not going to lie, i’m excited to hang out with chris, even though i have no idea what we’re doing. hopefully, it goes well.

- y/n

chris snaps out of it as he hears you walking back into your room, making him shove the book back under the bed. he feels kind of honored to be a part of your little notebook. “sorry, that took longer than i wanted. i had to deal with something.” you say, sitting down on the bed with a sigh. you furrow your eyebrows at him. “why are you smiling like that?”

“smiling like what?”

“like… that,” you say, circling your finger that was pointing at his face.

“no reason.” he shrugs “anyway, what’s next on the y/n agenda?”

you look around the room while biting the inside of her cheek. “are you hungry? my dad made ribs last night and it’s to die for.”

jumping up from the bed, you motion him to follow you. you walk into the kitchen, flicking on the four light switches that are on the wall. you waltz over to the fridge and open it, going on your tippy toes to grab the container on the top shelf. “how many do you want?” you ask, going on your tippy toes once again to grab paper plates in the upper cabinet.

“three is fine. do you need help?”

you shake your head. “no, i got it.”

chris stands by the island that separates the kitchen from the dining room. he leans against it, watching you plop three ribs onto his plate and only one on yours. you take his plate in your hands and reach up to the microwave. you stick your tongue out and groan. you’re struggling because of how short you are since the microwave is on the wall above the oven.

“i got it.” he chuckles, grabbing the plate from your hand and sticking it in the microwave. his hand grazes the side of your arm as he puts in two minutes and presses start. you cross your arms without looking at him. “i could’ve gotten it.”

“yeah, right.”

sitting there for two minutes feels like ten before the microwave finally goes off. you start running to the microwave but he stops you. “i don’t want you to hurt yourself by reaching for it. i got it.”

he takes the plate out and feels a rib with his finger. he nods. “it’s good.”

“okay.” you say with a low tone. he looks towards you to see you staring at your rib that still lies cold on the plate. “what’s wrong?”

“i don’t think i want this anymore.” you quickly open the container, plop it back in, and stick it back in the fridge.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ✿ ⋆⁺₊⋆

𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐇𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐒 𝐎𝐅 𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐍𝐃 sitting in your room, matt had to come pick his brother up. you and chris are currently standing on the front porch, having one last word with each other. matt is waiting in the van at the end of the stairs.

“it was nice hanging out with you again,” you say shyly. “we should get everybody back together soon.”

“i agree.” he smiles “i’m sure i’ll text you later.”

getting closer to him, you pull him into a hug. it was abrupt, but he hugged you back of course.

then, the horn of the van beeps causing you to jump and pull away. “can you hurry the fuck up? nick is waiting for us at home and is obnoxiously annoying. mom also made dinner.” matt screams from the window.

“i’ll see you around,” chris says, jogging down the stairs. he gets in the passenger seat and grabs the seat belt to strap himself in. matt waves to you, which you graciously return.

⋆⁺₊⋆ ✿ ⋆⁺₊⋆

𝐈𝐓 𝐃𝐈𝐃𝐍’𝐓 𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐎𝐑 them to get home. they live close to your house, and the duration is no longer than five minutes. he takes off his shoes at the door as his phone vibrates from getting a text.

y/n😶‍🌫️

thanks for today

i had fun :)

𝐭𝐚𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭!

@bunbunbl0gs @lexisecretaccx @thy-mission @angelic-sturniolos111 @sophssturn @mattsneezing @janiellasblog @blahbel668 @meg-sturniolo @mattslolita @sturnbaby @imwetforyourmom @tillies33ssss @sturnifyed @raysmayhem-72 @ripmattitude @p1xieswrld @alorsxsturn @txssvx @sttzee @multiluvr @delilahprentiss @matthewsspecial @sturnolio-luvs @sturniolho @suga-daddy-69 @tworosesblackthorn @luckistar-posts @gnxosblog @junnniiieee07 @sturnioloslurps @tylerthecreatorsrealwife @flowerxbunnie @imaslut4kehlani @sturniolosandmoree @hertvgirl @whoreforchrissturniolo @hearrtsturns @stars4matt @freshsturns @loverrsposts @sturnlcvr @elliesturniolo1 @tpvmz @user283926392 @lalalands86 @sukiipjs @sturniologirl813 @leahrab @chrissturniolosslut @h3arts4harry @sturnioloblogs @creamoncreamoncream2 @ivyyyyyysposts @mirxcle1 @iluvm4ttsturni0l0 @catalina-island @mbsbaby @mattsdollie @pinkfarts @slut4mattsturn @thesturniolos @vickeyzloserz @nononopenono1 @bitchydragonparadise @gdsvhtwa @hrt-attack @bellasfavbisexual @dwntwn-strnlo @venusbabysblog @meerkatzthings @crazychrisl0v3r @maggieflms @strtuniolo @mutualsafe @riasturns @sturniolowhore @antpile00 @ashley9282828 @stingerayyy2 @sturnsjtop @luverboychris @yapperchris @imaslutforoldermen @madisonlovesyouu @poetatorturadaa @chr1sgirl4life @hiimolivia @jo-777 @sturnskiss @st4rgrlll @mattyblover07 @sm-ec @mattluvsmarni @knowingnothingnoel @mattsgirlfrieeend @bambi-slxt @sturnstvr @sturnclouds @bernardsbendystraws

[kaijutegu]

Is It Ok For An Alligator To Have Tape On Their Mouth?

Alligators make pretty amazing animal ambassadors when handled safely and ethically. And it is actually pretty safe to take them out to interact with the zoo-going public (or general public in some settings), when done correctly. Many zoos and outreach organizations do an amazing job of this! Every state has different rules, but even if a state doesn't mandate that alligators be banded... well, if you're a responsible crocodilian handler, you'll band anyways. It's a huge public safety issue! Even an accidental graze against their front teeth can cause injury. See, the alligators that are used as handle-able ambassadors are pretty small, and their teeth are razor sharp. An adult gator has sharp teeth, too, as well as blunt teeth for crushing, and they also have the additional force of their jaw muscles.

Here's what it sounds like when an adult alligator pops his jaw. (Don't worry about the hissing/gaping; this is a trained and queued behavior. The stick towards the top of the inside of the mouth is triggering the bite reflex. Chester probably got lots of chicken and fish as he learned to do this.)

Skip ahead to 0:32 if you wanna skip the guest commentary.

What's more, biting is an important reflex for crocodilians. The lower jaws of crocodilians are some of the most innervated tissues in the animal kingdom; they are more sensitive than human fingertips! Even the slightest touch triggers their bite reflex, which likely is an adaptation that lets them detect changes in water pressure that signal a snack heading their way.

Here's a pretty good video about the biomechanics of crocodilian jaws:

So yeah. They need to not be able to bite for public safety. There's just too much risk involved with an unbanded alligator (or other crocodilian). Fortunately, it's easy to get a crocodilian to not bite- you just need to band its mouth!

(This fella is Frodo the dwarf caiman, but the principle is the same.)

This works because while crocodilians have an extremely strong bite force (claims range from 2,000 PSI to 5,000+ PSI, but I don't have time to get into that now but someday I will probably), but not particularly strong muscles to open their mouths. Selective pressure for quickly nabbing prey in murky water where there's not a lot of visibility lead to pterygoid and adductor muscles so big, they extend into the animal's neck. But those muscles only pull the jaw closed- they don't work to open it! That's why you see people holding an alligator's mouth closed with their hands.

Safe bands include:

Silicone tape- this is the best. It sticks to itself and not the gator's snout

Electrical tape

Medical tape

Rubber or elastic bands

There are other options, but these are the most popular- they're cheap, easily available, and safe. So if you see an alligator (or other crocodilian) out in public and it's got tape on its mouth, don't worry too much- it's safe for the gator (most of the time) and it's safe for you!

Here's a couple of safe tape options, modeled by a juvenile American alligator in pink electrical tape (I forget her name, these are from an outreach event a couple of years ago) and Pagasa, a juvenile Philippine crocodile wearing the white medical tape.

So when is tape not safe? When it's the wrong kind of tape. One of the worst offenders is duct tape.

When you're banding an alligator, you need to think about how sensitive their jaws are. A band that's too tight or too sticky can hurt them badly when it's removed- and you want that removal process to be fast, so that it doesn't stress them out too much.

What inspired this post was this picture I saw on Facebook:

That's so much duct tape! Now, this little guy is quite unhealthy; he's been loose in the Pittsburgh area all winter, and he's been struggling. What you see here is a very quick tape job done as he's getting ready for transport. The article didn't say who taped him, but given that he's in a dog crate and was found by bicyclists, I would wager that it was some harried animal control officer who was doing the best they could. And that's fine because this was truly an emergency situation. In an emergency situation, uncomfortable is always, always better than unsafe.

But if you see a tourist attraction and they've put duct tape on their alligator's mouth? That's a red flag! Banding an alligator in public is the safe, correct thing to do- you just want to make sure that it's done right.

If you want more information about alligator jaws, here's some interesting papers to read:

Erickson, Gregory et al. Insights into the Ecology and Evolutionary Success of Crocodilians Revealed through Bite-Force and Tooth-Pressure Experimentation. PLoS ONE 7(3): e31781.

Knight, Kathryn. Croc Jaws More Sensitive Than Human Fingertips. Journal of Experimental Biology (2012) 215.

Sellers et al. Ontogeny of bite force in a validated biomechanical model of the American alligator. Journal of Experimental Biology (2017), 220.

[spot-the-antisemitism]

Thoughts on the incident in Florida where a Jewish man shot at two men 17 times and bragged to the cops that he just "killed two Palestinians". Only for it to turn out the victims were actually a father and son visiting from Israel. The two then reported the shooting to the cops as an antisemitic attack before making a facebook post saying "Death to Arabs"?

Can't have thoughts on events that didn't happen

he did not try to kill them because they were palestinean he tried to kill them because they were visibly Jewish, he knew whom he targeted

now go back to your chan board to talk about the evil jews running the tumblrs dismmising your "theories"

[glowing-blue-feathermage]

This is a non-fandom related survey regarding how people of color feel about activism (specifically attending in-person rallies and protests) in our current climate:

Hello my loves! For the past few months I have been a part of the national 50501 movement that has been instrumental in planning the nationwide protests taking place all across America. Saturday's rallies topped more than 5 million people across the US, and we want the next one to be even bigger!

There have been questions raised recently about whether or not the organizers are reaching POC, or if the events feel unsafe or if POC feel the purpose of these rallies is not inclusive. I'd love to get a better idea of how folks feel about this!

For the purposes of this survey, I am speaking about the nationwide grassroots movements opposing the current administration's tactics including the violations of human rights and dignity, deportation of immigrants without due process, attacks on our LGBTQ communities, erasure of diversity initiatives, daily executive overreach and disregard of the United States Constitution. If you agree with the current administration, this survey is not intended for you.

Thank you for your time and your thoughts! Please pass this on for visibility, even if you're not a POC!

[eddiemunsonsmiddlefingers]

Hello Wheel of Time fandom

3/16 edit:

I have heard through the grapevine that some folks are saying I have doxxed people with this post, or that I should be sued for libel.

tl;dr: There is no merit to either of these accusations.

I am reporting actions and events that actually happened, and which I personally witnessed and/or have hard evidence to support, to the best of my abilities. I have made edits to clarify where my initial statements were unclear, and I've been transparent about the edits made (unless it was simply to clean up grammar) even though it makes this post looks super chaotic.

I will say that I overstepped when I claimed that the CEO "supports Trump." I know she is conservative, because I saw her talking about it in a space with ~40 people in it late last year. I know she has voted for Trump in the past, because others have seen her talking about it in a similarly sized space in the past. However, jumping from those two pieces of information to "she supports Trump" in present tense is a slippery slope fallacy that I absolutely should have known better than to fall for. That said: concern about her politics versus site demographics did not begin with me, let alone with this post. I believe that while those concerns were not expressed respectfully (largely due to rapidly deteriorating trust), they should have been addressed quickly and respectfully by leadership and they were not.

I have also gone out of my way to avoid causing harm to the people I'm discussing; that's why I reference titles and time frames instead of names (or even pseudonyms), and why I have edited this post rather than bumping it to the top with updates. I have done exhaustive testing to confirm that it is not possible to find this post unless you are actively looking for it on Facebook or Tumblr (Search algorithms mean some people may have different results, but the flat truth is that if I can't find it with all my Tower-related cookies tossed all over the place, people who aren't connected to the Tower definitely can't).

Ironically enough, the ONLY person whose full, real name has been publicly associated with this information is in fact me (by my choice, as a gesture of sincerity to the founder of the community).

This leads me to another (related) major issue that I want to address:

I have given my full name, phone number, AND address to a grand total of three members of the Tower. I gave one of those three my resume as well, because they offered to help me with my job search last year. One other member has my one page resume, and the Board has my full work history and phone number, but none of them have my address to my knowledge. When I left the site I went through chat logs and deleted my information retroactively, but I have no way of knowing whether those individuals saved that information where I cannot delete it.

This is of extreme concern to me because I have screenshot evidence that one of the three individuals with all my information has posted on TarValon.Net claiming that I am lying / this post was made in bad faith / that I'm out to cause harm for harm's sake (paraphrased). He also made a threat of physical violence against those who criticize admin, which he changed to hoping that they are "fucked by the dildo of consequence" when the mods told him the prior violence was unacceptable. Moderators allowed this sexually violent metaphor to remain visible for over 24 hours; in the end he received a 24 hour "timeout" from that specific forum for forcing the mods to edit his post.

The man in question has known me for at least 7 years and has known of me for just shy of 13. It is unquestionably true that he knows my strongest values are my integrity and caring for others. He knows that my partner and I are trans and therefore have a lot to lose given the state of this country. He knows that I have been raped and sexually assaulted in the past. Finally, he knows that someone else in the community has already had their world turned upside down because someone at the Tower suggested that their work should be contacted (and someone did).

It baffles me that he thought it appropriate to say something he knows is dishonest about me, and at least appear to post a material threat to my safety, in nearly the same breath that he accused me of libel. It baffles me even more that the sexually charged threat he made was allowed to remain in the forum for as long as it was (and received little more than a slap on the wrist for a completely different reason) when a former Director of Moderators was suspended from the entire site for two weeks and from community feedback for another two weeks after that (starting 3/15) for making an off topic observation.

I'm just…appalled. And hurt. And very, very done. I will not be editing this post further. If the current CMO wants to reach out to me, I'm open to a conversation. Otherwise…I hope I never have to interact with these people, or anyone who supports them, again.

In the Light, Jaryd

PS: I put the original content/edits under a "read more" because this post is now absurdly long. See below.

The current leaders of the website TarValon.Net just completely shut down the site, deleted and remade their forums, and rewrote their rules, because 50+ members of said site objected to damaging actions taken and hateful words spoken by said leadership.

EDIT: I want to make it abundantly, explicitly clear that the founder of TarValon.Net is not in any way, shape, or form associated with what I have written below. I deeply respect and appreciate the love and effort she put into this place, and much of my distress now stems from mourning the loss of what she created. Additionally, my statements about the "leadership team" are generalizations for brevity, but as with every generalization, there are exceptions. I would like to note specifically that the CFO and Director of Marketing have never been positions that are expected to take a stance on membership issues (and therefore it is neither surprising nor upsetting to me that they did not openly do so in this case). To my knowledge none of the individuals in question have ever engaged in or encouraged the behaviors described below. I have made some other clarifying edits throughout, marked in red.

Telling every single detail of the bullshit that has occurred would take hours. Some of what has happened includes:

The current CEO supports Trump, and has on two separate occasions had emotional melt downs about how she feels like people think she's bad for doing that. Her political affiliation is of concern because a sizable chunk of the community she is in charge of is female, queer, trans, BIPOC, some variety of neurodivergent, disabled, and/or in an economic lower class. See my note about this above.

The current leadership team (plus the immediate former Director of Membership) have protected (and continues to protect) aggressively antisemitic individuals, while actively disregarding and disparaging the concerns raised by their Jewish members and informed allies. 3/16: The Chief Membership Officers who have served since December have not actively engaged in this behavior to my knowledge.

A member of the site was doxxed as a direct result of criticizing the leadership team in the forum designated for giving site feedback. The CEO performed a cursory investigation (I personally got an email asking me to confirm I did not doxx the member in question. Staff were told to respond to a post in their respective forums. I don't have much insight into how higher-up administrators were addressed), announced they couldn't find the perpetrator, and then banned the person who was doxxed for allegedly lying about it. (This is an extreme simplification, but the long and the short of it is that he WAS doxxed, he did NOT lie, and he WAS banned).

The CMO serving until November of last year had a public meltdown that included presenting events in a purposely unfavorable light (as determined by review of contradictory evidence from the other side) swearing at members of the site, saying it felt good to punch down, and refusing to apologize for her behavior. The current CEO and several other Officers and Directors (including the last Director of Membership) supported this behavior, and an investigation occurred only after significant pressure from members of the site—and ended with no acknowledgment of poor behavior or disciplinary action taken. She is only a "former" CMO because, when outraged members of the community refused to accept that decision, she had another public meltdown and demanded to be removed and her account suspended. Her account has since been reactivated and she is active in the community. In early March she admitted to acting in bad faith in joining an unofficial Discord server dedicated to addressing these issues (plus many others).

A member was recently chosen to serve on the Board of Directors who had only weeks before recruited members into a quasi-secret club that supported the current CEO by mocking a woman of color whom they dislike. This information was known to the current CEO, who initially did nothing (and got noticeably huffy when asked to take action...and no disciplinary action occurred at all), and was later shared with the Board, who also chose to do nothing.

The current leadership team (presumably minus the CMOs who have served since December, who to my knowledge were not part of the primary spaces this behavior took place) has not only allowed, but has actively and consistently participated in and encouraged, the abuse and harassment of disfavored community members across a lengthy period of time. 3/16: I have no access to know if this behavior has continued since I left. The group of people targeted the heaviest by this behavior includes nearly every Black, Brown, or Jewish person on the site, many openly trans members, and many neurodivergent members. To date, none of the site's current or recently former leaders have taken accountability for their actions. The victims of this behavior were and are being blamed for the site being in conflict.

A different former Director of Membership was removed from her role because she shared private information about a member she disliked with a student therapist friend in order to obtain a "diagnosis" which she then used to justify an unwarranted ban of that individual. It was just announced that this former Director of Membership is now the moderator in charge of disciplinary decisions in the community.

The CEO, COO, and former CMO (served until November) changed the rules to protect themselves, which they retroactively applied to suspend two members, one of whom they specifically dislike. Most recently, this meant shutting down the entire site for several months, dismissing the Head Moderator in favor of hiring someone known to support leadership (in full transparency: it is possible she may have been hired for the role had she applied for it, but she chose not to; I cannot speak for her, but given the conditions we were working in I cannot blame her for choosing to stand aside), trashing the updated Code of Conduct that the mod team had been tasked with creating (and that I put considerable effort and research into drafting) to address the issues the site was facing, and instead implementing a set of rules tailor-made to cover their own asses. This was done with the support of the Board despite the concerns and distress about Officer behavior expressed by a large portion of active membership.

(Note that most of these events happened just since September of last year, and from September 10th to December 7th, I was putting in 50+ hour weeks as a moderator trying to problem solve and hold the community together. I was personally in one of the spaces where unethical behavior occurred; I consistently and actively tried to put a damper on it despite resistance from officers, executives, and administrators. I put in the work, followed the chain of command to express my concerns, and ultimately left the site entirely because it was tearing me apart.)

I joined TarValon.Net in February of 2003, and I finally gave up the ghost this last December when I realized that neither the Board nor the Executive team were going to accept responsibility for the condition of the community.

In my 22 years of membership I gave them thousands of hours of volunteer service across dozens of roles, and thousands of dollars in open and anonymous donations (edit: to be clear and honest, some of these donations were to individual members or to support specific projects/events, not to the site's maintenance fund). I have made life long friends there. I once moved across the country to live with someone I met there. I have babysat for people I met there. I have loaned my car to people I met there. I have been a reference for people I met there, putting my own job and integrity on the line to help them get a leg up. I have helped members of that community escape abusive relationships. I've laughed, cried, been drunk, been sober, attended weddings...whatever it is a human can feel and do with a group of friends, I have felt and done it with at least one other person in that group, and often with many.

It has been profoundly painful to watch this small group of arrogant, selfish people tear that place of safety, service, and love into hateful dust for the sake of protecting their own pride. They are doing everything they possibly can (and then some) to bury their unethical and genuinely horrendous behavior where no one can see it, to protect the people they like, and to chase the people they dislike (and who might call out the truth) away. It is crazy-making to think that they're absolutely going to get away with it; after all, it's "just" a fandom community. Who cares?

All I can do, really, is tell the greater fandom community the truth about what happened in a place where the people destroying my former home-away-from-home can't delete my words. So...that's what I'm doing. Maybe I'll add more later? Maybe I'll leave it at this. Either way...at least some of it is out there.

Peace.

[the-garbanzo-annex-jr]

The New Jersey-based Palestinian American Community Center (PACC), a tax-exempt nonprofit with 501(c)(3) status, is set to hold its 7th annual conference from April 3-6, 2025, under the title “Grounded in Action: Exploring the Power of The Palestinian Diaspora.” The first three days will take place on site in New Jersey, while the fourth day will be held virtually. Among the featured speakers on day four is Wisam Rafeedie, a member of the U.S.-designated terror group the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).

Furthermore, Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib is scheduled to speak at one of the conference’s "Youth Day" events, to introduce young children to “resistance through storytelling.” Members of National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) and the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) are also set to speak at the conference.

Jewish Onliner contacted PACC for comment ahead of this article’s publication, specifically regarding the involvement of the PFLP’s Wisam Rafeedie. The organization did not respond to the request. However, following the inquiry, PACC appears to have taken steps to obscure Rafeedie’s involvement in the event.

The current conference page on PACC’s website no longer lists speaker names or images, aside from Rep. Rashida Tlaib and her son, whereas the full lineup was visible just days ago. Despite this change, publicly available posts on PACC’s Facebook page still displays Rafeedie’s image and lists him as a featured speaker.

Speaking to Jewish Onliner, Tom Fitton, President of the watchdog group Judicial Watch, remarked that “Federal law enforcement should be interested in this event.”

The PFLP’s Wisam Rafeedie

On the fourth day of the conference, PFLP member Wisam Rafeedie, is scheduled to speak virtually on the topic of “Centering Palestinian Political Prisoners.” In May, 2024, Rafeedie spoke virtually at the “People’s Conference for Palestine” where he defended Hamas’ Oct. 7th massacre and downplayed the well-documented atrocities committed by Hamas and other invaders.

Rafeedie also made statements such as, “Zionists lie like they breathe” and “There is no longer a place for the two-state solution for any Palestinian. The only solution is one democratic Palestinian state on all Palestinian land, which will end the Zionist project in Palestine.”

[ndostairlyrium]

OC Tag Game

I was tagged by beloved @greypetrel @shivunin and @dungeons-and-dragon-age 💛 thank you so much ;u; consider yourself tagged back, if you wanna do another one!

I'm tagging: @magspy @star--nymph and @saltyowlets

I'm totally going with Barbara, because I'm not giving him much love lately - but maybe I'll do other two later as well? Let's see how much spoons I have left tomorrow lol

Name: Walker Hawke, but you can't call him Walker

Alias: Hawke, Kerry, "That Nuisance", Barbara, "You!" (derogatory)

Gender: Cis man

Sexual orientation: Gay

Age: Around 35 in Inquisition

Spoken Language: Does Ferelden have a language other than Trade? Um, I'd say Trade and a little bit of Tevene. He's far from being a polyglot but he can bullshit gesture his way out of many situations

Occupation: Nuisance (former Champion of Kirkwall, he'll become mayor of whatever remains of Lothering after the events of Veilguard, as a treat 💅)

Favorite:

Color: That shade of green of Fenris' eyes, but also brick red, and navy blue

Entertainment: Pestering Templars until they get mad (and even after, most of the times), drinks and gaming nights with his besties, putting rotten fish inside Cullen's drawers, and training with Fenris - in general. Could be reading, could be physical training, could be the fun kind of physical training

Pastime: Tending to his minuscule garden, watching people fall down the pier with Isabela, smuggling that hideous fereldan ale Anders and Carver use to prepare in the first's clinic, breaking and entering, grand larce-

Food: Cheese, the stinky kind. But he's also a big fan of stews and veggie soups

Drink: That hideous fereldan ale Anders and Carver make, but also whatever alcoholic is around. When he stops abusing alcohol, he drinks a mixture of coffee and infused witherstalk to calm his cravings - Ankh's suggestion - along with very orange ginger drinks

Have They...

Passed University: His facebook bio says "graduated at the University of Life"

Had Sex: Yes

Had Sex in Public: Before Fenris, I think so. Unfortunately, he's drunk quite often. To be fair, it's not really his cup of tea so he doesn't brag about it when he remembers

Gotten tattoos: A whirlwind of feathers on his right arm, with as many hawk eyes as his dearly departed (four so far: his parents, Beth, and Dog), and three talons on his hand and fingers to symbolize he and his siblings

Gotten Piercings: A helix on his right ear, plus both lobes are pierced

Gotten Scarred: Yep, and he has many scars, but the most visible one is given by the broken nose, who he couldn't heal properly in time

Had a Broken Heart: His heart breaks very often and very easily, sadly

Been in Love: Multiple times

Are They...

A Cuddler: Heck yea! He likes to act like a blanket or a backpack when it comes to his loves, but he also wraps his friends like a coat whenever they match his energy <3

Scared Easily: Nope

Jealous Easily: Not easily, no, but he gets rather annoyed when someone gets too friendly around Fenris

Trustworthy: You can trust him with your life, but I wouldn't suggest it as he's doomed by the narrative lol

Family:

Parents/Siblings: ...I mean, we all know what's up with Hawke's family :'D Carver is the only one he's left with, but he's also a Warden in my canon worldstate so basically Barbara is alone with Do- um. About that...

Children: After the events of Veilguard I think he and Fenris plan to adopt, but he needs to get used to the life outside the Fade first, along with the amount of traumatic events that he accumulated without the chance of processing them. Parenting needs stability and even if he is like, the most stable among my protags, he's not fine

Pets: A Mabari mix named Dog, just Dog, during the events of DA2. He'll get another one after he moves back to Ferelden during Veilguard, probably a proud Mabari girl u-u

[sociocosmos]

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[russell-crowe]

Considering people were upset about missing the big northern lights event in May, here's a very early heads-up to pay attention on the night of October 4-5.

Last night, a major X7.1 solar flare peaked, which is the second strongest solar flare in the current solar cycle (the cycle our sun goes through roughly every 11 years). This has the potential to be another widespread aurora event, where many people will get to witness this magical phenomenon. However, since we're talking about space weather, there are always many variables that can either enhance or diminish the chances of it being visible.

Again, it’s too early to tell whether this will be nearly as spectacular as the event in May. But now that you're aware something could happen, here are some things you can do to be better prepared this time:

Follow local social media groups. There's a big Facebook group called "Northern Lights Alert," but there are also many local groups for specific countries and regions (e.g., Nordlysvarsel i Danmark, Stavanger Aurora Chasers, Copenhagen Aurora Hunters, Noorderlicht Nederland, etc.). Being part of these groups can help ensure you don't miss anything exciting when it's on the way!

Start making some loose plans. Is there a place nearby with a clear view to the north that you can reach by car or public transport? Is there light pollution where you're planning to go? Do you have warm clothes, a charged camera, a tripod, or a blanket in your car?

It’s possible that nothing spectacular will happen, but all of this will still be useful as the sun enters its most active period during the coming winter. So, be prepared, and you might get to see something wonderful! 💚

[madsworld15]

Letter to Gavin Creel

Dear Gavin,

I was in the middle of a major website project at work on Monday when I heard that you had passed away. For the first time in my life, I actually sobbed hysterically at the death of someone famous. When I say sobbed hysterically, I mean unable to focus on anything because my eyes were too wet and my chest was too tight. I hadn’t cried like this since the day my grandmother died four years ago.

You see, I don't usually get this visibly upset when people in the public sphere pass away. Sure, I was sad when people like Sondheim, Betty White, and Robin Williams died. But I've never been so upset that I couldn't function. That is just your impact on the world, for me and so many others.

The last time I saw you in person was in 2017 at the stage door of She Loves Me. Despite it having been years since then, I believe that if we’d met at a stage door or other event today, you’d still recognize me. Because that is the type of person you are. I guess were, now that you’ve passed, but I can’t find it in myself to talk of you in the past tense. It just doesn’t seem real that someone so full of life and immortal is no longer here with us, dancing through this thing called life.

You don’t know this, but I got to see you perform in my favorite musical, Into the Woods, when the tour came to Philadelphia in April of last year. It was a last-minute decision that fell on a weeknight, so I couldn’t stay late afterward to stage door. Of course, I thought to myself that I’d have plenty more opportunities to see you work your craft. Now that you’ve passed, I wish I had said “fuck it” to having to be at work the next day and stayed to chat with you.

Like so many of those who looked up to and admired you, I first discovered you when I was in HS watching Eloise at the Plaza. As a child, I had adored the Eloise books, so naturally, I was excited to see a film made about the precocious girl. Back then I had no idea who you were, just that your name was attached to the character of Bill. I adored Bill and his silly, over-the-top theatrics and became obsessed with watching the movie just for him – though Eloise was great, too.

Then, as a freshman in college, I started talking to this person from New York City through a mutual fan group on Facebook. She encouraged my very limited knowledge of musical theatre and introduced me to so many new things. One of them was a bootleg recording of Hair from 2009. The energy you exuded on stage was palpable, even from the grainy 2000s video.

At that point in my life, I was sure I would never get out of Kansas. I knew I was different and didn't fit in with the other people in my small-town Kansas community. By the time I left and moved to NY in 2013, I still wasn't sure what my identity was, but I was certain I belonged to the queer community. Upon arriving in New York, I quickly found myself immersed in the musical theatre community there.

One of the first shows I saw was The Book of Mormon. I would visit the theatre at least once a week, sometimes even twice. I didn't really have the finances to do that, but my mental health demanded comfort, and that show was where I found it. So, once or twice a week, I would play the lottery or do standing room.

By the time you moved from The Book of Mormon on the West End to Broadway, I was ready for you but also hesitant to love you because your predecessor, Nic Rouleau, had had such a profound impact on my mental health and self-worth. From the moment I met you, though, I knew I could never have any feelings other than love for you.

Sure, I already knew I loved you as a performer from the years of watching bootlegs of your performances, listening to your EPs, and loving you in Eloise. However, my connection and attachment to The Book of Mormon was so great that each time the leads switched, I had a hard time adjusting.

It was different with you, though. You immediately took me under your wing and made me know I was important to you. That first night, you forced me to hand over my phone for our photo, and you scrolled through filters until you found the one you wanted. Then you insisted we do silly faces, that serious faces weren't needed. It was as if you knew I needed comfort more than a professional stage door selfie.

Over the course of the year you were part of the Broadway company, we interacted many times. Every time you saw me, your face would light up, you'd insist on a silly photo, and then you'd ask me if I was doing okay and how work was going. You genuinely wanted to know. It was something that got me through those extremely dark days of working a job I hated but not knowing any other path I could go on.

I didn't ever tell you this, but those moments kept my suicidal thoughts during that time at bay. Knowing I could swing by the stage door at any time, whether I'd seen the show or not, and talk to you was what got me through. We never talked about anything profound or world-changing, but you asking me about my day and encouraging me to find my passion changed my whole life.

After you left Mormon, I didn't see you again until the final days of She Loves Me. I fully expected you to not remember who I was, but you did. Once again, your smile grew at the sight of me, and you made a joke while wiggling your face to emphasize the mustache on your face. I wish I'd taken more time to tell you about my life that day. To connect more with you, but I didn't.

I had no way of knowing that would be the last time I would see you perform for many years. Not long after that, my finances took a major hit, and I moved to NJ, making trips to Broadway a bit harder to accomplish. So, I wasn't able to see you in Waitress or Hello, Dolly. But, man, did I want to. I did have the chance to watch clips of you in these shows and bask in the glory of your singing voice and stage presence, even if it was from afar.

I started to understand myself more clearly and made friends who helped me find an identity that made sense to me. Then, 2020 hit, and I suffered quite a few losses in my family. I struggled to keep my head above water, but my queer friends reminded me that there were things worth living for. Through these friendships, I started to find my way out of the mess I was in and found joy in musical theatre again. I started to listening to your personal music and the cast albums of your shows. It wasn't the only music I listened to, but it helped me get through the most.

Then, Into the Woods happened. By this time, I had started to be a co-leader in a local Tri-State Queer group. We would all get together and talk about TV, Broadway, Music, and Movies. It was so rejuvenating. A group of us got tickets to see Into the Woods on Broadway, but I couldn't be part of that due to finances. However, my best friend works for Ticket Philadelphia, so he promised that I could go with him when it came to Philadelphia on tour.

And that brings us to the close of this letter. I got to see you exude that joy all over the stage one last time in Into the Woods on Tour. It was one of the best nights of my life. Your performance of Agony will live on in my memories forever. As will your performance of I Believe in The Book of Mormon.

I never got around to telling you this in person, so I will say it now: Thank you so much for all the moments in my life that your presence or your voice got me through. Your passion for life and love was always awe-inspiring, and it's what I will carry with me through the years. We all deserved to see you do so much more in the world of Broadway, musical theatre, and beyond. Life truly is unfair, but I'm grateful for what I was able to experience with you.

Rest easy, dance often, and spread your sunshine from the beyond.

Mads

[coochiequeens]

If gay men booked the site for one weekend why couldn't transmen and gay allies book for an inclusive weekend some other time? Now a campsite that provided a space for gay men is now losing campers over the trans issue.

April 2, 2025

Houston Bears announced last weekend they were cancelling a planned event at Grizzly Pines in Navasota. A second group, RGV Bears, has since announced that it also cancelled an event planned at the campground

Houston Bears announced in a written statement released last weekend that the organization has cancelled its annual Bear Camp event, which had been set to take place in May at Grizzly Pines, a clothing-optional campground serving the gay community which has, as the website notes in all caps, a “MEN ONLY” policy.

In explaining the decision to cancel, the Houston Bears announcement says, “A community member recently inquired if they could attend Bear Camp at Grizzly Pines because the member thought that Grizzly Pines had a policy of not allowing transgender men to stay at their facilities.

The statement then reiterates that Houston Bears “welcome and celebrate all men, cisgender and transgender, at our events. … The idea of having an event where we would be forced to tell some of our members ‘not you’ is incompatible with our values.”

The statement notes that Houston Bears asked the Grizzly Pines management if they would suspend the “no trans” policy just for Bear Camp, but Grizzly Pines management declined. “We had hoped a successful event would demonstrate to them the value of being all men inclusive. Grizzly Pines, however, has opted to keep their policy in place,” the statement notes.

Houston Bears went on to say the organization “appreciates [Grizzly Pines’] understanding” regarding their decision to cancel the event and that the Houston organization “remain[s] open to working with [the campground] in the future if the policy is rescinded.”

Read the statement in its entirety on the Houston Bears Facebook page.

Houston Bears rescheduled the 2025 Bear Camp for May 16-18 at Rainbow Ranch Campground in Groesbeck. Visit the Houston Bears Facebook page or website for information.

The management for Grizzly Pines responded with a public statement on Monday, March 31 (which, by the way, was National Transgender Visibility Day), saying that Houston Bears knew “full well of our policy regarding trans-men well in advance of their organization booking their dates” for Bear Camp.

“This policy has been in place for more than ten years and it has never been hidden or kept from public, a fact that the Houston Bears have been fully aware of since the beginning,” the Grizzly Pines statement claims. “… We would also like to apologize for any misunderstanding or confusion their new stronger support for the trans community has caused anyone. This was never an issue with their board in the past when they scheduled their events with us and quite honestly came as a last minute surprise.”

The Grizzly Pines statement goes on to say the campground has always aimed to “provide a safe, affirming and liberating space exclusively for cis gender men — a place where community is built around shared lived experiences, comfort and connection. … We fully support and respect the broader LGBTQ community including our trans siblings and we believe there is room within the world for a wide variety of spaces that celebrate the richness and diversity of our identities. However, Grizzly Pines exits [sic] as a private niche retreat and its purpose is not to serve as a one size fits all solution for the entire LGBTQ+ spectrum.”

The statement continues by saying the “no trans men” policy is rooted in “preservation of a shared experience,” “comfort and vulnerability,” “focus, not exclusion” and the “right to define our community.”

Dallas Voice could not find where Grizzly Pines originally posted its statement online and it is reported that the campground has removed the statement. But the statement in its entirety is posted on the Facebook page of John Anderson, a former Dallasite now living in New Orleans and founder of Gay Camping Friends, which Anderson said is the largest LGBTQ+ outdoor community in the world, with more than 231,000 members.

Anderson this week condemned Grizzly Pines’ exclusion of trans men, saying in a Facebook post that he hopes “this latest backlash will help all campgrounds re-evaluate their policies on trans inclusion.”

He continued, “Gay Camping Friends is thinking about taking additional action in our group against all campgrounds that exclude trans people. We aren’t sure what that looks like, yet — but these are changing times, and if you can’t let trans men into a male only campground. you don’t share the values that Gay Camping Friends holds.

“I am calling on all male only campgrounds to accept trans men.” John Anderson, founder, Gay Camping Friends

RGV Bears, a Rio Grande Valley group, has expressed support for trans men and for the Houston Bears’ decision, announcing that RGV Bears is also canceling an event that had been scheduled at Grizzly Pines.

A post on the RGV Bears Facebook page notes: “To our RGV Teddy Bear trans members, we will create events that we can continue to enjoy together in siblinghood (bearhood).”

Dallas Voice has reached out to Dallas Bears, host of the annual Texas Bear Round-Up, for comment but has not yet heard from the group.

Dallas Voice is also aware of some serious allegations made in social media posts regarding a member of the Grizzly Pines staff. Because we have not yet had time to verify those allegations, we will not be printing them here.

— Tammye Nash

Of course gay men could afford to be accomadating to trans men. A biological woman in a space for gay men doesn't pose a threat. It might be awkward but not threatening. I wouldn't put it past the TQ+ to use this as a gotcha against women wanting their own space. A TIM in a space for women can do far more than just make things awkward.

[chartreuxcatz]

What the helllll I follow a Facebook page so I know what queer events are happening in my area but it turns out they had a Trans Day of Visibility event nearby that they DIDNT ADVERTISE ON FACEBOOK??? Was the public not allowed???? I would've loved to drive 15 minutes to listen to trans people speak about recent news and their experiences, as opposed to driving 30 to stand in the cold with no gloves 😭

[webpinosoftwares]

Top Organic Social Media Marketing Strategies to Boost Your Audience Without Paid Ads

In today’s competitive digital landscape, growing a social media audience without paid ads is a key goal for many businesses. Organic growth fosters authentic connections, boosts long-term engagement, and builds trust. Below are some essential social media marketing tips to grow your audience organically:

1. Create Share-Worthy Content

To attract attention and encourage sharing, your content must stand out. Highly visual and emotionally engaging content is more likely to be shared, expanding your organic reach.

How to create share-worthy content:

Use eye-catching visuals like infographics, videos, and memes.

Evoke emotions — funny, inspiring, or thought-provoking content performs better.

Offer value by educating or entertaining your audience.

2. Leverage User-Generated Content (UGC)

User-generated content is a powerful way to expand your audience authentically. Encouraging customers to share their experiences builds trust and extends your reach.

How to leverage UGC:

Run contests or giveaways encouraging followers to tag your brand.

Share or repost customer reviews, photos, or testimonials.

3. Optimize Your Profile for Conversions

Your social media marketing strategy should start with optimizing your profile. A well-crafted profile can convert casual visitors into followers.

Profile optimization tips:

Write a clear, keyword-optimized bio.

Include a call-to-action (CTA) and website link.

Use branded visuals for your profile picture and cover photo.

Read More: Social Media Profile Optimization Tips — Learn how to craft a high-converting social media bio.

4. Post Consistently

Consistency is essential for keeping your audience engaged. Platforms reward active accounts with more visibility, so regular posting helps grow your audience.

Steps to maintain consistency:

Use a content calendar to schedule posts.

Experiment with posting times to discover when your audience is most active.

Mix up content types with images, videos, and stories.

5. Engage Directly with Your Audience

Engagement is a cornerstone of effective social media marketing. Directly interacting with followers strengthens relationships and encourages further interaction, boosting visibility.

Ways to increase engagement:

Respond to comments, mentions, and DMs quickly.

Ask questions or start conversations in your posts.

Host polls, surveys, or live Q&A sessions.

You’ll Love: Top Engagement Strategies for Social Media — Proven tactics to increase follower interaction.

6. Use Hashtags Wisely

Hashtags help improve the discoverability of your content. However, the key is using them strategically rather than overloading your posts.

Best practices for hashtags:

Use tools to find relevant, trending hashtags.

Create a branded hashtag for followers to use.

Combine broad and niche hashtags to reach different audience segments.

7. Collaborate with Micro-Influencers

Micro-influencers, with their smaller but highly engaged audiences, are an excellent way to grow organically. Collaborations with them help you tap into their dedicated followers.

How to collaborate with micro-influencers:

Partner for giveaways or joint promotions.

Invite them for a social media takeover.

Co-create content that appeals to both audiences.

8. Cross-Promote on Different Platforms

Don’t limit yourself to one platform. Cross-promotion helps you expand your audience by sharing content across multiple social channels.

Cross-promotion strategies:

Share content on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn with tailored messages.

Promote your social channels in blog posts, emails, and YouTube videos.

9. Foster a Community Around Your Brand

Building a community is vital for audience retention. By creating a sense of belonging, you inspire loyalty and encourage followers to spread the word about your brand.

Tips for building a community:

Create private groups on Facebook or LinkedIn.

Host live events, webinars, or virtual meetups.

Be authentic and responsive to your followers.

10. Measure and Adjust Your Strategy

Tracking your performance is essential to improving your social media marketing tips. Use analytics to monitor key metrics and adjust your strategy based on data.

Metrics to track:

Engagement rate (likes, comments, shares).

Follower growth over time.

Content performance to see which formats work best.

By using these social media marketing tips, you can grow your audience without relying on paid ads, while building a strong, loyal community around your brand. @webpinosoftwares