I actually wasn’t even talking about the cast mocking fanfiction, they’ve been pretty good about that, but people within the fandom that have been shaming other fans for writing or reading it. As though it makes you a lesser person for participating.

Ahhhhhhhh, that.  Yes.

That always bemuses me.  I mean, I would think that if participating in fandom taught you one thing, it would be how crappy and not-okay it is to be silenced and excluded because of the things you like.

I don’t actually understand how somebody can be in fandom and not see that if it isn’t okay for people to do that to you, then it’s not okay for you to do that to others.  Nobody’s saying that you have to be into what they’re into, or even expose yourself to it, but so long as they’re not hurting others, everyone deserves to have a space and a voice.

And the fans who are into things that they know aren’t the standard are usually the ones who are the most respectful about not shoving it under the noses of people who don’t want to see it.