YouTube both changed and saved my life. I was in a dark place when I started posting videos at the young age of 13. I was in this dark place when I became friends with other middleschoolers and highschoolers who all had a common love and passion for music, film, acting, editing, and self-expression. Most of the kids posting online seemed to also be in this dark place that I knew too well. Whether it was bullying at school, family problems at home, being confused about sexuality, or just having nobody “in real life” to connect with about this one hobby we all had, we all accepted each other. To this day I’m still best friends with someone I became friends with in December 2010 over YouTube inbox, and I get to visit him in Los Angeles every year, as he has become extremely successful. I traveled across the country from Maryland to Anaheim, California to attend Vidcon in 2013. I was a guest at PressPlay Philly in 2014. I attended Digi Fest NYC in 2014. I have done incredible things because of my experiences with YouTube. Though I do not make videos anymore, I still keep contact with many friends I’ve made over the past seven years of living this “internet life.” It led me to the major I’m studying. It introduced me to the world of communications, public relations, film, advertising, promotions, and more. Plus, I always took pride in how accepting we were as friends to each other. Depressed? Suicidal? Gay? Anorexic? Failed your test at school? Got in a fight with your mom? It’s okay; we’re here for you. That’s what it was always like. Nothing mattered to us except for support and keeping everyone happy and healthy. We would all sit on Skype, Oovoo, or iChat for hours and just talk. We would chat with our viewers on live streams, on Twitter, responding to PO Box mail, and just by replying to comments. Our friendships and fandoms were our safe havens.

But now, YouTube has decided to censor LGBTQ+ videos and I am completely and totally ashamed to have been a part of this organization. I’m actually glad that I stopped making videos, because I’d be mortified to be publishing content that would be monetized and would help YouTube make more money after they’ve decided to add these restrictions. Now if you don’t really know what the restrictions are, allow me to explain.

The YouTube creators released a statement that in part, says, “the intention of Restricted Mode is to filter out mature content for the tiny subset of users who want a more limited experience.”

So the diverse, vibrant, lively, and accepting community I grew to know, love, and be a part of has now decided to formally censor some of the most powerful voices in the world to cater to a “tiny subset” of users? All this does is hurt the entire community. Nobody even knows how the Restricted Mode algorithm works yet, but all it’s doing is negatively affecting both creators and their viewers.

Fix your shit, YouTube. I’ve had enough of this. You’re supposed to be the accepting platform for people to use their voice and express themselves no matter what, and you’ve officially ruined that.