Alright, Odyssey. You got me. I'm finally writing one of these "open letters".

So, dear my fellow writers:

I am one of you. I’ve been writing for the Odyssey for over a year now, and overall, I enjoy it. I’m sure you do too, for similar reasons: we get to express our opinions on everything from holidays to presidential candidates, get experience in writing, and share our articles across our social media platforms. Many of us plan on going into a career that involves writing, so this is good for us. Right?

Right...to an extent.

First of all, the Odyssey is not a journalism website. No one is fact-checking us. We aren't getting paid. Most of us don't even report the news. The Odyssey is a blog website, and that's fine (an article doesn't have to be serious to be good) but let's not make it more than it is.

It seems like every time I go to the Odyssey homepage, I find more and more upsetting articles. I’m not saying every article has to be one that I agree with; what makes the Odyssey so great is that we all can express ourselves. However, there’s a difference between a disagreement and factually incorrect, poorly researched, hateful, or ignorant articles.

When you write about why you think feminism is so overrated, or why white privilege doesn’t exist, does it occur to you that these aren’t issues you can sum up in 500 words? That these issues are complex and require research, and, if your article can be proven wrong with just a few minutes of research, it's not a well-written article?

"But it’s my opinion!" you say.

Well, saying it's your opinion is not a free pass. This isn’t a case of chocolate or vanilla ice cream or which "Harry Potter" book is your favorite. These are issues that affect real people every day. Your opinion is not fact, and not all opinions have to be respected. It may be your opinion that queer people don't need more representation in the media (see the dozens of articles about #GiveCaptainAmericaABoyfriend and #GiveElsaAGirlfriend written by straight people) but that doesn't make it true--in fact there are multiple studies about why representation of minorities in pop culture is important. It may be your belief that abortion is morally wrong, but does that make it okay for you to write an article calling women who get abortions "baby killers," especially when you don't back it up with sources?

There are things you do not have the authority to comment on. A straight person does not have the right to decide what is and isn’t good for the LGBTQ+ community, because straight people are the reason the LGBTQ+ community is oppressed to begin with. If you're white, stop writing about why you think #BlackLivesMatter is wrong. You can write about your experience as an ally, but you do not get to comment on these issues because you do not have the authority. You don’t know more about it than the people have live through it every day, whether “it” is homophobia, racism, sexism, or ableism, or any of the other horrible things people go through.

"But I have freedom of speech!" you say.

Sure you do, but free speech doesn’t mean you can say whatever you want without consequences. You can't make unsubstantiated claims, not back them up, and the cite the First Amendment. It doesn't cover spreading misinformation, hate speech, bigotry, or just plain ignorance.

Imagine, if you will, losing someone close to you, and then seeing an article on why you shouldn’t be upset. Meanwhile, the author has never experienced what you went through. Imagine someone telling you why your life, your emotions, are invalid or wrong, but they have no experience on the subject. If you lost a pet, you wouldn't want someone like me, who has never owned a pet, to write an article about how to get over it or why it's not big deal.There are some lines you don’t cross, and some things you don’t touch. Even if you are, for example, a woman writing about why we don’t need feminism, a few minutes spent on Google will show you what feminism is actually about and why we do need it.

Researching applies to listicles and less serious articles too. Even an article as arbitrary as a how-to for a Disney vacation or a list of fun things to do over winter break requires some Googling. Research can only improve your work, and maybe expand your worldview in the process.

If you want to be a journalist, then be a journalist. Research what you plan to write about. Talk to people. Realize that you do not have the authority to comment on certain topics. Realize that this isn’t a bad thing. There are a million and one things for you to write about, and that you can use to write successful articles.

I have seen great articles on the Odyssey. I'm not writing this because I don't want to be a part of the Odyssey; I have to get this out there because I care about the future of the Odyssey. I care about the way we're perceived and what content is being put forth to represent us.

But Chrissi, you say, after reading this whole article, I still think you’re wrong, and I’m going to write about whatever I want, and you’re just going to have to get over it!

Well, I don’t need to write an entire article to respond to that.

The only response to someone calling you ignorant is to educate yourself. So if you care about the Odyssey as much as I do, find topics that you're passionate about and do your research on them. Be considerate about what you're submitting, and think it through. Fact-check yourself. It will only make you a better writer, and hopefully a better person, and that's something we all want to become.