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Disclaimer Any opinions expressed on Misplaced Pages, sister projects or in tweets and blog posts are mine and do not represent the opinion of Wikimedia UK or any other organization that I am affiliated with. – Fæ

Just quit already

You're gonna burn in this world and the next! Best admin evar ! Ash=Fae=F4g (talk) 04:43, 27 January 2012 (UTC)

This comment fits a coordinated pattern I have seen of personal homophobic harassment directed against me over the last month on Twitter, Misplaced Pages Review, email, Wikimedia Commons and Misplaced Pages. I would like those that keep an eye on my user page to take note and reflect on whether the harassment policies we have for the Wikimedia projects are able to act effectively or efficiently when anonymous accounts, low contribution sock puppet accounts and manipulative traveling circuses are used to attack members of our community. Not all such attacks are as obvious as this one. Thanks Fæ (talk) 08:23, 27 January 2012 (UTC)

• Just my 2 cents, I would have just WP:RBI and this thread wouldn't have existed to manifest that further. --Dave 09:38, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

• Too many people would not believe that this kind of talk exists if they did not see it. People who are not LGBT supporters do not have this happen to them. This has happened to me also on Misplaced Pages and it is scary that people would use their short time on this earth to harass other people. Hiding it in an attempt to keep it from manifesting further is what people have done for most of history, and that has proven to be an incomplete solution. I do not know what the whole solution is, but raising awareness of this reality is part of it. If it were an isolated random incident I would say to delete it, but it is not productive to ask the victims of a persistent, pervasive problem to do their best to prevent public disclosure of it. Blue Rasberry (talk) 14:23, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

• True, but not applying WP:DENY (part of WP:RBI) is just playing right into their hands, no? Moral of the story, why play the victim card? In the 1969 film "Battle of Britain", an irritated ACM Sir Hugh Dowding said: "I'm not very interested in propaganda. If we're right, they'll give up. If we are wrong, they'll be in London in a week!" --Dave 14:46, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

Where I live if anyone spoke those words publicly or graffiti'd them then then no one would say that Fæ was insulted or a victim of vandalism; they would say that he was threatened and the target of a hate crime. Of course things are different at the keyboard but this behavior is representative of deeper problems on Misplaced Pages and as Fæ says there ought to be conversation about other protections. A part of the LGBT rights movement as well as other rights movements for face, religion, and other traits facing discrimination dictates calling for wider recognition of the prejudice against people representing minorities. Fæ is not playing a victim card; he is acting in accord with the movement consensus that allies of minority groups should tell others details about targeted attacks so that more people can understand that this is not a problem that any attack recipient has, but rather a problem which the community has to address. If the community does not hear about it then there can be no community response.

The vandals which ought to be ignored are the ones who are likely to go away. Fæ's situation is extraordinary because among other things it includes attacks off Misplaced Pages. It may not be socially appropriate for him to say that for humility or for not wanting to disturb anyone with his problems, but I confirm that what he is experiencing is hostile for reasons unrelated to his Misplaced Pages behavior. Even if attacks cannot be stopped he should get community support beyond what Misplaced Pages policies say should be afforded to those visited by mere vandals. Blue Rasberry (talk) 16:33, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

I am sorry this is happening to you

What you are going through is simply beyond awful. It's gruesome enough to watch. It really is a slow motion poofter bashing. That said, you are conducting yourself with great dignity. Many have forgotten that you are not really a Wikipedian or an Administrator or anything like that. You are a person. With feelings and all that stuff. Whatever happens, I want you to know that somebody understands that. I really am very sorry. I wish I could do more. --MtD (talk) 16:23, 27 January 2012 (UTC)

The time and thought you've given to Misplaced Pages proves how much you care about it, I sincerely hope you can disengage your feelings now and watch with a degree of detachment as all this manoeuvering plays out. It's very upsetting because you're a great admin, but it doesn't matter because - as Matty says - your actual life is what counts. Exok (talk) 21:31, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

A barnstar for you!

	The Resilient Barnstar
	Hang in there. You definitely do not deserve the personal and horrific comments thrown at you. Wildthing61476 (talk) 04:22, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

A kitten for you!

A kitten for you for all the hard work you've done.

LauraHale (talk) 08:26, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

Misplaced Pages:Requests_for_comment/Fæ

I am letting you know that a discussion about you and your actions being extremely similar to a possibly past account operated by you under User:Ash has been opened. I am an uninvoved editor who is not participating in this but I thought you'd like to know that your account was created around the time User:Ash quit. Should this former account not belong to you, it is best you comment here immediately as this seems very suspicious. I thought it be best to let you know about this.—cyberpower (Chat)(WP Edits: 513,185,877) 21:01, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

I in fact have just received an invitation to this today, myself. At this point I do not recall where I discussed something to do with you, but am attempting to find this out. (I have since found out it was from a WP:AN discussion in archive 712, where I merely commented to another user moreso than on the thread itself. CycloneGU (talk) 23:47, 28 January 2012 (UTC)]] However, as you never received a notification yourself on initial skimming of your pages (of course you may have removed the notice from your page for all I know), I am letting you know that this has existed for three days now and your visit to the RfC in question would be encouraged. CycloneGU (talk) 22:34, 28 January 2012 (UTC)

I wish you the best

I am very sorry that you are subjected to attention that must be painful to you. Although I believe that it would be best for Misplaced Pages if you were to relinquish your administratorship, my belief is not based on your sexual orientation. I hope that you will stay an active editor, and will continue contributing on a wide range of topics including LGBT ones. I deeply regret the personal anguish that I am certain you must be feeling at this time. I appreciate all of the positive things you have done for this worthy project and I wish you well. Cullen Let's discuss it 06:07, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

I cannot believe anyone would write such a note

Fae, is arguably one of the top Wikipedians in the UK. He represents the UK in the Houses of Parliment and talks to major institutions on behalf of the movement. He enjoys the trust of everyone who knows him. There appears to be a group of editors who are creating a witch hunt for the smell of a conspiracy. Fae has many supporters who do not like to lower themselves to debating with these people. We also spend a lot of time editing rather than debating trivia. If we allow good editors and people who fly the flag fot the movement to be driven from our midst then the process is wrong. Victuallers (talk) 10:20, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

• Correct me if I got this wrong, my view of this whole debacle now is that the people who are waging this new campaign against Fæ is against him holding an authoritative position on Misplaced Pages and to some extent... Wikimedia. If we simply let Fæ step down from his official position, we'll know what other games these detractors are actually up to... or, that their main grievance was exactly what I've stated herein. Again, just my 2 cents. Best. --Dave 10:49, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

"If we simply let Fæ step down from his official position," we'll sacrifice the effectiveness of the community and organisation and satisfy those who are on a witch-hunt for whatever reason. Doesn't seem like a good idea. Let's see what the RFC process yields. MartinPoulter (talk) 12:00, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

• IMO, doesn't look too good. --Dave 12:52, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

There are two specific viewpoints that somewhat clash with each other. The one calling for Fae to hold a reconfirmation RfA seems to be winning out, which is natural since it was created a full day before the other viewpoint. We need to let the entire RfC play out, however, and see what the final decision is on what will be done. I have personally argued that, if anything were to happen, the most that can be done at this point is to argue for a desysop. This is typically based on administrative behaviour, and I recall a WP:AN discussion about Fae leading to this RfC.

Note also I have no prejudice against this user's sexual orientation. That is none of the community's business, frankly. CycloneGU (talk) 15:40, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

• Agreed, it is none of the community's concern but keeping quiet about past facts and issues does play into the part of "coming back to haunt" when one least expects it. Not that I doubt Fæ's competence as an Admin but laying one's indignant past stark naked in-front of the cynical mass would have helped win some supporters and gain some good will in that process, it would have been a more sensible thing to do if one is to not expect to carry around hidden baggage, or as some call it... a time-bomb that will go off once triggered. That is indeed unfortunate but I guess one has to live with one's decision in not doing something sometime, no? --Dave 15:58, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

Question about your RfA

I apologize in advance for raising a matter that may be unpleasant. I am asking you this question here on your talk page as it does not depend on the context of the current RFC/U and the concerns raised by others there. You stated in your RfA that you took the option of a clean start after an RFC/U. Your use of the word "after" could reasonably have lead RfA participants to believe that the RFC/U had run its course before you began editing under your current username and stopped using your old account. Such an action would be seen more favorably than a scenario where you stopped editing with your old account while an RFC/U was underway, avoiding scrutiny and possibly causing the RFC/U to fail or to be put on hold.

Was the RFC/U that you mentioned in your RfA in fact completed when you made your clean start, or not?

As I am not asking you to identify any previous account, I consider this a proper question which the policy WP:ADMINACCT obliges you to answer.

Thanks. ReverendWayne (talk) 15:57, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

For the sake of full disclosure, this also forms a viewpoint by ReverendWayne in the discussion. CycloneGU (talk) 16:24, 29 January 2012 (UTC)

A barnstar for you!

The Tireless Contributor Barnstar

Fæ, keep up all the good work, and don't let the bastards get you down! I notice that while the bloodhounds have been expending all their time on this ugly campaign of hatred, you have managed to continue with the real work of Misplaced Pages, quietly and with dignity. You have a phenomenal record of new page patrolling and fighting vandalism, and you have made many invaluable contributions to GLAM outreach; these are the things that you should be judged on, not what you may have done in a previous existence. BabelStone (talk) 00:57, 30 January 2012 (UTC)

I will second this FWIW. I in fact fear what kind of precedent this recent crap could set for WP:CLEANSTART and how this could affect future admin. requests, and such, on the English Misplaced Pages. CycloneGU (talk) 01:52, 30 January 2012 (UTC)

Statement with regard to Karrine Steffans article

This was my statement by email to John Vandenburg by email on the 21st July 2011: "Steffans was highlighted via IGLOO, due to a 'references removed' tag and ended up on my watch-list back in January after I reverted the anon IP vandalism and then ignored until April when it was vandalised again. It's not the sort of article I would have noticed otherwise. I completely agree that I allowed myself to go on to get wound up when engaging in discussion and failed properly to follow my own advice of DENY, actions that I certainly regret and missed the opportunity to set an example that would have helped the situation."

Could I reverse the clock, I would leave a conciliatory apology to summarize the reasons for my withdrawal with Aaron Brenneman rather than just ending the discussion. I take this opportunity to make a personal apology to Aaron if he felt the matter was unresolved and he was left unhappy with the outcome. If he has any recommendations for further improvement for my contributions I would welcome them.

As others have observed, the related dispute about sources got heated and it could have been handled better by me. I have made 84,584 edits as Fæ and a further 20,952 by bot over the last 23 months, including a large number of biographies and some contentious ones such as Dan Savage and Yolanda Soares. I hope that these demonstrate that this incident was a rare slip away from exemplary contributions that are fully in line with our shared values of the Five pillars.

I feel I have learned a lot by devoting so much of my time over the last 2 years to the projects, and would like to have the chance to continue making contributions here to the overall good. I would hope to be able to do that whilst being open about being in a civil partnership and having my full legal name on the public record as a trustee of the Wikimedia UK charity. I recognize that it is a very sad fact of life that being gay and an unpaid charity trustee, undesirable elements might always find anonymous way to shout "faggot", I may always be sent material lobbying for gays to be put to death, I may have details of my personal life and that of my husband ridiculed and I may continue to have false allegations and personal threats published off-wiki and emailed to organizations I work with. I do not expect gay people and those that contribute to LGBT topics on the Wikimedia projects to be treated in such a vile manner on a regular or routine basis, I hope our collaborative space on the internet can become a safer environment for all contributors who share the vision of preserving knowledge for the public benefit. I reach out to all of you to make that possible. Thank you --Fæ (talk) 07:57, 30 January 2012 (UTC)