I am being bullied, how can you help?

  • Updated

At Patreon, we are creating a safe place for creators to connect with their patrons. We want to build a community where everyone feels welcome and free to share their ideas and content. This means that there might be times you disagree with someone or even feel insulted by someone’s opinions. That can happen, we can have constructive disagreements. However, if you ever feel like you are being bullied or harassed, we want to make sure that you have the tools to protect yourself.

First things first, you can visit our community guidelines to learn more about our philosophy. As you'll realise, we are an inclusive group of people, but there is no room for bullying, hate speech or threats of violence on Patreon.

If you ever need to contact us because someone has violated our guidelines, make sure you collect as much evidence as possible and file a report. We will need documentation in order to make an informed decision. This can come in the form of screenshots, links or any other type of proof you may have. If you want us to take a look at videos, make sure to add a timestamp or part of the transcript. The Trust and Safety team takes every report seriously, but we might not be able to take action on your report if you don’t provide a timestamp.

If we can confirm that there is a breach of our guidelines, we will contact the creator and take appropriate action, but we won’t normally share details with the reporter. That said, even if our decision will not be shared with you, filling in the report form is the best way for you to help us keep our community safe.  

Other than contacting us, there are a few things that you can do if you feel that you are being harassed, bullied or the victim of hate speech online. This advice is the same for all social media.

While you should limit your communication with the abuser, don’t be afraid to ask them to stop contacting or mentioning you clearly.  

Once you have done so, block the person or the group of people bullying you. More often than not, not answering an attack is the best way to stop it, as often the perpetrator will get tired if they can’t trigger their desired reaction.

If at any point you fear for your safety, don’t be afraid to contact your local authorities and file a police report. While there is a lot of work to be done in the field of Internet abuse, we can only pave the way to more safety online if victims speak up.  

Lastly, talk about it to a friend or someone you can trust – you are never alone, so don’t let this incident bring you down or question your value.

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