allegations
Whenever I see a creator having to respond to allegations, I wonder what I would do. I’m inclined to believe the victim, but what would I do if I was hit with allegations that aren’t true? Supposedly, someone from my past came out with accusations of whatever and it’s a lie, what would even be sensible to do?
A lot of responses to accusations just seem defensive. And a lot of things can’t be proven or disproven with screenshots and chat logs. Maybe you don’t have them anymore anyway, or you don’t wanna share that info. Offering receipts also often requires you to share detailed private and embarrassing info about the liar, and it feels wrong, like you’re stooping to their level.
A lot of people say courts should decide, but not every issue or allegation can be brought before court; it’s also expensive, exhausting, and time consuming. Those allegations could be out there unchallenged for months or years, and get burned into people‘s minds, while the court decision might be buried and not get as much attention. Many people who were vaguely aware about the whole affair may never hear about the outcome and just remember that person was vaguely bad in some way and should be avoided. Not to mention that people don’t verify that stuff anymore and just tell each other “so-and-so is an abuser and thief” and the response is just “oh okay thanks for telling me” instead if asking for details.
The common sentiment seems to be “you shouldn’t be worried if you haven’t done anything” and I guess? Technically? I still worry sometimes about what I’d do just in case someone lies or remembers things differently than I do. It doesn’t have to be something super bad either.
And what if it’s true, but I changed? Would people believe me that I changed? For example, I used to ghost a lot, with blocking and all, a whole disappearing act. But I haven’t done that in years. If someone would come forward and say “I knew her back when, she’s a cruel and callous bitch who throws people away when she doesn’t need them anymore.” What would I say? That’s the cruelest misinterpretation of my actions that I could think of, at least. Because that was never my reason or intent, but if someone wanted revenge or was simply very hurt by my ghosting, that’s what they could turn it into. Would it be enough to apologize for my actions and say that I’ve changed?