Being Active

I do a lot on Second Life, much of it with a goal of increasing the overall visibility of child and family role playing on the grid. With all the negative media coverage we've had to endure, I've felt it necessary to increase the amount of positives out there. Plus, well, it's a bit of what I do in the real world, so it's something I'm pretty familiar with doing.

To tootle my own horn, I've recently been the subject of a big interview on New World Notes (thanks to my win in their Uncanny Valley contest), I was a guest on Tonight Live with Paisley Beebe, and I am part of a group art show in the popular Cannery Rezzable sim. I also try to maintain a high profile in the Second Life Forums, the LiveJournal "second_lifers" group, flickr, and Snapzilla, attend Linden office hours, and keep up my "M2 4 Kids" page in the Metaverse Messenger newspaper. I would like to think all this has helped to make people think better of us kids, by using myself as an example.

The down side of this, however, is that many have only seen me. Their entire concept of kids is based around the idea that all kids are, well, a lot like me -- and we all know that isn't the case. There's at least one other gender out there, lots of other species, and about a hundred billion trillion different kinds of kids to be had.

The SLC officers, I know, are all very visible, and we have others amongst the overall SL kid world who have gained some visibility. Yet I encourage each of you, within our own comfort zones of course, to do your own part of being visible. Consider the following:

* The Second Life forums or other sites like SLUniverse or LiveJournal could always use other kids, especially because regular discussions of child avatars can and do come up. We're all valid members of Second Life, and all "belong." Speaking up and letting all them know you exist can help them see just what us kids are all bout

* Flickr and Snapzilla for photos, and YouTube for video, are great places to post a visiual record of who you are and what you do in Second Life. I personally have used a video from Camp HardKnock many times to show people just some of the things us kids are capable of, and it has helped people to recosider their feelings towards us. Ditto with my still photos. You can use most of these sites for free, and they also serve as good spots to store some of your inworld memories, too.

* Linden office hours. I regularly attend Torley Linden's office hours, and try to make the office hours of the governance team, but there's many others I'm not able to hit. Being seen at these meetins is no sure fire way to avoid some future changesin Linden policy, of course, but they do help to humanize us, and make kids something other than "that thing."

* Just be yourself. Being seen out and about, doing what you do, can be the most effective thing ever. Let people out there see that kids in SL are well, just being kids and having fun and all that.

Just a quick messege

Hey Loki here, i havent posted on this blog for a while. Thanx to marianne for keeping it going and well done in that competition thing. I know some think one story on one blog explaining what it can be like for us kids when our peaceful playful world gets disrupted by ignorance wont change anything. But over time these things are going to get talked about more and more.

Next year id like to do alot more stuff just for you kid avs. ive spent alot of time on my steampunk projects lately but still hear what you lot are up to. It would be kool if we could get you lot to show off what your doing. we are a large community and i think it would be great if we was able to somehow all come together at the same time..... shame there is'nt a sim that can hold over 500 kid avs.

To all those who are well into the christmas spirit !!!! look out for Santa, he's here in SL somewhere im told!

New World Notes, and kids!

New World Notes is holding their "Uncanny Valley Expo" contest for 2007, and I've managed to beat 33 other great avatar photos to the finals! The goal of their contest is to showcase avatars who've"crossed the divide between creepily artificial and the believably human."

My entry, titled blog.secondlife.com was a visiual depiction of how I felt reading some very anti-kid comments on the Second Life blog titled "Accusations Regarding Child Pornography in Second Life." The photo has previously been an editor's choice on Snapzilla.
 
Voting is open for a couple of weeks.  Please, if you wish, vote for my image. I think it'd be cool to show 'em dat us kids got what it takes, an get someting more positive about kids out in the press!

EDIT: Voting will be closing on the 14th of November!

I just spent a wonderful week at camp...

Camp HardKnock is the outgrowth of the the old HardKnock Elementary. Run by Jill Caldera and Gattz Gilman in the Tu Amor sim on a seasonal basis, Camp HardKnock serves as a sleepover camp featuring numerous guided activities and plenty of "free play" time.

I arrived a day or two late, due to real-life commitments, as well as a little trepidation about being away from my SL family for so long. A Second Life week can feel like forever!

Once I settled into camp life, however, I saw that the experience was something quite wonderful. The sort of thing I wish there was far more of in Second Life. A place full of joy and delight, peopled by some very loving and caring individuals, and a place to truly, safely explore one's own "inner kid."

There were activities galore, from a "cabin pranking day" that left the boys cabin full of pink, and other filled with giant cup cakes, to a talent show full of play acting, performing, and other moments quite unlike the dance clubs of "mainstream" SL spaces. We had ghost stores, camp outs, dances, scavenger hunts, and even just pancake breakfasts in the mess hall.

Even when there wasn't a scheduled activity, we still found ways to occupy our time. In the open area between cabins, there was always plywood cubes being turned into some new shape as kids let the imaginations go. Counselor Gilman's morning building events -- more of a "build on a theme" gathering with some instruction as need be -- made for everything from sentimental mementos of camp friendships to imaginary creatures.

Then, one night of camp, you got to see the real heart of the place: one camper's SL father -- and another's SL grandfather -- was killed in a real-life car accident. The camp pulled together for them, holding a solemn memorial for those who lost family, and reflected on how much their own SL families mean to them.

This is the thing about these Second Life kids, and about this camp. While there sure are some to whom the name might fit, we're not some perverse subculture that some would lead you to believe. The camp, while red taped to allow a respite from the outside world's interference, was something I wish all could see, just to have a better idea what all these kids are doing on Second Life.

We're creating and using our imaginations. We're sharing with each other, and enjoying each other's company. We're caring about each other, and lending a hand when needed. We're learning new skills, new ideas, and even new interests. Above all this, we're having fun.

For those who might be interested, there is a movie on YouTube that Counselor Caldera put together at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9iNjwMy8eU - an also photos at http://www.sluniverse.com/pics/Default.aspx?Name=Marianne+McCann, Casey Sawson's website at http://www.rainbowramen.com/princessofsl.html, and in Maxi Rehula's MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/maxirehula, amongst others.

The Kids are the most creative souls in Second Life

The SLC has been up and running for a year and a half now me thinks. When i talk about working on stuff for the SLC im not just talking about the group, im talking about the Child AV community as a whole. The SLC was formed as a way for all kid av's to stay in touch and find out what everyone is up to. It was also formed so we could advise noobs about current attitudes towards Kid Avs in SL.

With over 500 members and still growing, i think we are at a point where we really could be crating some wonderful stuff for SL. More and more Sl communities are saying how much imagination people behind Child Avs have. If just look at some of the stuff us Kid Avs create its a wonder more of us arnt approched to create more.

We tend to think about those nostalgic things like Cans with string on them for communication. Wooden Swords and collander helmets. Animation overides that perform wedgies. We as a community of people are highly creative, its part of being a kid av. You might not think you are. ;) but i know better :-p

"Why A Kid?" art show!

Livingtree island will be hosting a showing ofself-portraits by me, titled "Why A Kid?", and focusing on the experiences of child avatars within the Second Life world. Show will run from the 5th of October to the 19th, with an opening event with me on the evening of the 6th at 8:00 p.m. SLT.

If you or anyone you know has ever had a misconception about child avatars in Second Life, please come and learn some of the reality behind why people would choose to be a kid in this world!

My works and a show book will be available at the show. All are welcome, an lotsa refreshments will be provided.

http://slurl.com/secondlife/Livingtree/77/129/24/

SLC Burning Life Party!!! WOOOT!

Yes the Burning Life Party at the SLC kicked off last night, the dance floor is still there if you and your friends wonna go party for a bit.



Thanx everyone who came, and also thanx to those who carried on after the Huge Griefer attack happend durning the Burning Life celebrations, it just showed how hard we little people of SL are.



I enjoyed seeing everyone getting into the free spirit and was cool to look across the sims seeing all the other parties going on! was a proper festival atmosphere and something i cant wait to see again.





They was burning a replica of Londons Globe theatre wich some of you might remember seeing at the SL4B





Hope to see many of you later at Mr Crabby for the official Burning of the man at 3pm SLT. Will give out Landmark later.

SLC JOURNALISTS NEEDED!

We need some aspiring Journalistic members to write about their favourate SL group and the many wonders in Second Life. We'd like articles about places you have explored and about the areas of fun you have as a kid in SL.
Many people wonder what the Kids of SL do, and it will be great to have a few articles from the group members showing what fun is to be had while being an SL kid AV.

Some ideas for possible articles.

1) A special Linden sponsored event.
2) a party you went to and really enjoyed.
3) Some crazy new thing you discovered and think the rest of the SLC would love to know about.
4) Great Places to Explore.

Please send your proposals to either Loki Eliot or Marianne McCann and if chosen, you will be added to the SLC blog roster letting you post articles for ever more :)

Kidsploration!

Just for fun, here's a couple places I've been exploring lately

Victorianna Castle, Hogback
This place is like a fairy tale princess castle, all white marble. I kept expecting to see Cinderella or Belle or some other Disney princess to step out of an alcove. There is a store there, focusing on gothic lolita dresses, but even if that style isn't yours, it's still a super pretty place with lots to explore.

Lake Gnoma
A nice, natural lake and campsite, featuring canoeing and other fun stuff. Worth taking a tour around, especially if you like natural.wildlife environments. Grab the freebie walking stick in the cabin by the lake, too.

Greenies Home Rezzable
One of the bestest builds I've seen in a long long time. This home is built to put you on scale with the "Greenies," tiny aliens created by inworld artist Light Waves. The "house" is huuuuge, an requires a 300m draw distance jes to see across the living room! Not all the items you'll find exploring the house are kid-friendly, but the folks who made the place are. Check out the hamster balls scattered on the floor as well as the hidden trampoline (I'm not gonna spoil it!) in the kids' part of the living room. ALso, make sure to get up to the mother ship from the main hidden teleporters.

EGO Terra
You'll find another giant house here too. Not as huge as the one in Greenies Home, but still a fun place to explore. Of more note are the recreations of cartoon places, You'll find the Simpsons' house and Moe's Tavern, the Animaniacs' water tower, Scrooge McDuck's money bin, the Planet Express Building, and Invader Zim's place. Not a lot other than eye candy - but it's really good eye candy.

Livingtree
Okay, I'm way biased, cuz I helped build it and I have a store there, but check it out. There's a large kids' playground, a bay you can dive around and swim in, a small campsite, a drum circle, free kayak rentals, a Neo-Realms fishing francise, and tons of places to explore. Look for the hidden cave. As mentioned, my store is there, as is my brother Pygar's, and all of RObin Sojourners stores. It's the main place to find her skins and shapes for boys and girls, amongst other stuff.

Have fun exploring!

Memories and imagination

Remember, for a moment, what it was like when you were a kid.

Remember springtimes of your past, when the flowers would bloom, when you could wish on dandelions, and -- for some -- when you would hunt for brightly colored eggs while wearing your new Easter dress. Perhaps, too, you spent a weekend or two selling cookies for your scout or guide troop some Springtime, too.

Remember Summers that would never end, where ice cream, lemonade, and all sorts of summertime treats seemed like they were yours for the taking. Days spent climbing a favorite tree, or daydreaming of clouds that looked like fluffy bunnies.

Remember Autumn: the satifying crunch of a leaf as you leapt into a pile, freshy stacked. Cast your mind back to pumpkins carved and costumes worn for Halloween, or - for those of us in the States - Thanksgiving-time school plays.

Remember wintry nights spent at home, a mug of cocoa at the ready, perhaps catching a "CBS Special Presentation" featuring Charlie Brown, Rudolph, or Frosty. Think of the wonder of lights, whether it was the glow of the family menorah, or the gleam of lights strung around a tree. A time of paper-wrapped presents and candy canes.

Remember joy, and wonder, and the happy times of your youth. All these memories that may bring a smile to your face, or even a tear to your eye.

Those were halcyon days where life may well have been a lot simpler, before car payments, mortgages, and 1040s, when you got up to go to elementary school instead of facing another rush hour commute to a dull, gray cubicle. You know, when the doctor might offer you a sucker, and you could do crayon drawings on the menu at your favorite restaurant.

Now imagine those being something other than simply memories. Imagine if you could head off to elementary school now, experience the seasons as you once did, and enjoy a simpler time in your life once again. Imagine that Summer need not end, because the sky will always be blue, with a few wispy clouds some 140 meters over your head.

Imagine too that any bad that may cloud those memories could be somehow lessened, with a sheen of adult experience allowing you to avoid your own errors, while a bevy of other tools can help prevent any ills you may have suffered during your childhood.

Finally, imagine if, as a kid, you could fly, teleport to places far and wide, and make whatever play thing you desire.

This is the life of a child in Second Life. Now, is it any surprise why one might choose it?

SL4B finally over

So the week is over, the forth celebrations are at an end, and what a mad week it was. As Sl Birthdays go this one did not go as well as i think it could have. But that maybe in part to do with how badly SL works compared to this time last year. Many New members may not believe this but once upon a time you could cross a sim boarder without getting a hairy butt. You could fly a plane without suddenly getting stuck and watching your beloved aircraft fly off into the distance.

SL4B was all about the past, with is different sims devoted to the previous 4 years. Ours was year 3 as thats when the SLC started up thanx to Gemini and Linnian. My mission for SL4B was to represent us Kid Avs as best I could with the help of my friends and i think it worked. Unfortunitly i feel the promotion of SL4B was a little bit....well crap. Many people did not even know the event was on. It did not feel like a major second life event. Anyway, heres some of your thoughts......

" hej all, i rilly liked the race, an it was fun to fall off, even t made it hard to race. We had two chances to race, an thats funner, cuz then you can do it two time in stead of one time. Thanks for a nice day to Loki an SL04" : Leendert Meriman

"Yea the pictures were awesome, spotting friends and giggling at antics ^^" : Tsukasa Saka

"was alot fo fun remembering all the stuff we did" : Koffeekid Smalls

" Looks like lots of fun!" : Robin Linden

Najmah Handayani: I wasnt able to go to the race but I did get a chance to visit and spent a lot of time reading about how SLC got started and more history abut it... had a good time jus being alone there hehe



Well with the castle, Scout camp and Go-Kart race, i think we made our presence in SL4B, wether anyone was there to notice, who knows. So just before i go to pull down the SL4B castle i'd like to thank everyone who helped me. From those who terraformed the land after it was reset, to those who just sat on a pose ball to help me position a pose, i could not have done it without you all.






Whats next for the SLChildren? well thats up to you lot. I myself have some ideas, but if you have any, then get to it and DO IT!
Us virtual Kids are a big community here in SL and we have many with the skills to help each other do amazing things, Go Kart races, baloon rides, parties,camping, exploring, dancing, baseball leagues... all you need is the idea and then go find someone to help you out :)

SLC SL4B Go-Kart Grand Prix

So we braved the lagged sim and bugged scripts to have a Go-Kart Race. In all honesty i really thought it would not happen as upon arriving we had about 3 sim crashes and i had 5 viewer crashes. Thanx to my bro we realised it was the Kart rezzing board that was crashing the entire sim, so i got rid of the board and rezzed karts for everyone myself.



There was two races in the end due to me not being very organised. The first race i lost track of everyone and the person i thought had won had not, but seeing as no one knew who had won we let Leendert Meriman Keep the cup to share with his brother Jesper Toll. (I'm sorry for screwing that up)

So we had a second race and Marianne McCann volentered to stand at the end to see who won. The race was as crazy as the first with racers dropping off bridges, crashing into sculptures and at one point much swerving was done to avoid hitting two SL4B visitors who had stumbled onto the track. In the end it was Jeremy Ondricek who won the great race closely followed by Gemini Enfield.




The After race party was held at the SL4B dance stage where us kids took over the floor and rocked our butts off :)



So we did it, Lots turned up, many returned after each sim crash and we finally got the race underway and had some real fun. It showed how we can make kool things happen even amongst the crashing sims, rolling starts and buggy scripts.
So what next? maybe a SLC Go-Kart grand prix in clown town?

SLC GO KART GRAND PRIX FRIDAY 29th

This friday the 29th of june there will be a SLC Grand Prix starting at the SL4B SLC Sand Castle at 4pm SLT. The Go Karts are available to rez FREE at the sandcastle and drive around the roads at SL4B. You can go there NOW and practice. The winner will get the SLC Go Kart Grand Prix Cup and be talked about as a hero.

Be Warned, Many karts may break down do to Second Lifes poor pafomance, and many maybe be knocked of the track due to competetive drivers. Plus there is always the chance the sims will crash!!.... SO WITH ALL THOSE PERILS I INVITE YOU TO TAKE A CHANCE AND TAKE PART IN THE FIRST SLC GRAND PRIX AT SL4B THIS FRIDAY!!!!

SLC @ SL4B

Most of you know now that we have built a presentation to the rest of Secondlife to try and shed light on our community. Its no secret that Kid Avs are the hot topic of this year and that most residents dont have a clue what a Kid Av is except for what they read on the SL Gutter Rags.

Although as posted on some news blogs the organisation of the event was met with criticism, add to that poor promotion of the week AND the flakeyness of SL for the last year, its easy to see why the place is empty for the most part.

So if you havent been already go now and check out the sandcastle :)

But why?

Because tons of people ask me: here's some of the big reasons people play kids in SL. At least the ones I know.

1. A way to recapture some of the spirit of youth. Much like the old Twilight Zone episode, Kick The Can, it allows one to 'be' a child, and run and jump, and play unencumbered with the responsibilities of adulthood. It's a fun escape to a simpler time of their lives.

2. Some may have had bad childhoods. Many SL kids have faced childhoods filled with illness (one I know did not have much mobility as a real life child, and is one of the more physicallyt active kids in SL as a result. Hard to keep up with her sometimes!), or with abuse. Many (by no means all) were victims of sexual or other abuses as a child, and this is allowing them to "rewrite" some of those childhood experiences with much healthier ones. I fit within this camp, as well as #1 and #3

3. Many, and related to #2, also want to have the childhoods they could not, with all the toys and goodies they may have been denied for some reason. Always wanted that Easy Bake Oven? Go buy or make it in SL. Want the big swingset, or slide, or whatever? All yours for a few pennies, and you won't looks silly (or, perhaps, have to reinforce it) to make it possible.

4. One I know plays a kid as a way to virtually keep her own RL child alive in a form.

5. Some enjoy the roleplaying challenge of playing a kid. It isn't always as easy as one might think.

6. A few feel more comfortable in the role of a child, for whatever reason. While some of these might fall under various "philia" subsets (adult babies, for example), not all do.

7. sexual ageplayers. I am not going to speculate on the motivations of such. II do suspect, however, that many who did do this in SL did it with the intent to make money at it. I will also add that sexual ageplay is, overall, a very small portion of the kids you'll find in-world, and SL kids themselves are a small segment of the overall SL population.

Of course, all the attention lately has been on #7, and that's one of the smallest groups of all. I hope, maybe, people will gain a little perspective, for once.

Mari

SLC ADVICE ON BEING A KID IN SL

THINGS YOU NEED TO THINK ABOUT WHEN BEING A KID IN SECONDLIFE!

WANT TO BE A KID IN SECOND LIFE?
This list of important advice was written for Kid Avs new to Second Life, please read :)



1). Contrary to what most people outside second life think, there is more to SL than just SEX and if sex is all you have come to SL for then you are missing out on what SL Child Avatars find great about SL. A member of Linden Lab has stated (although it is not in the SL community Standards) that if someone captures a pic or chatlog of a Child Avatar engaging in depictions of sexual ageplay even in their own home, then you will have your account deleted no questions asked.

(TOS - 2.6 Linden Lab may suspend or terminate your account at any time, without refund or obligation to you.)




2). If you dont feel complete unless you are anatomically correct, refrain from wearing it in a public place, this applies even to adult avatars!



3). Consider what groups you join. Some people judge you for the names of the groups you are a member of. The SLC does not stop people being in the SLC because of the groups they have joined, but you do risk distaste from other Second Life Residents.





4). It was discovered that places had been created by ADULT avatar's who were interested in luring Kid avatars to engage in sexual activities. The Child AVs who fell for this ended up having their pictures posted all over the net and in the end they deleted their accounts and left SL leaving behind a media circus. Simple really, just do not go to these kinds of places! Linden Labs polices prohibits these sorts of places from being in SL, if you stumble upon such a place ABUSE REPORT IT!



5) SL residents have been told to report Underage Users. Some people are ignorant and will think you are underage just because you are a child avatar. Linden Lab would LIKE ALL child Avatars to state their TRUE REAL WORLD AGE in your profile to try and prevent mistaken reports.



Thank you for reading.




The SLChilden was formed to bring all the Kid AVs together to exchange advice on how best to behave in SL, in order to cause little trouble for ourselves and warn of people who would take advantage of its members.



For more info on the Child Avatar Community visit the SLC BLOGPAGE http://secondlifechildren.blogspot.com
 Or inworld at the Visit the SLC Learning Tree, Whippersnapper

Secondlife Child AV policies - PART FOUR - Daniel talks about baby weasels

This is the final part in the Linden Child AV policies i hope they have given you something informative. There are so many obscure and really odd communities in SL. Linden Lab had to respond to what many newsblogs were seeing as unfair discrimination.

"The diversity of things to see and do within Second Life is almost unimaginable, but our community has made it clear to us that certain types of content and activity are simply not acceptable in any form. Real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depiction of sexual or lewd acts involving or appearing to involve children or minors; real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depictions of sexual violence including rape, real-life images, avatar portrayals, and other depictions of extreme or graphic violence, and other broadly offensive content are never allowed or tolerated within Second Life.

Please help us to keep Second Life a safe and welcoming space by continuing to notify Linden Lab about locations in-world that are violating our Community Standards regarding broadly offensive and potentially illegal content. Our team monitors such notification 24-hours a day, seven-days a week. Individuals and groups promoting or providing such content and activities will be swiftly met with a variety of sanctions, including termination of accounts, closure of groups, removal of content, and loss of land. It’s up to all of us to make sure Second Life remains a safe and welcoming haven of creativity and social vision."

So from this day forth they ask you to report and tell on your fellow residents who engage in sex, engage in shooting and killing, engage in slaving, engage in many pretend activities that you feel are offensive. Report them all. Except most of the SL community are not stupid extremists.

I end with a small video clip of Daniel Linden. It is taken from a questions and answers video which you can link to at the bootom. In it he talks about communities, abuse reports and how they (linden lab) choose not to take part in desputes within communities. He explains to us why they use the words BROADLY so much. Also there is a quote from a top Law Blog which may give you something to think about if you are packing your bags to march on Linden village to plead free speech...

"almost every article I’ve read about this inaccurately accuses Linden Lab of violating Second Life participants’ “free speech rights.” That’s not how it works — the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution only prohibits government action. If Linden Lab wants to turn Second Life into Club Penguin, it’s allowed to. Like it or not, you don’t have a constitutionally protected “right” to do much of anything in Second Life." Quoted from Benjamin Duranske blog - http://virtuallyblind.com/2007/06/10/policing-content/

We, like every other community in Secondlife do our own little things that some find offensive. This is how it is always going to be, this is how the world works. Linden Lab say they will deal with something if many find BROADLY offensive. This they have done with Chadricks first policy change.

In the end its down to us to carry on with our Secondlives, doing what we feel is ok, respecting others feelings and educating those who have no understanding about why we choose to be this hight in SL.



Id avise everyone to also view the entire video here as it has many intersting points about SL's history and future ideas which will effect us all.

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2642394922604088000&hl=en

Secondlife Child AV policies - PART THREE - The Germans Take Virtual Porn Pics

This is Part Three in a series about the linden Labs ever changing policies on Child Avs. Once again the Child Av community got back to doing what it does, having fun and kidding about. But not a month seems to go by these days without the Linden Lab posting a new Blog entry about their ever changing policy on Child Avs. This time the Blog reported on German TV network who had taken pics of two Secondlife residents engaging in simulated sex, one of which resembled a child.

Linden Lab had this to say
"Linden Lab has absolutely zero tolerance for depictions of child pornography within Second Life. We were outraged to see the images that ARD showed us, and will cooperate fully with any legal authorities that choose to investigate the individuals involved in such activities. Child pornography is, of course, illegal and as such is a breach of our Terms of Service. It goes without saying that anyone engaged in this activity will be permanently banned from Second Life, and subject to legal consequences."

A Linden was asked if this means that if you and a friend engaged in sexual roleplay in a private place as childlike Avs would this be a bannable offence? the answer was If someone reports you with evidence via snapshot or chatlog, then you could have your account deleted.

"If Linden Lab learns that someone is engaging in, advertising or promoting locations or activities involving the depiction of sexual or lewd acts involving minors, their account will be terminated, and we will fully cooperate with all appropriate authorities."

Secondlife is fast becoming a place where pretend is not tollerated.

Secondlife Child AV policies - PART TWO - Chadricks Crackdown

Part two of my series on Secondlife Child AV policies. The Child Av community was growing faster and faster and at one point almost turned on itself as a split formed in the community.

Eventually though the community felt it was better to teach and advise rather than force and persecute. Many now lead by example and all seemed to be fine in Secondlife. Then one Child Av resident recieved a notcard from a Linden. The notecard turned out to be the infamous "LL AgePlay Policy".

"Dear Second Life Resident:

Linden Lab would like to inform you that your land or business is possibly not in
compliance with Second Life's Community Standards. The depiction of sexual
activity involving minors may violate real-world laws in some areas, and the
Second Life community as a whole has made it clear that it views such
behavior to be broadly offensive. Linden Lab chooses not to allow the
advertising or promotion of age play or related activities in any public
forum -- including in-world textures, classified ads, the Second Life
forums, or parcel descriptions.

Advertisements, promotions, or descriptions of such activities must be
removed to avoid account sanctions. Any account asserting an age that does
not meet Second Life's minimum age of eligibility will be closed.

Linden Lab"

Mayhem followed this quickly with the Child Av community abuzz with concerns for their secondlives. What was apparent was that Linden Labs use of the word "ageplay" had caused many to think it was an outright ban on Roleplaying a child In secondlife.

The policy itself once understood is quite understandable. They dont want people PROMOTING sexual ageplay and they want Child Avs to state their real age sumwhere in their profiles. So the Child Av community calmed down and got on with their secondlives. Those who wanted to continue with relationships with their friends did so in the privicy of their own homes while those who made a living out of clubs and Dens that promoted sexual ageplay were reported or shut down. This was the first sign that things were about to change in Secondlife, not just for the Child Av community, but the SL community as a whole.

Secondlife Child AV policies - PART ONE - In the Beginning

We feel it is important that you out there understand what has happend in the Child Av community in SL, where it started and where it seems to be heading. This is the first in a series of articles explaining the history of the ever changing policies that effect you as a CHild Av, and hopefully give you a better understanding of whats going on.

If we want to start at the begining we need to refer to the old SL Forums. These were once the only place to express your opinions about the communities in SL. This was also the place where people started to air their views on Child avatars and their dislike of them being in SL. Following this a number of SL residents took it apon themselves to grief, hassel and persecute Child Avs just because they looked like kids, justifying their actions because they felt that Secondlife was an Adult game and there for pretending to be a kid in SL was SICK!.

For the most part the secondlife community as a whole felt no wrong could be done as nothing in Sl is real, and for alot of us Child Avs the whole being a kid again experience was a new thing. Not only were we experiencing a new way to meet people and have relationships, we were reimagining our childhoods and letting go of our adult sensibilities.

Before long Linden Lab pretty much closed down the forum of trolls and brought out their new Blog which was easier for them to control the content of. It was around this time that a number of Kid Av's, some of which had already been victims of extreme griefing, saw where things were going and decided something could be done. It was felt that a little note out to Child Avs to take in mind what they get up to In SL would help. Promoting SAFE zones around SL reminding residents to keep their clothes on and showing that not ALL of Secondlife is ADULT oriented.

The SLC group was then formed by two child Avs to bring the new and quickly growing Child AV community together to share information and advice on being a kid in SL.

Hey-Lo

Marianne, here. So, um, Loki asked me to contribute here. I'm still not totally sure what to write, so I prob'ly won't often.

I sent a long letter to Robin Linden and Chadrick Linden a couple weeks ago, after the whole blog about kids happened. I asked a lot of specific questions about a number of hypothetical, but highly possible, occurances that might fall into gray areas. I sent a follow-up a couple weeks later, too, when I received no response. I only asked for some more basic clarification on dat note.

None of the hypothetical stuff was addressed at all. The response I got was actually pretty short.

"Marianne, as I told you previously, child avatars are fine, it's the depiction of sexual activity with children that is grounds for terminating an account, and could have potential implications for real world action. We will post a clarification publicly."

This is purty much in line with stuff dat's been said before. What I'd like to think is dat we're okay on everyting until you (an not, "you", but a hypothetical you) does explicitly sexual stuff with a kid avvie. Of course, I could have it all wrong, but I suspect we're okay in the eyes of Linden Labs. At the same time, it makes a lot of sense to remain cautious about our avvies an what we do with 'em. Not paranoid, but careful. You know, like no skinny-dipping in the waters of Linden Village, or stuff like dat.

This dun mean we're okay in the eyes of everybuggy, though. A lotta people are still treating us bad, an not jes the weird ones who wanna do icky stuff to us. I've heard of a lot of griefing an harassing, as well as a lotta places barring kid avvies, I've hadda get real good with using the "Report Abuse" menu item.

One thing I really thought was interesting about what I posted from Robin Linden was dat she says there will be a posted clarification shortly. I'm glad of this, but also a little unsure, 'cuz I never know what to expect when stuff goes onto the official blog. I expect that any publicity on kid avvies is gonna mean more people causing troubles with us. Still, maybe (I hope!) whatever they post makes it clear dat we really are welcome in the world like everyone else.

SLC New webblog and Youth Activity Centre relocation

Welcome to the New SLChildren Groups webblog. We have created this page in an attempt to update resources for our members. In the youth centre the information boards never got updated :-p. With this site we hope information on shops, groups and clubs devoted to the Child Av community will be more up to date and make things easyer for you to explore our community.
We will also be able to post info on Events around the SLC community.

With regards to the Youth Centre, we are in the process of moving it to Clown Town making it more likely for many of you to drop by. Thanks to Olive for her help, we are all very greatful for all her efforts she puts into The Child Av community. And thank you also Musuko for letting us have the old land for so long and for free :)