Mar. 20th, 2021 01:35 pm
name change
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averytreeHello, this is Averytree, formerly Akikotree. I’ve been sitting on this name change for months, and my initial plan had been to wait and change it on my birthday. However, I saw multiple tweets from Asian fans (after the recent murders in Atlanta) that expressed extreme discomfort with white fans using Asian usernames in fandom spaces. Seeing these tweets confirmed what I’d already been thinking, which was that I wanted to change my username sooner rather than later.
I am white, and “Akikotree” is a username I made up at age 14 in 2003, when I was a high schooler obsessed with manga. “Akiko” was a name I had seen in several series and liked, and I added tree to the end because I love trees... it’s not deep. I carried this username over when I made a livejournal account in 2009, an Ao3 account in 2013, a twitter account in 2015 and so on.... I’m embarrassed to say that I only started to think this username was a problem in 2020, when I rejoined fandom after a few years hiatus.
If I’ve made any Asian fans, or anyone, uncomfortable by having this username all these years, I’m extremely sorry. It was chosen thoughtlessly and I hung onto it for convenience's sake for too long. I hope I don’t make any similar mistakes in the future, but I know it could happen, because I am human and I make many mistakes. But I am committed to learning from them and doing better in the future.
On a lighter note, I’m actually really excited to have a new username! It feels very lovely to not be stuck with a name I picked as a teenager. I’m pleased to set forth into part two of my podficcing career as Averytree. Thanks for reading :)
(Pronouns are still they/them or e/em/eir, no changes on that front) <3
I am white, and “Akikotree” is a username I made up at age 14 in 2003, when I was a high schooler obsessed with manga. “Akiko” was a name I had seen in several series and liked, and I added tree to the end because I love trees... it’s not deep. I carried this username over when I made a livejournal account in 2009, an Ao3 account in 2013, a twitter account in 2015 and so on.... I’m embarrassed to say that I only started to think this username was a problem in 2020, when I rejoined fandom after a few years hiatus.
If I’ve made any Asian fans, or anyone, uncomfortable by having this username all these years, I’m extremely sorry. It was chosen thoughtlessly and I hung onto it for convenience's sake for too long. I hope I don’t make any similar mistakes in the future, but I know it could happen, because I am human and I make many mistakes. But I am committed to learning from them and doing better in the future.
On a lighter note, I’m actually really excited to have a new username! It feels very lovely to not be stuck with a name I picked as a teenager. I’m pleased to set forth into part two of my podficcing career as Averytree. Thanks for reading :)
(Pronouns are still they/them or e/em/eir, no changes on that front) <3
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