How is it insane to only welcome people to a community that act respectful towards other people? That seems like a really good way to build a solid community.
That's not the case with the Gleam community though. Unless you're willing to adopt their opinions / values / moral stance on certain issues, you won't be treated respectfully - you will be ostracized for having an unpopular opinion or view on a given issue.
It is a totally insane way to run a project, and it's quite obvious the Gleam community is run by persons who are unable to handle people with opinions that differ from their own.
It does sound like a great way to build an echo chamber.
Ah yes, because not automatically supporting grifts like the BLM movement (which enriched the founders and did very little for the black community at large), makes someone a racist - I totally forgot!
I don't think Gleam has a problem if Kenneth Copeland is using their software, either. The problem arises when you mistreat community members in community spaces; I can't speak for DRH, but I'm reasonably sure if someone waltzed into SQLite's forum denigrating the devs and their religious beliefs, there wouldn't be much hesitation in removing that person from said forum.
> I don't think Gleam has a problem if Kenneth Copeland is using their software, either.
I wouldn't be so sure. In leftist projects, there are countless of examples why someone is not welcome based on their personal beliefs, and because of this I'm cautiously suspicious about Gleam.
If I'm wrong then the Internet is a better place than I think it is, which would be a good thing. If I'm right, then at least I'll dodge another bullet. Either way I win I guess.
It is, however, unfortunate that a single statement on the Gleam homepage generates this exact conversation every time Gleam trends somewhere.
It's your project, and your community, of course, and I fully respect that. However it doesn't seem good that this statement creates so much friction and controversy for Gleam over and over.
After all, none of the statement's topics would be "on-topic" for any of the Gleam community hangouts. For instance, it would be equally off-topic for someone to discuss supporting or hating Nazis.
Perhaps moving the statement to a formal Code of Conduct page would be a "have cake and eat it too" type thing.
The Gleam community is wonderful, and you've done an incredible job building it. But I don't suspect the homepage statement had anything to do with that.