They haven’t cooked this much since the 50’s, women tell Maria of their lives during the coronavirus. In response, Maria ordered 100 5 ” magnets and put them up on her Etsy page.

They are not there now.

She was ordered by some Etsy software to take them down or face getting kicked off of the site. They said they didn’t want to be seen as exploiting the virus for money.

Maria would earn $2 per magnet.

I wrote about this censorship (see disagreements below), the magnet was an original art sketch about the virus, there was absolutely nothing offensive or exploitive about it.

Etsy was using software algorithms to ban art they considered to be offensive or exploitive, said the mass mailing message. In other words, they were covering their butts.

No appeals, and a threat or two. So Maria decided to post them on her blog and sell them via w Paypal button. They cost $7 each, the shipping is free.

You can see the magnets and buy them here.

She has already sold half of them, I believe Etsy was wrong in its general and unyielding decision. Artists have always explored suffering and illness and trouble,, it is what art is supposed to be about in part.

And this censorship is mind bogging from a site that claims to support artists. How do they figure that?

Etsy, sadly, has the right to do it, it seems. But that doesn’t make  it right.

Donald write me this message in disagreement.

“It might be wrong and clumsy, but it isn’t censorship–ETSY is a business, and they made a business decision to eliminate sellers trying to capitalize on the pandemic. They can’t do it perfectly, and they don’t have the staff to look at each item on a case-by-case basis. It’s no different from your blog–you delete comments that you don’t think are reflective of your brand, and that’s your right. If people don’t like your decisions, they can start their own blogs or post elsewhere. If Maria doesn’t like ETSY’s decisions, she can sell her magnets on her own (as she’s doing), or go to one of ETSY’s competitors for her store. No lawyer would call ETSY’s process in regard to the coronavirus censorship, even if many might agree that it’s regrettable.”

Several people agreed with him. But I think they are wrong on two counts. Etsy may have the right to do this, but that doesn’t make it the right thing to do.

Besides, it is definitely censorship: here is the dictionary definition of it: the suppression or prohibition of any parts of books, films, news, etc. that are considered obscene, politically unacceptable, or a threat to security.

And here is Merriam-Webster’s definition of the term:  the institution, system, or practice of censoring.

I think any lawyer would consider it censorship because it is censorship. But censorship is not illegal, nor is that even possible. That doesn’t mean it’s right. The Merriam-Webster Law Dictionary defines censorship in this way: the system or practice of examining writings or movies and taking out things considered offensive or immoral.

I called our lawyer today and he said he would absolutely consider Etsy’s taking down Maria’s magnets to be censorship. It falls within every definition I’ve seen.

It’s also fatuous to say if artists don’t like it, they can just go and start their own blogs. That means a serious loss of income for many, and lots of artists can’t afford blogs – that’s why Etsy is supposed to exist. It’s a curious argument to say that when there’s trouble or sickness or conflict in the world, every artist who wishes to explore it should go start their own blog.

What on earth is Etsy for? And why are artists paying to use it?

I censor messages all of the time, many are too hateful or obscene to publish. Censorship per se is not evil or unwarranted. I think this censorship is unwarranted.

Because something can be censored doesn’t mean it is automatically appropriate. It doesn’t mean it was right. An online site that professes to support artists should support them, when it is convenient and when it is not.

And selling these magnets is hardly a corporate risk. I don’t believe Etsy is afraid of exploitation, I think they’re afraid of being criticized.

So Maria got a Paypal button and started selling them off of her website.

Etsy, it seems, is a sellout, going the safe and absolutely noncontroversial route as they get bigger and fatter.

Maria’s magnets are not controversial, they don’t push the envelope in any way and she will profit little from them.  They are gentle, like her.

She didn’t make them for money, but as an artist reflection of this strange new reality for many women, stuck at home with children and still wanting to work.

Since the husbands make more money, as a rule, their work comes first. In a way, this is returning women to the housewife role, very strange and sometimes uncomfortable.

And a lot of hard work on top of their own jobs.

I hope Maria sells out her 47 remaining magnets, they are fun and comforting and cheap at the price. She won’t let me buy any, but I did manage to lift one for the refrigerator in the kitchen.

You can see and purchase them here if you are so inclined. Nuts to Etsy and al small minds. I hope we can buy the rest of them.