Fandom’s Gone Too Far: Our Destructive Sense of Ownership

We, as fans, can be passionate about what we love.  We, as fans, should be passionate about what we love.  What’s love without passion?!  However, there’s a fine line between passionate love and destructive possession.  If romantic love turns possessive we recognize it as an abusive relationship.  This same sort of destructive possession exists in fandoms.  The Ghostbusters are girls!  Princess Leia isn’t being recast for Episode IX!  Harry should have been with Hermione!  Steve Rogers is Hydra!  George Lucas made Prequels!  Riri Williams is Iron Man!  SOMETHING IS NOT HOW I WANT IT TO BE!!!  We’re all welcome to our own opinions.  We all have the right to not read/watch something we don’t like.  But we have no right to spew toxicity all over the internet/real life when something upsets us.  This morning I read an article illustrating this problem of the ownership we presume to have, as fans, over what we love in a saddening new light.  As such, I felt compelled to write this post.