Hey everyone — wrapping up with day 1 of the petition. This is my first change.org petition and I’m excited to see where this goes. I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you.
Honestly, this whole thing has felt surreal. I didn’t expect it to take off the way it has. Seeing how many people are signing and sharing this petition… I don’t even know how to put it into words. Ive gotten some really kind words from people, and it really means the world to know I’m not alone in caring about this.
If you donated — thank you so much for going the extra mile. And just to clarify: I don’t receive a single cent of the donations. That’s not how Change.org works. The money goes toward boosting the petition so more people can see it, and it really has made a difference.
And if you didn’t donate — that’s completely fine. Seriously. Just signing or sharing this means more than you know. I don’t want anyone to feel like they haven’t done enough. You’re here. You care. That’s huge.
That said… I expected maybe a little bit of resistance here and there when I put this out on the internet, but the sheer level of vitriol and hate from some people online has been a struggle to deal with for sure.
Putting this petition out there has opened me up to some really disturbing reactions online. I expected some disagreement, sure — but I didn’t expect to feel so disheartened by the way some people talk about kids. I’ve attached a few screenshots of actual comments I’ve received on Reddit when sharing this (usernames blurred out).
Some of them say things like:
“There’s nothing sacred about children.”
“As long as it’s not based on real kids, it’s fine.”
Or comparing children to digital pets in video games.
It honestly makes me sick. And it reminded me exactly why I started this. Because there’s this growing mindset that if something is technically legal or fictional, then it’s harmless. But it’s not. That kind of thinking leads down dark roads. It normalizes things that should never be normalized. And that’s how we end up where we are now, and why I think this change is so relevant and needed as soon as possible.
Unfortunately the IWF (Internet Watch Forum) predicts that full feature length AI child pornography will be readily available within about a years time. Here is the link to their article:
Just let that sink in for a second. There are people out there who do not think this is wrong. There are people who will vehemently tell you that we are trying to suppress free speech, or shut down the rights to use AI, but that is not the truth at all. We want it to be free, safe, moral, ethical, and cautious. That isn’t too much to ask.
This update isn’t meant to stir up outrage — it’s just to show you the kind of mentality we’re up against. These are the voices trying to shout down efforts like ours. But every signature, every person who speaks up — that pushes back against the darkness, even just a little.
So again… thank you.
For standing with me. For believing this matters. For helping me feel less alone in this.
Let’s keep pushing forward.
— Matthew