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Hello Wikipedia, I'm Your Friendly Neighborhood Sociologist! YFNS for short, and not to be confused with Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man, though we were both born and raised in NYC.
I first joined December 2021 as TheTranarchist at 18 years old, later renaming my account. I'm a computer scientist and sociologist with a B.A; my academic research tends to involve extensive archival research in LGBT topics, among others. I'm one of those scary trans youth some of the media tells you don't really exist, having come out at 16 after years of closeting. If I'm not editing, I'm working, community organizing, playing some instrument, or spending time with my girlfriends, friends, and cats.
It is vital the information we provide is accurate as misinformation can go far and do real-world damage otherwise - especially considering far-right groups have poured millions into anti-trans pseudoscience (The SPLC has a wonderful series of introductory articles on the topic if you'd like to learn more). I should know, I literally wrote the article on Transgender health care misinformation and was interviewed on anti-trans disinformation on Wikipedia. I strive to document our histories and our elders' organized struggle for a better world, with articles like Transgender health care misinformation. And the history and present of the organized hate campaigns operating against us. And, mostly unrelated but my secondary focus, the history of tenant and labor organizing within New York City, for which I created the WP:NYHOUSING task force.
I've always loved Wikipedia; a free global compendium of knowledge built in real-time by and for the people is amazing on so many levels! For the most part, I've loved the community I've found here. I'm thankful to all my friends on and off the project who've supported me, helped me improve as an editor, and kept me going through transphobia and harassment. I'm so proud to collaborate and work with everyone else here!
If you have any questions or need help, please feel free to email me at atranarchist@proton.me or reach out to me on my talk page!
P.S. If I am currently banned from editing LGBTQ topics, it is because I said authorship by SEGM is partially grounds for considering a source WP:FRINGE. Or at least, that is what WP:ARBTRANS found. If you are delighted I was banned for that, please remember: And yet it moves. Community consensus, which is bigger than me or any one editor, still finds SEGM is a fringe organization. The core criteria in WP:FRINGE are met, and reliable sources characterize SEGM’s work as pseudoscience and misinformation ... Editors can remove or challenge the addition of any SEGM based evidence in a medical topic citing consensus both here and in the previous RfC. The community also holds that the claim that transgender identities are themselves a mental illness, or are frequently caused by mental illness, is a fringe view.. Your Friendly Neighborhood Sociologist ⚧ Ⓐ (talk) 22:57, 20 October 2025 (UTC)
"There is no true word that is not at the same time a praxis. Thus, to speak a true word is to transform the world."
"Washing one's hands of the conflict between the powerful and the powerless means to side with the powerful, not to be neutral."
"The more radical the person is, the more fully he or she enters into reality so that, knowing it better, he or she can better transform it. This individual is not afraid to confront, to listen, to see the world unveiled. This person is not afraid to meet the people or to enter into dialogue with them. This person does not consider himself or herself the proprietor of history or of all people, or the liberator of the oppressed; but he or she does commit himself or herself, within history, to fight at their side."
"Sin, young man, is when you treat people like things". - Carpe Jugulum
"A lie can run round the world before the truth has got its boots on." - The Truth
"The presence of those seeking the truth is infinitely to be preferred to the presence of those who think they’ve found it." - Monstrous Regiment
"Them as can do has to do for them as can't. And someone has to speak up for them as has no voices." - The Wee Free Men
"Sometimes it's better to light a flamethrower than curse the darkness." - Men at Arms
"It was sad music. But it waved its sadness like a battle flag. It said the universe had done all it could, but you were still alive." - Soul Music
"History was full of the bones of good men who'd followed bad orders in the hope they could soften the blow. Oh, yes, there were worse things they could do, but most of them began right where they started following bad orders." - Jingo
"Cheery was aware that Commander Vimes didn't like the phrase 'The innocent have nothing to fear', believing the innocent had everything to fear, mostly from the guilty but in the longer run even more from those who say things like 'The innocent have nothing to fear.'" - Snuff
"It’s true that some of the most terrible things in the world are done by people who think, genuinely think, that they’re doing it for the best, especially if there is some god involved." - Snuff
"If there was anything that depressed him more than his own cynicism, it was that quite often it still wasn't as cynical as real life." - Guards! Guards!
"That was always the dream, wasn’t it? ‘I wish I’d known then what I know now’? But when you got older you found out that you now wasn’t you then. You then was a twerp. You then was what you had to be to start out on the rocky road of becoming you now, and one of the rocky patches on that road was being a twerp. A much better dream, one that’d ensure sounder sleep, was not to know now what you didn’t know then." - Night Watch
"Unless one lives and loves in the trenches, it is difficult to remember that the war against dehumanization is ceaseless."
"Your silence will not protect you. But for every real word spoken, for every attempt I had ever made to speak those truths for which I am still seeking, I had made contact with other women while we examined the words to fit a world in which we all believed, bridging our differences."
"Black and Third World people are expected to educate white people as to our humanity. Women are expected to educate men. Lesbians and gay men are expected to educate the heterosexual world. The oppressors maintain their position and evade their responsibility for their own actions. There is a constant drain of energy which might be better used in redefining ourselves and devising realistic scenarios for altering the present and constructing the future."
"You write in order to change the world ... if you alter, even by a millimeter, the way people look at reality, then you can change it."
"Those who say it can't be done are usually interrupted by others doing it."
"The victim who is able to articulate the situation of the victim has ceased to be a victim: he or she has become a threat."
"For, while the tale of how we suffer, and how we are delighted, and how we may triumph is never new, it always must be heard. There isn't any other tale to tell, it's the only light we've got in all this darkness."
"To accept one’s past – one’s history – is not the same thing as drowning in it; it is learning how to use it. An invented past can never be used; it cracks and crumbles under the pressures of life like clay in a season of drought."
"There are so many ways of being despicable it quite makes one’s head spin. But the way to be really despicable is to be contemptuous of other people’s pain."
"We can disagree and still love each other unless your disagreement is rooted in my oppression and denial of my humanity and right to exist."
"If a white man wants to lynch me, that's his problem. If he's got the power to lynch me, that's my problem. Racism is not a question of attitude; it's a question of power. Racism gets its power from capitalism. Thus, if you're anti-racist, whether you know it or not, you must be anti-capitalist. The power for racism, the power for sexism, comes from capitalism, not an attitude."
I hate the indifferent. I believe that living means taking sides. Those who really live cannot help being a citizen and a partisan. Indifference and apathy are parasitism, perversion, not life. That is why I hate the indifferent.
The indifference is the deadweight of history. The indifference operates with great power on history. The indifference operates passively, but it operates. It is fate, that which cannot be counted on. It twists programs and ruins the best-conceived plans. It is the raw material that ruins intelligence. That what happens, the evil that weighs upon all, happens because the human mass abdicates to their will; allows laws to be promulgated that only the revolt could nullify, and leaves men that only a mutiny will be able to overthrow to achieve the power. The mass ignores because it is careless and then it seems like it is the product of fate that runs over everything and everyone: the one who consents as well as the one who dissents; the one who knew as well as the one who didn’t know; the active as well as the indifferent. Some whimper piously, others curse obscenely, but nobody, or very few ask themselves: If I had tried to impose my will, would this have happened?
I also hate the indifferent because of that: because their whimpering of eternally innocent ones annoys me. I make each one liable: how they have tackled with the task that life has given and gives them every day, what have they done, and especially, what they have not done. And I feel I have the right to be inexorable and not squander my compassion, of not sharing my tears with them.
I am a partisan, I am alive, I feel the pulse of the activity of the future city that those on my side are building is alive in their conscience. And in it, the social chain does not rest on a few; nothing of what happens in it is a matter of luck, nor the product of fate, but the intelligent work of the citizens. Nobody in it is looking from the window of the sacrifice and the drain of a few. Alive, I am a partisan. That is why I hate the ones that don’t take sides, I hate the indifferent.
Barnstars, Pets, and Misc.
Barnstars, Pets, and Misc.
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To be frank, I've spent a lot of my time on Wikipedia writing about groups that insult and call for violence against people like me, or people in general, and read a lot of depressing news to do so. I try and write good articles about them, and generally keep out WP:FRINGE, document, per WP:RS, the past and present, leave every article I can better than when I found it, and improve as an editor with each edit I make. It can be tireless, exhausting, and strenuous, but also joyful, collaborative, engaging, and valuable - certainly paradoxical! While I don't do it for them, a little recognition, wiki-love, good advice, and even constructive criticism go a long way and are greatly appreciated! Love and respect to all my fellow editors here to build the encyclopedia ♥
On 3 April 2022, Did you know was updated with a fact from the article Boots theory, which you recently created, substantially expanded, or brought to good article status. The fact was ... that according to the "boots" theory, poverty is more expensive than being rich? The nomination discussion and review may be seen at Template:Did you know nominations/Boots theory. You are welcome to check how many pageviews the nominated article or articles got while on the front page (here's how, Boots theory), and if they received a combined total of at least 416.7 views per hour (i.e., 5,000 views in 12 hours or 10,000 in 24), the hook may be added to the statistics page. Finally, if you know of an interesting fact from another recently created article, then please feel free to suggest it on the Did you know talk page.
The Original Barnstar
Thanks for your work expanding articles on trans topics, e.g. this and this. Hope you didn't mind my minor alterations to the former edit Endwise (talk) 10:31, 22 April 2022 (UTC)
The Socratic Barnstar
I don't think we've every interacted directly, but we've had some briefly overlapping edits on some pages related to trans topics and I've come to associate your username with responsible editing and some of the most level-headed discussion from anybody in the Wikipedia:GENSEX area. That ANI discussion is a bit of a farce and I think you handled it just about as well as possible - Don't let them get you down! ThadeusOfNazereth(he/him)Talk to Me! 05:55, 19 February 2023 (UTC)
The LGBT Barnstar
For your excellent working maintaining and improving the standards of a variety of LGBTQIA+ Topics. Awarded by Cdjp1(talk) 27 February 2023
The Helping Hand Barnstar
For your kind and helpful comments to new user Johnp99999. Love to see it. ––FormalDude(talk) 19:11, 18 March 2023 (UTC)
The Purple Barnstar
Nice job continuing to improve Wikipedia even after all of the recent attacks against you! You are a very productive contributor good at countering Wikipedia's systemic bias, and the campaign to drive you away is disappointing. I am looking forward to having you fully back after your ban expires! —Freoh 10:05, 9 May 2023 (UTC)
The Lavender Heart
The Lavender Heart is awarded to Wikipedians who endure anti-LGBTQ+ harassment in the course of their efforts improving the encyclopedia. While we may all do our best to laugh it off and not feed the trolls, it's important to recognize that words can cut deep, and to make sure that no one feels they're alone when they deal with bigotry and harassment. 💜 — TheresNoTime (talk • they/them) 14:19, 29 May 2023 (UTC)
The LGBT Barnstar
For your commendable efforts to improve coverage of queer topics;
for overcoming your sanction with grace;
for pushing through with undiminished resolve;
for your great work on Trans history in Brazil.
-- Maddy from Celeste (WAVEDASH) 22:41, 24 November 2023 (UTC)
The LGBT Barnstar
I never knew her [Cecilia Gentili] but the community of queer historians is small and the people who knew her in my circles are grieving hard. Thanks for taking the time to make this.Computer-ergonomics (he/him; talk; please ping me in replies ) 15:01, 7 February 2024 (UTC)
The Barnstar of Diplomacy
I am amazed by your patience and precision at WP:FTN, in spite of the matter at hand proving (unfortunately, but rather expectedly) tricky. A lot of the discussion keeps being derailed in every possible direction, but seeing you consistently navigate this mess while expertly wielding policy and RS is genuinely impressing. Great work! ChoucasBleu🐦⬛ 23:56, 12 February 2025 (UTC)
The LGBTQ Barnstar
For you patience and your persistence to provide high quality verifiable and NPOV articles on queer and particularly trans topics. Thank you very much and hope to take a page out your book Bejakyo (talk) 17:50, 15 March 2025 (UTC)
The Trans Barnstar
Inaugural awarding of the Trans Barnstar for your consistent and high quality efforts to create and improve transgender specific articles such as Transgender health care misinformation and Transgender history in Brazil to good article status as well as the creation and substantial improvement of dozens of articles related to anti-trans groups and individual activists. Awarded by Relm(talk) 9 April 2025
Hugs
Thinking of you and all other trans editors in our communities ~ 🦝 Shushugah(he/him•talk) 18:07, 18 April 2025 (UTC)
The Original Barnstar
For working on a new draft article about the Dutch Protocol that meets Wikipedia policy —The Anome (talk) 19:56, 6 September 2025 (UTC)
The Special Barnstar
I couldn't quite find the right barnstar to give you, so the Special Barnstar seemed appropriate. I think you are an exemplary Wikipedian, and your hard work and resilience in the face of difficult situations is admirable. Wikipedia is a better place because you are here. Thank you for all that you do! MrAureliusRYell at me! 14:41, 7 September 2025 (UTC)
I am saddened to see you topic-banned; I hope you have fun with other topics, and wish to see you return to GENSEX in an appropriate amount of time. ■∃Madeline⇔∃Partofme; 21:09, 3 March 2023 (UTC)
Behold! some cool rocks! see you around in the geology topic space then, I guess? It's a shame you got topic banned, but then again, I bet you'll find the rest of wikipedia a lot less likely to crucify you over single sentences. 😁 Anyway... have some cool rocks to get you started! 😛 --Licks-rocks (talk) 21:59, 3 March 2023 (UTC)
Ppt91 has given you a puppy!Puppies promote WikiLove and hopefully this one has made your day better. Your puppy must be fed three times a day and will be your faithful companion forever! Spread the WikiLove by giving someone else a puppy, whether it be someone you have had disagreements with in the past or a good friend.
Three times a day is without treats, I should add. Not to even mention plays and walks. In other words, plenty of work to do here. ps. I know it seems hard now, but keep your chin up and think about all of the good work you have done and will continue do in the future.Ppt91talk 23:39, 5 March 2023 (UTC)
I am pretty sure this forward-marching kitty is singing a punk song, and I hope you are, too. Beccaynr (talk) 00:19, 6 March 2023 (UTC)
Continuing my tradition of delivering cool rocks in lieu of awards, cats or coffee. Keep on keeping on! --Licks-rocks (talk) 20:44, 8 May 2024 (UTC)
Honorable Mentions
Honorable Mentions
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Here, I keep substantial mentions of me off-wiki. This includes both positive coverage (which I hadn't seen coming) and people complaining their articles are so honest it makes them look bad.
Genspect tweeted: Wikipedia co-founder [ Larry Sanger ]: “I no longer trust the website I created”-it’s “increasingly partisan”, “propaganda” & “broken beyond repair”. Yes! Genspect & many others critical of transactivism face near-constant defamatory campaigns against us on Wikipedia
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Complained about me and her article here, stating The defamatory page about me on @Wikipedia @JWalesF has been semi-protected and cannot be edited. All edits in the history have been undone. The sad little incels are ensuring the lies remain. Then she tweetedHINT: the wikipedia entry is made by a rather boastful trancel who enjoys lying about people online.
editThe desire to fix something wrong—in this case, articles that have not kept up with the times—is meant to play out on an article’s “Talk page,” a companion page dedicated to discussing edits. Take the debate over Gregory versus Gloria. Last February, Hemingway’s Talk page fielded a proposal on what name to use. There was a week of debate, long discussions in which a dozen or so editors grappled with how Hemingway would have wanted to be perceived. The main advocate for moving the page from Gregory to Gloria was an editor named Friendly Neighborhood Sociologist#Thanks!_(R.E.:_Gloria_Hemingway) TheTranarchist, and the main opponent was an editor named StAnselm, a self-described Calvinist who has created more than 50 articles about biblical characters and scenes. Yet the discussion on the Talk page was about facts and Wikipedia policies and guidance, not politics. “It didn’t seem culture warrior–ish,” Reagle said.
The discussion ended with a hung jury: seven editors for Gloria, seven for Gregory. An experienced editor, Sceptre, stepped in and ordered the article to be renamed. The decision was appealed, and an administrator concluded that Sceptre had made a tough call that was ultimately reasonable. On the biggest social-media sites, such a decision might have descended into endless mudslinging. Instead, everyone has respected the outcome and moved on. The article hasn’t been touched in five months.
I must confess, it would have been nice if they noted that I was accused of being an WP:SPA whose request to rename the article based on Wikipedia's very clear policy about handling trans people's names should be ignored due to my username, a fact called out in the close.
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Gays Against Groomers tweeted: Recently, there have been multiple hit-pieces about our organization that are full of lies. This information has now been used to create a Wikipedia page about our organization, which is quite literally entirely false, and we would like to clear some things up.
Then they wrote an article: A few months ago, we noticed that Gays Against Groomers had its own Wikipedia page. It was surprisingly much longer than we predicted it would be. And what we found was very disturbing. It was filled with incoherent conspiracy theories, fabricated stories about non-existent members, fairy tales about how we are secret billionaires who want to take over the world, bigoted slurs, and it even compared us to Adolf Hitler. The author made outrageous accusations that are not backed up by any facts or evidence. The Wikipedia page includes a reference list, indicating where they got their information. It is based on tabloids from vicious publications like Media Matters, random tweets from deranged trans activists, and a podcast episode where Imara Jones lists off some ideas that they outright admit are conspiracy theories. It is odd that someone would go through such great lengths to discredit a nonprofit organization with a noble mission. But after we did some digging, we found that it was created by a user named "TransAnarchist" and was locked for editing. We released a short statement correcting some of the odd claims that were made. Since we had no way to edit and fix this issue, we hoped that it would eventually just go away. It hasn't. - Lies, Fallacies and Fabrications: Addressing Our Wikipedia Page
Assigned Media
editOn Trans Issues, Wikipedia is a Bulwark Against DisinformationOne person reported for vandalism had posted a transphobic statement that included a wish that “Trump boots this troll den masquerading as an encyclopedia off the internet.” The person was subsequently banned indefinitely from editing by the Wikipedia community. The vandalism had been reported by the Wikipedia editor “Your Friendly Neighborhood Sociologist” (YFNS), a 21-year-old woman from New York City who transitioned at the age of 16. YFNS told Assigned Media that she is determined to continue her volunteer work on trans-focused articles, which she started over three years ago. The barrage of false anti-trans attacks, she said, “is the start of a genocide: exclusion from public spaces, arguments we're a danger to children, making it harder to travel, describing us [as] an ideology and scrubbing the very fact we exist from every federal resource.” It was YFNS who helped rally editors in the LGBTQ+ studies WikiProject, one of the many affinity groups that help guide editors, with her post stating their work is “more important than ever.” ... YFNS, who has been targeted by hate-inspired attacks outside of Wikipedia, is of course most concerned about her own safety. But she is worried that “Wikipedia's defense of the truth and trans history makes us an exceptional target” for people like Musk, Trump and powerful right-wing groups like the Heritage Foundation. Just last week, Slate reported on the Heritage Foundation’s plans to dox Wikipedia editors.
BRAZEN ACTIVIST This isn’t a hidden campaign — it’s a public one, hiding in plain sight. Activist-editors have been celebrated in media profiles or have openly boasted about using Wikipedia to discredit dissent. One of the most striking examples is “Your Friendly Neighborhood Sociologist” (YFNS), formerly known as “TheTranarchist.” YFNS was recently profiled in an article on Wikipedia trans editing, published by Assigned Media, a transgender news outlet. The author — YFNS’s friend and colleague—noted that “she is determined to continue her volunteer work on trans-focused articles, which she started over three years ago,” and added that “it was YFNS who helped rally editors in the LGBTQ+ studies WikiProject.” YFNS says “Wikipedia is not in the business of pretending the views of WP:QUACKS are more supported than they are.”
What Assigned Media didn’t tell you is that YFNS was topic-banned in 2023 from editing articles on Gender and Sexuality (GENSEX). According to the administrator notice board, YFNS (going by TheTranarchist at the time) is “trying to mold the topic area to fit her worldview. That is incompatible with Wikipedia. She has become a WP:TENDITIOUS editor. Given all the factors discussed, there is rough consensus for an indefinite GENSEX topic ban. She may appeal it in no sooner than 6 months.”
After six months, YFNS successfully appealed the topic ban and, despite having openly admitted to creating articles with the premeditated intent to tarnish organizations and boost negative coverage in search rankings, remains highly active on the Wikipedia pages of those very organizations. This is best showcased with the Society for Evidence-Based Gender Medicine (SEGM), where YFNS employs the full range of tactics with impunity. As a result, while the BMJ describes SEGM as “a group of researchers and clinicians that has pushed for systematic reviews and an evidence-based approach,” SEGM’s Wikipedia page opens with the vague assertion that it is “known for transgender health care misinformation” — linked, of course, to the latest article created by YFNS.
A FIXED OUTCOME?
The Wikipedia page on Transgender health care misinformation appears to be YFNS’s magnum opus. YFNS created it, extensively contributed to it, and then nominated it for “Good Article” (GA) status. While GA is supposed to reward quality, in some contexts — especially controversial ones — it can be strategically used to protect an activist-controlled article. To earn GA status, an article must meet six criteria, including neutrality: “represent viewpoints fairly and without editorial bias, giving due weight to each.”
During the GA review, editors raised concerns about neutrality — one pointedly argued, “This is a field where both activist sides have indulged in misinformation. I'd expect a Wikipedia article to state that clearly and give examples of both.” But perhaps the most telling moment came before when the reviewer who posted on YFNS’s personal talk page offering to help, wrote: “If it comes to this, feel free to tag me or leave a message on my talkpage to get my attention as I wouldn’t be shocked if someone takes the nomination with the intent of failing it.” With that preemptive defense, it was no surprise the review ended in a Pass.
THE PRICE WE PAY
All told, the ironically titled “Good Article” on Transgender health care misinformation may be the finest example yet of how activist editors can freeze their wishful version of reality in place — even as the world continues to evolve. Experts know not to trust Wikipedia—but the average person may not. As more people engage with this topic, society would benefit from access to honest, balanced pages. When the encyclopedia is rigged, it doesn’t just distort the record — it misguides the conversations we have with our neighbors, our children, and our leaders.
1) That TBAN was supported by a minority of respondents in the initial case (launched by a sockpuppet who's otherwise a pretty chill guy), and the admin (who's one of my favorites) who placed it later said I actually agree with TT that the circumstances of her asking me to close this may have resulted in a different sanction than she might have otherwise received. When I first read the discussion, I admit that I felt a certain solidarity with TT, and that was part of the reason I felt hesitant to close it. But a closer's job is not to impart their will, it is to impart the community's will. Perhaps in trying to account for my own bias I overcorrected and misread the community's will
1.1) At every article I was accused of bias over, people tried to cite my case to rewrite it, only for other editors to continue to agree they were neutral
2) WP:RGW says If, however, the wrong that you want to address has already been sorted in the real world, and if you have the reliable sources to support it, then please do update the articles.
5) If there is any doubt about the political slant of this blog, know that their last few published pieces include
Calling on people to oppose a bill that would count repeated deliberate misgendering, deadnaming, and public outing when making custody decisions, and protect parents of trans kids from criminal prosecution by other states for supporting their transgender kids
Talking about their efforts to criminalize transgender healthcare for minors.
A fictional memo about how Rapid Onset Gender Dysphoria (the unevidenced theory that kids are catching trans from the internet) could be strategically suppressed
ProveIt: This tool makes citations easy and I can't imagine editing without it. It even automates most of it with only the URL.
WP:RSP: Allows you to check if a source is considered reliable or not. The source may be listed on the page or you may have to search the archives for past discussions.
Create an account. Don't go revealing your IP address for no reason, that's a quick way to get doxxed.
No personally identifiable information. If you are even somewhat public about your life online, do not mention anything available in other places on Wikipedia. Don't list where you work, your name, anything that can be used to narrow you down or look you up. For the love of god don't use a username you have ever used or will use anywhere else.
Gauge Your Threat Level. There is a big difference between local fascists and state actors. If you have an account, your IP is only hidden to most. Some administrators can check them, though it will be logged. For an example of what this might mean, see here. Assume that nearly every state actor has a similar program, so a good rule of thumb is to be careful of whether you would face state repression for publicly reporting the same things off Wikipedia.
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