Canada

There’s a real difference between doing something on an open internet forum and doing it out in public, physically. Online, people have to choose to click on something, follow a link, or open a post. If they don’t want to see it, they can just scroll past or block it. In the real world, you can’t avoid someone the same way—you can’t block a person walking toward you on the sidewalk, and you can’t just scroll away from something happening right in front of you.

Plus, online spaces usually come with filters, warnings, and moderation tools that don’t exist in physical public spaces. Everything online is also separated by screens and distance, so the impact isn’t the same as doing something right in front of people who have no way to opt out.