The otherkin community on tumblr is (mostly) sweet and kind, but it’s not otherkin, and that’s…excruciatingly unfortunate. It’s understandable and okay to use concepts, animals, and/or characters as coping mechanisms for mental illness, but that’s not what otherkin was designed to pertain to. This seems to be the general consensus among kin that don’t use it as a coping mechanism, and that alone should tell those who do that a separate community needs to be established. ;; It’s not about ableism– it’s about the fact that communities are meant for shared experiences, and these are two completely different ones.
(Also, “copingkin” should probably definitely not be the word for it. Not only is it not far enough away from “otherkin” to make a distinct point, but it’s blatantly alienating when it doesn’t need to be. Of course, this part is ultimately up to the beings it represents, but it doesn’t seem adequate from an outside standpoint.)
