January 20th-22nd of 2023 were the dates set for 2023’s Round Rock, Texas Ikkicon which characterizes itself as “[…] a Japanese Animation and Pop-Culture Convention […]”. As most conventions, Ikkicon hosts an “Artist Alley;” a section of the convention in which artists, who have paid a fee for their con badges and their table, will sell their wares whether those be prints, pins, stickers, zines, comics, or anything else they might have made. Conventions are a great place for artists to showcase their skills, make a little cash, and get some attention for the hard work they put into their craft while also getting to network with other artists and industry professionals. So what happens when convention-goers aren’t particularly nice to the artists who are tabling? Artist and Twitter user IAmLunaSol attended Ikkicon with their husband that weekend and for the most part had a lovely time, eating dinner with friends and spending some quality time with their found family. All of this loveliness was overshadowed, nevertheless, by the persistant baggage that IAmLunaSol has to carry around with them through nearly every convention they attend: Stalking.
Beginning online several years ago among the Genshin Impact fandom (for the most part), Luna began receiving intense amounts of negative anti-shipper attention for their tongue-in-cheek portrayal of two of the fandom’s favorite characters. The spiral of mistruths, half-truths, bald-faced lies, and blatant aggressions against Luna quickly grew out of control as the artist was doxxed (as of this writing, they have been doxxed at least 8 times), had pizzas sent to their house, and were threatened with mailed explosive devices. The most chilling comments have been left on several social media sites including not only Twitter but TikTok and Instagram: the suggestion that someone bring a gun to a convention with the implication that Luna was the target.
Several 17 year old con-goers posted on Twitter and Instagram some cringe-inducing footage and photographs that revealed the extent to which they had gone to go out of their way in order to mock LunaSol. Posted just after the convention and mentioning it by name, it became apparent that it has been a chore for Luna and their husband to deal with the incessant unauthorized filming and picture-taking perpetrated by those whose intentions are suspect. Harassment is explicitly against the rules of Ikkicon, as they have signs posted claiming that it will not be tolerated but clearly some harassment (the quiet sort) will often go unnoticed by staff and security. Ikkicon and other conventions that have hosted LunaSol prior have always been alerted to the types of threats that Luna faces so that they will know to be vigilant, but what happens when the threats toward artists become more widespread?
For the past several years on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook, more and more anti-shippers have become vocal with prolific amounts of violent threats toward artists such as Luna, Miracide, CultMeNephila, and more. These threats and the social pressure which follows from these activities have a chilling effect on artists who might otherwise become the next who are willing to pay for a booth at a convention, leaving cons with a shrinking pool of vendors. Though there are still artists out there who are supported by anti-shipper crowds, most artists who had originally built their customer base around anti-shippers realized quickly that their audience is not usually flush with cash and proshippers are wary of giving business to someone who might have access to any of their information—a problem that Fannibal artist woodsjpeg faced when trying to launch the sale of their artwork.
When do conventions have to acknowledge and address the consequences of the rising tide of extremist conservatism among Gen-Z fandom? Are they going to wait for an assault? Are they going to wait for a threat against their facility? Are they going to wait for a mass shooting? These are questions one hates to have to ask—are metal detectors at the door enough? Are the security measures already in place going to be sufficient to mitigate the danger some artists are already facing simply by existing in their artist alleys? What is stopping a rogue convention guest from attacking an artist they’ve imagined has overstepped some moral guideline? What is stopping some delusional 17 year old from physically harming someone they’ve convinced themselves or others is no longer human? If they can stalk, film, and follow an artist without any kind of awareness and without any kind of statement coming from the convention-runners or security, what’s to say that this hasn’t bolstered others who might go further than just filming in the future?
Are artists going to feel comfortable enough to sit at con tables knowing that this threat is constant and getting worse? Are cons going to see a decrease in artists willing to table because of it? Is this going to be enough for them to do something about it?
And what can they do?