Online ‘Pedophile Hunters’ Are Growing More Violent — and Going Viral: With the rise of loosely moderated social media platforms, a fringe vigilante movement is experiencing a dangerous evolution.
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I always knew there was something wrong with that these people were doing but couldn't exactly put my finger on it and never talked about it because people would've yelled at me and used false dillema arguments like many people who criticized them back them recieved "You support pedophiles you removed"
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I monitor far-right groups pretty intensively and a good chunk of Paedophile Hunters are key organisers of said groups.
Its also not uncommon for far-right groups to be family operations where the adults will groom their teenage children into organizing and encourage their children to date other, often older, fascist organisers.
Unsurprising as most of the "pedophile hunters" are extremist by nature, so it makes sense why they would also subscribe to extremist ideologies like Nazism and queerphobia.
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Oh. They're just gonna call people pedo and attack them even though they're not. It's extremely obvious.
They're going to attack LGBT people and say they're pedos for being LGBT.
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I always knew there was something wrong with that these people were doing but couldn't exactly put my finger on it and never talked about it because people would've yelled at me and used false dillema arguments like many people who criticized them back them recieved "You support pedophiles you removed"
They caused the death of a victim before: https://www.theguardian.com/media/2025/apr/01/us-officials-challenge-ofcoms-risk-to-free-speech-caused-by-online-safety-laws
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Nazis: If you support LGBT you're a pedophile. And we're already coming for you.
People, for some fucking reason: Pedophiles get fucked, do what you want to them, erase them at any cost!!
"Please hold this paper target in front of your face while I shoot at it."
"Sounds dangerous but I see you are aiming at the paper so I should be fine."
Nazis: If you support LGBT you’re a pedophile. And we’re already coming for you.
I'll be waiting.
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Solution bait the baiters
Practical solution, abandon all social interactions with strangers
I'm way ahead of you in my basement of solitude.
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Where is this civilized society at, in the US?
More democratic areas I'd say.
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Ah that's the thing, we're not civilized
We're about to have roving gang of Nazi vs pedos! Just attacking each other like crime gangs in the streets.
This is what about when young people have no future.
We're definately less civilized than we used to be but there's still some degree of civility.
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Pedo accusations don't come from concerns for kids but from enpowerement to do violence and the ability to righteously attack.
This inversion from concern for others to desire to cause harm through paranoia derived justifications is becoming a real problem.
If someone steps in to stop them attacking the innocent they will claim those people are defending pedos.
We're going to have the stupidest of wars on our hands.
We’re going to have the stupidest of wars on our hands.
Finally, my decades of stupid training will pay off!
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I never use /s. /s is the training wheels of online comments. /s is for cowards. Ride or die baby!
If anyone takes me seriously, it's their own damn fault.
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Do you have any argument as to why this matters, in any way, at all?
the majority of the population doesn't identify this as being nazism. If you are looking to get more people backing your cause you cannot alienate them by appearing to be reactionary or uneducated.
So your argument rests not on truth but on populism.
Even if you're right in your wholly unsubstantiated claim, the way to get more people on your side is by persuading them, not by capitulating to their ill-informed beliefs. Giving in to their bullshit is how you join their side.
I would love to know what your media diet is.
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Except sometimes "pedophile" actually means "trans person just living." The right claims all trans people are groomers.
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Obviously, if they're targeting trans people specifically for being trans, i dont support that. But if they got lured by these guys, doesnt it mean they're pedo's?
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If someone shows up with the intent to fuck a minor, absolutely, but I guarantee those aren't the only targets vigilantism catches.
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Vigilantism is on the rise regardless, Either because the police are incompetent / carefree about the complaints. or because individuals are overzealous, dont undrestand or agree with the law, and decide to cosplay as the punisher.
Or because the facade of "justice" is crumbling to reveal the truth of heirarchy behind it.
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Likely, or are likely to mistakenly target a trans person who happens to be around while they're hunting the person they cat fished. The people who are okay with extrajudicial violence are mostly conservatives. What's to say the people willing to go to such lengths to hurt someone wouldn't take the opportunity when they see someone they believe is a groomer and pedophile simply for being trans? It's easy to expand the definition, and we've seen it happen in the past. It's happening right now in rhetoric. Violence against trans people is already statistically high.
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Likely, or are likely to mistakenly target a trans person who happens to be around while they're hunting the person they cat fished. The people who are okay with extrajudicial violence are mostly conservatives. What's to say the people willing to go to such lengths to hurt someone wouldn't take the opportunity when they see someone they believe is a groomer and pedophile simply for being trans? It's easy to expand the definition, and we've seen it happen in the past. It's happening right now in rhetoric. Violence against trans people is already statistically high.
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That's a ridiculous set of assumptions, just because gender rules your life, doesn't mean it's the same for everyone. Go seek attention elsewhere.
Right. My lived experience doesn't matter, nor the statistics. I'm not seeking attention, I, like the majority of people reading this, am alarmed. I'm seeing people I care about and the community around me hurt every day, and you think "gender rules my life." Not a person worth listening to. When was the last time you got harassed in public for something intrinsic to yourself? For my trans wife, it was today. If you seriously think that trans people aren't currently at the front of the culture war, you're deaf, ignorant, or lying. Watch literally any pundit speak, any newscast, or any political debate around the country. Then tell me trans people shouldn't be concerned about violent rhetoric aimed at people they're increasingly being lumped in with. Bigot or stupid, I won't debate you on the reality plain around me daily.
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Right. My lived experience doesn't matter, nor the statistics. I'm not seeking attention, I, like the majority of people reading this, am alarmed. I'm seeing people I care about and the community around me hurt every day, and you think "gender rules my life." Not a person worth listening to. When was the last time you got harassed in public for something intrinsic to yourself? For my trans wife, it was today. If you seriously think that trans people aren't currently at the front of the culture war, you're deaf, ignorant, or lying. Watch literally any pundit speak, any newscast, or any political debate around the country. Then tell me trans people shouldn't be concerned about violent rhetoric aimed at people they're increasingly being lumped in with. Bigot or stupid, I won't debate you on the reality plain around me daily.
Correct, you're lived experience means nothing to me, that's for people who know you. As for statistics, you presented none.
And for the rest, you've invented a lot of what you think I said.
Take your victimhood elsewhere, there are people with real problems at the moment, as you can see there are pedo's and worse to deal with, which compared to your issues, is a mountains to molehills situation.
If you're reply is to tell me how hard trans people have it, you can fuck right off, there are much bigger fish to fry.
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There's one more angle to this - apart from the raise in vigilante violence and messing up with police operations which both are very valid.
Just as we stopped getting TV feeds constantly equating pedophiles to child molesters, those guys stepped in to fill the void.
Pedophiles are not inherently child molesters. This kind of equation is not only wrong, it also adds to promoting dangerous behaviors among them.
Plenty of pedophiles will never abuse a single child, knowing full well it is dangerous and harmful for minors to be engaged in such relationships. However, the more we equate pedophiles to predators, the more people, especially in the emotionally vulnerable groups like teen pedophiles, will actually accept themselves in this role. Among those who stands against this anyway, plenty will become suicidal, not seeing an option to live a non-offending life.
Not only that, but it both reduces the chance of someone going to get help, because they don't want to be hunted down, and reporting, because someone who knows of them might not want to see them be lynched, and won't report them for that reason.
