hi! i can’t answer to everyone’s experiences with this network but i can speak to mine! i was a member for i think a year, possibly longer. i spent most of that time very inactive but there was also a period when i was an active staff member. the only way i can really describe it is as a toxic place.

the hp universe itself is deeply, deeply flawed. i interact with some content about it still because i grew up reading the books and watching the movies. it was an insanely huge, integral part of my childhood. but it’s also intrinsically racist, homophobic, sexist, transphobic, etc. this is further driven home time and time again by jkr’s own problematic, fear-mongerig rhetoric and her plentiful transphobic statements. these things are irrefutable facts. in my personal opinion, h/o did not do enough to condemn what was wrong about this series. certain high-ranking members often mocked poc who had legitimate qualms with the series as being sensitive, or continuously insisted there were bigger problems in the world, to paraphrase. it’s exactly this minimizing rhetoric that gaslights poc, delegitimizes their legitimate concerns, and makes them feel unsafe in fandom environments. when people spoke up against this mindset, they were hounded by mods and high ranking members until they either apologized or left the network.

people in the network also supported some truly vile ships ! “ship and let ship” is one prominent member’s motto, the idea being that people shouldn’t criticize other people’s fictional preferences. i fundamentally disagree. i think if you like enemies to lovers, hell yeah. if you like hatesex, you do you. i think once you start shipping p*dophilia or inc*st that crosses an incredible line. studies have shown that fictional narrative interests can significantly influence real-life beliefs. the clear delineation between fiction and real life that so many people insist is real, is in actuality very blurry. and beyond that, there are minors who follow you, follow your blog, are part of your network. condoning these abhorrent things knowing minors can see, that’s messed up! that’s something that as a mod of a network myself, i would never allow. ever. if anyone tried, i would remove their messages.

there were multiple instances of whitewashing and colorism enacted by members and mods while i was part of this net. if anyone called it out, they were bullied into pulling their comment. the leadership of the network would defend their own whitewashing and lightwashing by saying, again, that there were bigger problems in the world. i distinctly remember a time when someone in the net whitewashed and another blogger sent them an ask, off anon, explaining their wrongdoing respectfully. that member sent the ask to the net, and the leadership rallied together to send anon hate to the person who called out the whitewashing. it was this weird pack mentality of standing together against…. the actual victim…?

again, i found it to be an overall negative and toxic place. i’m ashamed i didn’t leave sooner. it was one of the first nets i ever joined and i was lured into a false sense of community. i was so desperate for tumblr friends i tried to overlook things i should never have overlooked. when i realized i wanted to leave, i muted the network for a long time before actually leaving. i didn’t feel comfortable there but i knew the mods would see me leave and i was worried about alienating these people who were so quick to bully others. i didn’t want to make “enemies.” leaving h/o made my experience with networks and tumblr so much better.

if you’re asking about the hp drama on everyone’s dashes now, it’s about one senior member of ho creating a source blog dedicated to and celebrating the white supremacist purebloods. mars @audreyrose has summed up the situation really well so i would recommend looking there for more information.