We have little to add that has not already been said in the excellent explainer of the issues (and in particular of required API usage for mod actions) written by our colleagues who moderate r/AskHistorians and the excellent explainer of the accessibility issues over at r/blind. Reddit’s current proposed course of action would effectively make the site entirely inaccessible to visually impaired users in one fell swoop.

r/ExplainLikeImFive has also provided a great ELI5 of the relevant issues, including, for example, what all this talk of the “API” is, etc.

Please remember throughout this blackout (1) the accessibility issues posed by Reddit’s proposed API fee schedule, and (2) that the moderators that keep this site running—both for your use and Reddit’s business—volunteer their time.

See here for what you can do.