and Contemplations of a Class Action Lawsuit

“I thought of suicide for their exploit.”

Former Etsy Shop owner, Viceversashop_Milan, Milan, Italy, January 18, 2023

This is an excerpt from a post on the Complaints Board website by a former Etsy seller in Milan when his shop was closed by Etsy. And I wonder, does Etsy even care when they have impacted someone’s life so dramatically that they contemplate suicide?

I don’t think so.

it’s time for a change

You see by opening an Etsy shop, and depending on it to not only live, but to thrive and survive, sellers are putting themselves on the line everyday to keep the machine running, whether it is through their artwork, vintage curated collections, or handmade items of beauty.

And when shops are closed without warning or an appeal process or valid explanation, lives are significantly changed. The irreparable harm that sellers have been subjected to can’t be captured by algorithms or shareholder approval ratings. Etsy is playing a dangerous game that could be the difference between life and death for some people. Wipe away someone’s ability to pay their rent, feed their children, keep the lights on, or maybe most importantly kill their spirit, Etsy has failed miserably. Period.

Who cares?

Etsy will never know the immeasurable loss they have created by stripping away the dignity of their sellers. And my guess is, they do not want to know, and they do not care. After all, it’s not a profitable calculation. It is not relevant to the bottom line.

Or is it?

He said it, and how!

The former Etsy seller in Milan suggests a class action suit: Complaints Board website: ” … We would love to create a go fund me campaign and connected petition to find as many contrihbutors as possible for a class action against Etsy for their discriminatory unreasonable practices that are sometimes considerable as instigation to suicide, …” 

” …  they should write a contract that is protecting both parts and not giving them the full powers of a dictator and their “workers” NO RIGHTS at all, not even to get an explaination when they are suspended.
This is not a game, Etsy Trust&Safety.
You are playing with real businesses, families, people.
Somebody would kill himself for your medieval way to treat partners.”

988 Suicide Hotline

Etsy, do you see how how seriously you have affected so many? Please be aware and if anyone you know has been affected by Etsy’s unfair practices to the point of considering suicide, contact 988 Suicide & Crisis Hotline.

Even Shareholders sued Etsy

Of course, Etsy is no stranger to class action lawsuits as can be found in a quick search. I find it interesting that even shareholders have initiated lawsuits against Etsy for various reasons. Others have filed class action lawsuits with infringements that include stealing data, the American Disabilities Act, counterfeit products and more.

Keeping Commerce Inhumane

Many complaints stem from fake reports by sellers involving copyright infringement designed to eliminate competitors. At the end of the day, the result is the same for sellers who have had their shops closed for real or imagined infringements. There is no “Keeping Commerce Human” that is purported to be their mantra. It is quite the opposite. As sellers we whispered into the void of nothingness, with a boiler plate email response that was irrelevant and insulting.

Only the coolest

My product line and inventory consisted of only the coolest vintage items of interest. But, like other sellers, I also encountered the impossibility of engaging in a conversation with Etsy nomads who really do not wish to converse once they have wielded their power of complete domination over sellers shops. One seller affected by Etsy’s unfair practices featured in The New York Post had this to say: “They literally have zero seller support,” said one Reddit user, who also was shut down by the fake Warner account. “They don’t have chat, phone and they NEVER answer the ‘e-mail’ feature.” 

I would like to say, I rest my case. But we’re not quite there. yet.

Bye, for now friends!

This was my shop. Although Etsy dismantled all of my listings, they will not allow me to actually close the shop until I pay a disingenuous and false claim against me. I refuse. I will always refuse. In the meantime, I had saved some of my favorite things that are now listed on eBay, the rest I sold in two online auctions by MaxSold. And one last thing – Josh Silverman does not care about sellers.

Yours truly, jolie

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