One attendee at Folsom Street Fair had quite the s—ty time during their visit to the annual San Francisco BDSM festival, sparking controversy after posing for a snap with a chest full of dookie.


Shortly after the event, one designed to cultivate “a safe, open, and inclusive environment for the kink, leather, and alternative sexuality communities,” per its website, came to a close on Sunday, kink educator Kristofer Weston headed to Twitter, recalling a poop-themed political statement he witnessed at the NorCal fair.


“My fave Folsom experience was coming across @Austinlacrosse2 looking hot covered in s—t,” he captioned two photos of the attendee, sporting a chest full of what appears to be poop with the words “Scat Pig” smeared on his back.


“He explained it was a commentary on consent, as people often try to grab him and hug him for asking,” the adult entertainer continued in the now-deleted tweet, immortalized in alleged screenshots. “If they tried that at the fair yesterday they were in for a huge surprise.”



Yet, handsy attendees weren’t the only ones caught off guard by this scatty display. Weston’s post quickly went viral on Twitter, sparking a vicious debate over whether the display was within bounds for the famously freaky festival or veered the line into a possible health hazard.



“All this Folsom discourse is silly, but I do think it's okay to say that the shit smearing is unsanitary,” added @YaBoyUhErik. “Like I know a lot of asshole stuff happens at Folsom, but shit? In the open air? In a pandemic?”


But not everyone condemned the now-viral Scat Pig’s approach to enforcing consent.

“The Folsom discourse is crazy. I understand that young queers are quite reactionary, but something making you uncomfortable is not evidence that it’s HARMFUL,” wrote @MajorPhilebrity, arguing that “conflating discomfort with harm is not only lazy but it’s dangerous!” “It’s the foundation for many homophobic beliefs.”


As Weston’s since-scrubbed post — as well as another photo of a man appearing to get fisted during the festival — sent a legion of users clutching their pearls, one element of these respective controversies quickly fell by the wayside: The broader context of the festival itself.



According to the Folsom Street Fair’s website, anyone less than 18 years of age or “pets of any kind” — except, perhaps, some dudes who are a little too into puppy play  — are strictly prohibited.


 “This is not an appropriate environment for any non-human animals,” reads the event’s frequently asked questions page, reiterating that “the environment is very much for adults only.”



“If you want to expose your child to alternative sexualities, there are other ways to do it – read a book, watch a movie, or attend a conference,” they continued. “Our gates and security volunteers will stop you, discourage you from entering and reinforce our policy directly with you (repeatedly). Find a babysitter; and, enjoy a day with your adult friends.”


But even witnessing the events as a passerby poses quite the challenge. Considering the SoMa event does allow nudity, several steps — including blocking the festival from public view — are taken to ensure what happens at the Folsom Street Fair stays at the Folsom Street Fair.



“Funniest thing to me about people freaking out/clutching pearls about Folsom is that when you live in San Francisco, it’s just something you walk by on your way to get coffee,” wrote comedian @ElyKreimendahl. “If you’re into it, you go in and if not, you’re like ‘oh yeah Folsom’ and you keep fucking walking.”


But regardless of whether you fall in the pro or anti-Scat Pig camp, one thing is certain. To paraphrase @dragqueenjp, "we can confidently say there’s cishet guys walking with more shit between their asscheeks in actual public.”