baraag(dot)net, long-running, stable and always up-to-date vanilla Mastodon server for an underserved niche (the "illegal in some jurisdictions" kind of niche, you have been warned!), it's remained in top 5 most active Mastodons by MAU for years. New user signups have been closed for all of 2023 and it hasn't budged.
If you were wondering, it's child porn disguised as anime-like pictures. Some people call it "lolicon" and "shotacon" when they want to feel like they're not pedophiles.
Respectfully, there is legally no pornography on the site according to the jurisdiction it operates in. At best it is obscene, and it rightfully has an 18+ policy on registered users.
This node maintains the fact that it does not allow pornography, and that all local content has artistic value.
Because baraag.net contains no pornographic images depicting 'Actual human beings' within the meaning and definitions of 18 USC §2257 OR 18 USC §2257A, the admin of this node has been advised by counsel that they cannot maintain records pursuant to those statutes.
You can try and malign them as if they're trying to "disguise" themselves to fit into society, but at the end of the day it is literally just people drawing what they like to draw. Admins are free to defederate them, they usually don't mind it since laws in most places don't align with common sense anyway, but throwing shade at a server that minds it's own business is kinda pathetic.
EDIT: Up in the thread there's an 18+ furry porn instance getting highlighted, I like how fediseer.com themselves endorses it, as if the furry porn on there isn't just "animal porn disguised as cartoon-like pictures, that some people call yiff when they want to feel like they're not zoophiles" 🤡
It is kinda lame, but people who literally go out of their way to not harm anybody don't deserve to get smeared as if they are potential threats to society. The actual threats to society, and to children especially, are a lot more mundane and familiar. Climate change, the education system, capitalism, poverty, etc.
I just loaded the site to see for myself and the whole front page is literally all illustrations of naked children or children being fucked by adult characters.
You can mince words about what that content is all you want but it's fucking cartoon child porn plain and simple.
"Underserved niche" in the sense that the site outpaces almost all other servers by monthly activity despite going out of its way to contain its own growth.