that sure is what happened. but its not what patreon intended on happening.
patreon, rather than intending to screw over the little guy like some fat tophat wearing stereotype, didnt understand that small pledges make up the bulk of most peoples incomes, and that the relationship between creator and patreon was not like that of company and customer (in that, if theres transaction fees, were happy to pay them)
and yes, there was an outrage, and yes people did lose money. patreon acknowledged this in their apology, and acknowledged they couldnt reverse it. and then, when they realised what theyd done was counterintuitive to their own goals, and hurt their creators, they did a REALLY fast about-face. thats pretty decent.
patreons crime was lack of insight, first and foremost, and that is not a malicious act.