<img src="https://sb.scorecardresearch.com/p?c1=2&amp;c2=36750692&amp;cv=3.6.0&amp;cj=1"> Twitch Streamers Protest Against Hate Raids On The Platform By Taking #ADayOffTwitch – We Got This Covered
Something went wrong. Try again, or if the problem persists.
Your details are incorrect, or aren't in our system yet. Please try again, or sign up if you're new here.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google and of Service apply.
Create a GAMURS
By g up, you agree to our and of Service.
Something went wrong. Try again, or if the problem persists.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google and of Service apply.
Choose a name
Choose a unique name using 3-30 alphanumeric characters.
Something went wrong. Try again, or if the problem persists.
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google and of Service apply.
Choose your preferences
Choose how we communicate with you, opt out at anytime.
Something went wrong. Try again, or if the problem persists.
Check your email
An confirmation link was sent to your email. Don't forget to check your spam!
Enter the email address you used when you ed and we'll send you instructions to reset your .
If you used Apple or Google to create your , this process will create a for your existing .
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google and of Service apply.
Reset instructions sent. If you have an with us, you will receive an email within a few minutes.
Something went wrong. Try again or if the problem persists.

Twitch Streamers Protest Against Hate Raids On The Platform By Taking #ADayOffTwitch

Here's why streamers and fans are avoiding the platform today.

Twitch Streamers are avoiding the platform today and calling for viewers to steer clear of the site with the campaign #ADayOffTwitch. The boycott held today follows a summer of rising tensions among marginalized creators on the platform. 

Recommended Videos

Why Streamers Are Protesting

In May Twitch added over 350 new tags intended to help find streamers in the community by race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, nationality, ability, veteran status, and other identities. The move came after various groups of streamers had advocated for the tags in order to make it easier for viewers to find them. Earlier this year the nonprofit Trans Lifeline launched Peer2Peer, a discovery tool for streamers and their viewers, which The Verge reports included tags such as “trans,” Black,” and “lesbian.” While streamers saw the success of Peer2Peer as a reason for the inclusion of tags, implementation on Twitch has led to disastrous results.

The summer saw a marked change in how marginalized streamers can use the platform. Last month Launcher reported on the proliferation of hate raids — which aim to derail streams by inundating chats with targeted harassment and hate speech —  in recent months. It’s widely suspected that identity-based tags are making it easier for trolls, human or bot, to carry out these attacks. After RekItRaven, a Black and nonbinary streamer, shared their experience of being raided with followers on August 6th, thousands rallied behind a call for action from the Amazon-owned Twitch using the hashtag #TwtichDoBetter.

Twitch initially responded to the campaign with improved chat filters that left streamers calling for further change. The solution is not simply to remove the tags but to rid the people abusing the platform. And even despite the harm, it has wrought, some streamers do think the pros outweigh the cons. 

Twitch’s response also failed to address other grievances simultaneously boiling over. The moment has been used to raise the issue of the platform’s abhorrent cut of profits from subscriptions and tips via “Bit’s,” the platform’s proprietary currency that viewers first purchase with real money. Currently, Twitch takes 50 percent of earnings from most streamers, while the most popular creators on the platform can negotiate for more favorable splits.

#ADayOffTwitch was announced by RekItRaven on Aug. 20 alongside fellow trans and POC streamers LuciaEverblack and ShineyPen.  

https://twitter.com/RekItRaven/status/1428847935022841868

Kotaku reported that the move aims to put more pressure on Twitch to take responsibility for allowing hate speech and harassment to spread so easily on its platform. 

Speaking to The Verge on the eve of the boycott, Everblack said “We don’t just want solutions to current problems…We want policies in place so that these kinds of problems never happen again or at least never get this severe.” But the move has not been met with unanimity. Ash Parrish writes “it’s just not feasible for some smaller streamers, arguably the population most affected by hate raids, to take a day off,” while others have emphasized tat “the people behind these hate raids are working to bully marginalized streamers off the platform, and taking a day off is giving them exactly what they want.”

It’s still too early to tell where streamers and Twitch will go from here. The movement was big enough to get trending on Twitter, but likely won’t cause any real harm to Twitch’s metrics. If social pressure is what’s needed, then we may see further protests in some form or another. What is clear is that there is a bigotry problem on Twitch, and streamers cannot — should not — alone redress Twitch’s failings.


We Got This Covered is ed by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small commission. Learn more about our Policy
Author
Image of Autumn Wright
Autumn Wright
Autumn Wright is an anime journalist, which is a real job. As a writer at We Got This Covered, they cover the biggest new seasonal releases, interview voice actors, and investigate labor practices in the global industry. Autumn can be found biking to queer punk through Brooklyn, and you can read more of their words in Polygon, WIRED, The Washington Post, and elsewhere.