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Dear John,
Back in September, when Kayla—a Black woman and Twitch streamer—was doxed
by users of the platform, online racists made false 911 calls and had a
fully armed SWAT team sent to an address where they believed she was
living. This incident occurred after she had been hate-raided by 400 bots,
and harassed and cyberstalked by users who should’ve already been banned
from the platform. Twitch’s failure to invest enough in the safety and
security of its users has endangered the lives of Black creators and their
loved ones. Kayla could have been seriously injured, harmed, or even
killed.
Still, there’s a glimmer of hope. Thanks to more than 19,000 Color Of
Change members who signed the #TwitchDoBetter petition, we’ve been able to
have one of our demands met: two-factor authentication, which allows
creators and moderators to secure their channel live streams with phone
and email verification!^1 This is critical to ensuring that online racists
cannot access Black creators’ content, let alone leave comments with
sensitive information (e.g., home addresses) or even hate.
[ [link removed] ]CHIP IN, OUR #TWITCHDOBETTER CAMPAIGN IS A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH.
In the coming weeks, we’ll be hosting a Twitter Livestream Event to raise
awareness of this issue, sharing powerful YourVoice videos collected from
impacted Black streamers and running ads that target Twitch executives. We
want to maintain the momentum we’ve worked so hard to build and pressure
Twitch to adopt our other demands aimed at protecting Black creators:
* Conduct a Racial Equity Audit — to evaluate its policies and products
for discrimination and determine mechanisms to prevent future harm to
Black communities (e.g., software program that detects universal
slurs, streamlined complaint process).
* Enforce Terms of Service and Community Guidelines — which would
require that those found in violation be permanently banned from the
platform.
* Establish an Equity Council of Black Creators — to better inform its
safety, policy, and enforcement protocols.
* Expand Other User Permissions — which would include granting streamers
and moderators permission to approve/decline hate raids.
[ [link removed] ]But, John, we need you to power this important work!
[ [link removed] ]donate $5 [ [link removed] ]DONATE $25
[ [link removed] ]DONATE $10 [ [link removed] ]DONATE $50
[ [link removed] ]DONATE $15 [ [link removed] ]OTHER AMOUNT
Until justice is real,
—The Color Of Change Team
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References:
1. “Securing Your Chat with Phone and Email Verification,” Twitch,
September 29, 2021,
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[ [link removed] ]Color Of Change is building a movement to elevate the voices of Black
folks and our allies, and win real social and political change. Please
help keep our movement strong.
[ [link removed] ]Make a Donation
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