Hi John,
On Christmas Day, children sprint to see what Santa has left under the tree and unwrap their shiny gaming consoles with glee! But when Black children take to Twitch to watch streamers level up in Fortnite or secure cheat codes for their newest game, many will encounter harsh realities. In some cases, it’s hard to find streamers who look and talk like them. Twitch rarely features Black creators on its front page and limits its celebration of Black creators and their communities to the month of February. And when children do find streamers who represent their cultural identities, many are at risk of being exposed to hateful and discriminatory comments frequently left by racist users in Black creators’ live stream chats. Twitch has allowed anti-Black racism to run rampant on its platform since 2018, and our children are seeing it.
THIS HOLIDAY SEASON, John, POWER THE #TWITCHDOBETTER MOVEMENT!
Since the pandemic began, there has been a 70 percent increase in hate between children and teens during online chats, and a 40 percent increase in toxicity among young gamers. From emotional fatigue to depression, the mental health effects are far-reaching.1 Black children as well as the Black streamers who are continuously harassed deserve protection. And, John, we need your support to hold Twitch accountable!
Back in August, we devised a list of demands that we believe would make our children and our communities feel safer while on the platform. While Twitch has since implemented phone/email verified chat (which creates some additional security during live streams) and bans on known problematic accounts, more is required to keep Black steamers safe:
- A racial equity audit would empower Twitch with the knowledge framework and racial justice lens needed to root out biases in its processes, policies, and procedures.
- A software that bans universal slurs would ensure that Black communities, specifically children, are not exposed to language that attacks, threatens, or undermines their cultural identities.
- Increased moderation support would ensure that Black creators can respond quickly to end hate raids and protect themselves—and their audiences—from discriminatory language.
- An updated harassment complaint system would include additional tagging options, timestamps, confirmation of receipt from a live reviewer, and an expected timeline for review and resolution of complaints.
Until justice is real,
—The Color Of Change Team
References:
- Joanne Orlando, “Young people are exposed more to hate online during COVID. And it risks their health,” The Conversation, November 9, 2020, https://act.colorofchange.org/go/338198?t=9&akid=52629%2E4731121%2E65bB_N.
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.
