Art streamer ShyBear has hit out at Twitch following a three-day suspension she received for drawing a woman during a broadcast, and also asked the Amazon-owned platform to rethink its ban policy.
The platform has been very clear in the past as to what kinds of art is a violation of its Community Guidelines – usually ones that show too much of certain body parts – and hasn’t been shy when banning streamers who cross the line.
ShyBear has asked Twitch to rethink its ban policy though, after she was suspended for her drawing of a woman that she claims didn’t break the rules.
Banned for woman drawing
On January 11, the streamer posted on Twitter to complain about her sudden suspension from the platform.
“THIS is what got me a [three] day ban on Twitch. Please rethink how you guys do bans and ban people that actually deserve it,” she tweeted, alongside a photograph of her art.
The offending drawing in question was the beginning stages of a depiction of a standing woman from behind, with an outline of their buttocks and a side profile of their chest on show.
https://twitter.com/ShyBearLIVE/status/1216204384448733185
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The artist’s ban could have been a result of how she titled her broadcast, as one of her followers pointed out in a reply to the original tweet.
“You couldn’t even see [the] drawing on stream,” they said. “Probably cause [of your stream description], who knows, but it’s dumb.”
“I think that’s what it is. But regardless – I described the painting, not myself,” the 26-year-old replied. “You are allowed to do portraits without [showing too much]… It barely had anything on it yet.”
https://twitter.com/ShyBearLIVE/status/1216369297813057539
The platform’s Community Guidelines state that art that shows ‘too much’ “may be allowed in educational contexts or for pre-approved licensed content, in each case subject to additional restrictions.”
ShyBear is known for her variety streams in the Just Chatting section of Twitch, where she interacts with her viewers by doing activities such as drawing, Just Dance games, and hot sauce challenges.