Popular Twitch streamer Mychal ‘Trihex’ Jefferson has been banned from the platform after using a word he admits is “of a derogatory nature.”
Trihex has been streaming on Twitch for years, and is also known as the face of the ‘TriHard’ emote – which itself has been the subject of controversy.
Over his time on Twitch, he has been vocal about social issues, particularly racism, as the TriHard emote has been notoriously used in a disparaging way. When Twitch added a KFC emote, TriHex was bemused, asking “do no black people work at Twitch?”
Now it is Trihex himself being reprimanded however, handed a ban for using a homophobic term, a word that Twitch has been particularly strict about.
Following his ban, Trihex took to Twitter to post a statement, explaining that the word was in his subconscious because in the past he “frequented portions of the internet and chatrooms where such language was normalized.”
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He goes on to say he did not intend to “demean any persons of marginalization”, and acknowledges use of the word is “not okay.”
— Tempo | trihex (@trihex) October 7, 2018
It is not known how long his ban will last, but precedent tells us it will be 30 days. Another popular streamer, Mohamad “m0E” Assad, was banned for 30 days after using the same word, and it was his first violation.
Some fans have pointed out an inconsistency in Twitch’s application of the Terms of Service, citing instances of other streamers who have evaded bans, some for arguably worse breaches.