Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s historic ruling today to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision that protected the right to have an abortion, various Twitch and YouTube streamers have used their platforms to decry the repeal.
Twitch, one of the most viewed video hosting and livestreaming platforms in the world, averages 2.5 million concurrent viewers, according to Stream Charts. But it’s not only limited to video game and gaming adjacent content. Twitch has become a wildly successful tool for political and humanitarian activism, fundraising, and mobilization.
The recent overturn of Roe v. Wade, initially passed on Jan. 22, 1973, has sent shockwaves across the American political landscape. This unprecedented removal of a constitutional right has elicited responses from some of the largest and most influential creators in the gaming and streaming industries.
Hasan Piker, the single most viewed political commentator on Twitch, was quick to condemn the Supreme Court. “The federalist society got todays decision in only 4 decades,” Hasan wrote on Twitter. “All 6 of the scotus justices that voted to take away womens bodily automony are current or former members.”
Founder of OfflineTV and business mogul Pokimane criticized the pro-life movement, pointing out hypocrisies in the ideology. “They’re not pro-life, they’re pro-minimizing-women’s-rights,” Pokimane said. “If they were pro life, we’d have better gun control, universal healthcare, better support for homeless people & those in need. Don’t be fooled by their jargon.”
One of the largest individual streamers on the platform, Asmongold, has often delved into the political realm despite his initial fame rising from his MMORPG proficiency. He even recently set up a conversation with Texas representative Ted Cruz in regard to the nature of microtransactions in games. Asmongold also gave his opinion on the recent overturn. “If you don’t have autonomy over your own body, what real freedom can you have?” the streamer tweeted.
100 Thieves content creator BrookeAB pointed to recent mass shootings in the U.S., outraged at lawmakers’ attempts to rationalize the overturn as a defense of children. Fellow 100 Thieves streamer and co-owner CouRage echoed similar sentiments, expressing that he is “not proud to be an American” right now.
Still only within the first day of the Supreme Court’s massive overturn, many reactions from industry professionals are coming out as the consequences are becoming more prevalent.
