THE END: Transphobic Content, Why We Protested, and Why Everyone Should
A single roast video. Breaking records. Trending on social media. Most-liked non-musical video. And boom, it's deleted.
What was the next thing, you suppose? Of course, protests. Why has the video been deleted? Why has an innocent creator been framed for cyberbullying? Blah blah.
My question: What exactly triggered such a large group of people to raise their voice against a roast video that a famous content creator put up on YouTube?
A one-word answer to this would be 'homophobia', synonymous with 'hate'. Homophobia has stopped existing as a 'phobia' to me. It's just pure hate and intolerance. Anyways, back to roasting.
While the LGBTQ+ community has been blamed for the mass protests leading to the video being deleted, let's make it clear why it was logical for everyone, not only the Queer community to have protested.
What I expected from the video was something humorous on the laughable and absurd content 'some' content creators post on TikTok. What I viewed was an acclaimed Youtuber dishing out slurs every fifteen seconds and calling a male YouTuber 'beti' (apparently, he wanted us to know that he thinks the TikToker in question, is transgender?). And then, priding himself on having delivered some superior form of insult.
My roast: If I were transgender and you were to call me the same to roast me, I'd have just asked you to find a better method to down me. But, you said it in a way which was not only offensive but also, yes, very insulting. Congrats, you've achieved your aim. Only, that far from good-humored roasting, this seemed like a direct attack to an entire community who felt that being queer is embarrassing and it will invite 'casual roasting' from people like you. Who, on seeing your video will feel humiliated that their sexuality is being used as a term to taunt someone.
The grim aftermath: To the content creator- Pride yourself on having a massive fan club who is ready to shed all sense of logic and reason to support you. I am surprised at the number of my companions who've gladly taken to sharing memes calling trans people 'faggot' or 'chakke' after the video received an extensive audience viewership. I'm surprised at how only a handful of people have protested against the video and how those handfuls are being shamed. The explanation lies in the fact that we live in a drastically intolerant, unaccepting society who fails to recognize a community as a part of their high and mighty, pure, hypocritical social structure.
Now, back to the raging war between Youtube and Tiktok, two equally biased platforms, when we look deeply. TikTok has homophobic content in it as well (the TikToker in question also has highly transphobic content on his feed) . What I'm trying to imply is that I am not taking sides. Or perhaps I am. I'm raising my voice taking the side of the LGBTQ+ community, and it seems only fair to do it. When jocular content piles up, targetting a community who anyways face regular harassment, it leads them to develop suicidal thoughts and they find their sexual orientation being joked about, which means it is unacceptable in society. This is why most of India's queer youth remain closeted for fear of persecution.
As a side note, as it is in the case of every content creating platform, if the majority of the amateurish, 'makes-no-sense' content is removed, we'll find it enjoyable. Thus, it makes no sense to defame an entire community (not restricted to a single nation), just because you're agitated at one of them. Taking no names, it applies to all.
My protest is neither against a roast video nor against any particular creator. It's aimed against homophobia as a whole, regardless of the platform or the creator. I am against the use of offensive slurs in making fun of others in the name of 'roasting'. Law prohibits harassment in any form of cyber use and makes it a punishable act. Which provides the answer to why the video was taken down.
To all readers, a day ago, Anjana, a 21-year-old queer student committed suicide, the act being triggered by homophobia and forced conversion therapy by her family. While this has nothing to do with the topic in question, it only shows that it is high time we started speaking up for the LGBTQ+ youth. More suicides, more deaths, more funny content manipulating people into nurturing hatred for queers, until they are scarred enough to take their life. Today, we have failed you, Anjana and, society itself owes you an apology.
To all the queer folks, any content by any creator cannot devalue you or stop you from becoming what you are. To all creators, humourous content is appreciated as long as it stops at the line of bullying or harassment, crossing which, we'll protest again.
17th May is observed as the international day against Homophobia. Remember it's not Justice For Carry, but Justice For Anjana you should be advocating for :)
#ROASTED
What was the next thing, you suppose? Of course, protests. Why has the video been deleted? Why has an innocent creator been framed for cyberbullying? Blah blah.
My question: What exactly triggered such a large group of people to raise their voice against a roast video that a famous content creator put up on YouTube?
A one-word answer to this would be 'homophobia', synonymous with 'hate'. Homophobia has stopped existing as a 'phobia' to me. It's just pure hate and intolerance. Anyways, back to roasting.
While the LGBTQ+ community has been blamed for the mass protests leading to the video being deleted, let's make it clear why it was logical for everyone, not only the Queer community to have protested.
What I expected from the video was something humorous on the laughable and absurd content 'some' content creators post on TikTok. What I viewed was an acclaimed Youtuber dishing out slurs every fifteen seconds and calling a male YouTuber 'beti' (apparently, he wanted us to know that he thinks the TikToker in question, is transgender?). And then, priding himself on having delivered some superior form of insult.
My roast: If I were transgender and you were to call me the same to roast me, I'd have just asked you to find a better method to down me. But, you said it in a way which was not only offensive but also, yes, very insulting. Congrats, you've achieved your aim. Only, that far from good-humored roasting, this seemed like a direct attack to an entire community who felt that being queer is embarrassing and it will invite 'casual roasting' from people like you. Who, on seeing your video will feel humiliated that their sexuality is being used as a term to taunt someone.
The grim aftermath: To the content creator- Pride yourself on having a massive fan club who is ready to shed all sense of logic and reason to support you. I am surprised at the number of my companions who've gladly taken to sharing memes calling trans people 'faggot' or 'chakke' after the video received an extensive audience viewership. I'm surprised at how only a handful of people have protested against the video and how those handfuls are being shamed. The explanation lies in the fact that we live in a drastically intolerant, unaccepting society who fails to recognize a community as a part of their high and mighty, pure, hypocritical social structure.
Now, back to the raging war between Youtube and Tiktok, two equally biased platforms, when we look deeply. TikTok has homophobic content in it as well (the TikToker in question also has highly transphobic content on his feed) . What I'm trying to imply is that I am not taking sides. Or perhaps I am. I'm raising my voice taking the side of the LGBTQ+ community, and it seems only fair to do it. When jocular content piles up, targetting a community who anyways face regular harassment, it leads them to develop suicidal thoughts and they find their sexual orientation being joked about, which means it is unacceptable in society. This is why most of India's queer youth remain closeted for fear of persecution.
As a side note, as it is in the case of every content creating platform, if the majority of the amateurish, 'makes-no-sense' content is removed, we'll find it enjoyable. Thus, it makes no sense to defame an entire community (not restricted to a single nation), just because you're agitated at one of them. Taking no names, it applies to all.
My protest is neither against a roast video nor against any particular creator. It's aimed against homophobia as a whole, regardless of the platform or the creator. I am against the use of offensive slurs in making fun of others in the name of 'roasting'. Law prohibits harassment in any form of cyber use and makes it a punishable act. Which provides the answer to why the video was taken down.
To all readers, a day ago, Anjana, a 21-year-old queer student committed suicide, the act being triggered by homophobia and forced conversion therapy by her family. While this has nothing to do with the topic in question, it only shows that it is high time we started speaking up for the LGBTQ+ youth. More suicides, more deaths, more funny content manipulating people into nurturing hatred for queers, until they are scarred enough to take their life. Today, we have failed you, Anjana and, society itself owes you an apology.
To all the queer folks, any content by any creator cannot devalue you or stop you from becoming what you are. To all creators, humourous content is appreciated as long as it stops at the line of bullying or harassment, crossing which, we'll protest again.
17th May is observed as the international day against Homophobia. Remember it's not Justice For Carry, but Justice For Anjana you should be advocating for :)
#ROASTED
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