One of the biggest names on Twitch and in the streaming world, Asmongold, has come out with a reflective video and apology regarding his comments about the Palestinian people. The streamer said that he felt “like a stupid asshole” and promised to do better down the line.
The YouTuber and streamer expressed these and other sentiments in an Oct. 16 video, made following his suspension from Twitch after he made several derogatory comments on the Palestinian people. He expressed how Palestinians are “terrible people” with an “inferior culture,” and has now walked back on those statements, acknowledging that they were broad generalizations and not well stated. He also added that, following the ban, he was messaged by people who were either Palestinian themselves or had friends and family in the region, which, as he stated, made him feel like a “stupid, belligerent, fucking asshole.”
The creator also said how he doesn’t approve of religious extremism and that he would never support any form of religion or other group which wishes to impose harm on others. This anti-religious extremism sentiment, Asmongold says, lead to him wrongfully generalizing an entire people and culture, for which he has now apologized.
Asmongold also reflected on his past behavior in general, unrelated to this most recent incident. The streamer claimed that he had been devolving into a “mean spirited” and otherwise mean person over the past two years, stating how even his father told him to “chill out” and cut back on his behavior. He says that the ban itself didn’t make him feel anxious or angry, but rather “relaxed,” as he could finally think about other things in life and not just streaming. “I think I’m going to cut down on streaming quite as much,” he added.
As such, he announced that he’d be stepping back from his leadership positions with OTK, Starforge, and presumably other OTK-related initiatives like the Mad Mushroom publishing label to try to grow and improve as a person.
“I’m just gonna focus on myself for a while, try to improve my own life,” he sad in the closure, promising to speak on more once he goes live again.
