Is Pokimane Terf? It all started with the age-old simp story. But Pokimane brought the axe down on herself this time with a mistake she’ll live to regret.
As a woman who has never been far from controversy, one has to admit that some of the flak Pokimane receives isn’t exactly her fault. However, having said that, on this occasion it certainly was.
The Simping Premise: Pokimane’s rise to fame.
To understand what actually led to the Internet calling Poki a Terf, we need to first cover Pokimane ‘s simp story. For those of you who aren’t aware, people often call Poki’s fans out for being simps. “Simp” is a derogatory urban slang one uses to describe men who flatter women. They claim that part of Poki’s success lies in entertaining these simps with her pretty looks instead of hard work.
Pokimane, however, has usually been vocal in the defence of her fanbase, calling people out for using such terms. In fact, in the Misfits Podcast on 5th June 2020, she stated outright that such behaviour is simply nasty. It just discourages men from being kind to women.
Video below: The Misfits Podcast with Poki.
Also Read: AOC Among Us Charity Twitch Stream: AOC Raises $200k, Jagmeet Singh simps for Corpse Husband’s voice
Pokimane messes up!
Everything cool so far, right? I mean she hasn’t said anything offensive at all, has she?
However, she messes up a few months later. Pokimane uploaded an Instagram story defending the same issue in late September. In that story, she stated, “I’m tired of seeing anyone (male, female, attack helicopter, other) be called a simp”. And this is where she fricked up!
As you can judge from the context itself, Poki uses the terms “attack helicopter” and “others” to refer to transgenders and other communities who do not identify strictly as men or women. As a major streamer addressing her fans, people saw this as both very irresponsible and “terf” of her. Some even claimed to have witnessed it elsewhere from her too.
Is Pokimane Terf?
But, what does TERF mean? TERF is an acronym that stands for Trans-Exclusionary Radical Feminist. To put it simply, one uses it to refer to a person who is transphobic & fights only for the rights of cis women.
Pokimane’s use of alternate words to address the trans community also felt as if she was stigmatizing them. This, as fans made clear, was very insulting to in 2020, as part of a society that strives for Inclusivity.
Pokimane did apologize for what she said was her lame attempt at humour, later on. However, the damage had been done. Keemstar, of course, pounced on the opportunity and called her an “edgelord”.
To make up for her mistake, Poki decided to donate and promote donations from her fans to a fund for homeless trans-women.
And that, my friends, is why people, to this day, accuse Pokimane of being a TERF.
