According to Wired, the new lawsuit results from users “Cruzzcontrol” and “CreatineOverdose,” targeting Twitch streamers in the Black, LGBTQIA+, and transgender communities by using racist, homophobic, sexist, and transphobic content last month. Twitch said the harassment is a violation of its terms of service. The lawsuit alleges the two users constantly created multiple new accounts after being banned to continue their “hate raids,” when groups of malicious users use bot accounts to fill a streamer’s chat with abuse. The user Cruzzcontrol allegedly is responsible for creating 3,000 bot accounts that were associated with hate raids. In addition, the lawsuit alleges that these users continue to promote and engage in hate raids even after being banned, despite Twitch’s security efforts. “Defendants’ actions seriously harmed and will continue to harm the Twitch community,” the lawsuit reads. “Streamers who were the victims of hate-raids experienced mental health issues, and some have reported cutting back on streaming to avoid persistent harassment.” Some Twitch streamers took part in a boycott on September 1 to call for more policies and regulations on hate speech. Streamers who organized the boycott encouraged others to take #ADayOffTwitch to protest Twitch’s inaction against hate speech. Although Twitch said it would launch channel-level ban evasion detection and account verification improvements later this year, streamers were still disappointed with how the platform has handled botting, hate raids, and other forms of harassment. Twitch streamers previously told Lifewire that most users on the platform—especially those affected by the hate raids—simply want to be a part of the conversation with Twitch and explain their experiences so the company can better understand the next step forward.
