There is nothing wrong with a “thank you” to fellow fighters. Or is there? Death threats poured in against an Overwatch commentator.
Most gamers will have at least seen Soe Gschwind-Penski (Soembie) as she is annually active as a host at BlizzCon. Some also appreciate her for her eSports analyses in the Overwatch sector, her cosplays (like Tracer) or her drawings.
However, on the last International Women’s Day, Gschwind-Penski made a serious mistake, resulting in several death threats and abusive insults.
She had specifically thanked on Twitter all the men who fight alongside women for equality and see them as equals, regardless of race and gender – because that is primarily what equality is about.
However, many people on Twitter seemed to interpret it differently and assessed the tweet in such a way that Gschwind-Penski wanted to put men in the foreground. In some tweets, it was even implied that she was “misogynistic” – simply because she thanked fellow fighters for the same cause.
“Death Threats” for Equality
Shortly after the first tweet, Soembie further explained:
“In the past 20 minutes, I’ve received death threats and hundreds of hate messages for thanking men for treating me as an equal on a day whose focus is on the fight for equality. Hate because I’m grateful for the men in our lives who fight alongside us for our rights…”
There isn’t much to add, because anyone who drowns someone with so much hate for a simple “thank you” should not be surprised if their own demands are not taken seriously.
Or to put it in the (perhaps wise) words of our future Minister of Digital Affairs: “Only politicians, journalists, and psychopaths are on Twitter anyway.”
