The YouTuber Maximilian “HandOfBlood” Knabe (30) is one of the most popular gaming influencers in Germany. Because he used gender-sensitive language in a video, he received hate comments – now he explains why he still uses gendered language.
What was that video about? In a YouTube video from February 5, 2023, HandOfBlood showcased the new office of I3 Holding GmbH, which includes the creative agency Instinc3 and the eSports team Eintracht Spandau.
At the time of the article, the video had nearly 620,000 views and reached 6th place in the general trends on YouTube. This actually indicates the success of the video, but it also means that it is viewed by many people outside of the intended target audience.
In this case, it led to comments from people expressing their displeasure that the content creator uses gender-sensitive language: He genders, for example, referring to influencers as Influencer*innen. The comments reportedly range from claims that he is state-funded to death wishes.
On Twitter, the Spandau native explains why he still genders.
If you want to learn more about the eSports team Eintracht Spandau, check out our video:
YouTuber wants to contribute “his part”
Why does HandOfBlood use gendered language? By using gender-sensitive language, he positions himself in solidarity with people who are discriminated against due to their gender identity.
I do my part to make language more neutral, which will automatically make people think more openly about gender roles. Because language leads to recognition. Those who are linguistically underrepresented lose significance.
HandOfBlood via Twitter
The YouTuber acknowledges that changes in language can be exhausting, and he himself struggles at times. However, the more often one uses new words, the easier it becomes. He concludes by encouraging everyone to give it a try, as language change has always occurred.
We have embedded the beginning of the thread with HandOfBlood’s explanation here:
“Love goes out”
How is that received? As unpleasant as some of the comments on the original video may have been, the content creator also receives a lot of support on Twitter.
Although the comments on the thread are closed, that doesn’t stop people from expressing their opinions in the quote tweets: This is the reason why they still actively follow him as one of the few content creators or why he is their favorite YouTuber (via Twitter).
Other Twitter users express their confusion about why people can get so upset over the use of gendered language, even wishing death on someone: “I don’t understand why inclusion still triggers so many people,” they say (via Twitter).
There seems to be hardly any criticism of the statements. However, it will likely take some time for gendered language to be as normalized as HandOfBlood wishes.
Gendering divides opinions. While advocates like HandOfBlood see it as a normal part of language change and an important sign of equality, critics perceive it as a threat to the German language.
The creator of the survival hit 7 vs. Wild expresses his own opinion on this matter:
