As a gay Twitch streamer, a lot of people ask me whether or not straight allies should be allowed to use the LGBTQIA+ tag for their channel as a "safe space" indicator. I have too many thoughts about it to put in just one tweet, so here's a thread on how I feel about it:

When looking through the LGBTQIA+ tag, I look for streamers who identify within the queer spectrum, not straight allies. I can connect differently with someone who's gone through similar experiences, and I have a different sense of enjoyment when watching them

When a streamer I'm watching with the LGBTQIA+ tag reveals that they're straight, it can feel deceptive, because that's time that I put into their content, assuming that they were in the community because of the tag. It doesn't make me mad, but it does feel slightly deceptive

I will say that I appreciate the gesture, and I LOVE that allies want to show that they're welcoming to the community, but you have to consider that this WILL take attention away from people who ARE a part of the community, so this form of ally-ship can overshadow our voices

Twitch does indicate that the tag is for both allies and LGBTQIA+ people, so I don't necessarily fault straight people for using it, but I urge you to think a step beyond that and ask WHY you're using it, and whether or not it truly benefits the community you're trying to support

Ultimately, I would say that you should NOT use it as a straight person, and opt for a section in your rules/values panel where you voice that you're welcoming to all marginalized communities (LGBTQIA+ people aren't the only ones!!)

In my opinion, that shows more awareness

However, I cannot control your actions, so if you are ABSOLUTELY DEAD-SET on using the tag, I would ask that you say somewhere in your panels that you're using it as an ally so we can be fully aware of whether or not our time is being spent supporting our fellow community members

TL;DR - SHOULD you use the LGBTQIA+ tag as a straight ally? Probably not.

CAN you use the LGBTQIA+ tag as a straight ally? Yes, but be aware of the impact that this has, what you can do to alleviate that impact, and realize that you may still get criticism because of said impact

Okay I HAVE to mute the notifications on this or I’ll lose my mind, but I’ll be checking it periodically

BUT...just wanted to let y’all know that I’m raising money for @TrevorProject and it would be super cool if you could help us reach our goal https://tiltify.com/@jeffbrutlag/joof-troops-trevor-project-campaign