Recently, in a livestream, YouTuber John Yates , repeatedly used the N-word. Viewers who were both disturbed and offended by his racist rant reported the offensive, disturbing video. Since the video violated YouTube's community guidelines, John Yates received a warning for his hate speech. It is appalling that he only received a warning for such an offensive rant against Black people. According to YouTube terms of service, channels can be terminated without warning if they are dedicated to hate speech or the incident was a single case of severe abuse (Google, 2022); thus, Yates should have been terminated for his offensive rant.

  Moreover, this was not a single racist incident. Yates and his husband have a history of racist comments towards Black people. For example, calling a black person the n-word, nappy-headed, ghetto, big lips, or a house n-word. Additionally, Yates frequently imitates Black female content creators by donning a wig and performing stereotypical things to mock them. The latter is a form of othering to make himself seem superior to Black people. Furthermore, he has minimized the effects of systemic racism on Black people by comparing his experiences as a privileged White male to the experiences of oppressed Black people. The latter was done to invalidate or diminish the feelings and experiences of the Black people that he offended. Lastly, there is one confirmed case of Blackface, where darkened his face and held up hair extensions. 

   Further, on January 18th, when Yates received a warning for violating YouTube community guidelines, he went live and gave an disingenuous apology. The apology was disingenuous because Yates blamed his racist rant on a host of issues, such as being manic and not feeling well. Are you kidding me? Being manic or sick is not an excuse or justification for racist comments. Plain and simple, his excuses were an insult to the intelligence of those whom he offended.

   Moreover, he claims he was reading comments, which is not true. Even if it were true, that is still not a justification for a White male repeatedly saying the N-word. Plus, video evidence shows that Yates knew it was wrong and could get him canceled. Therefore, he should take full accountability for his actions and stop insulting viewers' intelligence, memory, and feelings. Stop the gaslighting and stop playing the victim. Yates was fully aware of his actions. In fact, during the livestream, he was told not to say the n-word, but he continued to do so.

  Since this is a pattern for John Yates, he should be terminated whether he apologizes or not for violating YouTube community guidelines and making the platform a hostile environment for Black people. Hate speech of this nature should receive more than just a warning because hate speech affects a person's overall well-being.

  Lastly, frequently interviews cast members from 90-day fiancé. We ask all cast members to stand in solidarity with Black viewers and choose a different platform to express or promote themselves. Please understand that supporting Yates channel supports racism and offends your show's black viewers and fans. 

To all, follow these action steps:

1. Please sign and share this petition. 
2. Follow me on Twitter @CancelJohnYatesto keep up with everything
3. Tweet or tag people to this petition especially cast members from the following shows #90DayFiance #SeekingSisterWife #RHONJ #RHONY #RHOA #RHOP #RHOBH #RHOSLC #SisterWives #TLC # Bravo

Google. (2022, January 20th). Channel or account terminations - YouTube  help. Channel or account terminations. Retrieved January 20th, 2022, from https://support.google.com/youtube/answer/2802168?hl=en