Twitch has again made a misstep when trying to be inclusive, this time with Women's History Month, utilizing the term "Womxn," in a tweet, a terminology which many felt disrespectful towards trans people as it's been historically used by trans-exclusionary feminists (TERFs) and other bad actors to stigmatize the trans community.
In the original tweet, which has since been deleted, Twitch mentioned that March was the perfect month to celebrate and support all "the womxn creating their own worlds, building their communities, and leading the way on Twitch."(Image: Twitch)
The term used became a trending topic on the social platform, with thousands upon thousands of comments criticizing Twitch for their decision to use it.
Trans women are women, so why do some ppl still use “womxn?” Real q.
— Aimee Carrero (@aimeecarrero) March 1, 2021
Since Womxn is trending during Women's History Month, let's clear some things up. This is a term created by TERFs to exclude trans women. It refers to xx chromosomes. It absolutely is not inclusive or intersectional feminism. Stop misinformation
— That Immunocompromised Enby (@immunoenby) March 2, 2021
Eventually, the streaming platform issued an apology, claiming that they acknowledged "the shortcoming of gender-binary language," hence the usage of womxn.
"After hearing directly from you, including members of the LGBTQIA+ community on Twitch, we will be using the spelling 'women' moving forward."
Twitch continued by admitting that they're "still learning. Our good intentions don't always equate to positive impact, but we're committed to growing from these experiences."
This is far from the first time Twitch has received its fair share of criticism while trying to aim for inclusiveness. During September's Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations, the company unveiled exclusive emotes depicting Hispanics with a very narrow view of the different Latin American cultures.
It seems, like Twitch itself admitted, they still have a lot to learn.