VidCon 2017: Social Justice Warrior Anita Sarkeesian Calls YouTuber Names, Sargon of Akkad Claims Abuse

At the 2017 VidCon, feminist and social justice warrior Anita Sarkeesian, who runs the Feminist Frequency YouTube channel, stirred up a ruckus at a panel. When she had the floor, she gestured in the direction of a fellow YouTuber Sargon of Akkad and laid into him the “human garbage” moniker, according to One Angry Gamer. Apparently, Anita had an axe to grind with him being there.

It was unprovoked. This begs the question if the remarks she made were intended for some fans to back her while she did some grandstanding, and/or did she actually feel threatened by certain YouTubers in the audience?

Sargon admittedly says he’s a critic of Sarkeesian’s work and he attended the panel called “Women Online.” The method of operation for this panel was to “create and engage as a woman” when it comes to an online presence. He took particular interest in the panel with Anita and others as he wanted to engage with them what they go through as a woman when it comes to creating online content.

YouTube then blew up over this event over at VidCon 2017 regarding Anita’s name calling while Sargon sat there the whole time. He declared that she “hijacked the panel for her own personal agenda” and laid into the audience member calling him a “sh**head” and a “human garbage”. This stirred a reaction from the audience and thus stirred a major uproar in the YouTube community.

(Warning: Some profanity)

Anita violated the #VidConUS CoC by abusing me on stage, @hankgreen @johngreen. https://t.co/CgR08ScDHB

— Carl Benjamin (@Sargon_of_Akkad) June 23, 2017

If you skip to the 3:55 mark of Computing Forever’s video testimonial, you’ll see Anita’s name calling occur. As a result, Sargon of Akkad claimed abuse and cited the VidCon’s Code of Conduct regarding what he considered inappropriate behavior and then created a movement to have Anita removed from a Saturday panel entailing cyber-bullying.

“After publicly and virally abusing me at Vidcon 2017 and inciting a cyberbullying campaign against me, I am petitioning Hank and John Green, the co-founders of Vidcon, to remove her from Saturday’s Cyberbullying panel.”

YouTuber JoeySalads and Tanisha posted a video of himself asking the panel a question regarding a double standard when it come to male harassment. Members of the VidCon panel dismissed him, claiming that’s a question unrelated to the panel’s topic and how he was was seemingly marginalizing or downplaying what women go through. He said that he’s received a ton of hate comments on YouTube and he is able to move on and dismisses them as your typical Internet troll.

Moving forward, another YouTuber, Barbara4u2c, gave her take on the incident and said Anita Sarkeesian started texting on her phone as soon as she saw Sargon in the audience. Barbara4u2c also had footage of someone claiming that the head of security at VidCon implied that Anita texted her stating she felt unsafe and took to heart that some audience members’ presence there was an “act of aggression.”

Barbara4u2c was appalled that the panel progressed into a conversation about how women online are victims as opposed to the topic at hand. She also was embarrassed by the fact that Anita seemed to have made a sweeping generalization about said gender, as if she was speaking for women in general. Barbara4u2c said if you’re going to be a public figure, you’re going to have to deal with criticism and what-not online.

(Warning: Some profanity)

https://youtu.be/5bYb4BXr3II

Wouldn’t you say that this is the nature of the beast when it comes to the Internet? As with anything, some people tend to take things from one extreme to the next. Do you think Anita Sarkeesian’s behavior may discredit her?

[Featured Image by Cindy Ord/Getty Images]