You say you want a revolution? Well, you’ll have to settle for a word protest that happened within a week in the minefield that is Twitch chat.

Twitch banned the words “simp”, “incel”, and “virgin” on 15th December via a surprise policy update.

“Using terms like simp, incel, or virgin as an insult to negatively refer to another person’s sexual activity is not allowed under this new policy.”

To also avoid confusion and clarify some things, Twitch made another statement to clarify its stance on the word:

“We do not have a blanket ban on the use of words like ‘simp’ in casual banter,” they explained in a tweet. “But will take action when words like this (amongst others) are used to harass and harm community members.”

We do not have a blanket ban on the use of words like “simp” in casual banter, but will take action when words like this (amongst others) are used to harass and harm community members.

Check out our hateful conduct and harassment policy to learn more: https://t.co/rT9QAC6zcZ

— Twitch (@Twitch) December 18, 2020

As a result, chats mentioning the word “simp” nearly doubled after the “ban” (via Stream Hatchet). 15 days prior to the ban, there was an average of 71,000. uses of the word. Since the ban was imposed, that number doubled to 140,000. Seems like a lot of Twitch viewers are willing to put their own accounts under fire to defend free speech and protest the new policy.

For those who don’t know, the term “simp” is used to men who will go to great lengths to impress a woman with (usually false) hope to receive her affections/TLC. The term is usually applied to viewers who donate an abnormal amount of money to female streamers.