NYPD on Twitter: "We regret to inform that Desmond Amofah aka Etika has been found deceased." (See guidelines before posting)

[Kamek]

First things first, RIP Etika. You made mistakes, it seems like you tried to take accountability for them in the end, and I'm sorry that you didn't get the help you needed. I just saw an article about how he was in the real battle scene also in New York. Seemed like a talented and charismatic kid.

A lot of people here, moderation especially, seem to want to stymie the discussion around internal reflection about how this site deals with these situations. It reminds me of Republican politicians saying now is not the time to discuss gun control after a major shooting. They just want thoughts and prayers. The hypocrisy is blatant, but unsurprising.

I never participated in the discussions around Etika because I never followed many YouTube celebrities. That being said, after reading through the thread, a lot of the moderation here is, and has always been - terrible. There is no transparency, despite being one of the principles this site was founded on. We have to PM mods privately to even make a complaint and aren't allowed to voice and discuss things as a COMMUNITY. EVERYTHING seems to get shut down - meta discussions about the site are deemed "unproductive" in an almost Trumpianpian way of shutting down discussion. Not every discussion or point brought up is in "bad faith".

I'm really sorry to hear about how some of you with mental health issues have been treated on this site, and I truly hope things change - especially the moderation here. It's insane how inconsistent they are and the ban hammer is so quick for innocuous things at times, yet so lenient for other horrible things.

Sorry for Etika as a fellow New Yorker especially, it hits differently. We need to start really thinking about how social media is effecting some people.

 

[dom]

I see a lot of blame to mental health professionals and other doctors in this thread and I know it's coming from a place of passionate empathy but you need to know it's just not true. In the US, if a patient is legally an adult - and Etika was 29 - and gives you no evidence that they are still suicidal, you have to let them go or you are, by legal definition, kidnapping them. You can prescribe them medication, but you can't force them to take it. If someone is in medical care for suicidal ideation, they are completely lucid, and they tell you they want to go home, you have to let them go home.

And unfortunately, the thing about mental disorders is that they spend a lot of time convincing you that you don't have them.

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Plus on the other side this could then be ripe for abuse. People don't want cops to have unchecked power and then this would lead to another way for them to exert control over PoC.

 

[Haze]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika and be frustrated with him. Look at the things he was saying. This situation isn't as simple as some are making it to be, these words are hurtful.

It's tragic that this man who built up this channel and a lot of fans died in this manner as he didn't deserve to go out like this. However these words were definitely harmful and some people's frustrations were warranted I feel.

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Etika clearly wasn't in the best of mental states so it's hard for me to equate something like this with all of the bigoted individuals who consciously believe things that for Etika were most likely the result of rough points of him being mentally unwell.

 

[PancakeFlip]

Truly RIP to this guy. I knew he tried to stay positive for his audience despite how he really felt.

I felt so bad for Etika, I had friends like him growing up in school though they would take out their frustration with mischief (rather than more defined cases of depression) on top of being class clowns, but the fact that social media is a thing now makes cases like this 1,000 times worse. Since he ate slept and breathed on social, his persona became the clown and he was basically locked into it socially as I'm assuming most of his audience were probably younger and only could see him as this 2-D form of entertainment, add on to that the pressure and the need for mental therapy this would only push him down that path faster.

 

[Holundrian]

*sneer* I find it not shocking that people feel like others have an agenda to push when it's just airing legitimate grievances.
Over a year ago I would constantly say talk to the mods with real issues, try to communicate with each other but since then I've learned everyone was right.

This place is only going to become more shitty until people take criticism seriously.

 

[Doof]

Not everybody is coming from the same place, or can discern between "not mentally well" and "straight-up bigoted." Words affect people in a lot of different ways. I'm not defending people's dismissal of Etika's cries for help as anything but abhorrent, but at the same time I'm not going to get mad at somebody who has been harassed and attacked emotionally and even physically for their sexual orientation when they react in anger or hurt when somebody starts throwing the word "fag" around at them. Appreciation for mental health goes both ways. In general this whole sorry episode should be a reminder that people are dealing with a lot of things that they don't expose on the surface, and we could ALL use a lot more empathy.

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bless u

 

[Crossing Eden]

Why should off-site trolls be a consideration?

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Because things get worse for the people they target as a result?

 

[CortexVortex]

People love to talk a good talk about how much compassion they have for the mentally ill, but as soon as they see what it actually looks like they recoil or reframe them as some kind of monster unworthy of compassion or help. Fucking disgusting.

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Agreed but I hope that at least some will learn something out of this.

 

[SwimmingCampaign]

No, I absolutely agree. But doctors don't get to decide how they're paid, that's up to the government and health care companies who fund them, and where their priorities get spent.

We all agree America's health care needs a massive overhaul.

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That's definitely true, it's not the providers fault that's the case. I just meant I can understand where the sentiment is coming from and why people might feel that way.

 

[Wamb0wneD]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika and be frustrated with him. Look at the things he was saying. This situation isn't as simple as some are making it to be, these words are hurtful.

It's tragic that this man who built up this channel and a lot of fans died in this manner as he didn't deserve to go out like this. However these words were definitely harmful and some people's frustrations were warranted I feel.

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He
Was
Mentally
Ill

Mentally ill people do and say the craziest, incoherent shit. Shit that's out of character. Shit they wouldn't do if they were sane. And people who said we shouldn't excuse bigotry and racism in sight of someone who had manic/psychotic phases don't know what the fuck they're talking about.
And yes, I knew he had problems like that when I saw some of the messages he sent out in succession. My best friend sent me equally fucked up, borderline nonsensical stuff when he had a psychotic episode. I only didn't say anything here because people got piled on as soon they weren't in on the constant shitting on him.

People who treated this the same as Pewdiepie or Jontron need to take a long, hard look in the mirror.

 

[lazerface66]

fuck. this is sad. RIP.

 

[trugs26]

Man this is so sad.

 

[PK Gaming]

For anyone who wants to watch it, here:

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This video is required watching for people who say "I feel bad for him, but the things he said were problematic"

He was completely aware of what was going on. That's the thing with mental illness; a sizeable portion of the people who have it are aware of their condition

 

[RedMercury]

mocking/blowing off mentally disturbed people isn't the same? Ok.

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No, mocking a mentally unwell person is objectively not the same thing as institutional sexism/racism, it was a terrible parallel to draw, the only commonality is that they are all bad things.

 

[ViewtifulJC]

Kokonoe, before this thread gets swept under the rug I want you to know that I genuinely believe you are a piece of trash.
In the last thread you wanted call outs, I'm giving you one. Fuck you.

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And y'all wanted a community thread to openly discuss things politely huh

 

[MysticGon]

Praying for the family. His pain may have come to an end but their's is just beginning.

 

[Deleted member 8001]

He
Was
Mentally
Ill

Mentally ill people do and say the craziest, incoherent shit. Shit that's out of character. Shit they wouldn't do if they were sane. And people who said we shouldn't excuse bigotry and racism in sight of someone who had manic/psychotic phases don't know what the fuck they're talking about.
And yes, I knew he had problems like that when I saw some of the messages he sent out insuccession. My best friend sent me equally fucked up, borderline nonsensical stuff when he had a psychotic episode. I only didn't say anything here because people got piled on as soon they weren't in on the constant shitting on him.

People who treated this the same as Pewdiepie or Jontron need to take a long, hard look in the mirror.

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I am aware. It doesn't stop it from being hurtful. It doesn't stop it from reaching a large audience of kids who see this behavior and might mimic it. I understand he was suffering, but these words hurt me regardless of his mindset.

 

[Raijinto]

Alright, and I think it's fair to bring that up in a civil way, but this thread is turning into a giant witch hunt at this point. People need to remember that mods are human beings, they aren't perfect, they are going to make mistake or be inconsistent, and from the outside looking in it's easy to assume the worst, probably easier than trying to draw reasonable distinctions, but I think it sucks that these are good people who work really hard to build this community and people are so ready to not give them the benefit of the doubt and are quick to just throw them under the bus.

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Yeah I agree with you here. I obviously don't want a witch hunt or are demanding repercussions or anything, I just want greater transparency and clarification of these sorta things for the future rather than sweeping everything under the rug by locking legitimate threads that people want to discuss.

Just my 2 cents anyway, since I can agree also that this is off topic and all. I hope things improve is all I can say.

 

[Foffy]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika and be frustrated with him. Look at the things he was saying. This situation isn't as simple as some are making it to be, these words are hurtful.

It's tragic that this man who built up this channel and a lot of fans died in this manner as he didn't deserve to go out like this. However these words were definitely harmful and some people's frustrations were warranted I feel.

Click to shrink...

Because this is how, when he's not in a dark space, can be articulate, calm, and efficient in his words?

You don't see any of that as proof of the mental breakdown? Cancel culture went all in on this very forum over those remarks, and they were used as a defence while cops raided his home, while he got into a physical altercation with a police officer, and after he posted what we now know is his suicide message.

Their frustrations are not warranted. Intention is key, and his space was clearly a clouded, dark one. Think of all of the hateful things you see people do when they're deluded in their own heads, and apply that to people doing so from a place that's mentally unwell.

 

[Uzumaki Goku]

Sigh.

Everyone, listen.

If you have problems, if you're stressed and you think the world will not miss you when you're gone. You're wrong.

You matter and the world is a much better place because you're in it.

 

[starpower]

shit wrong thread

 

[Deleted member 5129]

No...

 

[Deleted member 28076]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika

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People did not have valid reasons to be skeptical that a man who ruined all his sources of income, went through major personality swings, and assaulted a police officer was genuinely mentally ill. Full stop. No excuses for them. No excuses for you. If you were upset by the things he said in the midst of a psychotic breakdown, then that's understandable, but trying to make excuses as to doubting his mental state is despicable.

 

[rras1994]

That's a very negative view to hold of the community. I'm sure many members are capable of discussing such matters without becoming emotional or insulting towards others. I would be sure of it in this case when the motivation is for more respectful discussion on the topics of mental health and suicide.

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It's not - it's something I've done myself, and I've seen other, usually mild-mannered, users done. This stuff becomes personal very fast, and it doesn't help that other users pile on, usually with an agenda - it's happening in this thread already. There's a reason the report button is private.

 

[rottenpie]

holy shit

R.I.P.

 

[TheGreatMightyPoo]

For anyone who wants to watch it, here:

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I know it sounds silly to point to one aspect and no, I'm not a psychologist or body language expert but when he stops to take a breath before beginning, it told me how hurt he was.

 

[Deleted member 2809]

And the trolls come out the woodwork. No surprise here.

 

[Deleted member 925]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika and be frustrated with him. Look at the things he was saying. This situation isn't as simple as some are making it to be, these words are hurtful.

It's tragic that this man who built up this channel and a lot of fans died in this manner as he didn't deserve to go out like this. However these words were definitely harmful and some people's frustrations were warranted I feel.

Click to shrink...

As a gay man I was definitely harsh on him when some of these comments came to light in April, I saw someone at the old place try to call me out on it. At that point, I didn't realize how deep the rabbit hole went and how much of an issue he had. But it reminds me of the instability of Azeala Banks. A lot of offensive comments or statements said to get negative attention, no matter how out of character or insensitive they are. There was a lot going on here and it did seem to just continue to get worse for Etika. I hope he is at peace now and I do hope he understood that hurting others because he was hurting himself was the wrong way to go about things.

I won't comment on the other issue at hand in this thread, I said enough before the first lock, but there is a lot of visibility on this thread right now and it's blowing up in many places. Be transparent and learn from this, whatever side you were on in this discussion.

 

[DoubleTake]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika and be frustrated with him. Look at the things he was saying. This situation isn't as simple as some are making it to be, these words are hurtful.

It's tragic that this man who built up this channel and a lot of fans died in this manner as he didn't deserve to go out like this. However these words were definitely harmful and some people's frustrations were warranted I feel.

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This is fucking trash. Stop trying to give yourself an out.

 

[Mgs2master2]

this meme almost made me cry

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I been on and off crying as this hits hard and home for me. This just got the tears to come back again. At least the final Etika meme is a great meme to his catch phrase.

 

[Puck Beaverton]

And y'all wanted a community thread to openly discuss things politely huh

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It went like that the last time we had one

 

[SwimmingCampaign]

Because this is how, when he's not in a dark space, can be articulate, calm, and efficient in his words?

You don't see any of that as proof of the mental breakdown? Cancel culture went all in on this very forum over those remarks, and they were used as a defence while cops raided his home, while he got into a physical altercation with a police officer, and after he posted what we now know is his suicide message.

Their frustrations are not warranted. Intention is key, and his space was clearly a clouded, dark one. Think of all of the hateful things you see people do when they're deluded in their own heads, and apply that to people doing so from a place that's mentally unwell.

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Frustration is absolutely warranted at least, dismissing him completely as a person is not.

 

[Kyra]

Not everybody is coming from the same place, or can discern between "not mentally well" and "straight-up bigoted." Words affect people in a lot of different ways. I'm not defending people's dismissal of Etika's cries for help as anything but abhorrent, but at the same time I'm not going to get mad at somebody who has been harassed and attacked emotionally and even physically for their sexual orientation when they react in anger or hurt when somebody starts throwing the word "fag" around at them. Appreciation for mental health goes both ways. In general this whole sorry episode should be a reminder that people are dealing with a lot of things that they don't expose on the surface, and we could ALL use a lot more empathy.

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fucking Amen.

 

[QisTopTier]

.

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This is one of the worst post in this thread, do you have no common sense?

The dude is fucking dead, he had mental problems, no one should be caring about dumb ass internet crusader shit at the moment. Can people maybe get off their fucking war horse for 2 seconds.

A majority of you are adults, fucking act like it in this situation.

 

[Flon]

.

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I cannot believe you. What you're posting is a breakdown. An attempt to get anything. Ways to create change because your life continues to spiral out of control. It's probably why he caused his own channel to close.

I've gone through it before. One of my own family said the harshest, most offensive thing they could to me, they were in a dark place and just needed to get any sense of control and attention. I wasn't able to help them enough in time, and they were dead not long after. Life can get to a point where anything is necessary to capture someone's attention.

I can understand how those words can cause hurt, but that never means you can dismiss. It's all the more reason to help when you know this isn't like them.

 

[MysticDistance]

Etika was a friend of mine. We had plans to see each other again this week. I don't know how to feel right now.

 

[Kanann]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika and be frustrated with him. Look at the things he was saying. This situation isn't as simple as some are making it to be, these words are hurtful.

It's tragic that this man who built up this channel and a lot of fans died in this manner as he didn't deserve to go out like this. However these words were definitely harmful and some people's frustrations were warranted I feel.

Click to shrink...

It's some kind of self-harming mental illness, intentionally talk shit like the examples above to make people hate you to confirm no one will give you a chance and will not miss you or anything when you're gone.

 

[Wamb0wneD]

I am aware. It doesn't stop it from being hurtful. It doesn't stop it from reaching a large audience of kids who see this behavior and might mimic it. I understand he was suffering, but these words hurt me regardless of his mindset.

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And that's ok. What's not ok is bringing this stuff up in the thread about his death to excuse the shittalking that happened to him here constantly. Just ask yourself if he saw these earlier threads, what he would take from them.

 

[NotLiquid]

I wonder if the people in the thread complaining that they can't complain about moderation have the self-awareness to realize that they've been openly complaining about moderation for the better hour without getting shut down on what is no doubt a closely monitored thread right now (side note: will have so much egg on my face that you can slap a frying pan on me and call me an omelette if people get reprimanded). On a serious note, I do hope staff and members take a better stance on conversation surrounding mental health from now on. It's a sensitive subject a lot of people need to be educated on, especially in the light of Etika's passing. Even if you were someone who posted some kind of terrible shit before and weren't acted on it, learn why that shit wasn't okay in the first place and become a better person.

 

[Mediking]

shit wrong thread

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??? Wrong thread or...?

 

[TaySan]

I'm so sorry we let you down :( R.I.P Hope you find peace in another life.

 

[Deleted member 4093]

that would be because it is



We tried it once in announcements. It was filled with people pushing agendas and went to shit. The community can't handle a discussion on it. This thread is proof of that. I doubt they will change that rule anytime soon or make another exception.





Did you even read the article and lock message or are you just trying to play "gotcha" now?

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Honestly it feels like theres difficulty accepting critcism of any kind.

Doesn't help that any and every little thing has a name to it so you have to be muted. You can say 'thing" because you are "arguing in bad faith' You cant say another thing because "You are not staying on topic." The list goes on and on. The fact this this forum has every thread and its almost becoming every thread having a See threadmarks before posting, See mod post before posting. Thats saying that every single thread has to be micro managed because the rules aren't applied evenly.

 

[Cantaim]

an absolute tragedy and I hope that wherever Erika's soul winds up. It goes to place that will let him have peace

 

[shan780]

Kokonoe, before this thread gets swept under the rug I want you to know that I genuinely believe you are a piece of trash.
In the last thread you wanted call outs, I'm giving you one. Fuck you.

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i love you for this

the attitude towards people with any kind of mental illness or disorder has always been fucking disgusting on this website. it's pretty ironic coming from a site trying to position itself as progressive

 

[grosbard]

I might be able to give some insight into this. This is a cynical view but most likely realistic. It all comes down to money. According to similarweb (not completely accurate but gives a good estimate) era is getting around 17 million hits per month. When it comes to ad revenue, that amount of traffic can be very lucrative. I'm going to be extremely vague here but I know for a fact another gaming related website that gets around 3 million hits per month is making around $20,000 per month just on ads.

If there is any sort of event that causes a mass exodus from era, the owner will lose a ton of money.

I guess this is worth a permaban :/

 

[Deleted member 8001]

Not everybody is coming from the same place, or can discern between "not mentally well" and "straight-up bigoted." Words affect people in a lot of different ways. I'm not defending people's dismissal of Etika's cries for help as anything but abhorrent, but at the same time I'm not going to get mad at somebody who has been harassed and attacked emotionally and even physically for their sexual orientation when they react in anger or hurt when somebody starts throwing the word "fag" around at them. Appreciation for mental health goes both ways. In general this whole sorry episode should be a reminder that people are dealing with a lot of things that they don't expose on the surface, and we could ALL use a lot more empathy.

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Thank you for putting it better than I have.

 

[Spinluck]

Was his "I'm sorry" video posted here at any point in time? I feel like more people needed to see that.

That was the real Etika, barely joking, with no masks for the fans or anything. He was lost.

 

[TheGhost]

The system is fucked but I don't see how holding people indefinitely potentially against their will is a fix for that

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3 months of help could have done a lot better than being back out and being reconnected with the problem....the internet.

 

[Maxina]

People had valid reasons to be skeptical of Etika and be frustrated with him. Look at the things he was saying. This situation isn't as simple as some are making it to be, these words are hurtful.

It's tragic that this man who built up this channel and a lot of fans died in this manner as he didn't deserve to go out like this. However these words were definitely harmful and some people's frustrations were warranted I feel.

Click to shrink...

A black man who says praise the kkk, and wants all black children to die slow deaths is obviously not right in the head. Of course, because he said harmful things, people were right to dismiss his mental breakdowns. What happened to think twice before you say shit?

 

[Wamb0wneD]

Etika was a friend of mine. We had plans to see each other again this week. I don't know how to feel right now.

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My condolences.