San Francisco (AFP)

Pretty much every time she logs in for a live streaming session, RekItRaven experiences a sudden onslaught of racist slurs, from strangers she tries to block immediately.

Raven, in her thirties, black, and "non-binary" (who doesn't identify as male or female), is a content creator on Twitch, the world's largest live video game streaming platform.

But it is also the scene of "hate raids" - "hate raids" - which make life impossible for creators stigmatized for their skin color or their sexual orientation.

"It's very hard. And it's hard not to internalize, because I'm hated for things that I don't control," said this mother of two, on the verge of tears.

Tired of war, faced with the recurring waves of racism and references to the Ku Klux Klan, she launched on Twitter the slogan #TwitchDoBetter (Twitch must do better).

Dozens of players - mainly non-white and / or from the LGBTQ community - joined this banner to denounce the platform's inaction.

Because for many of them, Twitch is more than an entertainment site: it's their place of work.

As an "affiliate," Raven is paid based on the number of subscribers to her channel, and their donations.

This horror video game lover with a gothic look loves her job.

But now, before a session, she has a whole list of technical parameters to configure and volunteer moderators to mobilize to reduce the risk of an invasion of her chat window.

- 99% risk -

Launched in 2011 and acquired by Amazon three years later, Twitch receives more than 30 million visitors per day, most of them attracted by the format of video games with live commentary and by the stars of the sector.

But all kinds of personalities and activities coexist on the platform.

Gabriel Erikkson Sahlin, a Swedish teacher, plays The Sims and Dragon Age under the nickname BabblingGoat - "sputtering goat".

Content creator Raven has launched a movement to call on the Twitch platform to better tackle racist and misogynistic harassment Handout Rek It Raven / AFP

The 24-year-old transgender man answers questions from his audience about gender identity "while jumping on ledges in games and trying not to die," he sums up with a laugh.

It thus helps young people but also anxious parents whose children want to "transition".

But he feels tested by the resurgence of hatred in recent months: "this morning I said to myself, do I really want to connect? I have a 99% chance of being harassed".

Raids range from the handful of people posting transphobic slurs to robots programmed to bombard him with messages ("You should make the world a better place by throwing yourself off a bridge"), even ultra-violent images (like beheadings ).

“We know we need to do more to address these issues,” Twitch admitted in mid-August, as the Raven tagline rose to prominence.

The platform announced that it was preparing new security measures, and having repaired a flaw in its automatic filters.

Without result, according to the players.

- 50% of income -

However, they have ideas to better identify and exclude the culprits: two-factor authentication, delays imposed on new accounts before being able to participate in conversations, increased powers for their moderators ... Twitch did not respond to a response. Raven's list of suggestions, sent by AFP.

The trolls are not at a loss for methods.

According to the victims, they use coders' slang, which consists of misspelling forbidden words to pass through the cracks of the algorithms.

Designer Chonki saw her chat window on Twitch swamped with anti-Semitic slurs and swastikas @chonkikage @ chonkikage / AFP

"They always find a way," notes Mark Griffiths, a video game psychologist at Nottingham Trent University in England.

The impression of being anonymous and the feeling of impunity also facilitate these behaviors.

"The police are taking these cases more and more seriously," but "video games are still considered insignificant," he laments.

Chonki, a Jewish player who has been inundated with anti-Semitic messages and images of swastikas, also questions the lack of support from the platform's stars.

They would like those who have the status of "partner", and therefore enjoy considerable influence, to stop "tolerating racist and misogynistic comments on their channel".

But even if the climate does not improve, the players do not have much of an alternative.

For Chonki and Raven, leaving would be like quitting their job.

Hence their anger at Twitch's lack of responsiveness.

"They take 50% of our income, and they can't even protect us from harassment," says Chonki.

© 2021 AFP