Omarmu@Omarmutwt
Just learned about what happened with an Arabic creator on QSMP and I've seen people respond to this as if it's representative of Arabic creators in general. It isn't, and I want to say that as someone who has operated in both communities for years and *is* affected by the slurs and comments made by him;
What he did was wrong. There's no justification for it and there's no version of it where it would be okay, I'm not here to soften that, it's pretty straightforward.
There is a discussion to be had about two framings I've seen all over my timeline when I logged on though;
The first is that "This is just how Arabic creators behave in English spaces". It isn't. I've spent years around Arabic creators at every level of the creator space, big and small, and the ones who've put in the time to be in English spaces know exactly where the line is.
He crossed a line that most of his peers wouldn't ever cross, and treating him as the rule rather than the exception is unfair to every Arabic creator who put in a lot of work and effort to understand and respect the English spaces better and there are Arabic creators on QSMP right now doing exactly that! (some of whom I've known personally for years, and I can't express enough how respectful and understanding they are when it comes to this)
The second is the opposite framing, and that is "What he said reflects 'Arabic culture' and there's nothing to be done about it". I don't accept that either.
I was raised religious, and I still am although privately. I was also taught attitudes about other groups that I later had to unlearn and unlearning them was a choice *I* made by actually talking to the people I'd been raised to look down on, and while I've felt the weight of that decision in very public ways, it only ended up reinforcing to me why we have to keep pushing for dignity over division.
This isn't exclusive to me; If other Arabic creators could do it, so can he. An explanation is not justification. Our religion teaches us to treat others with dignity, and not look down on people... Anyone raised in an Arabic/Muslim household heard those lessons more than once..
Differences in beliefs doesn't absolve us of our obligation to treat people with dignity. I've been saying it for years to my Arabic and English communities and I will continue to say it for everyone to hear: We should treat people with respect regardless of their religion, sexual orientation, or beliefs, even when we don't share them.
I'm very disappointed in anyone who uses culture or religion as an excuse for stuff like this. I'm not interested in hating on him nor am I interested in defending him. I'm interested in the part people keep skipping; he is capable of being better, and he could've been. The path of being better is one many others including myself have already walked.
QSMP, from my understanding, exists to put everyone from around the world in the same room who otherwise wouldn't be, that only works if we're willing to hold everyone around us to the standard we're asking others to meet and I believe he should've educated himself before seeking support from people he inevitably would've wronged whether intentional or not.
Hold people accountable, educate where possible, and leave room for growth when you know it's genuine. Whether you're a creator speaking to your community or a community speaking to a creator, we can all make the space better!
