June is the month of pride, where we celebrate and honor LGBTQIA+ individuals. However, pride month is still a topic of debate and controversies.
Here we will be breaking the controversy of FaZe clan member Nickmercs. See what got him into the hot water with netizens.
Who Is FaZe Clan Member Nickmercs?
- Nickmercs, whose real name is Nicholas Kolcheff and who was born on November 21, 1990, in America, is a renowned Twitch streamer and YouTuber.
- He co-owns FaZe Clan and plays games such as Fortnite Battle Royale, Call of Duty: Warzone, and Apex Legends.
- Nickmercs initially gained fame by playing Gears of War professionally during the late 2000s.
- In Gears of War, he was able to win several national championships, including the Gears of War National Championship that took place in 2009.
- Following this success outside his streaming career, Nickmerc created his own YouTube channel in which he shares videos related primarily to Call of Duty and then, later, Outlast video game series.
- Kolcheff’s Twitch channel regularly attracts over 5000 viewers and gained immense popularity when his team achieved a new global record in Fortnite by achieving 54 kills.
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Controversy Surrounding Nickmercs
On June 6, 2023, there was a protest outside a Glendale Unified School District board meeting about how gender and sexuality are taught in schools.
Supporters and opponents of the LGBTQ+ community were present at this gathering, where three people got arrested when fighting broke out between them.
On June 7, 2023, Nickmercs took to Twitter after the violent brawl that took place outside a California school and shared his views on the said clash between pro and anti-LGBTQ+ demontrators.
This happened 4 blocks from my Overwatch League apartment.
Americans are in a sad place right now.
Let people love who they love and live your own life. https://t.co/iflQJ1xmgC— Puckett ✈️ #CDL2023 (@MLGPuckett) June 7, 2023
Nickmercs tweeted saying, little children should be left alone which offended many people. Netzines were very enraged by his statement.
Many interpreted Nickmercs statement as an indirect message implying that individuals who advocate for and belong to the LGBTQIA+ community are perpetrators of child grooming and pedophiles.
Hence, Nickmercs faced a huge backlash.
Price Paid By The FaZe Clan Member
The social media post triggered a barrage of disapproval from the public, who expressed their discontent by reposting his viewpoint and labeling it as despicable.
Moreover, numerous content producers and streamers have questioned the Twitch personality regarding the contentious tweet.
In addition to this, Call of Duty has taken down NICKMERCS skin from its games – Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 and Call of Duty: Warzone 2.
The statement released by representatives at Call of Duty affirmed that they are eliminating this aspect since they want to commemorate PRIDE with their personnel and community.
Similarly, here are the lists of companies withdrawing from pride campaigns following backlash during pride month 2023.
What Was His Response?
In under 24 hours, Nickmercs acknowledged the matter on his live stream and expressed that he didn’t intend to offend anyone with his tweet.
However, the gamer emphasized that he won’t apologize as he doesn’t believe what he said was wrong.
The streamer believes it’s not appropriate for educators or educational institutions to touch on sensitive topics such as this one since it’s beyond their responsibility to impart academic information solely.
The youtuber clarified that he doesn’t mean to silence discussions regarding these issues but maintains his point.
However, Nickmercs talked about how he does not hate anyone for being a certain way.
While at it, the player also extended an apology to eSports commentator Puckett who had criticized him over the issue after initially stirring things up unnecessarily during the first phase of the dispute.
