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Rachel "Valkyrae" Hofstetter recently addressed the backlash she faced online, after she posted photos from the 100 Thieves "CashApp" UNO event that took place last week.
The 29-year old YouTuber and co-owner of 100 Thieves faced severe backlash after she posted photos from the gathering, which featured prominent creators such as Ludwig Ahgren, Bella Poarch, BrookeAB, CouRage and more.
Her posts seemingly irked a certain section of the online community, who soon began criticizing her for allegedly hosting an event in the midst of a raging pandemic.
Despite her posting a clarificatory tweet informing fans that they had all got themselves tested and taken the necessary precautions prior to the event, it failed to placate their anger.
Rather, it ended up exacerbating things to the point of her having to delete her tweet.
In light of the situation, Valkyrae recently took to streaming to address the backlash once and for all, as she explained the reasoning behind hosting the event.
Fans extend support to Valkyrae, as streamer faces increasing hate online
The aforementioned incident is only one of several forms of criticism that Valkyrae has had to deal with of late.
From being unjustly accused of making an offensive Black Lives Matter joke to unnecessarily being dragged into the Addison Rae x TommyInnit Dream SMP drama, the past few days have been rather rough for Valkyrae.
So much so that it has led her to seriously contemplate the very future of her streaming career.
When it comes to the CashApp event, Valkyrae recently went into detail regarding the organization of the event:
"We didnt have masks in the photos. We didn't have masks during the shoot either. I thought it was evident how serious we took COVID . I understand why people were frustrated because it is setting a poor example like if someone just sees those photos it looks like we're partying and hanging out and stuff. But I want to remind people we weren't just meeting up for fun to play video games and UNO."
She also stressed the importance of how such events provide people with a source of livelihood, especially during such tumultuous times.
"It was a sponsored contracted business event for CashApp and we were contracted to be there. There's like 30 people behind the scenes working real jobs like actually getting paid to work for this event. There are so many people that you don't see on camera that are getting hired and paid to do their job like they have to work. We were all tested three times. "
"None of us want to get sick and 100 Thieves doesn't want to be responsible for anyone getting sick. Just because I am co-owner of 100 Thieves, doesn't mean I am planning these events. I don't have any control over it."
Valkyrae also revealed that henceforth, she has decided to refrain from taking part in such events, due to the wave of backlash that often comes her way.
In light of her recent statements, several fans extended support to her and slammed all those who were spewing unwarranted hate towards her:
Despite having to bear the brunt of an increasingly toxic virtual environment, Valkyrae can certainly take solace in the fact that she has an understanding army of fans behind her, ready to support her through it all.
