YouTuber KSI has apologized for using a racist slur during a recent video made with his group Sidemen.
He acknowledged that there was no excuse for using the slur and said that he would be retiring from social media for a while as a result.
In the video, the Sidemen members played a game of Countdown. Given his letters, KSI created a derogatory four-letter word for someone of Pakistani origin.
“This is terribly disappointing from KSI and their team,” said teacher and broadcaster Mehreen Baig. “Many of my students look up to these guys and casually throw in a word that has been used consistently to bully and attack South Asians. This is not comedy.
“What’s worse is that it will be swept under the rug after minimal outrage because racism against people of color is so normalized.”
Less than an hour later, KSI posted on Twitter: “I want to apologize for using a racial slur in a recent Sidemen video. There’s no excuse, no matter the circumstances, I shouldn’t have said it and I’m sorry.
“I’ve always told my audience that they shouldn’t worship me or put me on a pedestal because I’m human. I’m not perfect, I’m going to make mistakes in life, and lately I’ve been doing it a lot. So I’ve decided I’m going to take a break from social media for a while.”
His Sidemen colleagues could be seen laughing at his taunt in the video, which has since been removed from YouTube, although the tweets from the official Sidemen account promoting it are still active.
KSI, who is also a musician, a boxer and behind the popular energy drink brand Prime, has developed a huge cultural influence in recent years. His main personal YouTube account has more than 20 million subscribers, while the account he shares with the other Sidemen has nearly as many, and videos of him are regularly shared by tens of millions of people.
