Kaitlyn “Amouranth” Siragusa has been dealing with backlash after she accused a business partner of attempting to exploit her.
On November 17, Amouranth posted a TwitLonger about a negative experience with a former business associate. Amouranth claimed that the man had told Amouranth he would be in town and asked her to dinner, which Amouranth declined. This led to the business partner becoming hostile towards the famous streamer.
“As a woman, putting myself in a situation with a man I only know through business transactions over the phone for a private meeting is not something I am eager to do. I continued the conversation about business, not initially responding to his dinner offer, and his tone immediately became aggressive, threatening to end the deal when they thought that I had declined his invitation,” Amouranth said.
Amouranth noted that she thought individual didn’t mean any harm when they originally asked her to out to eat. But their reaction to her decision to decline the offer is what concerned her. Amouranth explained that she felt she was expected to behave a certain way or to participate in certain situations due to how she is perceived online.
“I have been in so many situations like this before, and I’m sure that other girls in this profession are met with these situations all the time, where you expect to be treated appropriately in the context of a business deal, partnership, etc, and instead are met with suggestive ‘offers’ or interactions that completely shatter any concept of professionalism, expectations thrust onto women in the industry that no one would expect of a male influencers,” Amouranth said.
In the TwitLonger, Amouranth stated that she wanted to be treated as an equal in her business dealings. She hoped coming forward would shed light on this issue. Instead, many in the streaming community accused her of overreacting or of making up the situation altogether.
Amouranth responds to backlash over exploitation accusations
When people questioned Amouranth’s story due to a “lack of receipts” and accused her of taking things too far, she immediately shot down the reactions.
One Twitter user said that the man may have simply been “misunderstood” in this situation and felt wrongly accused of acting inappropriately. But Amouranth was quick to dispute the response.
Others responded to Amouranth’s experience by explaining how it’s actually worse for the man in this situation. One person said that asking a woman out will “always be taken sexually,” making them feel “uncomfortable.” Amouranth appeared to virtually roll her eyes at this comment, pointing out the “power dynamic inequity” and how ridiculous it was for the man to take things so personally when she “didn’t answer right away.”
Amouranth’s supporters agreed that people seemed adamant on making the man a “victim” in the situation. No matter the reactions to her story, Amouranth remained adamant about the issue, largely focusing on the man becoming hostile when she didn’t immediately say yes to his dinner invitation.
Amouranth is no stranger to controversy. The streamer has been banned on Twitch multiple times for sexually charged behavior, but has also received backlash for seeming to get special treatment from the streaming platform. Through it all, Amouranth has remained outspoken about her experiences, including this latest bout.
Olivia Richman
About Olivia Richman
Olivia has worked in media ever since graduating from college, with her coverage ranging from traditional newspaper reporting to digital coverage of all things gaming, online betting, and nerd culture. She has traveled around the world pursuing that coverage, from the far coasts of the United States to the busy downtown core of Tokyo, Japan. Olivia’s favorite games include Overwatch and Super Smash Smash Bros, and she has been published at Esports Illustrated, Inven Global, EsportsInsider, Upcomer, and elsewhere.
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