2017 Controversy

'' Disclaimer: As this Wiki is centered around the life of Jon Jafari, it has grown important to document anything that occurs during his career as a content creator, whether good or bad. As Jon Jafari the person is much like any of his other 7 billion contemporaries, only human and thus liable to make mistakes from time to time. Jon said things that were indicative of a racist mentality, and that is not okay, especially for a content creator as renowned and wide-reaching as himself. This page will be strictly monitored and micro-managed to the best of my ability (which isn't saying much, I know) to ensure it's as accurate and informative as possible. Please avoid making inflammatory edits, edits that don't contribute actual information, and otherwise vandalism. It will not be tolerated. Thank you. ''

On January 27th, 2017, Jon had appeared on a podcast hosted by British political commentator Carl Benjamin, perhaps better known by his alias, Sargon of Akkad. What followed this initial interview was a gradual downward spiral for Jon, his career and public reception for a time. Although Jon is still going strong, he's never truly apologised for the statements he's made, and to date this has alienated a number of original fans.

Sargon Interview, 1/27/17
 Archive Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNhOfBrCHlg 

Destiny Debate, 3/12/17
Archive Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RQA9GZprqM

Jon's Departure from NormalBoots, 3/18/17
NormalBoots put out a statement announcing Jon stepping down from NormalBoots around the time of the controversy. This lead to an initial misconception that he was fired for his political beliefs. It wouldn't be until the ProJared incident when it would finally be revealed that Jon had left NormalBoots due to his slower output of content, having planned to do it for some time, but ultimately buckling due to the backlash. NormalBoots stated during the initial post that Jon would remain an honorary member, however.

Jon's Statement, 3/19/17
Archive Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=krOOThz3fJg

Because of the explosive reaction, Jon decided to respond. In the now-delisted response video, Jon doesn't outright apologise for his statements, but rather clarifies that he was not prepared to talk about such topics abruptly in the midst of a debate, citing the pressure as being far greater than what he is typically used to tolerating.

He insists that his sloppy situation resulted in numerous things coming out incorrectly, and as such being misinterpreted by audience members who witnessed them. He further clarifies that his standpoint was more focused on the supposed hypocrisy of the, in his words "tribalization" of the United States, referring specifically to the nations inconsistent handling of the concept of racial equality. He speaks of how so many people push for things to be categorically segmented into racial or ethnic groups while the same people will complain when a white person speaks up in the interest of their own ethnicity, in Jon's mind manufacturing a double standard that stagnates the process of improving racial equality.

He continues, expressing frustration at how often people request conversations regarding the topic of race, but don't actually commit to the topic, citing the oversensitivity and uncomfortability of certain aspects of the conversation as being enough to end the conversation in a volatile manner. After this he brings it back to the double standard, showing numerous articles that list Caucasian people as being inherently racist, or stating that it's impossible to be racist towards whites. He shows footage of Samantha Bee blaming white people for ruining America after voting Trump into the office with Jon noting how saying anything of the sort in regards to black people, using the Obama election as an example, would have resulted in outcry.

Jon summarizes his point, stating "You can't keep banging the 'Racial Category Drum' and then be surprised and shocked when people think in racial categories." He affirms his understanding that African-Americans have had it rough in the US since the very beginning, and further emphasizes that he is aware that discrimination exist, but also stresses that the concept goes both ways; it is universally unacceptable. He expresses that he feels the country is regressing on the issue.

He then pushes over to his opinion on immigration. He states he has no issues with the concept of immigration, when done correctly. But rather that he takes issue with things like mass immigration, noting that his parents are immigrants and that outright hatred of immigration would be a betrayal to the people he loves.

He leaves off with a final, admittedly poignant finisher. He reiterates that the pressures of the Twitch Debate left him sloppily throwing around points and statistics aimlessly, and that he believes the country would be better if the people that lived there would simply acknowledge their neighbors as Americans, "drop the hyphens" as he says. He expresses concern with how he believes America has gone down an awkward path in its development. He further reiterates that the reason these issues had even come up is primarily because they'd been eating at him for years, and he just felt like he needed to speak up, against his better judgement.