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Hasan Piker

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Hasan Piker is a 31-year-old radical-left political streamer and content creator. With 2.5 million followers and 20,000 average live viewers, his channel HasanAbi ranks in the top 25 on Twitch, a streaming platform popular among young audiences (ages 16-25). 1 In 2022, his Twitch channel had the most hours watched compared to all other U.S.-based twitch channels. 2

Piker describes himself as a “Marxist-Leninist” and an opponent of capitalism and American foreign policy. 3 On August 21, 2019, he declared that “America deserved 9/11” during a livestream. 4 He apologized for this remark, but says he still holds the sentiments behind it. 5

Background

Hasan Piker was born in New Brunswick, New Jersey, but grew up in Istanbul, Turkey. He has said that he was bullied in school and resented Turkey’s religious and moral norms. He moved back to the U.S. at age 17 and attended the University of Miami. After a poor academic performance, Piker’s parents transferred him to Rutgers University. He graduated from Rutgers with a bachelor’s degree. 6

Hasan had difficulties finding work, he said, “I just couldn’t find a job, I want to get out of New Jersey.” 7 He went to California where he began an internship at his uncle Cenk Uyghur’s The Young Turks (TYT). Initially he helped TYT’s marketing efforts but later found success in making Facebook videos for TYT. He started streaming on Twitch.tv, a streaming platform popular among young audiences, in March 2018. 8

Streaming Career

Piker streams political commentary and organized debates. He openly describes himself as a Marxist-Leninist. 9 He has little respect for the U.S. Democratic Party, whom he considers too reactionary. 10

Hasan grew very quickly by networking with streamers such as Félix “xQc” Lengyel and AustinShow, who have 11.8 million and 1.6 million followers respectively as of June 2023. On the 16th of June 2023, Felix “xQc” Lengyel signed an e-sports contract characterized as the 12th largest two-year contract in sports history for $100 million with rival streaming platform Kick.com. 11

During 2020, HasanAbi became the largest political streamer on Twitch. His coverage of the 2020 presidential election peaked at 227,000 live viewers. 12

Political Affiliation and Advocacy

Piker has been a vocal advocate for many left-leaning causes such as Black Lives Matter (BLM), the slogan ACAB (All Cops Are Bastards), 13 abortion access, 14 strict economic regulations, government-provided and taxpayer-funded health care, and the abolition of the real estate market. 15

Piker strongly opposes capitalism, which he considers the root cause for today’s socio-economic and political issues. During one of his livestreams, he stated that “we are slowly destroying the planet because we care more about the profit motive.” 16

Hasan voiced support for the People’s Republic of China and the leadership of its Communist president, Xi Jinping. While reacting to a video about the PRC’s investments in Africa, Piker said, “Xi Jinping, please take over California.” 17 During another livestream, he commented “In the USA we would do better by moving the needle closer to the Chinese understanding.” 18

Piker supported Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) in his presidential campaign during 2016 and in 2020. In October 2020, Piker collaborated with U.S. Representative Alexandria-Ocasio Cortez (D-NY) to stream the video game Among Us. 19

Controversies

Hasan Piker has a history of controversial statements. His reaction to Representative Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) on the Joe Rogan Experience (JRE) episode #1337 has become his most quoted moment. Reacting to Rep. Crenshaw’s takes on U.S. foreign policy, Hasan declared that “America deserved 9/11.” 20

Hasan was criticized by social media users for purchasing a $2.7 million, 3,800-square-foot home in West Hollywood while promoting radical-left economics. Socialist activist Alexis Isabel wrote on Twitter: “it’s just flat out unethical to be profiting off of socialism and buying yourself a 3 million dollar home in a state that has one of the highest homelessness rates in the country.” 21

Hasan considers Israel to be an apartheid state illegally occupying a state of Palestine. Before commenting on anything Israel related, Hasan frequently says, “you cannot have a conversation about Israel without [talking about] the Israeli apartheid state over the land that they stole.” 22 He has called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “Nazi” and Israel a “brutal occupying regime [that] is fascist.” 23

References

  1. “Hasanabi – Streamer Overview & STATS.” TwitchTracker. Accessed June 21, 2023. https://twitchtracker.com/hasanabi
  2. Hasanabi – Twitch Stats, analytics and channel overview – streams charts. Accessed June 12, 2023. https://streamscharts.com/channels/hasanabi
  3. “What Really Is Marxism?” YouTube, August 8, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKxqkwHefiw&ab_channel=HasanAbi
  4. Phillips, Morgan. “Ocasio-Cortez Teams up on Twitch with Controversial Left-Wing Commentator.” Fox News, October 22, 2020. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ocasio-cortez-twitch-hasan-piker
  5. “Hasanabi Defends His Viral ‘America Deserved 9/11’ Video.” YouTube, May 23, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FxH4MnICv8I&ab_channel=TheIcedCoffeeHourClip
  6. “‘Woke Bae’ Hasan Piker Wants Your F*cking Attention.” Cosmopolitan, February 21, 2018. https://www.cosmopolitan.com/politics/a18198474/hasan-piker-young-turks-woke-bae-interview/
  7. [1] “How Hasan Piker Became Our Generation’s Top Political Pundit | Blueprint.” YouTube, March 16, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oza5eNpWP00&ab_channel=Complex
  8. “Hasan Piker.” TYT Network. Accessed June 12, 2023. https://legacy.tyt.com/about/host-bios/hasan-piker/
  9. “What Really Is Marxism?” YouTube, August 8, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKxqkwHefiw&ab_channel=HasanAbi
  10. “Has the Democratic Party Moved Left?” YouTube, May 5, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtMJZ4RBvSw&ab_channel=HasanAbi.
  11. Browning, Kellen. “Twitch Star Signs $100 Million Deal with Rival Platform.” The New York Times, June 16, 2023. https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/16/business/twitch-kick-xqc.html
  12. “Hasan Piker’s Twitch Stream Is the Future of Election Night Coverage.” VICE, November 4, 2020. https://www.vice.com/en/article/qjppy7/hasan-pikers-twitch-stream-is-the-future-of-election-night-coverage
  13. “Hasanabi Explains Cops and Acab to a Chatter.” YouTube, January 26, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZECr7bSMuA&ab_channel=HasanAbiPause%28HasPause%29.
  14. “Abortion Rights Are under Attack.” YouTube, May 3, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rN-J6m-JPSw&ab_channel=HasanAbi.
  15. “Why It’s Wrong to Own Real Estate | Hasan Piker and Graham Stephan Debate.” YouTube, May 24, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yQ_22NVoDNY&ab_channel=TheIcedCoffeeHourClips
  16. “What Really Is Marxism?” YouTube, August 8, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bKxqkwHefiw&ab_channel=HasanAbi
  17. “Hasanabi Reacts to the Myth of the Chinese Debt Trap in Africa.” YouTube, March 18, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UM8rBwwyj9k&ab_channel=HasanAbiGettingAwayWithIt
  18. “China’s Billionaires Are Disappearing! | Hasanabi.” YouTube, April 20, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X5wnD9NEKjs&ab_channel=HasanAbiIndustries
  19. Lorenz, Taylor. “How Hasan Piker Took over Twitch.” Hasan Piker Is Twitch’s Top Streamer – The New York Times, November 10, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201110173729/https://www.nytimes.com/2020/11/10/style/hasan-piker-twitch.html
  20. Phillips, Morgan. “Ocasio-Cortez Teams up on Twitch with Controversial Left-Wing Commentator.” Fox News, October 22, 2020. https://www.foxnews.com/politics/ocasio-cortez-twitch-hasan-piker
  21. Asarch, Steven. “Leftist Political Commentator Hasan Piker Faces Criticism for Buying a Nearly $3 Million Home in Los Angeles County.” Insider, August 23, 2021. https://www.insider.com/hasan-piker-house-twitch-streamer-criticized-los-angeles-2021-8
  22. “What Is Happening in Israel?!” YouTube, March 29, 2023. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URriBbjiWSI&ab_channel=HasanAbi
  23. “So Heres Whats Happening in Israel…” YouTube, May 11, 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGMXtmbe4H4&ab_channel=HasanAbi
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