Yet another famous YouTube star is facing accusations of racism after critics dug up several old tweets they say are sexist and disparaging to women — particularly Black women.
Angry fans are calling out Austin McBroom of The ACE Family channel amid controversy over racially insensitive tweets that’ve surfaced in recent weeks. According to Buzzfeed News, McBroom co-launched the wildly popular channel back in January 2016 with the mother of his child, Catherine Paiz. Together, the couple shares family-friendly pranks, challenges and music videos featuring their 2-year-old daughter, Elle.
The family’s page has well-over 10,000,000 subscribers. McBroom’s damning tweets have some fans reconsidering, however.
Austin McBroom (far left) denies he’s a racist because he has a Black mother. (Image courtesy of Twitter)
“If you like em nice ratchet, Black with the cheeks without morals … the city of St. Louis is for you,” McBroom, who is bi-racial, wrote in a now-deleted tweet.
“Michigan Black chicks make California Black chicks look like beauty queens!” he wrote in another.
In a tweet from 2013, McBroom noted how “blondes with blue eyes” were more appealing to him after being “scared” away from Black women in St. Louis.
Screenshots courtesy of Buzzfeed News.
Screenshots courtesy of Buzzfeed News
The controversy comes just a month after a similar faux pas involving YouTube’s famous McClure Twins Family, which revealed disparaging posts about Black women authored by patriarch Justin McClure.
According to Buzzfeed News, many of McBroom’s problematic tweets started surfacing in March. Some of them are still up and visible on his account.
“Why r Black girls thick as hell,” the YouTuber asked in a tweet dated August 24, 2011.
“Can’t do black girls cuz after I’m done, imma have to pay for their hair,” he tweeted days later, followed by the hashtag #allbad.
McBroom’s racist tweets were enough to send some longtime followers running for the hills. Many lambasted the YouTuber for his comments, while others expressed shock, saying his Twitter persona was nothing like the loving-family man he portrayed himself as on YouTube.
One fan wrote when the tweets initially resurfaced earlier this year, “Can’t even believe @AustinMcbroom the man who constantly uplifts women would say such a fucked up thing about black women and idc if this is old he was 19/20 and needs to apologize or delete.”
Another added, “I can’t believe I loved the Ace family just to find out that they’re fake. I don’t wanna hear any of y’all Ace family members try to justify this trash either you can all keep it. @AustinMcbroom @CatherinePaiz trash. I’m greatly disappointed”
McBroom has tried to defend himself against critics in the past. In a video featuring his mother, the vlogger tried to argue he couldn’t be racist because his mother is African-American.
“Now that I think about it…wasn’t your ex-girlfriend black?” the mother stated as they both share laughs over the disparaging tweets. She even likened her son’s family to the Huxtables from “The Cosby Show.”
“You’re a jokester. I know it was a joke,” she said of her son’s tweets.
McBroom has yet to address the recent controversy.