Twitch’s new ‘path to reinstatement’ paves way for banned streamers like Dr Disrespect to return

Forever doesn’t necessarily always mean forever on Twitch anymore. The company opened a new path today for streamers who have been “indefinitely suspended” or banned to potentially be reinstated—that is, if streamers like Dr Disrespect or others want to come back.

The endeavor is part of a new two-part approach to appeals that Twitch is calling the “path to reinstatement,” but it will only be open to users that Twitch deems eligible. According to Twitch, users who were “indefinitely suspended for high-severity harms – including those involving violence, threats, and other serious and/or illegal activity – aren’t eligible to apply.”

Even banned streamers eligible for reinstatement will have to wait six months from their initial suspension to be able to apply. In the enforcement section of the streamer’s Appeals page, they must take responsibility for their actions and admit to violating the Community Guidelines as part of the reinstatement request process.

Within the Appeals section on Twitch’s safety page, a statement reads: “Only one request for reinstatement will be granted per user.” Dot Esports has reached out to Twitch to clarify if this means a user only gets one reinstatement, meaning if they are banned again, they will not have the opportunity to be reinstated again.

This new “path to reinstatement” means a number of high-profile banned streamers could return to Twitch if they so choose. Dr Disrespect was banned in June 2020 under mysterious circumstances, Ice Poseidon was banned in 2017 when a fake bomb threat was called in naming him as the perpetrator while he was flying, and streamers like Adin Ross, Destiny, and others could get reinstated, too. But Donald Trump likely won’t be able to be reinstated, given that he was banned for inciting violence during the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol.

Many, if not all, of these streamers have moved on to other platforms, though. Dr Disrespect is streaming on YouTube while Adin Ross and Destiny are on Kick—though Doc has eyed a move to Kick in recent months.