The music video for "Como me gusta a mí" by Argentine reggaeton artist Romina Bernardo (aka Chocolate Remix) was removed from YouTube , and her account was blocked. The social media platform offered no explanation, and the Argentine artist denounces the action as "lesbophobic, sexist, and misogynistic censorship." By Lucas Gutiérrez.  The music video opens with a dark-haired Little Red Riding Hood entering a delightful gathering of women. She walks with an empowered air, passing the baton to several bodies enjoying themselves. "Como me gusta a mí," by Argentine reggaeton artist Chocolate Remix (Romina Bernardo), features women having a good time with other women. This explicit lesbianism was deemed objectionable by YouTube.

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“Our video features real women having fun with each other; you don’t need any kind of guy to have fun,” adds Chocolate, who also emphasizes that it’s an independent project created with the intention of making lesbian identity and sexuality visible and celebrating them. “Look at the kind of girls who usually appear in reggaeton videos, the kind of situations they’re in, and the role the guy plays in the video,” Chocolate tells Present.

Following the rules

The video that was uploaded to YouTube is exactly the same one they uploaded to Vimeo. “We considered the platform's capabilities and uploaded it following all the guidelines. We voluntarily added the age restriction, including the 'Explicit' label in the title and a warning message in the description,” the singer commented about the deleted video. In addition to being flagged as if it were pornographic, the account was blocked for three months “just like that, without any warning or anything,” Chocolate told [a news outlet]. Present. YouTube YouTube states that a video containing nudity or other sexual content is permitted if its primary purpose is educational, documentary, scientific, or artistic. So why was the video only removed from YouTube now? The answers come in the form of automated messages, a three-month ban, and no personalized response. And these girls who enjoy themselves and shake their hips as they please remain banned from YouTube.

  “The fact that we consider a woman’s torso as naked and a man’s as naked is not sexism. Furthermore, given the hundreds of lesbophobic comments our videos continually receive, it’s easy to see where YouTube is taking this censorship, since we are operating within their own guidelines and their censorship has been arbitrary. We know perfectly well that what bothers them is something else, not the nudity or the erotic content of the video,” Chocolate added.

This is not the first time YouTube has censored LGBT material

Following a change in its policies, YouTube began flagging LGBT material as 'potentially inappropriate' and applying age restrictions. This was the case with the videos of the YouTuber Lesbian Ash Hardell reading wedding vows, or a coming out with a grandmother, and even a music video by the band 'Tegan & Sara', among several examples. User complaints were made known with the hashtag #YouTubeIsOverParty, and in March of this year the video social network had to issue a statement apologizing. Johanna Wright, vice president of product management for the network, commented that the system “makes mistakes” and wasn't working as it should. After this, LGBT videos were once again made available to the public. Present YouTube was contacted for details about the Chocolate Remix video and they said they would look into the matter. No further response has been received so far.