YouTube star changes name because he doesn’t want to share a name with Milo Yiannopoulos
A YouTuber has changed his name to avoid comparisons to Milo Yiannopoulos, saying it was “for the sake of my mental health.”
Formerly Milo Stewart, the non-binary, trans, asexual, aromantic vlogger has announced they now wish to be known as Quinby.
Stewart, who has more than 21,000 subscribers, dropped the name Milo after three years because of negative publicity generated by his namesake.
Earlier this year, Yiannopoulos was dropped from the Republican CPAC conference after explosive tapes featured him allegedly defending men who have sex with underage boys.
The controversy led to his book deal being cancelled, and he was also sacked by Breitbart News.
In a video on their channel, Stewart said he intended to legally take on the name Quinby soon.
The teenager explained that although he still loved the name, overwhelming associations with Yiannopoulos meant it was no longer tenable for him.
“I’ve been growing exceedingly tired of being called Milo because of the obvious comparison that a lot of people like to make online between me and another person who is called Milo.
“I chose my name not knowing who Milo was.
“When my YouTube videos started getting exposed to anti-feminist communities, people would comment things about the ‘other Milo’ and I was very confused because I didn’t know who they were referring to.
“Then I found out, and since then, Milo has grown in popularity, and people started referring to him as just Milo, which isn’t a great association that…it’s not a great thing for my mental health to have that associated with my name.”
He added that the connection between him and Yiannopoulos went even deeper in some people’s minds, as viewers began confusing the two.
“I started getting comments from people who clearly thought I was Milo, and were saying they were glad my book was cancelled, and I was like, ‘No, no, that’s not me; I’m not that person who you’re thinking of, no.’
“At one point,” he continued, “I realised: I can just change my name.
“Since I haven’t legally changed my name to Milo, I can just up and change what people call me. So I’m Quinby. Nice to meet you.”
Stewart said that for a while, he took a stand because of his affection for the name, but that in the end, it proved too much to bear.
“I clung on to the name Milo as an act of defiance, thinking I couldn’t let the trolls win.
“I would cling to my name and love it, and I do love the name Milo, but I don’t think that it is losing in any way for me to let go of the name. For the sake of my mental health, I think that’s a good thing for me.”
Watch the full video here:
