Flipping Out with WillHirsch.gay
Did you know that “balisong” is the cool name for a butterfly knife? Turns out there’s a whole community of dextrous balisong “flippers” who practice for hours to nail tricks in front of the camera, and then show off their cinematic skills in epic YouTube compilations.
With over 82k subscribers to his YouTube channel, Will Hirsch is one of the most well-known balisong flippers. His channel also includes videos about his other interests like hi-fi audio gear and film making—and he also happens to be gay! Will proudly uses WIllHirsch.gay for his merch store accompanying his YouTube channel.
Read on for our Q&A with Will about his experiences creating safer community spaces and helping people reform prejudiced attitudes.
How did you get into balisong flipping?
Balisong flipping is something I got into as a teenager. I played the game "Team Fortress 2" which includes a character known as "The Spy." He has a balisong and the moves he did with it inspired me to try it out. It seemed like fun! After getting various cheap ones throughout my high-school days, I got more into the actual balisong hobby during college and the years after. Now, I'm a part of the balisong community and have a lot of friends through it!
What made you decide to get your domain, WillHirsch.gay?
My husband, Joe, actually was the one who first told me about the .gay domain. That was when it was first announced. Later, after our YouTube channel had garnered some success, I was looking to make a merch store. One of our mutual friends brought up the idea of making the store "WillHirsch.Gay" and I loved it. I immediately bought the domain and the rest is history!
Why is it important to you to be proudly and visibly LGBTQ+?
I try to be as open and proud about my sexuality on my channel as possible, making jokes and direct references to it pretty often.
It's quite funny; in one of my videos (after getting a million "Are you gay??" comments), I decided to open the video with "What's up guys, I'm gay! And welcome to today's video."
I thought this would make things REALLY clear to my audience, but I still get the "Are you gay??" comments pretty often! This assumption that someone, a public figure or creator online, might not actually be gay but is just "joking," is one of the reasons I think it's important for everyone to represent their sexuality proudly. I look forward to the day the comments no longer need to ask "Are you gay?" but instead already know and embrace it as normal.
What do you do when you encounter homophobic trolling on your YouTube channel or other social media?
I've had encounters with homophobia on my channel and in my life when interacting with viewers before. In some circumstances, if I'm directly talking to someone with these views, I try to converse with them and understand where they are coming from before helping them to understand my side and why they are wrong.
I actually had an experience like this early on when I opened my Patreon Discord server, where one of my fans started saying some homophobic things. After talking with them, they eventually apologized and sought to learn more and change. They have since made good progress! This is one of the reasons I think conversation is important.
Trolling, however, is a different story. Trolls aren't looking for a conversation or to express real views; they are simply spouting nonsense looking for a reaction. When I get trolling comments on my videos, I will often ignore them. I do, however, also get a lot of supportive comments from my fans, either directly on my videos or as a reaction to someone else saying something mean about me. This always really warms my heart and lets me know that there are people out there who want to help and be fantastic allies.
Why is it important to help create a safer internet so that LGBTQ+ people won't be harassed and bullied?
I think creating safer spaces on the internet is very important.
In my Discord server, we do not tolerate bullying, homophobia, or transphobia. Hatefulness in any regard is not welcome. Because of this, I've had multiple people thank me for providing a place where they can express themselves naturally, without the fear of being judged or ostracized.
Alongside this, I have received many comments and messages on Youtube and Instagram about people who enjoy my content because it helps them feel more normal and accepted. This is why proud representation is important—because people see themselves in others, and by being an out and positive influence, you might just inspire someone else to take their own journey of self-fulfillment or self-actualization. I believe that is what we all deserve: the ability to discover ourselves and the meaning that may bring to our lives.
