What happened to Itsnate? Why did the TikToker get suspended from the US Army

A TikTok user named "Itsnate" is facing hefty consequences after posting a controversial video on the social media app. Itsnate, whose real name is Nathan Freihofer has amassed over 3 million followers on TikTok. He is also a part of the US Army. In spite of having a huge fan following on the platform, Nathan wasn’t verified by TikTok, largely due to the dark nature of humour in his videos.

However, the TikTok celebrity went too far when he made an anti-Semitic joke about the Holocaust and the Jewish community in his latest video. This time it wasn’t only TikTok, but also the US Army who responded to Nathan’s derogatory remarks. Read on to find out, “What did Itsnate say?”

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Itsnate jokes about the Jewish community

What did Itsnate say?

In the controversial TikTok video, Nathan is seen making a joke by asking his fans, “What is a Jewish person’s favourite Pokemon?”, he pauses for a few seconds and responds, ”Jewish person's favourite Pokémon character is Ash". Ash is the name of the main character in the TV series. The video is only 14 seconds long but towards the end, Nathan also says, "If you get offended, get out, because it's a joke”.

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What happened to Itsnate?

The controversial video was picked up by many TikTok users and posted on Twitter. Many of Itsnate fans expressed their fury on Twitter. After the infamous video received a lot of backlash from netizens, it was brought to the attention of the US Army. Nathan was an assigned soldier of the XVIII Airborne Corps. The military unit quickly responded to the outcry saying that they were investigating the matter about the vile remarks made by Nathan Freihofer. 

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Soon after, the 3rd Infantry Division based in Georgia also announced an investigation. In a tweet, the division announced that Nathan had been suspended effecting immediately. The former spokesman for the Defense Department, David Lapan, also said that Itsnate’s video on TikTok contained the kind of inflammatory language that the Army has been trying to distance itself from. 

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In an exclusive interview given to Insider, David stated that the army urges its recruits to use social media actively and responsibly. The action of soldiers on social media will always reflect on the image of the army itself. However, Nathan Freihofer’s video has indicated that the army has failed to some degree in imparting correct values to its recruits. David further stated that Nathan still has a junior status in the army, hence it is clear that he hasn’t been recruited for very long. He mentioned that although the army recruits soldiers at the tender age of 17, it takes full care to make sure that they are taught the right values.