YouTube Demonetization Punishes People For Not Being Popular Enough

So I got an email this morning about an update to the YouTube Partners Program. In part, it said:

"What's Changing
Under the new eligibility requirements announced today, your YouTube channel, Wren Paasch, is no longer eligible for monetization because it doesn’t meet the new threshold of 4,000 hours of watchtime within the past 12 months and 1,000 subscribers. As a result, your channel will lose access to all monetization tools and features associated with the YouTube Partner Program on February 20, 2018 unless you surpass this threshold in the next 30 days. Accordingly, this email serves as 30 days notice that your YouTube Partner Program terms are terminated.
One of YouTube’s core values is to provide anyone the opportunity to earn money from a thriving channel. Creators who haven’t yet reached this new threshold can continue to benefit from our Creator Academy, our Help Center, and all the resources on the Creator Site to grow their channels. Once your channel reaches the new threshold, it will be reviewed to make sure it adheres to our policies and guidelines, and if so, monetization will be re-enabled."

Image from Bing search

I have 306 subscribers, and I doubt I hit the watch time threshold either, as since my laptop broke I have no way to edit a video even simply as I used to do for an upload. So I've been mostly dormant over there, but people still watch my old how-to videos, and I get a check every year and a half or so from that, which is nice, but no more!

They claim it's part of their kowtowing to advertisers, to "protect the community."

Here is shocking footage from one of my dangerous videos, how to make a protective cover for Kindles and other tablets. Somebody report it for naughtiness! It's endangering the YouTube community!

(Side note: "Phe, you look like a girl in that photo."
Yeah, that's me pre-transition. I'm FTM ...transgender. This is why y'all are always reading me as a girl and I don't get offended, because I don't pass and that's just life. I don't talk about it on this platform much, because it's nice to just be myself and not have to explain all the time. Online, I will correct a pronoun, but in person I just swallow it and do nothing. It makes my day when I get "he'd" in real life, though. This is also why I don't share a lot of photos of me. End side note)

Here is YouTube's statement:
https://youtube-creators.googleblog.com/2018/01/additional-changes-to-youtube-partner.html

Their focus is telling:
"Despite those issues more creators than ever are earning a living on YouTube, with the number of channels making over six figures up over 40% year-over-year."

As if that's supposed to make us feel better about no longer getting our pennies. Translation:
"All you little people who could use a little income don't matter to us, we are just like every other corporation now and only want to deal with big time professionals."

First they censor people for not being Christian Evangelical Family Friendly (you say cuss words or talk about Teh Gayz or even THE NEWS because the news is violent? Buhbye), and now they're not paying you simply for not being popular.

It's a good thing we have DTube! Tell your friends, y'all. All us little people can earn a less-than-six-figure income in peace.

Have you been demonetized on YouTube?