EA & GLAAD Tackle Homophobia in Gaming
Have you been harassed on Xbox LIVE because of your lifestyle choices? If you’re in the California area and you’d like to hear how gaming has been affected by homosexual bashing and such, EA is providing that opportunity. Some friends of mine at EA sent news that they’re hosting an event for the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), the nation’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) media advocacy organization this Saturday.
GLAAD is facilitating a panel on Homophobia & Virtual Communities which will spotlight key issues and include the perspectives of both gaming companies and LGBT gamers. Discussion will revolve around the state of the problem in these communities, policy solutions that have been developed to address homophobia – what’s working as well as what’s not, plus challenges and opportunities.
It’s something you don’t see much of because it’s likely swept under the rug each time but hopefully after this event more awareness comes. I’ve dealt with my own forms of harassment over Xbox LIVE so I understand what it feels like. There are a couple of cool panelists set to speak including Flynn DeMarco (Alias: Fruite Brute), Founder of GayGamer.net and Stephen Toulouse (Gamertag: stepto), Program Manager for Policy and Enforcement on Microsoft’s XBox LIVE.
Event details are as follows:
WHAT: Homophobia in Virtual Communities – Highlighting the Problem and Working Towards Sustainable Solutions
WHEN: Saturday, July 18th, 2009, 11am-1pm
WHERE: Electronic Arts, 250 Shoreline Drive Redwood City, CA 94065
If you can make it out, let me know and I’ll see if I can arrange a meet & greet with some cool people at EA for ya. Event details are here for you to read up on. The event is free and open to the public.
July 15th, 2009 at 10:05 pm
I can’t BELIEVE their is homosexual bashing on LIVE, that is SO childish, WTF?
July 15th, 2009 at 11:54 pm
Live is a sad sad place if you only play with strangers like me….. How can you even tell if someone is gay over the internet? People don’t just go “Hey I’m gay and you?” lol People just call people things for no reason and hope it sticks even if it doesn’t they keep going. I love me some gay people though (not like that lol), they are some of the funniest people I’ve heard on live when they decide to be open about it. I wish I could tase all the homosexual bashers through the internet! Maybe everyone is mad that they get a gay pride parade but everyone else doesn’t get a straight pride parade? That’s all I can think of…. O_o
Srly why the hell have I been typing so much lately? Three sentences max USB! XD
July 16th, 2009 at 8:29 am
I have been called a F@g by 12 yr olds on Live plenty of times. I really don’t see why a event is being set for Gays. How do they know your gay unless you tell them. Lets keep it like the military don’t ask don’t tell.
Hell girls are ridiculed more than anything on live. But that’s just me.
July 16th, 2009 at 8:58 am
i think we can agree that all of the idiots tend to migrate in large masses and Xbox LIVE is one of the largest hubs so…yeah the idiots have a playground.
July 16th, 2009 at 9:54 am
@Boston Girls do have it WAY worst! As soon as someone notice they get asked to lick lollipops and get called all kinds of shit, I’ve noticed that every time I hear a girl. It is funny though that all the hate towards gays are often targeted at non gays because people feel that’s the worst thing they could say but when they do realize someone is gay they go hard…. The girls are kinda doing there own thing and making committees for themselves though were as gays just want to be accepted, so I think that’s why they have there own event.
July 16th, 2009 at 9:59 am
Well at least Thumpthis and Mike will have somewhere to feel comfortable LMAO!!!
July 16th, 2009 at 10:05 am
LMAO Rhyme.
July 16th, 2009 at 10:34 am
I’m not sure where to begin as I despise any type of hate or racism. It really saddens me that America can’t even accept that we have a black president. People, it’s 2009. It’s time to put all that racist hate aside. We do not live like your great grandparents did. Stop with the excuses “that you were raised that way” or “that’s all you know”.
It seriously blows my mind to hear someone use a slur. Do these people not realize how uncivilized they sound? It’s bad enough that “gay” is now used as discriminatory adjective. How in the hell can you be better than someone just by your sexual orientation or color? How can you even justify your hate towards someone when all you hate about them is what they do in the privacy of their own bedroom? At that rate, you might as well hate someone for cooking in their kitchen a certain way.
As for all the racism and hate on Live, file a complaint. I file a complaint every single time I hear any form of a slur. It’s uncalled for and is not needed in an online game.
July 16th, 2009 at 10:57 am
@ Rhyme and Cable… ya I get that stuff all the time especially since all I play is COD4… I am constantly getting killed then teabagged by my own team… lets not even talk about the messages that I have received.
On topic about the event I have to agree with ya Cable. This is a good idea to attemt to get more people to play on Live. I really don’t think that it will change anything cause there will still be those idiots that play and say the most stupid of things.
July 16th, 2009 at 3:24 pm
Hey Rhyme… You’re the one who knows Thumpthis in-person. I’ve seen pics of you two together, & the way you eye each other. = I always knew you liked MAN love. lol
I hate the way some gay guys talk… They are pathetic, & not real MEN!
July 16th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Mike it is comments like this…
“I hate the way some gay guys talk… They are pathetic, & not real MEN!”
that we do not need. Please refrain.
July 16th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Lady_F… I don’t hold back the truth about how I feel = I care more about my truth, than anyone’s feelings. They can go cry to their mommies for all I care.
When a Gay guy has a lisp, & talks all stupid feminine like.. I cringe, & think *Does sucking penis cause this?*
July 17th, 2009 at 9:34 am
Mike your ignorance never ceases to amaze me. If you don’t feel that the event that is being hosted is needed then so be it say so but as I said there is no need for these types of comments. All they appear to be is a lame attemt for attention. You completely fail at trying to sound tough and manly.
I asked you once to keep the comments like this out of here please don’t have me do it a third time.
July 17th, 2009 at 9:59 am
Being truthful about how I feel, & think when I hear a gay guy talk/act female like… isn’t being ignorant. Maybe me feeling that way too you is, but I am speaking honestly about my heterosexual self… & I have no doubt that many heterosexual males feel the same as I when they hear or see a gay guy talk/act the very weak way many of them do. Major Nelson comes to mind, & I think he is a closet case. lol
No matter what you say Lady_F, you can’t change that.
July 17th, 2009 at 12:30 pm
if you would have posted something along the lines like what you JUST did ^^^ then I would not have said anything but instead you chose to make ignorant comments. That is all that I was saying. And I am not trying to change how you think or feel, all I am saying is watch how you express it.
July 17th, 2009 at 2:59 pm
Everyone has their own way of expressing things (I don’t sugarcoat) & for you to say I make ignorant statements, makes you hypocritical… because of what you just said is also ignorant.
July 17th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
For all I know they could dislike me for the way I talk/act… Hey, just like you are doing Lady_F, is that Hypocritical x 2? lol
I laugh when people care about such pathetic things.
July 18th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
“When a Gay guy has a lisp, & talks all stupid feminine like.. I cringe, & think *Does sucking penis cause this?”
LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Mikewarrior is truly EPIC!!