EPTI start every game with the following: "gl hf ♥", why do I do it? Because it reminds me it's just a game, that I'm just here to have fun. For me it's a great way to reduce stress and get into the game in a good mood. Most of the time I get good nature replies, however, I also get a lot of gay bashing responses. For wishing people a good game.
Now, we all know these response, and their likes, and how common they are ( especially if you're winning ). And I would ask you to consider, starcraft is about playing with other people, it's you and another gamer playing together. Yes, you're playing a competitive game. Yes, you're trying to beat the other guy. But you're both part of the same community, and in the end of the day, your'e playing together.
In the latest researches gay people are apparently about five percent of the population, any population. That means that in your division about five people are gay, that from the about 250 players in GSL history, about 15 are gay, and they deserve your respect. They are as much a part of our community as any other gamer and deserve no different treatment then any other player.
So what? you say. It's just harmless name calling, and that guy was really a !@#$%^ for DT rushing me like that, -*!@ing #$%^!.....sounds familiar?
Here's the problem, behind your screen, the network, the server, the network again into some other computer in another nation or maybe just across the street there is another person. Who you just hurt. Just another hit in a life with more then a few, and he just wanted to play a game online, and have some fun. And then we have this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Suicide_among_LGBT_youth
"four times more likely to attempt suicide". Four times as likely.
Stop it guys. You're a community, act like one. Cause right now, I don't want to play with you guys.
- What can we do? -
Are you a recognized pro-gamer?
Are you gay?
Are you willing to go public about your sexuality?
If the answer to these questions are yes then I believe you should. The community needs to see that some if it's most praised players are gay. And that gay isn't synonymous with bad or cheese for some odd reason. You won't convince everyone, and whoever is brave enough to do this will certainly get at least some flak. But you just might save a life.
*Thanks to the editors for fixing the title.
On October 27 2011 20:32 Oiseaux wrote:
Even if the person using the word(s) doesn't have the intent to be homophobic per se, the intent is still meant to be derogatory. The act of using the the insult is then what ultimately matters; a group of people are being labeled as people that the person using the insults feels are somehow inferior or, to make a stretch, lesser beings. If the intent behind the insult isn't homophobic, then why is it necessary to refer to a stream cheater, stream sniper, cheeser etc. as a fag or gay? Simply put, it's because to be seen as belonging to this group is still an insult, therefore it's homophobic.
And honestly, to all the people that are saying they aren't meaning to be homophobic and that people just need to grow thicker skin, why are you so invested in using this group as an insult? There are plenty of words that can be used to express an annoyance with someone that doesn't insult a group of people, so why do you feel the need to attach yourself to this one? There is a very long history (and just as important, a continuing history) of homophobia behind using gay and fag as an insult that it currently not possible to detach the words from that history.
If anything, I would hope the gaming community would want to remove stuff like this from their lexicon if for any reason than to give themselves legitimacy. The burden is on us to prove to the world that esports is something to be taken seriously and not just some teenagers past time. However if the community is still hanging on to this attitude, then we'll be seen as nothing more than just juvenile teenagers raging over a game. Yes, I know this a problem that exists outside of gaming as well, but we don't have the developed legitimacy and it's our job to rise above it.
Even if the person using the word(s) doesn't have the intent to be homophobic per se, the intent is still meant to be derogatory. The act of using the the insult is then what ultimately matters; a group of people are being labeled as people that the person using the insults feels are somehow inferior or, to make a stretch, lesser beings. If the intent behind the insult isn't homophobic, then why is it necessary to refer to a stream cheater, stream sniper, cheeser etc. as a fag or gay? Simply put, it's because to be seen as belonging to this group is still an insult, therefore it's homophobic.
And honestly, to all the people that are saying they aren't meaning to be homophobic and that people just need to grow thicker skin, why are you so invested in using this group as an insult? There are plenty of words that can be used to express an annoyance with someone that doesn't insult a group of people, so why do you feel the need to attach yourself to this one? There is a very long history (and just as important, a continuing history) of homophobia behind using gay and fag as an insult that it currently not possible to detach the words from that history.
If anything, I would hope the gaming community would want to remove stuff like this from their lexicon if for any reason than to give themselves legitimacy. The burden is on us to prove to the world that esports is something to be taken seriously and not just some teenagers past time. However if the community is still hanging on to this attitude, then we'll be seen as nothing more than just juvenile teenagers raging over a game. Yes, I know this a problem that exists outside of gaming as well, but we don't have the developed legitimacy and it's our job to rise above it.
Bogaert AF (September 2004). "The prevalence of male homosexuality....
+ Show Spoiler +
Bogaert AF (September 2004). "The prevalence of male homosexuality: the effect of fraternal birth order and variations in family size". Journal of Theoretical Biology 230 (1): 33–7. doi:10.1016/j.jtbi.2004.04.035. PMID 15275997. Bogaert argues that: "The prevalence of male homosexuality is debated. One widely reported early estimate was 10% (e.g., Marmor, 1980; Voeller, 1990). Some recent data provided support for this estimate (Bagley and Tremblay, 1998), but most recent large national samples suggest that the prevalence of male homosexuality in modern western societies, including the United States, is lower than this early estimate (e.g., 1–2% in Billy et al., 1993; 2–3% in Laumann et al., 1994; 6% in Sell et al., 1995; 1–3% in Wellings et al., 1994). It is of note, however, that homosexuality is defined in different ways in these studies. For example, some use same-sex behavior and not same-sex attraction as the operational definition of homosexuality (e.g., Billy et al., 1993); many sex researchers (e.g., Bailey et al., 2000; Bogaert, 2003; Money, 1988; Zucker and Bradley, 1995) now emphasize attraction over overt behavior in conceptualizing sexual orientation." (p. 33) Also: "...the prevalence of male homosexuality (in particular, same-sex attraction) varies over time and across societies (and hence is a "moving target") in part because of two effects: (1) variations in fertility rate or family size; and (2) the fraternal birth order effect. Thus, even if accurately measured in one country at one time, the rate of male homosexuality is subject to change and is not generalizable over time or across societies." (p. 33)
