This is GamerGate. The reblog replies are all GamerGate people.

They are not gamers.

Real gamers do not celebrate ruining preservation efforts or the academic study of a medium they love. Film lovers would not cheer for the loss of decades of film. Book lovers would not be ecstatic over book burnings. People that actually love the medium they say they love do not endorse its destruction.

It doesn’t matter how long they’ve been playing games. It doesn’t matter how many video games they own. It doesn’t matter if they’re at the top of the leaderboard in Call of Duty, or the best player in World of Warcraft, or the most heavily subscribed YouTube guy, or any other measure.

Real gamers do not cheer for the destruction of gaming culture.

I’m sure they’ll keep claiming they’re gamers. They may cite games they’ve played or point out their achievements in various games, but none of that matters. They don’t matter. Until they stop acting like destruction of gaming culture is somehow a good thing, they have lost any and all right to any form of gamer identity.

They are not gamers. They are simply people that play video games. That is all they are until they change their tune about preservation and academic study of games.

What I find myself thinking any time someone decides “ethics in video game journalism” is a huge concern while people are getting threatened and harassed.

spacekatgal:

[I received a letter this morning from someone black who has changed their mind about Gamergate. It has been lightly edited for clarity and to remove identifying information.]

Hello, 

I am one of your followers and up until now an avid Gamergate supporter. The reason that I’m doing this using this method is because I’ve watched how people have harassed you and I fear that publicizing my identity could potentially hurt the success of the game that I’m designing.

I’ve been a with Gamergate since about around the time that #notyourshield started up, as an African American this spoke to me particularly as I know all to well what it’s like to be voice of my kind for white people that know nothing about me. 

I’ve come to realize, not only is #notyourshield basically just a reverse form of what they claim to fight against, “HEY LOOK AT THESE BLACK PEOPLE THEY AGREE WITH US, THEREFORE YOU’RE THE RACIST NOT US.” 

The whole ethics in journalism thing, at least for a good amount of those who are currently involved is an outright lie.  As I’m sure you know there are several groups of gamergate supporters all with different purposes, though some of them I can credit as being genuinely good people with matching intentions. 

However for a movement that’s sole purpose is supposedly centered around ethics in journalism a good amount of these people sure can’t seem to shut up when it comes to feminism and feminists.  

As much as some boast to be champions of free speech there are those that will turn around and more or less virtually stone anyone that does not fit within their ideology, which is funny considering that those they harass get accused of the same stuff. They wear getting blocked by people like you as a badge of honor, as if harassing someone until they cut off all contact with you is something to be proud of.  

When the GG blocklist first came about and people within these groups discussed the list and how they were on it, I naturally went to check if I was too.  I’m not.  And when I exposed that I wasn’t, I was pestered by people within the group like I’d done something wrong.  

I’ve watched as these same people call for the harassment or innocent people, including you, and it honestly makes me sick. They will even turn on their own if those people attempt to defend high-priority harassment targets. 

I watched as you were being harassed during the death of your dog. and I’m sorry for what you’ve been through. I apologize on behalf of Gamergate.

Best,

Anonymous