Sexism and Harassment in the Gaming Community

In the wake of the Anita Sarkeesian incident and her Tropes vs. Women in Video Gaming Kickstarter, I've seen people really thinking about the harassment women face in the gaming community. There are people like Miranda Pakozdi who are harassed to the point they quit a tournament, would are groped in gaming venues, leered at, or having sexist jokes and names called on Xbox Live. There are facts that need to be faced. Women are not a tiny minority of gaming anymore. Just read these stats by the Entertainment Software Association. 47% of gamers are women, and women over 18 are the fastest growing demographic in gaming. Adult women make up 30% of the gaming population, while boys 17 and younger make up 18%. We girls are not a small minority anymore, and we DO exist.

That being said, there is no excuse for the way we are treated. Yes, trash talk is a part of this industry. A few "Your Mom" jokes and throwing around of derogatory names like "Asshole" and such is common on online venues like Xbox Live, regardless of gender. That is not going away. But what is NOT okay is this:

Or this:

This is not okay. Is disgraceful, and it's not little kids playing M-rated games doing it. The man in that video? Not a boy, from the sound of it. Messages like that are sent to woman they haven't even met. Then there's incidents like the Cross Assault tournament. Miranda Pakozdi was interrogated about her bra size, told to take her shirt off, and sexually harassed not only in public at the tournament, but it was caught on video for the world to see. Not only that, but the man who perpetrated the majority of the assaults against her defended sexual harassment on video as part of the gaming community.

The common attitude seems to be that we as women should learn to deal with it or shut up and GTFO. That gaming, especially competitive or online gaming like Xbox Live, is man's territory that we dare not tread. And that, my dears, is wrong. While we make up just under half of the gaming community, the vast majority of programmers and designers are still men. Until THAT changes, we;ll just have to shout the loudest to make our voices heard. 

Also, to those who try to flip the coin and go "what about the MENZ?!" I'm not saying it doesn't happen. There are unreasonable expectations of men as well as women in video games. But I'm not talking about the games themselves, which is a whole other post. I'm talking about the players. Players who perpetrate misogyny and spew hate for all to hear. Degrading women, thinking we are rare and don't exist in their community of FPS's or online gaming. We are here. We are here to stay.

Sexism is wrong. Harassment is wrong. And about that picture and video above? I'd be willing to bet you could never say that to a woman's face in real life. Hell, if you did, chances are you could be facing a sexual harassment lawsuit. 

I've got a lot of links on this subject that cover it better than my little rant here, so here you go:

The New York Times - Sexual Harassment in Online Gaming

Anita Sarkeesian - Image Based Harassment and Visual Misogyny
Tropes vs. Women in Video Games
Giant Bomb - When Passions Flare, Lines are Crossed

See you all later!
Scarlet