Everyday Sexism in Video Games - Part 2
After rereading what I wrote, I think I put it in all the wrong angle.
I didn’t mean to make it sound like “Oh no, I’m a victim” or “I know what it’s like to be harassed as a girl because it happened to me in a video game”. It was more of a “I had something happen, and I know this and worse happens to others. I’ve seen the tip of the iceberg, and it exists.”
Basically, while playing a video game and presenting as a girl, some dude had some inappropriate behavior. And even though I’m a strong outspoken sort of person, I failed to call him out on it. Because it’s really fucking hard to call someone out on something right as it happens. Also, there is the capability to report people for bad behavior in the game, and the moderators are pretty good. But I didn’t report it, because I basically ended up blaming myself at the time, which is bullshit. And that is a real thing, because women often times don’t tell a person something is wrong, or don’t make a big scene, or fail to report it. Telling someone “no” or “stop” is really damn hard.
And that particular situation was actually one of the less bothersome things that has happened while playing a girl in a game. It’s just that it happened to strike a chord due to the conversations everyone has been having lately.
It really could have been any game. I play female characters enough in video games to know this sort of shit happens all the time. I only personally experience this sort of crap in video games, because in real life I’m a guy. But I know that this sort of thing happens all the time to girls in real life.
So I guess what I am trying to say is that everyday sexism is a real thing. And there are a lot of people out there that don’t really understand what proper behavior is. And that people tend to blame the victims, often times even the victim blames the victim, which sucks. And there are guys out there that insist that this sexism thing doesn’t exist. And I say bullshit, and offer my one little story to demonstrate that sexism is real. Walk a mile in her shoes and you’ll see.
I suggest checking out: http://www.everydaysexism.com/
