A public service announcement
There has been an upsurge of derogatory phrases/words, rooted in homophobia, racism, and/or sexism used in game; you know exactly which words I'm talking about. In fact, there is a player (still unbanned) who has ignorantly used my Asian-American identity as a scapegoat for the current pandemic and expresses sexist language; the specific details are triggering, infuriating, and upsetting, but I will not be elaborating. I am bringing it to all of your and STG's attention because honestly it is vile, even if some of the words are not targeting me. Now you can say, Sheu, just report and move on. So you mean I should report many people every day who cleverly circumvent the bannable word bank that STG enforced? My personal belief is that bans are inefficient for PL, a likely stagnant game (and that's being generous). So what should we do?
1. For you reading, stop it if you are doing it. Yes, I understand PL is a game, so move on; life continues. BUT. PL is a game, so how about we make everyone's player experience pleasant? PL is a safe haven for some people; for me, it has provided me with constant pillar for the past decade as I cope with toxic family situations, my own dilemmas, and college academics. And I expect it to remain a pillar, just as many others believe so too. So stop it. (Also, if you are saying these marginalizing/appropriating words, perhaps you also want to reevaluate how you see diversity and inclusion.)
2. For STG reading, I challenge you all. I honestly don't know what to recommend. PL players, as I've said above, are clever, sometimes sly: they will inevitably find loopholes in the chat restrictions, so expanding the word bank is futile. A suggestion could be to streamline the reporting process. Since toxic speech is common, perhaps just adding a one-click option to the report button so players do not need to formally file a complaint. This would obviously make your investigative work harder, but inconvenience is a serious barrier to reporting. If anyone knows more options, please feel free comment!
(FYI, I am not necessarily referring to expletives but to hate speech.)
(I know I've been absent from forums, but I do check frequently! Hello friends!)
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