Gamers Against Bigotry was created with one purpose in mind: to create a gaming community that is welcoming to gamers of all identities. Gaming is awesome. And online multiplayer gaming is more awesome. But it sucks that gamers have to choose to not play online, or to deal with a relentless barrage of identity-based hate slung their way if they do log in.
Bigotry isn’t part of gaming culture, and it never has been; it’s just unfounded hatred, masked by anonymity. It’s something we need to put an end to.
Meet Sam, GAB’s Founder and Director
Gamers Against Bigotry was created by Sam Killermann, the same guy who created and performs and writes for It’s Pronounced Metrosexual. He got the idea for GAB into his head one Friday evening after responding to a comment on an article about responding to bigotry he wrote, and couldn’t rest until he turned it into a thing.
Sam has played games all his life, but has never been a fan of the online environment, even though he’s rarely the target of the bigotry (considering he’s a white, straight, non-disabled dude). He hopes that this pledge and organization will help unite the people who believe that we can have our cake and eat it, too, and convert some of those who didn’t believe it before. Here, cake means online gaming, and eating it means — you know what, we’re done here.