Identifying yourself as a lesbian on Xbox live...

[Spartan198]

...will get you BANNED!

Teresa says that she was harassed by other players and later suspended from XBOX Live because she identified herself as a lesbian in her profile. When she appealed to Microsoft, she says they told her that other gamers found her sexual orientation "offensive."

Teresa says:

I just recently saw a thing on your site about someones gamer tag being banned because it had the word gay in the tag.

I had a similar incident, only my account was suspended because I had said in my profile that I was a lesbian. I was harassed by several players, 'chased' to different maps/games to get away from their harassment. They followed me into the games and told all the other players to turn me in because they didn't want to see that crap or their kids to see that crap.

As if xbox live is really appropriate for kids anyways! My account was suspended and xbox live did nothing to solve this, but instead said others found it offensive.

Today I received a message from another gamer calling me a fag. I am a lesbian, so they aren't too smart if they cant get their anti-gay slurs right.

Microsoft does nothing to stop this or prevent it, but instead sides with the homophobes. No one will help me get the word out about Microsoft's anti-gay policy. Not even the HRC who says Microsoft has a positive image with them. Not to me it doesn't!

We've heard of gamers being suspended for identifying themselves as gay in their GamerTag, and even one case of a guy whose name was actually "Richard Gaywood" but his tag was suspended anyway because apparently the word "gay" is so offensive that it doesn't matter if its actually your name.

As far as we know, Microsoft is unwilling to reconsider this position.

Link

The discrimination never ends.

Video games are supposed to be for everyone to enjoy, regardless of your name, age (as long as parents appropriately manage what their young kids are playing), race, color, and sexual preference.

I'm spreading this story in hopes that it'll help put Microsoft in such a bad position that it will force them to rethink their practices.

[tvirusandfriends]

Thats terrible, and extremely disgusting. By that logic, no one should be able to play, because everyone does or has something that will be offensive to someone else. And whats even more its WHO SHE IS, she didn't post it there as a joke. And that one guys name, its his NAME! I mean really, this is just plain idiocy. Why censor it in a game if your just going to see it in real life? Things like this just really tick me off...they really do. I'm gonna try and spread this around to.

[lonewolf]

It angers me to hear this. Whats the point in having a profile system if you can't show who you are. Anyone who complains at someones profile mentioning their sexual orientation should be banned for homophobic behaviour. Just shows what idiots Microsoft, and people today in general have become.

[Ashe]

It angers me to hear this. Whats the point in having a profile system if you can't show who you are. Anyone who complains at someones profile mentioning their sexual orientation should be banned for homophobic behaviour. Just shows what idiots Microsoft, and people today in general have become.

I agree somewhat with that. The problem is that there are often young kids that are on the site. I've never played my Xbox's online nor have my children, but I'm sure that it is like most sites and they have an age limit of 13 without parental permission. But with parental permission (A form needs to be signed I think) in theory any child of any age could be on the site. With that being said, if you are on a game site to play a game, what does your sexual orientation have to do with it? Nothing, and as has been proven by this case it does cause problems at times. And as was proven the site had rules against such things from being posted. She wasn't banned because she was gay but because she put it in her profile when it wasn't allowed. Here is an article where Microsoft explains their reasoning behind what they did, and I have to agree with them. Microsoft admits to, defends banning Lesbian Xbox Live user

Microsoft prohibits any mention of sexual orientation, whether it be straight or gay. And they are right, not only does it usually cause problems, it really has no place on a game site. What could your being gay possibly have to do with you playing a video game? Nothing....

[Spartan198]

Apr 17, 2009 5:19:22 GMT -5 Ashe said:

I agree somewhat with that. The problem is that there are often young kids that are on the site. I've never played my Xbox's online nor have my children, but I'm sure that it is like most sites and they have an age limit of 13 without parental permission. But with parental permission (A form needs to be signed I think) in theory any child of any age could be on the site. With that being said, if you are on a game site to play a game, what does your sexual orientation have to do with it? Nothing, and as has been proven by this case it does cause problems at times. And as was proven the site had rules against such things from being posted. She wasn't banned because she was gay but because she put it in her profile when it wasn't allowed. Here is an article where Microsoft explains their reasoning behind what they did, and I have to agree with them. Microsoft admits to, defends banning Lesbian Xbox Live user

Microsoft prohibits any mention of sexual orientation, whether it be straight or gay. And they are right, not only does it usually cause problems, it really has no place on a game site. What could your being gay possibly have to do with you playing a video game? Nothing....

Then might I ask your thoughts on the words themselves being considered offensive even when they're part of peoples' names? A lot of people have names that include the word "gay". In fact, my neighbor's first name is spelled "Gayle". Is that reason to ban her if she had a Live account? Microsoft has been known to ban people because their own names include words that are supposedly offensive.

Now, I imagine we all see a million things wrong with the word "jew" being deemed offensive. But what if somebody's name is Jewel? Should that person be banned? By that logic (I'm not saying anyone here thinks like that, BTW, this is just an example), people named Christian, Jesus, Abraham, Mohammad, Joseph, etc. should be banned, too.

In my eyes, this is simply Microsoft catering to the bigots and suppressing everyone else.

[tvirusandfriends]

I totally agree with you, and as for the kids on there, I blame the parents. I mean yes, sometimes the children are at fault but parents these days just don't seem to care what their child see's. And wt* does sexual oriontation have to do with anything? Why would they even put it as an option if it's "offensive"? I mean hell, its a gaming comunity not a dating site. And if parents don't want their chilren to see that, then don't let them go on Xbox live, its that simple. (Usually)

[Ashe]

Then might I ask your thoughts on the words themselves being considered offensive even when they're part of peoples' names? A lot of people have names that include the word "gay". In fact, my neighbor's first name is spelled "Gayle". Is that reason to ban her if she had a Live account? Microsoft has been known to ban people because their own names include words that are supposedly offensive.

Now, I imagine we all see a million things wrong with the word "jew" being deemed offensive. But what if somebody's name is Jewel? Should that person be banned? By that logic (I'm not saying anyone here thinks like that, BTW, this is just an example), people named Christian, Jesus, Abraham, Mohammad, Joseph, etc. should be banned, too.

In my eyes, this is simply Microsoft catering to the bigots and suppressing everyone else.

There isn't a thing that they could do about it being a part of your name, especially since it is easy to prove. If you really wanted to press the issue, you could easily and they would most likely have to capitulate.

The way I see it there isn't any reason out there for you to put your sexual preferences in your profile on any site besides a dating type site, but even more so on a gaming site. I don't think they are trying to be bigoted or prejudicial. I think they are trying to head off a problem before it starts. Whether we like it or not, many are opposed to homosexuality and will harass another over it. So they are doing this for the safety of their members.

I agree with you Tvirus, most parents today just don't do their job and actually be parents. They are more concerned with their own lives and problems and don't seem to have the time for the children they created. Or they are children themselves and don't really know how to be a parent because their parents weren't parents to them, so they had no model to go by. It's a vicious, vicious cycle that doesn't appear to be changing any, if anything the problem is getting worse.

Thankfully my kids don't do much gaming online. My youngest plays Runescape, but that's about it. And the only computer in the house that has access to the internet is mine, which is in the living room in an area that when anyone is on it I can monitor what they are doing. I know all the sites they visit along with their user names and passwords. They know I will not hesitate to go to a site and log in with their info and check things out if I feel that something fishy is going on. I'm proud to say I've never had to do that, my kids know the rules and follow them.

Yes they are a rarity, they are good kids who respect their elders and actually do as their parents ask... I have found if you lay out the rules and punishment for breaking rules ahead of time in a way they can understand and then follow through when they break one, is the best way to do things.

[Spartan198]

Apr 20, 2009 5:13:45 GMT -5 Ashe said:

There isn't a thing that they could do about it being a part of your name, especially since it is easy to prove. If you really wanted to press the issue, you could easily and they would most likely have to capitulate.

The way I see it there isn't any reason out there for you to put your sexual preferences in your profile on any site besides a dating type site, but even more so on a gaming site. I don't think they are trying to be bigoted or prejudicial. I think they are trying to head off a problem before it starts. Whether we like it or not, many are opposed to homosexuality and will harass another over it. So they are doing this for the safety of their members.

But if people want to be that open about themselves, they shouldn't be silenced for it.

Imagine the uproar that would ensue if cops showed up at a gay pride rally and started arresting people for being gay. Would they be charged and sent to prison simply because people oppose homosexuality? No, they wouldn't. And the people who oppose the lifestyle would have no option except to STFU.

[Ashe]

But if people want to be that open about themselves, they shouldn't be silenced for it.

Imagine the uproar that would ensue if cops showed up at a gay pride rally and started arresting people for being gay. Would they be charged and sent to prison simply because people oppose homosexuality? No, they wouldn't. And the people who oppose the lifestyle would have no option except to STFU.

The point however is that your sexual preferences have absolutely nothing to do with any video game out on the market today. There is no reason anyone could give for discussing such things in an online game that would be justified.

Your example doesn't really fit the situation. A gay pride rally or parade is about being gay. Your sexual preference is the point of such an event. You can not say the same about an online gaming site. It's main point is to play a video game, not to find a date, or mate.

The mere fact that children will be on the site should be enough to make most see that that type of talk and behavior has no place in such a setting. The sad thing is that it appears that many feel this is appropriate behavior.

And you can't say well then keep your kids off of the sites if you don't want them to see it. Why should a child be penalized for trying to play their game the way it was intended online with others because a few people want to pronounce their sexual preferences? In my opinion, it is those who wish to discuss sex on such sites that need to be stopped from coming to the sites, not the other way around.

Everybody has the right to live their lives in the way they see fit, whether it be a gay lifestyle or straight lifestyle. But they do not have the right to force their views or lifestyles on others who don't wish to see or hear it.

[S.T.A.R.S. 2]

If this is still alive then I'd like to voice my opinion.

The problem I see is going in several directions here. The first would be where there Terms of Use clearly says NOT to post any hint or your sexual orientation in any way. Woman must have been partially blind or something to not have seen that. Secondly as for the harassment what I'm piecing together is that at first the people in charge of the program or many other things of the Net didn't really pay any attention to what kind of tolerance went on in it. Now because of this they're making strict (Or what I think strict) rules to control that kind of behavior on the Interent. To that I say why the hell didn't they do it in the first place? None of this would've happened had they made the rules for harassment already and this wouldn't have been made into such a big deal. Some parents from what I can see are trying to keep their kids from explicit material like that. Lord knows mine did.

Just shows how incredibly retarded people can be. Make something good and they never think it out before they publish it.