Video Game Award Recipients Push for Gaza Crisis Recognition
- The Game Awards Future Class calls attention to Gaza crisis.
- 66 members support open letter detailing Palestine situation.
- Letter criticizes Golden Joystick Awards' political silence.
- Some Future Class members express opposition to letter.
- The Game Awards yet to respond to open letter.
The Game Awards: An Appeal for Acknowledgment
The Game Awards annually recognizes a group of promising young individuals in the gaming industry, known as the Future Class. Under the guidance of director Emily Bouchoc, these individuals are chosen for their potential to shape an innovative, inclusive, and bright future for video games.
This year, the Future Class, which has grown to 150 members since its founding in 2020, is using its platform to call attention to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza. This comes just before The Game Awards 2023, scheduled for December 7.
Future Class Members Demand Acknowledgment of Gaza Crisis
A total of 66 members of the Future Class have publicly supported an open letter to The Game Awards. The letter, which has garnered over 2,400 signatures from industry peers, serves as a reminder of the Future Class's representation of the industry's potential for diversity, inclusivity, and positive global impact.
The letter goes on to highlight the members' responsibility as ambassadors for a better future, and details the current situation in Palestine. The situation is described as a genocide against the Palestinian people, with the letter quoting a report by UN Secretary-General Antònio Guterres that refers to Gaza as a "graveyard for children." The letter states that approximately 14,800 Palestinians have been killed, including around 6,000 children.
Golden Joystick Awards and Political Stances
The letter also mentions this year's Golden Joystick Awards, which did not permit political statements. As a result, Thirsty Suitors writer Meghna Jayanth withdrew from presenting the Best Storytelling award.
The Future Class's open letter argues that silence on such issues is a tacit endorsement and a dehumanization of Palestinian lives. The letter urges The Game Awards 2023 team, including Bouchoc and host Geoff Keighley, to read a statement at the December 7 ceremony. The statement should call for the following:
- The gaming industry to invest resources and oppose its systematic dehumanization of people from South-West Asia and North Africa
- Express support for the protection of Palestinian human rights
- Call for a long term ceasefire to prevent further unjust civilian deaths
Some Opposition to the Open Letter
Not all Future Class members agree with the open letter. One member, who communicates on X (formerly Twitter), has expressed his disagreement with the letter's content. He believes the letter spreads misinformation and irresponsibly conflates the Israel/Gaza conflict with xenophobia and misrepresentation of Muslims, Arabs, and brown people in video games. The member did not respond to a request for comment in time for this blog post.
The Game Awards' Response
According to game developer and open letter organizer Younès Rabii, The Game Awards has not responded to the open letter. "No one from the Game Awards reached out to us," Rabii said.
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