Equating modding a game to real life tolerance by a handful of people is an absolutely ridiculous comparison. There are always going to be people that are going to feel that way. Trying to force diversity pushes the people who are open to idea away.
I'm not fool enough to think that I can change a bigot's mind by having a trans character in a game. That character is not really for them.It's for the people who will listen, for the people who are possessed of reason. Those people will come to know of certain struggles through art, possibly being exposed to stories and, thus, ideas that they never imagined and considered.
That character is also for the marginalized. To remind them that they can be heroes. To remind them that they matter. To remind them that they are not invisible or unwanted. We don't get these things if we don't push for them, advocate for them, and fight for them. I believe that these things are valuable enough that we have a very moral prerogative to demand them.
Demand is the key word there. Demanding creators have certain characters is what is wrong. If a character naturally fits, then it should go that way. If the creator of the game wants a transgender character, that is their choice, and it should not be anybody else's. Ultimately the consumer will decide if they like that character or not. Forcing it on someone else, good intentions or not, seems more about the person demanding looking for vindication rather than trying to get tolerance and acceptance.
"If we cannot find a place for minorities in our fantasies, how will we ever find a place for them in our reality?" People's inability to separate fantasy from reality still shocks me to this day. What an over exaggerated question.
But it's not. If people bend over backwards, going so far as to mod a trans character out of their game because they are morally repulsed by their existence, how can I ever expect them to find a modicum of tolerance for me or my brothers and sisters?
Equating modding a game to real life tolerance by a handful of people is an absolutely ridiculous comparison. There are always going to be people that are going to feel that way. Trying to force diversity pushes the people who are open to idea away.
"If we cannot find a place for minorities in our fantasies, how will we ever find a place for them in our reality?" People's inability to separate fantasy from reality still shocks me to this day. What an over exaggerated question.
Dudleyville's comments