Game developer Brianna Wu has been fighting the good fight to end sexism in gaming -- and it appears that she has convinced at least one person of the error of their ways.
Wu allegedly received a letter from a self-proclaimed ex-supporter of #GamerGate, a community that claims to be committed to journalistic integrity in gaming coverage, but is best known for its members' misogynistic views towards women in gaming. Wu shared the letter on her blog and Twitter account on December 5.
Wu posted the full letter, which she describes as "lightly edited for clarity and anonymity," on her Tumblr. In the note, the author describes how he is "ashamed of supporting what was an ugly, chaotic mess" and chose to ignore the threats received by women like Wu and Anita Sarkeesian:
The former GamerGate supporter also admits that women have a place in gaming culture, and welcomes the changes they bring: "Ultimately, games are for everyone and as more women are involved the culture around video games, it will change for the better. If some obnoxious boys end up leaving then so be it."
Read the full letter here.
Wu allegedly received a letter from a self-proclaimed ex-supporter of #GamerGate, a community that claims to be committed to journalistic integrity in gaming coverage, but is best known for its members' misogynistic views towards women in gaming. Wu shared the letter on her blog and Twitter account on December 5.
I got this powerful letter from a former Gamergater. Please RT, it's touching and honest.
http://t.co/CjsXBrEcAv pic.twitter.com/jjg7NPJkgM
— Brianna Wu (@Spacekatgal) December 5, 2014Wu posted the full letter, which she describes as "lightly edited for clarity and anonymity," on her Tumblr. In the note, the author describes how he is "ashamed of supporting what was an ugly, chaotic mess" and chose to ignore the threats received by women like Wu and Anita Sarkeesian:
I told myself over and over that the abuse being received by women such as yourself was not real and put it out of my mind as I suspect many others have. I distanced myself from any abuse I did see and wrote them off as fakes, but it isn’t true is it? It’s more than the majority. I was wrong all along.
The former GamerGate supporter also admits that women have a place in gaming culture, and welcomes the changes they bring: "Ultimately, games are for everyone and as more women are involved the culture around video games, it will change for the better. If some obnoxious boys end up leaving then so be it."
Read the full letter here.