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Microsoft apologizes for banning gay XBL user
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The following comments relate to this news article:
article published on 3 March, 2009
Microsoft has apologized for the banning of an Xbox Live user who self-identified herself as lesbian, even going as far as to call their policies "inelegant."
After the woman revealed her homosexuality in her Xbox Live profile, she was continuously harassed, and Microsoft banned her account, saying many gamers found "her lesbianism offensive."
Microsoft did note that their XBL policy ... [ read the full article ]
Please read the original article before posting your comments.
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b18bek9
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1 product review
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3. March 2009 @ 00:45 |
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They have the dumbest policies anyways i had one sentence about nuthin on my profile and got banned for a week for having i pwn for food on my motto and come to find out u dont need to have anything offensive u just need numerous ppl to report u for something or for just alot of bad feedback even if u didnt do anything wrong so its kinda weird since they dont even check most the bad feedback surprised they even acknowledged this user.
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Bigtx99
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3. March 2009 @ 00:51 |
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I think it is a good policy you do not need to let everyone know your sexual preference on a console platform, there is no need to let every one know whether you like males or females. Its about playing games and having a good time. If you need to express what sex you are into there are plenty of social networking sites for that.
She should be unbanned but warned not to put her sexual preference up, and that goes for everyone.
In the end its protecting the privacy of people who use xbox live, even if people are too dumb protect their own privacy.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 01:02
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5fdpfan
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3. March 2009 @ 00:58 |
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Exactly right Bigtx99.
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chubbyInc
Member
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3. March 2009 @ 00:58 |
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Keep the policy.
Xbox needs to draw the line somewhere and with the amount of young gamers I think it's good you can't post sexual preference keep the console for gaming, there are enough dating sites/places already.
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lxhotboy
Senior Member
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3. March 2009 @ 01:09 |
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Originally posted by chubbyInc:
Keep the policy.
Xbox needs to draw the line somewhere and with the amount of young gamers I think it's good you can't post sexual preference keep the console for gaming, there are enough dating sites/places already.
Keep the policy. If she feels the need to let everyone know that she is a lesbians then let her go to a lesbian forum, chatroom, site and post their. Xboxlive is for playing games and she abused the service. i can see them letting her rename her account and continue using xboxlive but Microsoft owes her no apology if the rules warned against this kind of thing in the first place.
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Senior Member
13 product reviews
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3. March 2009 @ 02:03 |
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Originally posted by Bigtx99:
I think it is a good policy you do not need to let everyone know your sexual preference on a console platform, there is no need to let every one know whether you like males or females. Its about playing games and having a good time. If you need to express what sex you are into there are plenty of social networking sites for that.
I agree.
I have nothing against homosexuals, but if you're the kind of person who needs to constantly announce your preference to the world like it's a big deal, or anyone cares, I hope you do get banned. You're just being an attention-seeking douche.
Look at me, everyone, I'm different! Appreciate my snowflake-like individuality!
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xnonsuchx
Senior Member
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3. March 2009 @ 03:25 |
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Would "Halo3TeabagKing" be an acceptable gamertag? ;-)
The problem with some of these policies is that they often have double-standards. I believe XBL and PSN's policies also say users of the service should be at least 18yo, so there should be no need to 'protect children' (which I believe IS a good thing in other circumstances).
This 'policy' would supposedly also not allow anyone to even make ANY reference to their "girlfriend/boyfriend" or even "wife/husband" -- I seriously doubt THAT hasn't been commonplace and goes by w/o a mention or warning from administrators of the service. The policy should be more about punishing users for general rudeness or maliciously attacking other users. If someone online is gay, doesn't have a rude nickname, but casually mentions having a girlfriend/boyfriend (apparently of the same sex), it should be no big deal to anyone (with a decent head on their shoulders). If someone's THROWING intimate details of their personal life 'unwelcomedly' at people, however, that is rude behavior and deserves at least a warning to quit that behavior.
I still think users getting away w/ malicious attacks on others is a FAR bigger problem. If you can't be respectful of others in a (virtual) society, perhaps you should not be in it.
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5 product reviews
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3. March 2009 @ 03:38 |
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I have nothing against homosexuals (one of my best friends is lesbian), but they indeed should have the same common sense the rest of us enjoy.
An extra problem here is that because she was "banned for being lesbian", this will get extra-publicity and they will need to investigate whether a heterosexual player would've been banned for "similar actions", as some will start suspecting one of the XBL emplyees dislikes homosexuals and overreacted etc.
It's a little like religion, I've got the feeling that you are more likely to get the banhammer for preaching islam there than for expressing your catholic values.
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nil4t
Newbie
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3. March 2009 @ 07:24 |
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You guys are gay. That policy is gay.
edit by moderator- this user is obviously a schoolkid (and/or someone with gender hangups) who shouldn't be on the internet unsupervised
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 09:59
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Senior Member
2 product reviews
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3. March 2009 @ 08:10 |
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So what did they exactly say? I read like a week ago that Microsoft actually stood by their banning. Is her account now back up or something?
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 08:28
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EvilDeeds
Junior Member
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3. March 2009 @ 08:56 |
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They should warn people before banning them... it will seem less impersonal and might open peoples eyes to policies they didn't know existed, not everybody (anybody??) reads the full agreements on these things, wrongly or rightly, it's just the way it is.
Why they feel the need to express sexual orientation in their profile I'll never know, my gay mates don't, my straight mates don't, but then again, I bet they don't realise they weren't allowed until I send them a link to this article.
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SProdigy
Senior Member
5 product reviews
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3. March 2009 @ 09:06 |
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Who cares if it was a "lesbian" view? XBL is for gaming. We don't need yet ANOTHER forum for people to spread their religious, racial, ethnic, sexist, sexual orientation or nationalist views. I say ban them all.
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vballstud
Suspended permanently
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3. March 2009 @ 09:45 |
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I put "Brunettes make my mushroom turn purple" in my bio...
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AfterDawn Addict
1 product review
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3. March 2009 @ 11:56 |
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Lesbians...hmm,keep them away from the gaming forum! Every time I think of them, my imagination goes rampant, I loose my concentration, most things go up,my gaming scores go down!
Personally I could care less if someone makes public their sexual orientation, as long as they don't try to use the place as a Dr. Phil platform and try to figure out their life and their "confusion" or whatever. They can go on facebook or myspace for that.
I don't understand why anyone feels the need to make anything like that public in a gaming forum anyway, where most of the users are probably 14-20 years young, and the majority of the ones a bit older than that still have the mental capacity of a 14 y.o., and that's why "After the woman revealed her homosexuality in her Xbox Live profile, she was continuously harassed" . Otherwise, no one would care, they would just say "okay,good for you, now go play on the carpet".
So why would anyone disclose anything like that? No reason.
Why would anyone mature enough have any kind of reaction to someone that discloses his/her orientation? No reason either. Both sides need to grow up.
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windsong
Member
1 product review
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3. March 2009 @ 12:13 |
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Originally posted by chubbyInc:
Keep the policy.
Xbox needs to draw the line somewhere and with the amount of young gamers I think it's good you can't post sexual preference keep the console for gaming, there are enough dating sites/places already.
Agreed. There have been users I had randomly met over the years who wanted all sorts of "clubs"...bestiality, sadism, even child pron. If there ever was a "proper" place for any of those things..WoW and/or XboxLive was NOT it. That is what Usenet is for. Anyway, Live and WoW are both flooded with 13 year olds. They don't need any "lifestyles" shoved in their face at such a young age.
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emugamer
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3. March 2009 @ 12:23 |
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She was probably continually harassed by people who realized that she was an attention whore. Probably by people who don't necessarily hate gays, but hate the fact that she used an online gaming network as a forum for this kind of personal information. There are plenty of other forums where she can express herself. Honestly, do gay people walk around with signs on them that say "I'm Gay" these days? (no I'm not talking about parades). When I go to the supermarket (another "social" venue), I don't see women with "lesbian" signs on them (although a lot of "signs" do indicate their preference :P). How is a gaming social venue any different - other than being virtual? The same social rules should apply in both the physical and virtual world.
I would've been annoyed seeing this. I would be annoyed seeing any kind of sexual preference or even any hetero references or inuendos. There has to be a line drawn somewhere when it comes to creating a social gaming environment. I'd rather it be strict than loose. People complain about not being able to use absurd names. Why care? Just beat the high score and be off.
I don't think she should be banned. Warned is more appropriate. And someone should explain to her that the same social rules apply to both the real and virtual world.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 12:26
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EvilDeeds
Junior Member
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3. March 2009 @ 12:30 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by chubbyInc:
Keep the policy.
Xbox needs to draw the line somewhere and with the amount of young gamers I think it's good you can't post sexual preference keep the console for gaming, there are enough dating sites/places already.
Agreed. There have been users I had randomly met over the years who wanted all sorts of "clubs"...bestiality, sadism, even child pron. If there ever was a "proper" place for any of those things..WoW and/or XboxLive was NOT it. That is what Usenet is for. Anyway, Live and WoW are both flooded with 13 year olds. They don't need any "lifestyles" shoved in their face at such a young age.
In my experience it's usually the 13-16 group that trash talk, scream racial/homophobic abuse and just generally need a slapping in most games... some of the stuff they come out with would make a sailor blush!! I blame the parents really... I have to put up with parents calling for banning of violent games, because some 13 year old on an 18+ game online who's parent's seem incapable of realising that the latest copy of NaziDoomKillerRapeVictimSquad4:TakingHitlerUpTheBumPineappleStyle was not suitable for little Freddie... Maybe xbl should start age-verifying new subscriptions with credit card/bank details - that way they could set profiles to adult only...
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jeff_2
Junior Member
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3. March 2009 @ 12:41 |
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it is their policy and it is there for a reason, Microsoft actually have my support on this one. There is always one that breaks the rules then moans about being punished. I feel that this policy should be there, because what happens next if they where to change their policy allowing this some wee dick would change his name to "all gays die" or something equally immature, someone would take offense to that and then Microsoft would be in trouble for allowing that kind of disrimination. They are simply protecting the feelings of many but in order to that some people will be hurt that can't be avoided. And further more it is a gaming world not a chat room or dating site.
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Senior Member
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3. March 2009 @ 13:49 |
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As a leader of a very large online forum I can completely understand Microsoft in this. You cannot make a rule for everything so you make them general and basic. In this case the girl broke the rules and it caused all sorts of problems (exactly the problems Microsoft was trying to avoid when making the rule) So she got banned. "Go make a new profile and come back when you can abide by the rules".
As for the whole argument "This wouldn't be a problem if she was professing a hetero preference..." that is true, because a hetero preference would most likely not become the spectacle and the problem that professing gaydome has. They don't want to make an unfair rule but the bottom line is that professing homosexuality causes problems so just don't do it. It's the disruption that is the problem, not the philosophy/sexualpreference/religion/whatever.
I hope that MS doesn't cave in on this.
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Senior Member
4 product reviews
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3. March 2009 @ 15:03 |
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Originally posted by nil4t:
You guys are gay. That policy is gay.
edit by moderator- this user is obviously a schoolkid (and/or someone with gender hangups) who shouldn't be on the internet unsupervised
Lol, thats just teh awsomeness.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 15:06
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voltRis
Newbie
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3. March 2009 @ 16:19 |
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Originally posted by ThePastor:
the bottom line is that professing homosexuality causes problems so just don't do it.
The bottom line is that this is what gay people have to deal with every day. She probably put it in her profile to seek out other LGBT regardless of unwanted attention. Strangers flipping out over what she does with her life is of no concern to her, and should be of no consequence as well.
Keep telling minorities that they have no place being themselves in the places you frequent. Maybe someday it'll actually work.
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emugamer
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3. March 2009 @ 16:25 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by ThePastor:
the bottom line is that professing homosexuality causes problems so just don't do it.
The bottom line is that this is what gay people have to deal with every day. She probably put it in her profile to seek out other LGBT regardless of unwanted attention. Strangers flipping out over what she does with her life is of no concern to her, and should be of no consequence as well.
Keep telling minorities that they have no place being themselves in the places you frequent. Maybe someday it'll actually work.
The argument is whether or not any lifestyle, preference or anything of that personal nature should be shared in a video game network. Gay, straight, bi, curious, black, white, asian...whatever. Don't profess any sexuality - just game and get on with your life. Reaching out for attention doesn't belong in this venue. And they should apply to everyone.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 16:26
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tgok
Newbie
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3. March 2009 @ 16:25 |
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If Microsoft doesn't want this kind of thing to happen, they should remove the social aspects of their XBL platform. Why even have a profile or personalized gamertag? It's a stupid policy for 2 reasons:
1. Children shouldn't be on XBL anyways.
2. If you're trying to make gaming more social, it's folly to believe this sort of thing isn't going to come up.
Telling someone they've been banned because "some gamers found her lesbianism offensive" is just asking for a shitstorm. How about go after the people who do the harassing?
Another thing, for people who actually think like emugamer: It's border-line moronic to assume someone who self-identifies is automatically an "attention whore." It's also ridiculous to assume that the "good people" on Xbox Live harass someone not because of their sexuality, but because they indicate themselves as such. There's something called the invisibility theorem with regard to most types of bigotry. You've obviously never experienced it, and so you immediately assume that when it happens to others, it's no big deal or it's that person's fault. Let's not go down that road.
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emugamer
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3. March 2009 @ 16:31 |
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Originally posted by tgok:
Another thing, for people who actually think like emugamer: It's border-line moronic to assume someone who self-identifies is automatically an "attention whore." It's also ridiculous to assume that the "good people" on Xbox Live harass someone not because of their sexuality, but because they indicate themselves as such. There's something called the invisibility theorem with regard to most types of bigotry. You've obviously never experienced it, and so you immediately assume that when it happens to others, it's no big deal or it's that person's fault. Let's not go down that road.
Identifying ones self: "Hi, I'm Sally."
Identifying ones self with alterior motives: "Hi, I'm Sally the Lesbian."
Why? What is the point in the context of gaming? Seems like attention to me. And that's from a logical pov - not bigotry. I wouldn't go as far as being nasty to that person, but I would have reported her, just as I would report a dude who may put in his profile: "I'm a dude who loves banging chicks."
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 16:34
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xnonsuchx
Senior Member
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3. March 2009 @ 16:40 |
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Quote:
Originally posted by nil4t:
You guys are gay. That policy is gay.
edit by moderator- this user is obviously a schoolkid (and/or someone with gender hangups) who shouldn't be on the internet unsupervised
Lol, thats just teh awsomeness.
Is this on purpose or coincidental (since Sir Alec was gay)?
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 3. March 2009 @ 16:44
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