"dearie_blossom;c-17887610" wrote:
"Netzspannung;c-17887588" wrote:
So I guess the point of the thread is to ask why representation of LGBTQ+ lives has become a thing, when it wasn't in the previous iterations. It's because times change and it is much more widely understood how representation in media can normalise social interactions, relationships and perception of self and others. Whether EA/Maxis wants to be part of that or believe they have to be part of that, I don't really care, because we are still way behind of where we should be by now.
As for some other points that were made, I don't see how the addition of a few CAS items (shirt, leggings and bodysuit) and a flag or the activities of the Marketing team have anything to do with development of new gameplay features or the lack thereof.
Is it necessary to stay true to the original concept of the game for EA/Maxis to put focus on representation of the LGBTQ+ community? No, because back in the early 2000s LGBTQ+ representation wasn't even a consideration. The fact that it is now, is something the LGBTQ+ community has and still continues to fight for and I appreciate that one of my favourite video games is part of the progress that has been made so far.
All I see is it achieving the opposite effect. More and more people are getting annoyed and fed up. When I saw the rainbow flag or trans flag or when it was pride month 5-10 years ago I was like whatever, cool. Today I roll my eyes and just want it to be over. And it‘s not just me neither. There are statistics by GLAAD that each year young Americans aged 18-35 are increasingly getting more uncomfortable with the LGBTQ.
https://www.glaad.org/blog/glaad’s-2019-accelerating-acceptance-index-results-show-further-decline-lgbtq-acceptance-among
I think we are reading the results presented in this and the 2020 blog very differently. The way I read it, this has nothing to do with over-representation, but rather with misinformation.
"This year, the Accelerating Acceptance Study found that a majority of Americans, both LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ, believe that LGBTQ people have federal protections in areas of life in which they do not."
"Although there are no comprehensive federal protections for LGBTQ people in any of these situations, the majority of non-LGBTQ Americans believe that these discriminatory situations should be illegal."
“The findings from this year’s Accelerating Acceptance Study highlight a dangerous reality: a significant majority of Americans, even within our own community, are not aware that LGBTQ people are not federally protected from discrimination in many areas of life,” said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. Source: https://www.glaad.org/blog/glaad-2020-accelerating-acceptance-studyBecause a large part of the population is not aware and/or has been purposely misinformed about the status of LGBTQ+ rights, they do not understand why representation is so important. But I am not trying to convince anyone of my point of view here and argue your personal reasons with feeling annoyed with LGBTQ+ representation.
And this quote is from a report on the medium television, but I think it is quite interesting in this context:
“In the midst of a destructive pandemic, a long overdue cultural reckoning with racial injustice, and a transition into a new political era for this country, representation matters more than ever as people turn to entertainment storytelling for connection and escape,” said Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD’s President and CEO. “This time of unprecedented change matched with increased demand represents an opportunity to break new ground with stories we have not seen before and create LGBTQ characters that do not reinforce harmful stereotypes.”
