US Congressman calls out Blizzard for allowing white supremacists in World of Warcraft
US Congressman Rep. Lou Correa was not thrilled to find World of Warcraft players hosting a racist Halloween party in-game.
Rep. Lou Correa, Congressman for Anaheim, California, has taken to Twitter to publicly shame Blizzard for allowing racist and white supremacists in World of Warcraft.
The Congressman posted a screenshot on his official Twitter account captured by a member of his staff that shows a a player avatar dressed in attire meant to resemble that of the KKK's. Next to him pose two black characters, one of which named after civil rights activist Jesse Jackson.
In the screenshot, the character in question is saying, "Next stop: Charlottesville", likely a reference to the 2017 rally.
As you can see, the player is a member of The Enclave user-made guild, which World of Warcraft players will know has been one of the game's oldest, questionable guilds. Google is full of encounters with guild members who freely advocate for white nationalist views and have no problem using racial slurs in chat.
"The user-generated content found in World of Warcraft is just one example of how far-right extremists are infiltrating online platforms and video games," Correa wrote in an email obtained by Vice.
"By allowing white supremacists refuge, companies inadvertently create safe harbors that extremists can leverage to recruit and indoctrinate other people while also degrading the enjoyment of their own fans.
"I call on the industry to do better at managing and moderating their communities. Your players and fans want to play your games, not fight with white supremacists. Kick the bad actors out—for everyone’s sake."