Gaymers Pt. 1: "The F-Word"

    Homosexuality suffers from an alarmingly small representation within our subculture. Often, what little notice it does receive is decidedly negative. Although the most common examples of this phenomenon are usually infantile diatribes you might hear over Xbox Live or, God save you, read of 4chan, they mark a decidedly negative stigma toward gays in out culture.
    It may not be intentionally malicious, but the overuse of hateful language toward homosexual individuals, especially the word faggot, belies a prejudice in what is otherwise accepted as a predominantly progressive and forward-thinking subset of society.
    Naturally, this is a big topic to tackle, one that touches on everything form the psychology of our language, to the role of self-identity. I'n not quite so arrogant to think that I could properly address this wide-ranging subject in one installment, so I'll be splitting it up into smaller, more manageable discussions. The first of which is, well, this.

"The 'F-Word'"

    I'd like to start off by saying that I despise the phrase "The 'F-word'". It's an entirely irresponsible use of language, and has no place in adult vocabulary. It sits on the same plane as "the 'N-word'", both of which are immature uses of language to express an idea without taking responsibility for it. Comedian Louis CK makes an excellent articulation of this in his stand-up.
    The word faggot is used all to commonly among the userbase of many online games and forums. Whether it is used out of ignorance, or just for pure shock value, homophobic rhetoric has overtaken much of the social aspect of online culture. Regardless of its intent, most can agree that this type of language has no place in our culture. Unfortunately, effective means by which to eliminate, or at least limit its use are yet to be discovered.
    Anthony and Ashly Burch (Creators and stars of Hey Ash, Watcha Playin) had a very interesting discussion about this methodology in HAWPcast.
    Basically, the direct approach has been tried before here. And it has failed. Over and over. The basic problem with engaging the community on such a divisive issue is just that, the community. Gamers represent such a  large and varied portion of the population that any one stance on a given issue will never be able to reach everyone. Regrettably, it really boils down to something that Penny Arcade addressed back in 2009.
    In the long run, is homophobic rhetoric a significant issue for gamers? Yes. IS it something that we need to find a way to deal with as a culture? Absolutely. Is it something that we can come by easily? Hell no.

-B3nny L4v4