Wizards of the Coast, The VLM, and 2025
There have been several organizations that have already begun to sever ties with LGBTQIA+ people or to suppress content that portrayed trans people since Donald Trump was reelected. It’s hard to see this as anything other than currying favor with the administration. It’s shameful that many people are afraid of legal reprisal from the administration for disagreeing with its policies, but it’s even more shameful when companies comply in advance, effectively supporting the administration’s odious policies on gender.
The first day President Trump was in office, he signed an executive order that contained the following statements:
Among the other companies racing to comply in advance with the administration’s draconian policies on sex and gender is, unfortunately, Wizards of the Coast. Wizards of the Coast provided financial support to, and formally invited to Organized Play events, The VML, an organization with the following goal:
We are working to break down gender-based barriers in the MTG gaming and community spaces. We use the language of “marginalized genders” to recognize the historical and current hurdles that our players face. Through calling out these problems for what they are, we can tackle both the symptoms and their root causes — together.
However, Wizards of the Coast earlier this year indicated they will no longer support The VLM. It is very difficult not to see the connection between the incoming administration’s policies and the action taken by Wizards of the Coast.
I have been somewhat frustrated by the constant barrage of hate for Wizards of the Coast. They are a company owned by a larger corporation that makes some very bad decisions, but decisions that are not much different than those made by other corporations in the current business climate. That’s not meant to excuse them, but it is meant to call to mind that often, things Wizards of the Coast did years ago have been misrepresented as current mistakes. If you are going to criticize someone, you should criticize them for something they have done, not something you assume they have done or something they can’t change since the event is in the past and hasn’t been repeated.
This is something they have just done. They have intentionally withdrawn support from an organization that is meant to provide a safe space for people marginalized for their gender. They have turned their backs on an organization that promotes and facilitates the playing of their game. It is very difficult to see this as anything other than cutting loose support for human beings to capitulate with abject cruelty.
Wizards of the Coast needs to address this situation. They need to affirm their support for marginalized people. If they don’t, every bit of representation they want credit for in the artwork and text of the 2024 Dungeons & Dragons books is empty marketing. If you cannot retain your principles in the face of adversity, you never had principles. You shouldn’t get credit for doing things when they are easy when it’s likely to get you more sales. That’s not principles; that’s marketing to a demographic.
I’m sad and embarrassed to see this kind of thing happen in the gaming hobby. While this is related to Magic The Gathering, it’s impossible not to assume that Wizards of the Coast will backtrack on other support of marginalized communities whenever the administration begins to target them.
[#]dnd #fantasy #rpg #ttrpg
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