Why is it a violation to say a character is gay on Miiverse?

Why do the Miiverse admins consider it "inappropriate or harmful" to state that a character is gay, yet don't mind at all when other people talk about and draw pictures of a character being straight.

This is pretty blatant discrimination and hypocrisy.

@Pffrbt:it's what it says on the system,they knew it's wrong to say anything like that,the company itself aims for a safe social system,no heteros or bis'. they will simply put to shame if they let it spill

Hm. Maybe it will also get banned if you said it was straight too? You should test it.

I guess saying straight or gay is just about sexual identity, which is no place for Miiverse at all. It is minimal with gender identity, and that's as far as it gets.

I read that several times but I can't figure out what you're saying.

So why can people exhibit outright displays of heterosexuality without getting in trouble.

Can you give an example? Even a made up one. I don't see anything sexual on Miiverse at all. Hetero or gay.

@Pffrbt: I hardly knew higher social laws,but they will be a disgrace for either Japanese culture or the rest of the world,no one says that a person was gay,even if he was,the saying was just a myth imo

@Pffrbt: Settle down, everyone. We need to stop thinking that it's because they're being "discriminatory," this is sounding like another one of those "just because I'm black" situations. It's not because of being gay. It's because sexual orientation, who one is sexually attracted to, is simply not relevant to a gaming system and a gaming community. What is this, a dating site? People don't need to know our sexual orientation on the Nintendo Network, and if someone feels that they want to show pride for their orientation, there are certainly appropriate places to do it. People that make "straight" posts are probably posting about things relevant to a certain game, if it's appropriate and not too suggestive.

Case closed!

I think it has more to do with defending against the homophobic nature that can come with the word more than actually discriminating against those who may indeed be homosexual. The reality is that this is a subject that is still a touchy one for many people for a variety of reasons, even though we live in a society that is becoming more accepting of homosexuality. Some people simply aren't comfortable with what the word "gay" means, and even worse, there are still who casually use the word as an insult to other people or situations.

This is merely a "play it safe" move by Nintendo to make sure its community can be enjoyed by all people. I don't think it has much to do with promoting one sexual orientation over another at all, but merely making sure no one is offended in the process of the word's use. Furthermore, since the vast majority of video game characters are either straight or show no sexual preference at all, it really doesn't make a lot of sense to bring that up in a video game community much, if at all.

I bet 95% of the time on Miiverse - because it's part of the internet and the clientele skews young - the word gay is used as an insult, not as a simple description.

I'm not accusing you of this, but the way you asked this question reads exactly like the people who used to complain to me when I was a moderator that they got modded for flaming when "all I was doing was stating the sexual orientation of someone." It's pretty easy to tell the difference between an insult and a simple description when you can see the context surrounding it. And if there's no context, like in an individual post on Miiverse, then the moderators are probably instructed to assume the worst unless it's very clearly not intended as an insult.

People post and draw pictures imply a male character finds a female character attractive, people draw pictures of characters talking about dating.

I have no idea what you're saying.

@rubber-chicken:

"It's because sexual orientation, who one is sexually attracted to"

Then why are displays of heterosexuality allowed.

"is simply not relevant to a gaming system and a gaming community."

It kind of is when people are talking about and implying displays of sexuality in characters in a video game.

"People don't need to know our sexual orientation on the Nintendo Network"

No one talked about their own sexual orientation on Nintendo Network. What was being discussed was characters in a game.

"People that make "straight" posts are probably posting about things relevant to a certain game, if it's appropriate and not too suggestive."

Which is exactly what happened when I stated that a character was gay. Which was entirely relevant and far less suggestive than other people's posts.

@Madmangamer364:

"I think it has more to do with defending against the homophobic nature that can come with the word more than actually discriminating against those who may indeed be homosexual."

So they defend against homophobic nature by being homophobic themselves. Great.

"The reality is that this is a subject that is still a touchy one for many people for a variety of reasons"

So LGBT people and characters are discriminated against because some bigots can't get over it.

"there are still who casually use the word as an insult to other people or situations."

That isn't relevant to this case though because that's not what I did.

"This is merely a "play it safe" move by Nintendo to make sure its community can be enjoyed by all people."

Unless you're LGBT, then you feel unwelcome.

"I don't think it has much to do with promoting one sexual orientation over another at all, but merely making sure no one is offended in the process of the word's use."

No one would've been offended had they not sent the message that being gay is worse than being straight.

"Furthermore, since the vast majority of video game characters are either straight or show no sexual preference at all, it really doesn't make a lot of sense to bring that up in a video game community much, if at all."

Makes just as much sense to imply a character is straight when no sexual preference is shown, yet that's somehow allowed.

@magicalclick:

"Name which character is gay."
That one guy in The Last of Us. Several characters in Bioware games.

"They can look like a girl. They can dress like a girl. They can act like a girl. They can kiss another guy, hack, kissing is just like handshake. But they are NOT gay."
What in the hell are you even talking about.

"But, those actions are a choice of the gamer, not the character himself/herself."
They are the choice of the character because the character is the avatar for the player.

"Even that, you can still chose to have romance with different gender, which makes you bi, or other definitions."
This is like saying everyone in real life is bisexual because anyone can choose to "have romance" with any gender, which is simply not the case.

"People who have more feminine features are not gay."
That isn't relevant.

"Hack, I wouldn't be gay with I can't find a manly gay guy for myself."
What?

"Anyway, there are tons of gays out there you would never thought they are gay. They are very masculine, manly attitude, average looking, average sport fan, very dad oriented, and etc.."
That isn't relevant.

"Although I shouldn't expose you guys to this if you are too young."
That's completely offensive. Why shouldn't you.

@JordanElek:
"I bet 95% of the time on Miiverse - because it's part of the internet and the clientele skews young - the word gay is used as an insult, not as a simple description."
I clearly wasn't using it as an insult though.

"It's pretty easy to tell the difference between an insult and a simple description when you can see the context surrounding it."
The context was other people posting a picture implying a male character was finding a female character irrisistable, then people responding by drawing pictures of the character wanting to date the female character. I responded by stating the character was gay, which easn't any more suggestive or inappropriate than anything else in the discussion.

I see.. I'd like to test this. For example, posting the exact same thing except switching out the genders. I'm not entirely convinced. But if it's true, that's a shame.

Why is calling someone "Silly" Hateful and Bullying and gets me a 2 week ban? Its cause the Admins are brain cell lacking apes that abuse their power and even ignore Nintendo when Nintendo wants them to reconsider.

(Speaking from personal experience.)

No openly gay characters on Miiverse, and no exposure to children of an act that is a horrible sin.

What's the problem?

If all you said was "so and so is gay," then there's no context there. Like I said, that exact phrase is used as an insult so often that the moderators have probably been instructed to remove it if there's any doubt. If the moderator didn't know who the character was and didn't do any quick research, then he probably assumed that you were just throwing out an insult.

That means the moderator was wrong, but I'm just trying to answer your question. I have over ten years of experience moderating and watching other people moderate. Sometimes they read into something the wrong way, sometimes they don't take the time to figure out the right decision, and sometimes they're just wrong.

Just be aware that if you don't want to get in trouble with something like this, be absolutely clear about your intention. Say it in a way that couldn't possibly be misconstrued as an insult, then you don't have to worry about moderation policy.

Modern society's interpretation of 'gay' is generally aggressive and intrusive. 'Homosexual' seems to be the more polite term. With that said, Nintendo admins most likely advised against that because it associates with sexuality.

Are you allowed to use the word "homosexual?"