In an act of complete and deliberate LGBTQIA+ erasure, Riot Turkey's announcement for the beginning of the season of pride fails to mention either the International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia, and Biphobia (IDAHOTB) or Riot's support for LGBTQIA+ players and communities.
Instead of simply translating Riot's original announcement in English, found here, Riot Turkey seems to have opted to replace any mentions of pride and the LGBTQIA+ communities with "the celebration of the spring colors" that are "all around the northern hemisphere during months of May and June," and to explicitly link the cause for celebration to the calendar season in their localized announcement in Turkish.
It's not clear whether this blatant self-censorship is dictated by the Riot Games HQ or is by Riot Turkey's own decision, but in any case I believe that the end product is a disgusting mockery of the LGBTQIA+ rights movement. The erasure goes against the very idea of pride and, in my own opinion, is infinitely worse than Riot Turkey simply choosing not to celebrate pride.
The most probable reason for this decision is the fear of going against the Turkish government's increasingly draconian stance on LGBTQIA+ acceptance. However, it already has been banned to display any form of LGBTQIA+ symbolism (the most prevalent example being the rainbow flag) in the visual media and Riot Turkey's announcement and actions thus far seem to be the unaffected by that ban, which makes me wonder who exactly Riot and/or Riot Turkey is afraid of antagonizing. Unfortunately, homophobia and transphobia are also widespread among the Turkish player base and it's entirely within the realm of possibility that Riot and/or Riot Turkey wants to avoid alienating their less open-minded players. The last and the most horrifying probable reason for this erasure that I can think of is Riot Turkey's members' own personal views clashing with Riot's support for LGBTQIA+ players and communities, which I truly hope that is not the case here.
Hey all!
Your friendly neighborhood mod is back with a giveaway! This giveaway does have a bit of a requirement. I'm giving away the Theo60 + 2x GMK Color Rings in an effort to encourage everyone to get their COVID vaccine!
To enter, you need to comment what activities you're excited to see come back soon + have gotten the vaccination. I will not be asking any entries to prove any vaccinations, but I will ask the winner for just a timestamp of their vaccine card with personal information covered.
If you haven't gotten a vaccine yet, don't fret, the giveaway will be open for 2 weeks. So hopefully that's enough time for everyone to register for an appointment!
Prizes:
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Winner can be from anywhere in the world! I'll ask for International Shipping to be covered, but hopefully everyone everywhere will be able to get the vaccine!
How To Enter:
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Thanks all and good luck!
https://mobile.twitter.com/JaredWeissNBA/status/1394873911339270144
I think most rational people assumed that this was the case. Also, while the flag does have a bad connotation now (with far right people who say they’re not racist), it’s beginnings were less harmful
