8 Posts on Confronting Real Racism in Virtual Worlds to Read on MLK Day

Black Second Life User Shares Real & Virtual Experiences With The Confederate Battle Flag:

"I wish people knew how much it hurt to see the flag on TV and in places which are supposed to represent everyone in a fair manner, like court houses. I have been to places in Second Life which had the flag up... We always knew what it meant. That we and others with our color are not wanted around that area. It is like putting up a 'Caucasian only' sign. I have a lot of bad memories with that flag. Like walking past homes of people who have them proudly displayed in front of their homes... while at the same time, the mean stares we got just for walking by their home."

Cajsa's Choices: Celebrating Fantastic Black Avatar Portraits For Juneteenth

 I convinced a couple other friends of mine who are Black to join SL back in 2007, but they were disappointed in the quality and variety of  black skins back then and left the game. It’s true, most skins were shades of bronze, and a deep ebony like this one would be hard to find. I love the way the highlights define this picture so powerfully, the highlights on her hair, her face, and her top. A skin designer told me back then that the reason skinners didn’t make dark black skins is that people didn’t buy them and people didn’t buy them because they didn’t know how to photograph them. 

What People Should Ask Themselves Before Roleplaying As Black Avatars:

If you aren't black, the luxury of throwing on a black skin and playing black should make you think about why you want to do that. Do you know black peoples IRL? Do you think they would be ok with what you do in SL? Do you actively call out the racist thoughts and behavior people have towards a black person, or do you just [say] "LOL I'm white"? Do you think it's cool to be black, but IRL you engage in black shaming, like saying things are "ghetto" or "hood"?

Avatar Skin Tone Experiment Reveals Strong User Preference For Whiteness:

In virtual worlds and MMOs where most aspects of avatar appearance can be instantly changed by a few button clicks -- including gender and skin tone -- do we leave our real world attributes and preferences behind? After noting that avatars with lighter skin seem to get more likes than darker ones on Flickr, I enlisted the help of Mandy Smith, a popular SL fashion photographer on Flickr, to take two photos of the same avatar in the same pose in the same location, with the only difference being her skin tone...

Lack of Avatar Racial Diversity in an MMO Makes Black Users More Likely to Create White Avatars & Hide Their Real Race, Academic Study Suggests:

Lee gathered 56 study participants — half identifying as white and half identifying as black. She then had them read a fabricated magazine story titled “Meet the Coolest ‘Second Life’ Residents.” The eight “Second Life” avatars profiled in the story were either all white, in the low-diversity scenario, or an equal mix of white, black, Hispanic and Asian, in the high-diversity scenario. She then had them perform two tasks: Create and customize their own virtual avatars, and rate their willingness to reveal their real racial identity through the appearance of their virtual avatar. She found that black participants reported less willingness in the low-diversity scenario, and that they also created whiter avatars, as judged by objective raters.

Three classics after the break:

White Like Me:

"See, here's the anxiety: there's two schools of thought in Second Life. One is, leave all problems of real life outside; this is a game. The other is, let's look at the interesting way real life issues play out in a virtual environment. "So it's really an interesting question, and I don't know even after discussing it with you, where I stand on this... I mean, it's like being something you can hide, and never having to admit to. But it's still there for you -- so now I know how it feels to be something you can hide, but still having the compulsion or desire to be open about it. "The folks that want to leave real life issues out, may feel that simply by disclosing my race, I've brought the ugly issue of race in Second Life. And what I can't answer for sure, one way or other, is if they are correct. Is race here, if no one admits to any race? Do I create race issues by claiming race?"

The Skin You're In:

She spent three months in the skin of a black woman. Some of her friends shied away, she believes. Then there were the "guys that thought I was an easy lay, for lack of a better term. It scared me honestly, some of the assumptions made. Especially here where everything [in avatar appearance] is changeable with a click. I lost a couple of what I thought were good friends [who] stopped IMing and chatting. They were polite to a fault when I showed up, but [it] was weird. You know how you interact and something changes and no one tells you. Some were subtle, some weren't." She laughs without mirth, recalling how some friends would ask her questions such as, "'[L]ike, when you going back to being you?'"

Fighting the Front:

In honor of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr., a special sun is made to arc across the grid of Second Life today. If you look close enough, you'll see it's inset with the face of the man who was so untimely cut down, when far too much of his work remained. In his country, the world beyond, and, perhaps, in worlds he never could have imagined. And in this way, Dr. King literally shines down on an empty field, where once the forces of division made a bid to establish themselves. But I wonder what he'd make of the subsequent reaction, from high-minded words and protest, to decidedly violent uncivil disobedience. As for Front National, though they're gone from the land of Porcupine, they claim to be unphased. "They're a bunch of losers," FN Officer Wolfram Hayek tells me grinning, when I ask about the protesters. "We're gonna tighten security and come back."

Please discuss in Comments!

Update, 1/19: Expanded for 2019

Comments

[Bixyl Shuftan]

I imagine if there's a rule about being an ethnic avatar, it's similar to one rule of drawing humans: avoid sterotypes. Perhaps it's because I see sterotyping not so much as hateful but foolish, but avatar appearance isn't really that big a deal to me.

[David Endrizzi]

"If you aren't black, the luxury of throwing on a black skin and playing black should make you think about why you want to do that."
So says the white guy Second Life blogger.

Indeed, the blog post makes me wonder what questions somebody might have me ask myself when I purpose to wear my Gollum avatar.

[Someone]

The division of races in SL is the most ridiculous thing I've seen in 7 years and it's something I know exists, I've lived it. I am European, my paternal origins are from europe and my mother is latin, my father blond... blue eyes, my mother brunette with green eyes and not frizzy hair. My real traits is tanned skin without curly hair and green eyes, in SL opt for an avatar of color because I love black people as much as white, my girlfriend is black from Kenia is beautiful. What did I discover? In many adult sims the male black avatars are well appreciated, the same does not happen in other types of sims, in a very famous auto shop I went to buy 3 cars in a single purchase about 9,000 L $, but I had some doubts, I watched the help person went fast to talk to some people who arrived long after me, a few minutes later they left, I asked him if he could help me and he finally approached me, after talking For a few minutes about the cars I bought those 3 and this person was surprised, I asked him to tell me about the car ourchased by those people (I really wanted to know if they bought one) and he answered "they didn't buy any", I replied to him that sometimes a good customer is the least expected. I don't know how is to be a person of color in the US (the country where more SL residents are) but if they move their stereotypes (both ... black and white people) SL is free to fly, teleport, build, unite thousands of people of different origins, cultures, religions and we are going to tie up ourselves to a skin color? that is extremely ridiculous and immature. At least from my POV.

[Nalates Urriah]

Racists make it about race. Fascists tell you what you have to think and do about race. All have lost touch with reality.

Prejudice, hate, and intolerance are well and thriving in SL.

The most surprising part is the Nineteen Eighty-Four Orwell dystopia is coming to life. Everything is upside-down and/or reversed. Those demanding tolerance are the least tolerant. The loudest voices against fascism are the most fascist in action. The home of free speech, Berkley, is the most opposed to free speech. And it is all a part of SL.

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[Aliasi Stonebender]

Some of the stereotyping is pretty shameless (someone going for a 'urban gangsta' look, for example). I've had a number of darker-skinned avatars, but avatar design is a large part of what I *do* in Second Life; if I feel like my mecha-centaur girl should seem like some kind of mixed-race for the concept in my head, she's gonna be brown.

(And one of my 'default' avatars is black-skinned... but also, you know, humanoid dragon. I don't think black scales are quite what they had in mind.)

[Madeline blackbart]

I actually have worn black skins (I mean most days I'm a pearl white robot or a purple demon girl I run the gamut on skin colors.) And people have asked me why my avatar is "darker" or made negative comments. I don't go oh haha im white. I say "I thought it looked cool/beautiful." I don't need to make excuses for dressing my avatar in a way I feel looks good. Why should I?

[Clara Seller]

It's hard to tell what Martin Luther King Jr. would think about all of this. I believe his message was about freedom and that's probably why he was shut up.

This tribute, focusing on skin color, falls within the acceptable boundaries of what he and us are permitted to talk about. We all know that we need to nod our heads and applaud in approval and walk a very narrow path through these landmines.

When King started broadening his vision and saying that the real problem might be "class", that's when he had to go. You know, there was a brief hopeful period in the seventies when all of this "color" problem began a healing process. Organically, things were starting to repair. Unfortunately, it didn't survive the class restructuring of the 80's and 90's that was hammered down by both political parties. I fear that King's message has also been conveniently restructured into something divisive and celebrated by a holiday for elite institutions a little more bustle for the retail working class. Really?

[Johnny Appleseed]

I have one question, do these people know, that some people are biracial. So they are trying there best. Another big thing, it's a virtual world, you can be whoever you want to be, without being criticized, or being told you are wrong for being a different race, then what you really are. I really don't understand this, SL allows us to have creative freedom with our avatars. What is the problem, with a white woman using black girls skin? That and if you actually look hard enough, there is a tonne of different shades of black, at different stores. You just gotta do a bit of detective work.

[Cocoaberri]

As a person of color, to me the diversity ratio for people of color in Second life is disgraceful, and it's only getting worse. Most of the stores I go to for avatar accessories for a non-white are shamefully underrepresented or non existent. As for people "wearing" non-white skins, you need to ask yourself, what is that really all about? Why are you doing that and do you care how it makes people of color feel when you do it?