Hi Friend,

Sometimes people who have harassed or abused others will text into the Games Hotline for emotional support. 

We didn’t expect this when we started the Hotline. But the truth is isolating people who cause harm within games and online culture isn’t going to fix what drove them to do it. We now see that offering a supportive space to anyone who reaches out for help, even the "bad guys," is a critical part of shifting the greater culture in games to end abuse and harassment. 

Our *spooky* 13th Birthday Campaign is raising funds to support all of our work to end toxicity: supporting survivors, making systemic change in the games industry, AND holding space for those who have caused harm to reconsider toxic beliefs and behaviors and to figure out how to be more aligned with the person they want to be.

In horror movies, villains usually don’t get a shot at redemption. No one sits down with them and guides them on navigating a different path. We’ve compared experiencing abuse and harassment to feeling trapped in a scary movie. This is where our comparison ends.

In the games community, we have a role to play in holding the door open for change and in working with those that have caused abuse to interrupt cycles of toxicity. We believe:

• People can change for the better, and it would matter if they did.
• For people to better themselves, they must feel supported.
• Each of us is more than the worst things we’ve ever done.

Horror movies don’t have happy endings. But in real life, we can do something to steer our community to a better resolution.