#stop labeling

All across media and in our daily lives we experience the utilization of stereotypes, and they are quite obstinate in our culture. From race, to religion, to sexuality, and gender, all of these broad topics and more are narrowed down by people into stereotypes in some way. Perhaps stereotypes only exist because it is better for many of us to have something easy to remember. But this becomes a problem when we weaponize our stereotypes to label other people and insult them. Even in video games (which is a topic I will be discussing) stereotypes persist. Myself, I’m quite peeved about the use of stereotypes, although I must admit I have once (and occasionally still do) become temporarily vacuumed into them. Some of us break the mold, and others make the mold stronger. My purpose in bringing this up is to simply create discussion among everyone who is aware of the stereotype epidemic in our society.

LGBT Self-Labeling

Anyone who watches or has watched The Voice and keeps up with the news may be aware of the past Kelly Clarkson controversy regarding gay contestants. After the performance of Molly Stevens, Kelly Clarkson compares her voice to the voices of Melissa Etheridge and the Indigo Girls. While the average mind isn’t going to see any “controversy” here for miles, Stevens did and took offense to her comparison (even though Kelly clearly liked her voice.) Stevens blamed Clarkson for “labeling” her and made her dissatisfaction known to the public and to Clarkson. What’s ironic about this situation and others like it, the one who cries wolf is the one who called the wolf in the first place. The only one doing the labeling is Stevens herself. (Thankfully the two got everything cleared up eventually.) It’s sad, because the LGBT community means well in promoting their message, but sometimes members of the community are a little too self-aware of the labels society has placed on them and continuously label themselves as well. At the end of the day, the LGBT community is just a bunch of people. They aren’t “gays”, or “lesbians”, they’re people who love. This annoying problem is carried over to other forms of media including video games and t.v shows such as sitcoms. Too many times, I see the media tapping into overused stereotypes to describe or express the idea of same sex love. Like for instance, a comedy show would introduce an obviously gay character, make them say something humorous and over-the-top about their sexuality, and make the audience correlate their appearance with laughter rather than taking on same-sex love seriously. I get it that comedy shows are supposed to be funny, but not all gay people are over-the-top, feminine (or masculine if we’re talking about lesbians) or party animals. Not all gay people excitedly and openly announce to the world that they are gay, some are less open about it simply to not make a big deal out of it. In far too many video games, gay characters are either swept to the side and easy to miss the existence of altogether, or they fit into a stereotype label. This isn’t to say that nobody does LGBT right or if you happen to fit into a stereotype that you aren’t genuine, but I just feel like too many people are labeling others or themselves too much.

A fantastic example of LGBT characters in gaming done WITHOUT stereotypes or rubbing the fact that the characters are gay in the viewer’s faces are Fang and Vanille from Final Fantasy XIII. (If you don’t believe this is canon, then research it. The game itself makes it clear enough.)

Female Stereotypes

The history of labeling females is rooted centuries ago when gender roles developed. The women had their place and the men had everything else. They were supposed to look pretty, say little, keep the home tidy, and deliver children. While this stereotype has eased off and many women are expressing their rights openly, they haven’t gone away entirely by any means. People still claim that women shouldn’t be into gaming, women should dress “appropriately” etc. Let’s not forget gender discrimination when it comes to equal pay at work and the lack of benefits for women who are pregnant while working. There are countless gender-related issues concerning stereotypes and society’s expectations of women. If a woman comes to work with just a little cleavage showing, she’s slut-shamed by a co-worker because of the persistent stereotype that a women who dresses loosely is a whore. Again, this is a problem and it doesn’t end there. In media such as video games, the same stereotypical labels are put into use, only for characters rather than people. If a female character is designed with slightly revealing clothing, they’re labeled as a sex symbol even if their personality is far from such. This has always bothered me as a proponent of human rights and a designer. If you’re shamed for what you wear because you like a certain style that has been placed under a harmful label, you’re not living a free life. That’s why it bothers me so much when the same happens with fictional characters. There is, thankfully, a silver lining. Society has gotten better (but far from perfect) at treating women and portraying them in video games. Some good examples of phenomenal female icons in gaming are Lightning, from Final Fantasy XIII (a game that shatters many stereotypes), Primrose from Octopath Traveler, and Lara Croft from Tomb Raider (not the Capcom version). 

Lightning showed the players that beauty nor strength has to be compromised in order for a woman to be a woman. Primrose rebelled against the man who kept her in chains, and Lara expressed great courage and strength in her endeavors while often risking her own life. There are more good icons out there, but these 3 women are some of the best representations I have been made aware of. 

Most female characters are stereotyped by their “emotional strength” or their smarts. While emotional strength is undoubtedly important, it’s not the only strength a woman is capable of having. So few women in gaming are portrayed to have physical strength without falling into some other stereotype (like the busty women epidemic) Women have different body types of course, but to some extent they have become a key role in marketing for male gamers for quite some time and that is indeed contributing to more and more stereotypes regarding women. Any woman who happens to be naturally big-built will be shamed for her body due to the stereotype developed by media. Just some food for thought.

Male Stereotypes

The next topic I’d like to discuss is something I think is equally important. Society has placed its own set of expectations upon men, much like women. However, these expectations are far different but cause the same damage. Men are often expected to hide feelings, participate in “manly” activities like hunting, and to like certain things deemed “masculine” by our culture. A boy cannot play with barbies (which makes my existence illegal to them because I grew up with Barbies all around me.) These expectations we place ends up making the male culture toxic at some point. If a boy does not grow up being taught to respect women, be who they want to be, and to express their emotions, they will grow up to deal with emotions through anger towards others and criticize others who show emotion. This is likely why many boys don’t get along with girls, because they aren’t taught gender equality and they have to find other means of expressing themselves. This leads to other more serious issues later in life like demeaning women, sexual harassment, among other conflicts. It’s much easier to accept others when you are raised to accept yourself no matter who you are. Media, like always with stereotypes, doesn’t do a good job at breaking this pattern, but there are some great examples. Again, referring to the stereotype-shattering Final Fantasy XIII, Hope Estheim is a good example from my personal experience of a male character who doesn’t fall in line with the expectations of who a man is “supposed” to be. 

Race Stereotypes

Racial stereotypes (commonly known as racial profiling) is very much a part of our culture today. While racism has been largely criminalized (and rightly so), it still persists as much or more than other issues like the ones I discussed earlier. The best example of this issue, is police brutality. Too many police officers have personal bias against African Americans even if they aren’t noticeably racist themselves. They see a man or woman of color, and they instantly feel endangered by the “unknown”. They fear that someone different than them is posing a threat to their well-being. Instead of approaching them like anyone else, they react with force because of the label their subconscious has placed on the person in question, even if said person in question doesn’t pose any threat whatsoever. Automatic assumptions of threats (like seeing someone hold a gun when it’s really just an everyday object) are made because of their fear. It’s no secret that this is a problem, so I don’t feel the need to explain this any further. There are countless of characters in video games and tv shows to represent the people of color, so I think for the most part the media does a fair job with representing them equally.

ALLOW BOYS TO WEAR DRESSES, MAKEUP, SKIRTS, HEELS, AND BOWS.

ALLOW BOYS TO GROW OUT THEIR HAIR OR SHAVE THEIR LEGS.

ALLOW BOYS TO BE FRIENDS WITH GIRLS WITHOUT THEM BEING CALLED 'FLIRTS'.

ALLOW BOYS TO PLAY WITH BARBIES, JUST LIKE YOU DO WITH THEIR TRUCKS.

ALLOW BOYS TO DO THINGS THEY LIKE WITHOUT BEING LABELLED

ALLOW GIRLS TO CUT THEIR HAIR SHORT WITHOUT CALLING THEM A LESBIAN.

ALLOW GIRLS TO PLAY WITH BOYS AND LET THEM HAVE A PLATONIC RELATIONSHIP.

ALLOW GIRLS TO NOT SHAVE THEIR ARMPITS AND LEGS AND PUBIC HAIR AND NOT BE JUDGED.

ALLOW GIRLS TO WEAR WHATEVER THEY WANT AND NOT BE CALLED PRUDES OR SLUTS.

ALLOW GIRLS TO DO THINGS THEY LIKE WITHOUT BEING LABELLED.

I AM GETTING SO SICK OF PARENTS AND TEACHERS AND EVEN FRIENDS STOPPING THEIR CHILDREN, THEIR STUDENTS, THEIR BUDDIES, FROM BEING THEMSELVES JUST BECAUSE THAT IS NOT HOW THEY BELIEVE THEY SHOULD ACT.

LET BOYS AND GIRLS BE WHO THEY WANT TO BE WITHOUT BEING JUDGED.

LET THEM BE IN BETWEEN OR NEITHER, JUDGE FREE.

you can be anything but gay and still call yourself gay as much as you please

you can be with a guy and still fantasize about girls (and the other way round)

you don't have to be a cis female to identify as a wlw

your girlfriend/wife/hook-up/.. also doesn't have to be born female to be a wlw

you can be as femme as you want without giving people (mostly men) a reason to call you straight-looking or too hot to be into girls

you don't have to explain to people why you like women

you are a wlw without ever being with another female/having experience

you don't have to "try it out" with a man or "give them a chance" when you know you're not into men

your sexuality doesn't exist for men's pleasure

your sexuality doesn't mean "you haven't met the right guy yet"

your sexuality doesn't exist to tease men

you being polite to a man and later coming out as a wlw because they expect sex does not give them the right to call your behavior a "trap"

your relationship status has no influence on your sexuality

your sexuality doesn't have a reason why it exists and never has to be justified

you can choose who you are and not what you are. sexuality still isn't a choice

you have every right in the world to refuse to say what you do in the bedroom

you don't have to have vaginal intercourse with a man to lose your virginity

whatever you do in the bedroom does count even if it's with another female

WOMEN CAN ABUSE WOMEN TOO, rape is not bound to any gender or existence of specific genitalia

you can be into butches/tomboys/androgynous females without having any interest in men (refers to men saying if you're into masculine women you could date a "real" man instead)

you don't have to label yourself or accept labels people give you, even if it's clear what you're into and what not

you can be into girls and don't (want to) go down on one

you're not any less of a wlw if you're into men as well

you don't have to come out/be out to be a wlw

you shouldn't have to come out to strangers who you turn down when they hit on you (mostly men who won't stop trying to convince you to do whatever they want. you shouldn't have to have a reason to turn down anyone in general)

My feeling is that labels are for canned food... I am what I am - and I know what I am.