Stevethegamer55 is live on youtube. He’s streaming a session for his 4.6 million subscribers gta 5 rpA Grand Theft Auto 5 Mod that allows people to role-play with other players. “Actually I want to show you guys some real-life scenarios,” he says, offering a little background about his character, a man on his way to his job on a work visa.
His character doesn’t get very far when an SUV pulls up on the sidewalk in front of them; Masked ICE agents exited the vehicle. “Hang in there,” says one of the uniformed players. It’s not long before SteveTheGamer55 is surrounded by agents. He hands over his ID while spectators shout at the player agents and demand his release. “Why are you bothering people?” one says, before the worker is finally let go. Later in SteveTheGamer55’s game session, he is standing in front of a large iron gate reminiscent of the ICE detention centers seen in cities like Chicago. More in-game ICE agents have gathered. He records with his phone. Right across from them, a player in a red suit demands to see a warrant for his client.
The “special event”, held on November 20, where players took on different roles mirroring a real-life ICE raid, was the first initiative of the New Save Collective, a group of dozens of Baker’s Gamers with backgrounds in activism and organizing whose goal is to educate gamers and teach people about their rights when dealing with ICE in real-world situations. On November 21st at 7:30 PM ET, gamers will gather in Epic’s wildly popular battle royale, FortniteTo organize a closed scavenger hunt that will serve as a more casual educational opportunity. The group is working with several immigration advocacy groups, as well as collaborating with content creators, to spread their message online.
Online gaming spaces have long appealed to the right as a place to promote conservative or even extremist ideologies. The US military has been open about its efforts to use games as a recruiting tool, and immigration officials are no different. In October, the Department of Homeland Security posted an image for marketing halo series. “Ending this fight,” the agency’s official account tweeted. halo 3An image with the text “Destroy the Flood” shows a blurred illustration of the game’s supersoldiers; there are floods haloForeign opponents of. DHS has also shied away pokemon“Gotta Catch Them All” tagline, going so far as the show’s opening, as well as posting a video of ICE agents destroying property and arresting people.
A spokesperson previously told The Hill that DHS will “reach people where they are with content they can connect with and understand, whether it’s Halo, Pokemon, lord of the ringsOr any other medium.” But where movements like Gamergate fostered harassment, hatred, and exclusion, the New Save Collective aims to foster a community that is compassionate, authentic, and oriented toward doing good.
“Most of us are immigrants, or children of immigrants, or children of refugees,” says an organizer who goes by Pitabreadface online. (The organizer asked WIRED not to use her name due to security concerns.) “We’re here to develop some sense of belonging at this level in a political environment, but also to move people toward a shared purpose that everyone seems hungry for.”