Halo caster slammed for using Bible verse to exclude trans players from scrims
343 Industries A Halo esports caster has been slammed on social media for announcing a women’s scrim channel in her Discord, and then using a bible verse to specify that no trans players can participate.
Halo caster ‘MagickMoonshot’ announced on social media that she was building out channels in her Discord for women-only scrims and used a bible verse in the same post to exclude transgender players from joining.
“I love and value all people, and as a Christian, I believe God created people in His image as male and female. (Genesis 5:1-2) Therefore, I will not be allowing trans players to participate,” the caster said.
The post has since been a lightning rod for the Halo and esports community as it has seen more reposts and replies than likes.
Community members have slammed the post for invoking religion as a reason to exclude transwomen from participating, with even public employees of esports organizations calling the caster out.
“Do not use the Lord to justify your lack of acceptance and compassion for those who have not wronged you. Lead with love, I hope you reconsider,” NRG head of social, Zachary Lange, said in response.
The post has also caught the attention of Halo developer 343 with its senior community manager, John Junyszek, responding to the post.
“The best way to show that you love and value everyone is to be as inclusive and inviting as possible – no matter what their background may be. To that point, I assure you that ostracizing an already underrepresented group is not the right way to go about building a healthy community,” Junyszek said.
The post has even made its way to the Halo Competitive subreddit, which has also slammed the caster for her exclusion of trans players.
“Halo is for everyone,” one user said.
Halo caster excludes trans players from women-only scrims
MagickMoonshot is a caster for LVT Halo, a Halo esports community and broadcast partner at the grassroots level of the esport. The caster is also a community manager for Team Status Quo, a small esports organization with teams in Halo and virtual reality esports.
Team Status Quo’s founder, Michael ‘Flamesword’ Chaves, took to social media to distance the company from MagickMoonshot’s statements.
“sQ supports all, plain and simple. I’ve been dealing with some stuff off the internet, but I will get to the bottom of this and look to get a clear understanding of the situation. I appreciate your patience,” he said.
At least one partner of the caster, Gamer Advantage, has pulled out of their partnership because of her post.
“Gamer Advantage in no way shape or form agrees with what she said. We have partners and members of staff that are apart of the LGBTQIA community,” the company said.
The company’s director of partnerships has seemingly confirmed that it is no longer affiliated with MagickMoonshot.
LVT Halo announced that they will “not be contracting MagickMoonshot indefinitely,” and that Halo is for everyone.