The American “MagickMoonshot” has been streaming on Twitch since 2016 and has been a caster for the shooter Halo since 2018. She organizes training matches for women on Discord. She has now received heavy criticism for her decision to exclude trans women.
What event is it about? Halo caster and Twitch streamer MagickMoonshot planned to host training matches, also known as scrims, via her Discord server. These matches are for women only.
After word of the offer spread on
MagickMoonshot is now being criticized for this announcement.
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Halo developers and the US military get involved
What did the caster say? In a September 13 post, MagickMoonshot wrote, “I love and value all people, and as a Christian, I believe that God created people in his own image (Genesis 5:1-2).”
For this reason, transgender people are not allowed to take part in the “Ladies’ Scrims”.
The post went viral with 4.2 million views – many times what MagickMoonshot usually achieves. While some praised the caster for her decision, there was mostly criticism from the Halo community.
Many are bothered by the fact that MagickMoonshot uses their religion to exclude trans women from participating. Zach Lange of NRG Esports also quotes a Bible verse and writes: “Don’t use the Lord to make up for your lack of acceptance and compassion [zu rechtfertigen].” (via X)
Even Halo developer 343 Industries got involved in the form of senior community manager John Junyszek. He writes that the best way to show that she loves and appreciates everyone is to be as inclusive and welcoming as possible (via X).
Even the US military’s e-sports department commented on the situation and wrote in a statement on X/Twitter: “Halo is for everyone.”
Partners separate from Casterin
What are the consequences of the post? As a result of their announcement, several partners appear to have parted ways with MagickMoonshot. The e-sports organization Team Status Quo, for which the caster worked as a community manager, distanced itself from her statements on X/Twitter: “sQ supports everyone, plain and simple.”
Gamer Advantage, a glasses shop, announced on X/Twitter that it was ending its partnership with MagickMoonshot. The partnership director writes that values that support hate go against her core beliefs and do not represent the values of Gamer Advantage.
Casterin insists on her decision in a statement
How does the caster react? MagickMoonshot released a lengthy statement on X/Twitter on September 15th, reiterating that she loves all people. She has no problem interacting with transgender people and has worked on events in the past that were open to everyone.
For her personal Discord, however, the caster had to stay true to what she thought was right: and that was not to give the Discord tag “Lady Spartan” to anyone who was not a biological woman.
MagickMoonshot doesn’t know what to do next. If she has to withdraw from the gaming sector, she is willing to do so, said the caster.
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