(i.e., Ugandan Knucles).It wasn’t a command - it was a challenge. Repeating the things we hear because others have gotten laughs with it. That’s all we’ve become, a society of meme-parrots.
For the most part I feel people are just repeating it because it’s become a meme. And of all the examples I’ve seen in online gaming I don’t think I’ve ever come across anything truly hateful. I’m not saying it’s okay to say the N-Word because you might have the okay of a black friend, but just that I’ve seen people claim it’s an utterly offensive thing while others disagree. I think we’re mosty past saying “that’s gay” and are now onto the whole “trap” thing. That was just how we said “that sucks” when our vocabulary was extremely limited. Like when I would say “that’s gay” as a kid I didn’t hate gays, I wasn’t disparaging a gay person or even insinuating that things that are “bad” should have been associated with someone’s identity/orientation, gay people weren’t even part of my consciousness when uttering that statement. but I still say things that the bottom 90% of tumblr would vilify me for. I don’t hate, I don’t judge or discriminate based on race/gender/identity/etc. Yes it started as a “joke” and yes it’s based on the misconception that trans-women are ultimately trying to “trick” men and have historically been persecuted by said men, but I’d like to think the context matters. I simply don’t think it’s got such a negative connotation that some people put on it. That’s not to say I go throwing the word around like I’m shitposting on VR Chat. I specifically asked what she thought about me using it and she said she didn’t think it was offensive. I have a close transgender friend and I asked her what she thought about it and she didn’t care either way about it. That “Traps are NOT gay,” as if to defend themselves for loving them. Interestingly, I’ve only ever heard the exact opposite. I understand certain communities take phrases or certain symbols like Pepe on TwitchChat and can mean something else or invoke different reactions within that community but I can't help but feel really off put by it all among a sea of people that think its ok. Of course it's not just streamers but everyone on TwitchChat and VrChat laughing about it spamming *traps are gay*.
It's a horrible derogatory saying to a transgender person yet it seems even streamers who I would consider more *progressive* than others go along with it or don't bother saying something to others, *it's just a joke* I can't be the only one that thinks it's a pretty awful thing to joke about let alone make up "scenarios" in VRChat even if it is fake for the sole purpose of making content out of it. Frequently used on 4chan, the word is a taken from the popular Admiral Ackbar meme It’s a Trap and used to express fear that someone is attempting to trick or confuse others sexuality through appearance changes." "Trap” is an internet slang term used online for people who crossdress and androgynous anime characters. Its something I have been noticing more and more as I get deeper into the Twitch community and VRChat in general is the phrase *traps are gay* and certain others like *traps should go to prison* or asking every female avatar if they are a trap and then making a grandiose statement and reaction when they hear a male voice. not very knowledgeable on as I have no transgender friends/family and my only experience is following transgender people in the gaming industry, media, and others who share their stories.
This a topic that has been running through my head for the last week a topic that I am.