Stanford Professor: Dungeons and Dragons Perpetuates Systems of White, Male Privilege

Breitbart ^ | April 17, 2018 | Tim Ciccotta

[C19fan]

A professor of education at Stanford University argues in a recent academic journal article that the tabletop game Dungeons & Dragons perpetuates white privilege. Standford University Professor Antero Garcia argues in an academic journal article that the popular game Dungeons and Dragons perpetuates systems of privilege.

[Architect of Avalon]

It will get exponentially worse unless there is a major course correction.

[jmcenanly]

Having a hobby would indicate that the person has the free time and discretionary income to engage in this,and is therefore privileged, according to these people. It would be better if what time they didn’t spend working to pay taxes was spent waiting in line for the necessities of life as determined by government agencies.</sarc>

[Pollster1]

As a white male born in a poor family that instilled traditional values and demanded that I get an education, I know the key to white “privilege”, and it’s not my reduced melanin. The key is values, character, and effort. If you listen to our recently unemployed communist leader, and if you believe “you didn’t build that”, you will never build anything. If you believe effort can, should, and will be rewarded, you have “privilege”, regardless of skin color.

[Teacher317]

Leftist scum crave the destruction of any vestige of Western culture and masculinity.

Yes, we in the DnD crowd were always the most masculine group at school. LOL

[Sam Gamgee]

Well the Standford professor should wean himself of pretty much all literature then.

[Jack Hammer]

Groan. What a crock....

[stinkerpot65]

Well, yeah, the players are not masculine, the context of the stories are.

[CardCarryingMember.VastRightWC]

I wonder if this Breitbart author knows what he's talking about? His claim is that this Stanford Prof's article talks about "white privilege" and "male privilege" in D&D. Yet the only supporting documentation, the only quotes he provides, is the text of this abstract:

"Focusing on how the tabletop role-playing game Dungeons & Dragons is built on a system of play that has grown and shifted over the course of 40 years, this study emphasizes the central role that systems play in mediating the experiences of participants. By focusing on depictions of gender, race, and power in Dungeons & Dragons — as a singular cultural practice — this study highlights how researchers must attend to cultural production both around and within systems."

That sounds pretty innocuous to me. Besides that quote, the only link that Breitbart gives is to a page on tandfonline.com that contains only that exact same quote, and a means by which you can pay $$ for access to the entire publication that this article was included in (p 232-246 of how many more "scholarly articles"? ... no thanks!)

Also, this same author has been hanging out at D&D games here in Ft Collins for years, taking notes (funded by a $70K research grant), and the resulting articles he's published on D&D seems to be supportive, not adversarial. Eg, at this link:
http://mediax.stanford.edu/events/dungeons-dragons-in-an-era-of-terror-nationalism-and-gamergate
he contrasts paper & dice board-games like D&D favorably with digital/online games: "...this talk explores how the roots of tabletop gaming foster collaboration, learning, and player agency. Further, through dialogue and historical analysis, this research considers how non-digital forms of interactive media are enacted in an era fueled by online vitriol, nationalism, and gamergate...."

We already have enough people on the Left who are looking under every rock for evidence of White Male Privilege that isn't there. We don't also need anyone on OUR side looking under every rock for WMP-seeking Lefties who aren't there. There are plenty of well-documented cases of leftists imagining WMP, so why do we need to imagine more cases of the same that might not exist?

With *any* type of persuasive argument, as you state your case by collecting anecdotes that back you up, there is a fatal temptation to stretch your list out to the max by including "just a few more" bullet points that deep down you know or suspect shouldn't be on your list. When you do that, the other side will seize on those 1 or 2 items, debunk them, and use that to destroy your entire argument in the eyes of others.

[wally_bert]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VPvLykRfSi0

[wally_bert]

I used to work with a guy who was a cousin to the creators.

Nice fellow.

[Ransomed]

Uhhh......this is the internet in 2018. Pretty sure you are just supposed to read the headline and make a snap judgement based on some sort of perceived outrage. Your considered response is confusing and probably has no place here.

That said, I cast micro-aggression at the snowflake monsters.

Freegards