Dear Friends,
Computer and video games are art, a form of artistic expression deserving of and, currently, protected by the First Amendment.
That hasn't stopped states though from trying to restrict the rights of our medium's artists, storytellers, and technical innovators. On November 2, the Supreme Court will hear arguments on the constitutionality of a California law that would restrict the sale of video games. This is a case of great significance to you and me -- to all people who play or create games and believe in the First Amendment.
Let's not beat around the bush -- if the Court's ruling goes against us, this law could lead to the future censorship of games, could irrevocably harm developers and would validate the absurd notion that video games are somehow a lesser form of creative expression.
We must act now. On October 19, I'm asking you to join me in urging all of your friends and co-workers, real-world or virtual, to stand up for video games by joining the Video Game Voters Network, an advocacy group fighting for their First Amendment protection.
Many people, including some of my personal heroes, like Stan Lee, have already encouraged us to take a stand. Now is the time for gamers to come together and spread the word through our social networks. Now is the time to ask every gamer we can reach to stand up with us and protect our First Amendment rights.
Here's the link:
http://www.videogamevoters.org/nocensorship On October 19, please tweet this:
Games=Free Speech. Stand w/ @VideoGameVoters on 11/2 as #SCOTUS decides future of games
http://vgvn.org/act #GamersUnite
Post it on Facebook and on your blog. Talk about it in interviews, on podcasts and with your colleagues. Encourage everyone you can to do the same. It's time for all of us who are tired of games being treated unfairly to band together and let our collective voice be heard.
Thank you for considering this call to action.
-- Warren Spector
