SteveTheGamer55 is live on YouTube. He’s streaming a session to his 4.6 million subscribers of GTA 5 RP, a Grand Theft Auto 5 mod that allows people to role-play with other players. “Really wanna show you guys some real-life scenarios,” he says, offering a little background on his character, a man headed to his job while on a work visa.
His character doesn’t get far before an SUV swings onto the sidewalk in front of him; masked ICE agents spill out of the vehicle. “Stop right there,” one of the uniformed players says. It isn’t long before SteveTheGamer55 is surrounded by agents. He hands over his ID while bystander players yell at the agents and demand his release. “Why are you harassing people?” one says, before the worker is finally let go. Later in SteveTheGamer55’s play session, he stands in front of a large iron gate reminiscent of those in ICE detention centers seen in cities like Chicago. More in-game ICE agents have gathered. He records from his phone. Just in front of him, a player in a red suit demands to see a warrant for his client.
The “special event” held on November 20, where players took on different roles that reflect real-life ICE raids, was the first initiative by New Save Collective, a baker’s dozen of gamers with backgrounds in activism and organizing, whose goal is to educate gamers and teach people about their rights when dealing with ICE in real-world situations. On November 21, at 7:30 pm ET, gamers will gather in Epic’s massively popular battle royale, Fortnite, to hold a closed scavenger hunt that will serve as a more casual educational opportunity. The group is working with several immigration advocacy groups, as well as collaborating with content creators, to spread their message online.
Games that serve as platforms are becoming popular places for kids and adults alike to gather in protest. On Roblox, players have held both pro-Palestine rallies and anti-ICE demonstrations. For New Save Collective, games like Fortnite and Grand Theft Auto offer a similarly useful place to carry out their events. “Some of the folks who play GTA roleplay are [police] officers in real life or are lawyers in real life,” says Anosh Polticoal, who also requested to only be referred to by screenname for safety.
“For a [gaming] stream that’s educating the public in a world where many people may not have seen an interaction with ICE yet, [it’s] a way to get folks to know or get used to what that might look like,” the organizer says. “What their rights are as bystanders, as citizens, as non-citizens, as folks who are documented, undocumented. It felt like a really great way to see all that play out for an audience.”
Creating awareness through outreach is one of the most important bits about protests. There needs to be a critical mass of people that are fed up in order to create a smaller bunch of people that will move in action.
That’s how grass roots campainging works. People with such a huge amount of followers are critical to mobilize more people. For every one person to actively join a protest many more must be reached.