ACGL and Girls of War ZA (GOWZA) will be hosting a Call of Duty tournament in support of the Pink Movement. The aim is to raise awareness and continue to address the ongoing issues of gender-based violence and abhorrent attitudes of some male gamers towards their female counterparts.
There is over R50,000 in products up for grabs, which will be awarded to both the competitors and spectators over the tournament weekend. On 29 and 30 August, double elimination brackets for both console and crossplay teams will be hosted. The cups are for teams of five players, of which at least one player must be a female gamer.
A number of streamers alongside Wootdini will be hosting live streams over the weekend.
Registrations are now open on the ACGL event page.
PRESS RELEASE:
GOWZA supported by ACGL
Presents
The Call of Duty Pink Tournament
ZA – GOWZA will present The Pink Tournament, hosted by ACGL as an online Call of Duty Competition on the 29th – 30th of August 2020. The tournament will be broadcast by Wootdini and in collaboration with a host of streamers. This will mark a stand against gender-based violence in gaming and raise awareness to create an environment that fosters a bonded community regardless of gender.
Gender-based violence in the gaming community has become a far more frequent occurrence. One of the more serious cases recently, saw a male gamer telling a female gamer that he wishes her father raped her. This is not the first occasion of such violence, along with continuous belittlement in the form of requests for “sandwiches” and other female stereotyped slurs.
While exposing these pieces of in-game communication on social media, it has been saddening to see that the reaction did not provoke an active or constructive reaction to the matter at hand. Women were suggested to mute in-game chat or abandon the game entirely. Consequently, we were introduced to like-minded women we could relate to, ready to stand together and be able to enjoy being a gamer without feeling attacked.
Led by the Untamed Beasts gaming clan, the “Pink Movement” began and evolved into a visible stance against GBV in the community of Call of Duty SA. This was done by changing their calling cards, emblems, and gun skins to Pink to raise awareness – pledging to reduce the toxicity and to stand up against those expressing abuse towards woman, race, and any kind of toxicity that crossed the line of friendly banter.
eNCA Coverage: https://youtu.be/uBSIH0TRnAg
With every new report of events we grew louder, closer, and more passionate in changing the view of female gamers in the community. Through this, a group was created called Girls of War ZA (GOWZA) – explicitly for female gamers as a safe space to congregate, report and most importantly find like-minded woman to experience online gaming as a team, free of constant cat calling and insults.
Inspired by the community’s overwhelming support we wanted to give something back while raising awareness about GBV in gaming. Joined by ACGL, Wootdini, and numerous sponsors, we are proud to present the GOWZA Pink Tournament. This online event will be held over 2 days with teams battling it out in console and cross play divisions. Teams of 5 are required to have at least one female gamer in the team to participate, with the aim of encouraging a more inclusive and positive view towards woman gamers.
Registrations are now open at acgl.co.za/gowza.
“Be a Voice, Not an Echo”
We would also like to thank the following sponsors for their support.
REDRAGON
SPARKFOX
AOC
NEXUS HUB
ZAPA GAMING
HEIDRUN GAMING
PLAYSTATION
GEMSETTING STUDIO DESIGNS
XBOX
EVETECH
