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Nintendo & Niantic Took Part In Seattle’s Pride Parade

Today was the Seattle Pride Parade, and it was a great success. Many people marched in the parade, including Nintendo and Niantic. Nintendo brought a car, and the company’s employees gave out special “Play It Proud” stickers. Niantic and its employees also marched in the parade, and they brought a banner. Nintendo’s Jose Otero and Bill Trinen tweeted about it, so we’ve included their tweets for you down below.

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70 thoughts on “Nintendo & Niantic Took Part In Seattle’s Pride Parade”

  1. Pingback: Nintendo & Niantic Took Part In Seattle’s Pride Parade - all news you need on the world

      1. CFG

        It this context, it’s not really supporting fellow human beings as much as supporting actions of human beings which, the morality of said actions, is a huge social-political debate. It just seems in bad taste for an international video game company to take a side. I don’t really believe in the notion that if you’re not FOR something, you’re automatically against it and vice versa.

        1. ssf1991

          If people don’t care or don’t like said “actions”, then they can continue to be straight. I’m straight, and I don’t see the problem with this. People shouldn’t be afraid to support the causes of others, especially if it’s a positive one.

          Besides, I think it’s an understatement to say that this whole matter has been nothing more than a debate.

      3. CFG

        Well, again I don’t believe in the sentiment that if you don’t support something, then you’re automatically against it. I wouldn’t want any sort of person to feel alienated from video games whether they are LGBTQ or religiously minded. I’d like to think video games help bridge people of all beliefs together with the common denominator of fun…. and, hopefully, more empathy from those bonds and interactions.

        1. ssf1991

          Like I said. This shouldn’t be “taking sides”. This is humans celebrating other humans. I don’t see how it is controversal for people to choose what person should be the love of their life.

      5. CFG

        Well, it’s kind of messy. If we assume these are two opposing sides… you’re either picking to discriminate based off sexuality or discriminate based off religion… which, imo, are big no-no’s. It’s just not a good image for a company like Nintendo to take a stance that could be seen as “against LGBTQ” or “against spiritual beliefs” (which, ironically they have censored both in localizations) and, instead, be seen as “We don’t care who are as long as you like to play games with us.”

    7. val berger (@val_berger)

      Well, your opinion might be disappointing too for some and in the end we will still get along I guess.

      If you mean Nintendo shouldn’t capitalize on this issue, then I’d say yes and no, as I personally don’t care how the message is spread.
      I also don’t think there’s anything bad to say about companies promoting human rights or caring for the environment.

      1. CFG

        Neutral – not helping or supporting either side in a conflict, disagreement, etc.; impartial.

        I say what I mean. It’s unfortunate you are putting words in my mouth so readily.

        I already made a comment here explaining my reasoning but I’ll say it one more time here: I wouldn’t want any sort of person to feel alienated from video games whether they are LGBTQ or religiously minded. I’d like to think video games help bridge people of all beliefs together with the common denominator of fun…. and, hopefully, develop more empathy from those bonds and interactions.

    10. Nintendo First Order Enforcer SwedenTH

      There is no room for opionion in the matter.

      A person’s action, if it does not harm or endanger anyone else (and neither themselves to any severe degree) and if it’s also consensual between legal adults throughout; should be supported.

      Petty social rules and inconveniences of bystanders should be of no concern.

    12. frogopus

      A pride rally isn’t inherently a political issue, any more than a St Patrick’s Day parade is. Rather, it’s a celebration of culture and part of the awareness/coming out movement that was necessary to show people that, hey, gay folk are here and you may know and love more of them than you realized. They had/have an instrumental role in showing people that there was a community to support them when they were ready to come out. The gaming industry employs a ton of LGBT, and it makes total sense for an employer to want its employees to feel celebrated and encouraged to be who they are, at home or at work. To feel comfortable talking about their spouses, family, and home life in the work place.

      So if Nintendo joining in on the festivities is taking a “side” and that side is “against spiritual beliefs,” and not participating would be “staying out of it…” what action could they take to be on the pro spiritual belief side? Telling them they’re fired?

      2. Infinite Ridley

        Actually, your comments weren’t deleted but are simply in limbo til a mod comes along & allows them to post.. S e x u a l i t y is a word that triggers WordPress’s “awaiting moderation” tag. Try posting them again but with spaces between each letter in that word and they’ll go through. Then again, the awaiting moderation thing has been acting up since sickr started allowing people to post without having a WordPress account so there is a slim chance your comment could still get hit. I’ve made a few comments that didn’t have any of those trigger words and they still got hit with an awaiting moderation tag.

      3. ssf1991

        Okay, first thing’s first. “Freedom of expression” does not mean that you can say whatever you want and get no consequences in return. It just means that you won’t be jailed or executed for it. It also means that, if you’re being rude or disrespectful, then action can be taken in the comments of an article.

        Which leads me to point number two. It was homophobic. Saying that “homosexuality isn’t good for the survival of our human race” is homophobic. Saying that “people shouldn’t publicly support homosexuality”, as well as making your previous quote the reason why, is homophobic. Saying that it is “idiotic” that you’re called homophobic for “not loving homosexuals” is also homophobic. Your second comment, which added on to the first, added snark to the problem. So that’s what they were deleted. Doing this doesn’t make your case any better.

  6. MH4

    Caution! The following comment may be controversial. If you feel like you are easily offended, please avert your eyes and screen to avoid possible offense. Thank you.

    ~~~~

    Heck

  7. MH4

    Okay, so last year I was in Washington DC on vacation going to church (there’s a point to this story) and I was wearing a multicolored Splatoon shirt that used ink to form a squid.

    Turns out, that same Sunday, there was a pride parade.

    As a Christian going to church on a Sunday and not a pride parade, I was really nervous 😂

    Full disclosure: I don’t hate the LGTBQ community. Not trying to start an argument or heated discussion. Just thought this was a funny story that was relevant to the article.

    1. CFG

      You know, I could see some religious groups seeing “Are you a kid now? Are you a squid now?” to be some sort of LGBTQ code phrase and then you having to nervously explain the situation.

      Cut to one hour later and everyone is vehemently arguing if pulp and no pulp is better as they participate in their first splatfest.

  9. nintandrew

    if Nintendo has taken sides, they chose the right side to be on, as history has shown, and as the whole reason these “parades” started were marches for human rights.

    1. Carbon Kale

      You do know Nintendo is still strongly Conservative.
      This is the American Branch doing all this, in Japan, Nintendo wouldn’t bother with this

  13. Carbon Kale

    I notice it’s only Nintendo of America that allowed this, not Nintendo of Japan.
    Though I still feel Nintendo will make games neutral and keep outside stuff like their support for stuff like this separate from their games. So really, this is just them marketing.

  16. zachalejandro

    I technically wouldn’t mind a gay-themed Nintendo game. I mean, Nintendo obviously is “Rated E for Everyone”. I sadly have been single for most of my life. A girl that I was friends with got pregnant during high school, my mom didn’t like that after I told her about it. So our friendship came to an end after high school. I was actually attracted to men more then girls. Is that wrong? Or has my life changed? Is it technically okay to be gay?

    1. Hello

      Of course it’s okay to be gay. If you feel that you like men, then be with men. Do what makes you happy, not what the Bible and society have claimed to be the only correct way. Biological attraction is more true than the assumptions of society

    2. T

      Be who you are, not who people want you to be.

      I’m straight and have no issues with gay people at all, your life is yours to live, live it happy, free and with good intentions.

  20. T

    If we’re going to celebrate ‘humans’ then why are we singling out specific groups of humans? All this is, is a marketing scheme to get more money plain and simple. Jumping on the bandwagon as it were.

    I’m straight and have no issue with just about anybody or anything as long as your a good soul, however, I start having issues with things like this, stay neutral and allow people to guide themselves without coercion.

    Bringing attention to rallies like this does not always bring the attention you hoped for, instead why not celebrate something like ‘Human Freedom’ for ALL PEOPLE! Pleasing all as we all fit into that category.

    As open minded adults this is open for debate for us, however, as children, this can be misconstrued, and that’s my issue.

    PS, this is not meant to offend anyone at all, just open for a little debate, as humans do!

    T

    1. Nintendo First Order Enforcer SwedenTH

      There is no reason to fight for the groups who already have freedom…

      Most people don’t need to go though a debate and questioning of all sorts, to get married (or in some cases, buy bread…).

      In this case a Pride Parade is one of several ways in which it is possible to show support for a group who is singled out almost everyday otherwise in their life.

      1. T

        Call me naive, but I don’t see a difference between the ‘groups’, all I see are hurdles for each and every group, each and every human being.

        No human is ever truly free and that’s why I stated ‘Human Freedom’ so that way no matter our differences we can be supportive of each other.

        Showing support is all well and good but again I stated sometimes these things have a way of doing the opposite to what was envisioned. Especially when other groups of people feel that their cause gets ignored and should receive the same amount of limelight as the pride cause (but never does).

        I feel it shouldn’t be about what the media chooses to jump on board for whatever reasons but about bringing humans together once and for all.

        T

    4. 17R3w

      I’m sorry but LGBTQA+ isn’t inclusive enough? You need include humans too?

      Could the acronym be any longer?

    5. frogopus

      I’ll bite with a thoughtful answer, I’m long winded as it is. Does something like a pride parade change minds? Maybe not directly. Someone isn’t going to watch the parade and go “omg, I’ve been wrong about these gay folk all along!” Psychology suggests that it might actually do the opposite. But the pride parades were part of the awareness movement. They were in part a tool to show others that there was a community and a family that would support them if they were to come out. If they risked everything and were abandoned by their friends and family, they would have a place to belong. And by having more and more people come out as gay, openly and proudly, people began to find out that they didn’t just know gay people, they liked them. They were just people. They were no longer the “other.” So pride parades were instrumental in the progress that gay rights has made.

      Now as for breaking away from groups… These groups are often forced into the group without their permission. And when a group of people is placed into a “group” by someone else and discriminated against, there’s going to be push back. They collect, they protest, they march, they demand rights as a group. When they begin to see success, people start to say “hey, why are you still marching? Don’t you have equal rights? Shouldn’t we just celebrate all people instead of groups? This looks like discrimination!” Now, that’s actually not a bad place to get to, but when does a group, that didn’t want to be a group in the first place, get to stop marching, stop fighting, and start just being “human?” Who gets to decide when a group has reached that point?

      Those seem like hard questions.

  22. 17R3w

    Not sure anybody got the joke but the “play it PROUD” was a rif on their old “play it LOUD” slogan.

    If you haven’t seen the ads, Google it. They are basically the most 90’s thing ever.

  23. AKA-Link77

    Seeing as how the LG+ communities are becoming more political, I am actually surprised Nintendo took part in this…
    They tend to stay out of politics/religion and other complex/controversial stuff, so I was hoping Nintendo would not step into an area like this, it’s for their own good because it can get controversial with certain views/beliefs.

  25. tezforprez2012

    Many people, especially gamers are far too ignorant when it comes to things like this.

    There’s absolutely no problem in showing that you support another human being or group of human beings whose purpose has solely been to seek fair treatment. This isn’t something done for attention, or as an attempt to minimize another group’s issues, it’s simply done to give the spotlight to an oppressed group.

    1. Christopher Ryan

      Incest is not included in Pride celebration, unless you were making a (bad) joke.

      1. Infinite Ridley

        Could be one of those silly people that try to equate this stuff to bestiality & pedophilia because some people still have this belief that anything not straight is the same as being a sexual deviant. So they could be 100% serious.

  32. Infinite Ridley

    Pay no heed to the people on the internet that decry this. The moment you discredit them in this current climate of the internet is the TRUE moment you just fucked up. Leave them be & they’ll quiet down & disappear after a few weeks.

  34. Andreas (@KoopaXross)

    This is such blatant company PR. Though it seems to be working. More cash for Nintendo doing the right thing as a business. Can just tell you though there’s no reason to be proud/disappointed over this as if Nintendo had more to lose than gain from doing this they sure as hell wouldn’t do it.

  35. Christopher Ryan

    I never want to stop working for Nintendo. I adore and admire the company’s inclusion of human rights.

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