With so much revenue at stake, ESL, a leading esports production company, realized the business imperative of ensuring that 50 percent of the population doesnвЂ™t feel excluded from gaming. Garrido and the Dignitas women have set a goal to be competitive with the top menвЂ™s Counter-Strike squads. Yet the culture of many esports communities can be toxic, leading Taylor to conclude that deep-seated cultural issues are at play. In the arc of sporting history, esports were invented yesterday, decades after Title IX - the law banning discrimination on the basis of sex in schools that receive federal funds - gave legal heft to the right of American girls and women to compete. Moreover, there is no male tradition to overcome, such as in boxing or wrestling. Unlike in stick-and-ball sports, physical attributes such as height, speed and muscle mass are not essential to success. The irony, as Taylor views it, is that there is no immediately obvious reason for a gender divide in esports. ItвЂ™s about participating in culture and having a voice and visibility.вЂќ вЂњFor me, it is tied to democracy and civic engagement. вЂњWhat we have not fully grappled with is that the right to play extends to the digital space and gaming,вЂќ she said. In the view of Taylor, it is a basic human right. In esports, a fast-growing arena in which a global pastime is approaching a billion-dollar business, whatвЂ™s at issue is more than fair play. вЂњThe harassment has been consistent, as has the struggle to be taken seriously.вЂќ вЂњThe Internet side of it amplifies the worst parts of the historical pattern of exclusion that women and girls face when it comes to equitable participation in so many aspects of our culture,вЂќ said Taylor, who has Вresearched and written extensively about esports culture since 2003. Taylor sees a resonance between the battles for inclusion that women waged in the early 1970s and those being waged today in the gaming sphere. Nearly two-thirds of female journalists report experiencing threats, sexist abuse, intimidation and harassment online and on social media in the course of their work.ДЇemale politicians are also a frequent target of pernicious online abuse, according to a 2016 Inter-Parliamentary Union survey of female legislators around the world, with 62В percent saying they believed the intent of the harassment was to dissuade them from pursuing leadership positions. Sandys/The Washington Post)ДЄccording to the WomenвЂ™s Media CenterвЂ™s Speech Project, chat room participants with female usernames report receiving threatening or sexually explicit private messages 25 times more often than those with male or ambiguous usernames. вЂњItвЂ™s, вЂYouвЂ™re never going to be good at this game.вЂ™ вЂYouвЂ™re always going to lose to a dude.вЂ™ Or, вЂYouвЂ™re ugly.вЂ™ вЂYouвЂ™re fat.вЂ™вЂ‰вЂќД®mmalee Garrido, who goes by EMUHLEET as the captain of the Dignitas вЂњCounter-Strike: Global OffensiveвЂќ team, does not acknowledge online harassers. вЂњThe harassment has been consistent, as has the struggle to be taken seriously,вЂќ DeFonzo said. Online harassment has been a constant over her 15 years as a gamer, first playing Halo for fun and now competing on a mixed-gender team with three male friends. Jenn вЂњQueenвЂќ DeFonzo, 26, who juggles a full-time job at an engineering company with a semi-pro gaming career, suspects that more than half of female gamers who reveal their gender online are harassed, whether via put-downs such as вЂњGet back to the kitchen,вЂќ insults about their appearance or profane name-calling. But itвЂ™s hardly a given.ДЄ 2017 Washington Post-UMass Lowell poll found that 36 percent of female gamers said that women are treated with less respect than men, while 24 percent said they are treated about equally. These women gamers are fighting back.ДЇor girls and women who compete in esports, basic civility on the playing field - the right to take part without being bullied - shouldnвЂ™t be too much to expect. But she is still fighting for visibility.Д¬ivility: Online culture can be toxic. Mya Kretzer changed that.Д®xposure: Claressa Shields keeps winning boxing titles. Opportunity: In Kansas, girls didn't have a wrestling championship of their own. women's soccer team files suit for equal pay and working conditions. About this series: Female athletes are speaking out, demanding a more level playing field with their male counterparts even as they continue to train and excel in their sports.Д®quity: The U.S.

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