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Yesterday, the United States Supreme Court struck down the landmark case Roe v. Wade, the case which protected the reproductive rights of women across the country. The decision stripped women of those federal rights, triggering laws to start being enacted almost immediately banning abortions in states across the country. In response, many companies in the games industry showed their support for protecting reproductive rights, as well as their employees.
After the news broke, multiple companies from across the industry shared statements, some denouncing the decision by the Supreme Court, while others simply tweeted affirming their stance on reproductive rights. Notably, the studios that make up PlayStation’s roster of game dev houses tweeted their support, which shocked many given Sony’s previous ban on making statements on the matter when the Roe v. Wade draft leaked last month.
— Sucker Punch Productions ?? Ghost of Tsushima (@SuckerPunchProd) June 24, 2022
— Naughty Dog (@Naughty_Dog) June 24, 2022
— Santa Monica Studio – God of War Ragnarök (@SonySantaMonica) June 24, 2022
Companies, such as Destiny developer Bungie, have taken it a step further and committed to assisting any employee who needs to travel to have a healthcare procedure done they cannot where they currently are. Bungie has also updated their list of charities interested readers can donate to for support.
Standing up for reproductive choice and liberty is not a difficult decision to make, and Bungie remains dedicated to upholding these values.https://t.co/zCjZZC2NkH pic.twitter.com/c0t4s4Xp1D
— Bungie (@Bungie) May 4, 2022
At Xbox, we remain committed to our employees to ensure equal access to healthcare.We will continue to do everything we can under the law to support our employees and enrolled dependents in accessing critical healthcare.
— Xbox (@Xbox) June 24, 2022
Our U.S. health plans cover lawful medical services like abortion and gender-affirming care, and we recently extended our travel benefits to include travel expense support assistance for covered medical services.
— Xbox (@Xbox) June 24, 2022
Guild Wars 2 developer ArenaNet also tweeted in support, making its last two tweets in direct opposition to the Roe v. Wade overturning, as it tweeted “Your Body. Your Right.” on May 5th when the draft initially leaked. MMO publisher Daybreak Games also tweeted its support, confirming it too will be providing travel assistance for those who need to travel to access their healthcare needs. Electronic Arts is also extending these travel benefits to its employee soon, per a statement on the EA website. Ubisoft also committed to supplying a benefits package to its employees that will cover travel and procedures, regardless of where the employee is based in the US.
— ArenaNet (@ArenaNet) June 24, 2022
— Daybreak Games (@DaybreakGames) June 25, 2022
https://t.co/DXKcGmPJp0 pic.twitter.com/ti64jXB0m7
— Ubisoft (@Ubisoft) June 24, 2022
As the outpouring of protests sweeps the nation in response to the overturning of Roe v. Wade, other companies have offered to support employees who happen to be arrested while peacefully protesting this weekend. Games PR house Tinsley PR tweeted their support for their employees who take part in a protest, vowing to bail any out that might find themselves jailed for their participation.
If any of our team is arrested this weekend protesting abortion / the Supreme Court ruling today we’ll go ahead and bail them out. Go get ‘em.
— Tinsley (@Tinsley_PR) June 24, 2022
Featured image via Wikipedia
