Insomniac Games CEO founder Ted Price took a stand against President Donald Trump’s ban on travel from seven Muslim countries.
While other game developers issued tweets or sent emails to employees about Trump, Price took the extra step of creating a YouTube video, where he stood in front of a camera with all of Insomniac’s employees behind him. He made a plea not only to Trump but to gamers to stand in opposition to the policy. And Price, whose company makes many popular games like Ratchet & Clank or Resistance, used the medium that gamers turn to just about every day, YouTube.
Last weekend, game developers from around the world issued statements and tweets criticizing Trump’s order banning refugees and barring citizens from Iraq, Iran, Syria, Sudan, Libya, Somalia, and Yemen from entering the United States for 90 days. Trump also banned foreigners with U.S. permanent resident green cards from entering the country without vetting, and he permanently banned refugees from Syria.
“We at Insomniac Games stand united in strongly opposing President Trump’s immigration ban,” Price said in the video. “There’s no question these orders will harm us as a company and many of our team members. So we ask. Is this the American way? Is discriminating based on religious faith or national origin American? Absolutely not. This is a deplorable, discriminatory act that we and many others across the nation believe is patently unconstitutional. We have been, we are, and will always be a nation of immigrants. If you agree with us, please do something about it. … Join us in being a force for good and making your voice heard.”
AI Weekly
The must-read newsletter for AI and Big Data industry written by Khari Johnson, Kyle Wiggers, and Seth Colaner.
Included with VentureBeat Insider and VentureBeat VIP memberships.
Trump’s executive order prompted protests across the U.S. at American airports. Google cofounder Sergey Brin, California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and a number of other leaders showed up at San Francisco International Airport, protesting at the places where the bans are being enforced. And game developers joined the protests as well.
On Saturday night, a federal judge blocked part of Trump’s executive order, ordering that refugees and others trapped at airports across the U.S. should not be sent back to their home countries. Today, the acting head of the Justice Department ordered federal employees not to implement the order, and former President Barack Obama broke his silence in condemning the order.
Price asked those who agree with him to notify Congressional representatives at http://www.house.gov/ and https://www.senate.gov/.
VentureBeat's mission is to be a digital town square for technical decision-makers to gain knowledge about transformative enterprise technology and transact. Learn More