Bungie has given its view on the mass shooting in Buffalo that rocked the USA over the weekend, which is still being investigated as a hate crime, condemning it as a “terrorist attack”.
In a statement published on the company’s website, it has stated its support for those affected by the shooting and pledged to work together with its internal inclusion club for Black employees to respond to it.
Following a short recap of the incident’s facts, the Destiny and former Halo developer began the release by saying: “Our hearts go out to the victims of this tragedy, and anyone impacted by this act of violence.”
Bungie Issues Company Statement On Buffalo Shooting
Bungie went on to immediately address the actions it and the inclusion club, which was founded in 2020, have been taking in response to the shooting, citing the moving of a ‘Be Heard’ Pin commemorating the Black Lives Matter movement to the front page of its store.
It also revealed that for “at least one year”, all of the money generated by this pin will be donated to the Southern Poverty Law Center charity, “whose work includes monitoring hate groups and other extremists throughout the United States and exposing their activities to the public, the media, and law enforcement.”
The company went on to state that it will be taking measures to help combat the rise of “online communities that are used to recruit and radicalize individuals”, explaining: “Black at Bungie intends to partner with our Player Support and Community teams to see how we can bolster our ongoing efforts to maintain safe and anti-racist spaces in which our players and fans can come together.”
It also added: “We hope our colleagues in game development and gaming communities continue to examine their own platforms and invest in practices to combat bigotry in all its manifestations.”
Bungie closed the statement by saying: “we believe games and their communities should be a force for good and we are committed to that” and providing the link to a GoFundMe page that people can use to send donations to those impacted by the shooting.
Reaction to the company’s Tweet featuring the statement attracted an overwhelmingly positive response, with many users applauding Bungie for its stance, though some others questioned whether the company is doing enough to support other minority groups.
Bungie also released a statement earlier this month in response to the US Roe v Wade debate around abortion, declaring its support for reproductive rights.