100 Women We Love: Class Of 2018

Each one of these women, in her own unique way, is a role model who exemplifies the best of the LGBTQ community.

Tanya DePass

Photo by Elizabeth Sampat

“I was mad about video games at 6am about four years ago,” she remembers. “It was the right time, right place for the diversity discussion to ramp up again and I went with it.” And the video game world is all the better for her efforts. DePass is the Director and Founder of the nonprofit I Need Diverse Games; the Diversity Liaison and Programming Director at the GaymerX Foundation; a board member of Con-or-Bust, a group that helps folks from marginalized communities attend conventions; Anthology Editor of the CRC Press book Game Devs and Others: Tales from the Margins, which tells stories from the front lines of game development; a cast member on Rivals of Waterdeep, a POC/queer Dungeons and Dragons show on twitch.tv/dnd; and a convention speaker when there is a call for an expert on diversity, feminism, race and intersectionality. If all that weren’t enough to keep her busy, she has written for Uncanny Magazine; Polygon; Vice’s gaming vertical, Waypoint; WisCon Chronicles; Paste’s Games section, and others. DePass, who says her coming out process as bisexual “wasn’t showy or flashy,” enjoys it when young queer folks are inspired by her, but also wants our community to do better. “The community needs to be welcoming to all,” she says, “and not play oppression Olympics with others’ axes of marginalization. Recognize things are more difficult for POC who are LGBTQIA, especially trans POC. Let’s not forget our roots of Stonewall and Black trans women in favor of corporate rainbow-washing every June.” —GH


What Do You Think?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *