Sports
Game Changers: D.C. Gaymers
Video games popular among D.C.-area queer residents
The LGBTQ gaming community in Washington has grown to a point where the need arose to distinguish between casual gamers and hardcore gamers.
This week in the Blade’s Game Changers series, we meet the leader of D.C. Gaymers and the newly minted Rogue eSports.
D.C. Gaymers began as a Meetup group back in 2016 and they were meeting every three months at someone’s house to play video games.
Miguel Miranda took over their leadership in 2017 and moved the group to Cobalt where he created an LGBTQ-focused gaming venture that met once a month on Tuesday nights.
Their numbers grew quickly to 80 people and they switched to a biweekly schedule to accommodate the growing interest. They began offering more events and systems including PlayStation, Wii, GameCube, Xbox, handheld games on iPads, board games and card games.
“Gamers are self-labeled as introverts, people who avoid crowds and people who stay behind the scenes,” Miranda says. “Over time I discovered that there are a lot of gamers who share my desire to make real-life connections and friendships.”
Miranda was born in the Dominican Republic and grew up in Providence, R.I. He received his environmental engineering degrees from University of New Hampshire and Virginia Tech. He followed his husband Oscar to the D.C. area and is employed as an engineer at a wastewater treatment plant.
“I grew up in a very religious household and video games were an escape from reality for me. I was my happiest when I was behind the screen,” Miranda says. “I get a different enjoyment from them now because I have recognized that there is a need for this gaming community. My husband isn’t a gamer, but he supports my addiction.”
Miranda says many players have told him they feel nervous telling other adults they’re gamers because there’s still a stigma that gaming isn’t socially acceptable for adults.
“People want a safe space where they can be nerds and be themselves,” Miranda says. “It’s been rewarding to watch people step in as greeters, come out of their shells and connect to other like-minded individuals. It can often be one step at a time.”
Miranda noticed that the hardcore gamers weren’t coming as often to the casual Tuesday game nights. To keep them engaged, D.C. Gaymers introduced Super Smash Bros. and Mario Bros. on Saturdays once a month.
“Two different personalities emerged — casual and competitive,” Miranda says. “With the closing of Cobalt, we moved over to Uproar in February and decided to create a second group.”
Rogue eSports will launch March 17 as a 10-week competitive league that plays bi-weekly on Tuesday nights at Uproar. Their list of games include Overwatch, Super Smash Bros., Hearthstone and Mortal Kombat.
As this new venture plays out for local LGBTQ gamers, Miranda already has an eye on reaching another part of the community. He has doing outreach at events such as Awesome Con, MAGFest and Blerdcon and can visualize another direction.
“I eventually want to find a space for LGBTQ gamers who are under 21. Gaming can be a powerful tool for teenagers coping with hardships,” Miranda says. “I am hoping to build a community where young gamers can feel safe and make human connections.”
Iran and Egypt on Friday faced off during the World Cup’s “Pride Match” in Seattle.
Iran is among the handful of countries in which consensual same-sex sexual relations remain punishable by death. Discrimination and persecution based on sexual orientation and gender identity is commonplace in Egypt.
Friday’s match coincided with Pride weekend in Seattle. The Egyptian Football Association and the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran both objected to playing in the “Pride Match.”
Egypt and Iran tied 1-1.
FIFA, for its part, allowed Pride flags inside the stadium during the match.
“The FIFA World Cup 2026 is an inclusive event that welcomes people from all backgrounds,” a FIFA spokesperson told the Washington Blade in a statement. “Fans of all sexual orientations and gender identities are welcome at matches and events. General statements of human rights, including rainbow flags and other flags representing sexual orientation and gender identity, are permitted under the FIFA World Cup 2026™ Stadium Code of Conduct and may be displayed inside stadiums provided they are used in a manner consistent with the code.”
Human Rights Watch welcomed FIFA’s decision to allow Pride flags inside the stadium. Outright International, a global LGBTQ and intersex rights group, distributed Pride flags in Seattle on Friday, which was Pride Match Day.
“Visibility matters,” said Outright International Executive Director Maria Sjödin. “Pride is now being celebrated in more than 100 countries, including this weekend in Seattle. For many LGBTIQ people, seeing a Pride flag in public is a reminder that they are not alone, and that their rights and dignity are recognized.”
FIFA President Gianni Infantino earlier this year told Die Weltwoche, a Swiss magazine, that “there will be no ‘Pride Match’ at the (FIFA) World Cup.”
“There will be a FIFA World Cup match in Seattle, and on the same day, events organized by external organizations will be taking place in the city,” said Infantino. “But that has nothing to do with the match itself.”
Peter Tatchell, a long-time LGBTQ activist from the U.K. who is director of the Peter Tatchell Foundation, was among those who traveled to Seattle for Friday’s match. Tatchell accused FIFA of not vetting World Cup teams — specifically Iran, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Ghana, Senegal, Qatar, Tunisia, Morocco, Iraq, Uzbekistan, and Algeria — over whether they would allow gay players.
“FIFA is protecting LGBT+ visibility in the stands while failing to protect LGBT+ players on the pitch,” said Tatchell.
The Baltimore Orioles will take on the Washington Nationals on Friday, June 26 at 7 p.m. for Pride Night at Oriole Park.
The first 15,000 fans will receive an exclusive Pride Night Orioles jersey. The Washington Blade is a media sponsor of this event.
To purchase tickets, visit Orioles.com/Tickets.
Sports
Minor league team in York, Pa., forfeits Pride Night game after some players refuse to wear special jersey
City is roughly 20 miles north of Md. border
An independent minor league baseball team says it is forfeiting a game because some of its players refused to wear a special Pride Night jersey.
The Atlantic League Pro Baseball’s York Revolution were planning to hold their 11th annual Pride Night event Thursday for a game against the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs.
But the Revolution announced the day of the game that it wouldn’t be played. York is about 20 miles north of the Maryland line. The Blue Crabs play in Waldorf.
The rest of this article can be found on the Baltimore Banner’s website.
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