Media Advisory: Gamers for Freedom to protest at Blizzcon

For immediate release: October 31, 2019

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 31, 2019
Contact: dayton@fightforthefuture.org, (508) 368-3026

On Friday, November 1st, Gamers for Freedom will be organizing protests outside of BlizzCon.  Gamers from around the world will be in attendance to share their voices in support of banned Hearthstone player Ng Wai “blitzchung” Chung, Hong Kong residents standing up for their liberty, and free expression online.  The day will be filled with passionate speakers, fun events, and acts of legal, nonviolent protest.  

Our protest will run from noon until 3:00pm, but there will be plenty of activity before and after the official protest hours.  We encourage anyone in the Southern California area to join us at the Anaheim Convention Center to participate in this important day of political action.

  • At 7:00am, as part of the campaign organized by Freedom Hong Kong, 4,000 t-shirts will be handed out to BlizzCon attendees and protesters alike, with assistance from Hong Kong Forum Los Angeles volunteers and community members. The campaign aims to raise awareness of the ongoing Hong Kong protests demanding freedom and democracy, and call for support from the world to join our fight against totalitarianism. The t-shirt giveaway will continue on Nov 2 starting from 7:00am until supply runs out.
  • At 12:00pm, Gamers for Freedom will organize along Convention Center Way, holding signs and handing out flyers to BlizzCon attendees.  We will be joined by Zephronica and YX, who have gone viral on social media for their cosplay of the character Mei from Blizzard’s Overwatch game.  Zephronica and YX have also donated 400 t-shirts to hand out to BlizzCon attendees and protesters.
  • At 1:00pm, Gamers for Freedom will hold a cosplay contest hosted by comedian Ron Placone.  Anyone wearing a costume is eligible to participate.  We will select the 10 best costumes based on crowd reaction, and provide them with a free one-year subscription to VPN service graciously provided by Private Internet Access.
  • At 2:00pm, members of the protest will speak to the crowd.  Our featured speakers will be Casey Chambers and Torino, two members of the American University Hearthstone team whom Blizzard has banned from competition for making peaceful political statements during a recent Hearthstone tournament livestream.

Gamers for Freedom is a project by Fight for the Future, a non-profit dedicated to promoting digital rights.  To speak with Dayton Young, Product Director at Fight for the future and organizer of Gamers for Freedom, please email dayton@fightforthefuture.org.

To speak with Freedom Hong Kong, please email Tony at freedomhongkong@protonmail.com.

To speak with Hong Kong Forum Los Angeles, please contact Charles Lam at info@hkfla.org.  

To speak with Ron Placone, please email ronplaconebooking@gmail.com.

To speak with Casey Chambers, please message @Xcelsior_GU on Twitter.