Hey folks, I know you come to this blog for puzzles and games content, so I’m going to kick off with that. But please keep reading, because there are bigger things to discuss. Thanks.

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[A couple of protesters dance their way through the streets of downtown Dover on June 4. Image courtesy of Andre Lamar, Dover Post.]

There is a lot of discussion in the United States right now about discrimination and systemic prejudice. The puzzles and games industry is not immune to this sort of criticism.

Thankfully, just as puzzle and game companies have not been immune to accusations of discrimination, they’re also not outside the scope of grassroots efforts to reform them.

Wizards of the Coast is being confronted about racist imagery and ideas in the Magic: The Gathering card game and their offices. Systemic racism and sexism in the offices of Cards Against Humanity is being called out. People of color took a stand against GAMA’s silence regarding Black Lives Matter, triggering a mass walkout of presenters and panelists, as well as Origins Online being cancelled in the wake of the scandal.

People are speaking up, and that is a very good thing.

There are so many ways to show your support, so many charities and good causes you can donate to.

The folks at DM’s Guild and DriveThruRPG have put together game bundles in support of Black Lives Matter, the National Police Accountability Project, and the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, all while spotlighting the work of black creators.

The real message is… no matter what you do or how you live your life, you simply cannot turn a blind eye to all this.

This blog post started out with the simple idea of sharing these worthwhile causes and talking about the puzzle/game groups that have spoken up.

But to do that without acknowledging the realities of WHY they’re speaking up is irresponsible and cowardly.

[LGBTQ community members join Black Lives Matter protesters holding signs and chanting slogans on an intersection in West Hollywood, California on Wednesday, June 3, 2020. Image courtesy of AP Photo/Richard Vogel.]

It’s a tumultuous time in world history, particularly in the United States.

As the COVID-19 crisis still looms large over the entire planet, hundreds of thousands (perhaps millions) of people have taken to the streets in support of people of color and in protest against police brutality, corruption, and systemic racism.

The spark started by the death of George Floyd caught fire, and has ignited powder keg after powder keg, each one filled with years’ worth of names of previous victims, ranging from Philando Castile to Breonna Taylor to Tony McDade. Energized pushes for accountability and reform are gaining traction, and new support systems are emerging to combat the entrenched prejudices in law enforcement and government. All of it centers around three words, a simple truth that hasn’t been treated as either simple or true: Black Lives Matter.

These discussions and protests have also sparked further outrage regarding the treatment of women by police, whether it’s outright violence against women or perceived systemic unwillingness or disinterest to investigate charges of sexual assault. Women’s reproductive autonomy and freedom to make informed choices have been under assault for years, but since the current president took office, those indignities have magnified.

At the same time, the battle for equal rights and representation of LGBTQIA+ individuals rages on. June is Pride Month, and as rainbow flags begin to permeate corporate advertising, the LGBTQ population in general (and nonbinary and trans people in particular) continue to face open harassment and dismissal. Influential public figures like J.K. Rowling challenge the very validity of their existence, marginalizing individuals simply for being brave enough to be themselves.

[From the Seattle protests on Capital Hill. Image courtesy of Capital Hill Seattle Blog.]

I have endeavored to keep this blog apolitical, ignoring as best I can the news stories of the day to focus on puzzles and games. It’s meant to be an escape for the most part, though I have in the past commented on cultural insensitivity in crosswords, pushed for greater diversity among constructors, and tried to be an ally by spreading the word about projects like Queer Qrosswords, Women of Letters, and The Inkubator.

But silence is consent, a glaring example of the privilege to “stay out of it,” a privilege many people don’t have the luxury of.

And I don’t consent to this.

I could make some insipid metaphor about how crosswords don’t work without both black and white squares, or that the joy of solving puzzles is for everyone.

But I’d rather just say it like this: Black lives matter. Women’s lives matter. LGBTQIA+ people matter.

Whether they’re family, friends, coworkers, or strangers, they matter. They have a right to be themselves, to be heard, to be treated as equals, to walk without fear, to enjoy the same privileges and creature comforts everyone else does.

People are out there right now, donating their time, money, and energy to fix problems that have been ignored for way too long. Some of them are putting their lives in danger by doing so.

There are many ways to help. But the very first place to start is to declare yourself an ally. Speak up, loudly and often.

Support LGBTQIA+ people.
Believe women.
Black lives matter.

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But I want to do more than just declare my support. I want to educate myself. I want to help educate others. I want to reach out in a puzzly way that helps build this community.

So today I’m posting the first in an ongoing series of puzzles on important social topics. I do this in the hopes that people will not only enjoy the puzzles, but learn from them and engage with subjects they may be unfamiliar with.

June 19th is fast approaching, and it marks an important milestone in Black history. It marks the date in 1865 that enslaved men and women in Texas were finally informed that they were free.

Yes, more than two years after Lincoln first issued his executive order, Major General Gordon Granger and a group of Union soldiers landed in Galveston, Texas, to finally share this important news.

You can read more about June 19th here, and hopefully the puzzle below serves as some small incentive to keep learning.

[Click this link to download a PDF of this puzzle.]

If you have suggestions for more topics for me to cover in future puzzles, please let me know. If you’re a person of color and you’d like to share a puzzle of your own, or to collaborate with me on a puzzle, please let me know.

If you’re a member of the LGBTQ community, and you have ideas, please let me know. If you’re a trans person, or a non-binary individual, and you feel underrepresented in puzzles, please let me know.

I would like this to become something bigger, but hopefully, this is at the very least a start.

Thank you for reading. Thank you for standing up, speaking up, and fighting the good fight.

Support LGBTQIA+ people.
Believe women.
Black lives matter.