What virtual protests in Brookhaven can tell us about RP games

In recent weeks, political protests have broken out in the streets of Brookhaven, the Roblox Roleplay (RP) game, telling us an important story about the world of very grown-up experiences children might be having in RP games.  

In recent weeks, violent immigration raids have been conducted across the US by the government’s Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) unit, sparking protests in LA and other major cities against ICE and the enforcement of extreme immigration policy. As tensions were rising offline, you could also find these protests taking place virtually, in Roblox, as young people used roleplay to play out ICE raids and mass protests. 

Players waving Mexican flags and protest signs stand-off against those dressed as Police

Videos of the protests were shared on Tiktok

In the virtual streets of Brookhaven, players began roleplaying as ICE agents and simulating border patrol immigration raids, sparking spontaneous anti-ICE protests. Then, as the protests grew offline, players organised bigger virtual demonstrations, where avatars could be seen waving Mexican flags and protest signs such as “Stop Separating Families” and “Stop ICE”, sometimes in a stand-off with avatars dressed as police officers. 

This is also not the first time political protests have taken place in Brookhaven. In 2020, young players replicated the protests of the Black Lives Matter movement against police brutality and racial injustice. And last year, players began protesting against Israel’s genocide in Gaza, with one pro-Palestine protest being visited more than 275,000 times. 

Hundreds of players gather with Palestine flags for a virtual demonstration

Brookhaven is Roblox’s most-visited Experience globally, and it’s one of the most popular games among children in Aberdeen across a wide range of ages. We know from listening to children in Respected and Safe schools that because the game is so unstructured, it is highly unpredictable. Lots of stories play out in the roleplay across a range of social and cultural themes.

As real-life events like this have played out in Brookhaven, it has even been described as “the internet’s default metaverse”. 

Many think these virtual protests highlight an empowering example of children and young people engaging in real-world events in their own way, and having a chance to use their voices around issues that matter to them.  

We think a key takeaway from this is that it shows us just how huge children’s online worlds can be. Although children in Aberdeen might not have been participating in an anti-ICE protest, we can learn from this example about the massive variety of stories and themes - some adult in nature - children might be immersed in when they play games like Brookhaven.  

This importantly means that we need adults to pay much closer attention to RP games like Brookhaven to support children to be safe. If you’re a parent, try playing with your child and learning about their favourite games from them.  Over the Summer Holidays, we recommend keeping a close eye on RP games and saving them for when you have time to be around and monitor.