Advocacy groups are criticizing Roblox’s recently proposed content descriptors, claiming that they represent a “step backward for both creative expression and social justice.” The new “Sensitive Issues” descriptor, added to Roblox last month, allows parents and guardians to pinpoint in-game experiences that focus on complex “social, political, or religious” subjects before their child enters. On Tuesday, September 30, advocacy groups Women in Games, Out Making Games, and BAME in Games submitted a letter to Roblox, saying its inclusion of social issues — “immigration, capital punishment, gun control, marriage equality, pay equity in sports, prayer in schools, racial profiling, affirmative action, vaccination policies, and reproductive rights” — could cause real-world harm to marginalized groups and overall site inclusivity.
Advocacy Groups’ Concerns
The groups’ joint letter cites “false neutrality” and potentially targeted topics as key concerns. “Roblox claims the descriptor ‘is not meant to take a stance,’ but the effect is the opposite. By categorising equality and human rights as ‘sensitive,’ the platform treats them as debatable rather than fundamental.”
The groups argue that the suppression of groups’ lived experiences is “false neutrality,” and teaches young users that “issues of justice and equality are controversial opinions rather than universal values, thereby reinforcing the very divisions it claims to guard against.”
The letter continues:
“Consider what Roblox has chosen to highlight:
-
- Marriage equality – framing LGBTQ+ rights as debatable rather than fundamental human rights
- Pay equity in sports – suggesting gender-based pay disparities are merely “sensitive” rather than discriminatory
- Reproductive rights – treating women’s bodily autonomy as a contentious political issue rather than basic healthcare
- Racial profiling and affirmative action – presenting systemic racism and efforts to address it as equally valid “sides” of a debate
“When these conversations are suppressed,” the letter reads, “the result is not safety but silence. It discourages young women from participating fully, reinforces harmful stereotypes, and weakens the pipeline of future creators and leaders.”
In closing, the groups say parental controls are important, but “shouldn’t come at the expense of fundamental human dignity. We are calling on Roblox to reconsider these guidelines and find ways to protect young users without legitimizing discrimination or silencing important voices. The company has built something remarkable over nearly two decades. It would be tragic to see that legacy undermined by policies that, intentionally or not, perpetuate the very inequalities that creative expression has the power to challenge and change.”
Site Safety Measures
Per Roblox, the site’s ‘Content Maturity’ endeavor is made of two components: content maturity labels and content descriptors. These “provide[s] information on the experience’s main details page about what kinds of content the experience contains so that players can make informed decisions about what they interact with.” Maturity labels on the site denote “the level of maturity suitable for the experience according to child development research and industry standards.” Content descriptors, like the ‘Sensitive Issues’ guidelines in question, act as a quasi-rating system, “what type of content is within an experience, such as realistic depictions of blood or paid item trading.”
Roblox states that its goal is to “give parents of children under 13 the choice of how and when their children engage with these issues,” but this is not intended as a company stance on any specific issues. Additionally, any in-game experiences that contain “singular assets or elements related to these issues” will not be impacted; the Sensitive Issues descriptor will target user-made content that is “primarily ‘about‘ these issues.”
For Parents and Guardians
If you’re interested in checking out the new Roblox feature, log in to your child’s account, navigate to Settings, and then select Parental Controls. From there:
- Scroll to “Settings you Manage”;
- Select “Content restrictions”;
- Click “Sensitive issues”;
- Toggle “Allow sensitive issues” to OFF to disable content access or ON to allow access to sensitive content-themed experiences.
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