Jennifer Scheurle steps down as IGDA chair in wake of manipulation and abuse allegations
Jennifer Scheurle is no longer chair of the IGDA Women in Games Special Interest Group. She stepped down from the role after being accused of emotional abuse and manipulation.
On September 16, Scheurle shared her statement on Twitter, saying that she has “always tried to embody the value of believing victims and this does not change with the accused being myself.”
She went on to apologize for any harm she has caused. “I will step down as the IGDA WIG SIG chair immediately as I feel like I have lost too much of the trust of the community,” she wrote.
I’m sorry this took so long. I wanted to make adequate time to consider everyone affected by the situation. pic.twitter.com/4Rdd7xxtrS
— Jennifer Scheurle (@Gaohmee) September 16, 2021
Scheurle’s statement came right after the IGDA published the results of its internal investigation, saying that “there was [no] compelling evidence of wrongdoing.” The organization also noted that it has a “zero-tolerance policy towards all forms of harassment and violence.”
Although the IGDA dismissed the claims against Scheurle, she decided to act in accordance with the wishes of those she had harmed. She also asked for her GameHERs Award nomination to be retracted (via GamesIndustry.biz).
Multiple people have been trying to provide evidence of Jennifer Scheurle’s abusive behavior for a few years. As King lead UX designer Anna Brandberg claimed earlier this week, they had more than 120 pages of the statements and evidence, saying that the “IGDA has been aware for years.”
We already have. Twice. Multiple informal complaints made in 2018; formal complaints lodged in 2019 and again in 2020. Both times they included statements from 10+ people; the second time the statements and evidence was over 120+ pages long.
The IGDA has been aware for years. pic.twitter.com/HNEwzpgMkH
— Anna Brandberg 💙 (@annabrandberg) September 15, 2021
