Jon Del Arroz Promises To Sue GAMA After They Suspend Him

boardgamequest.com:

It’s been quite the week for The Game Manufacturers Association (GAMA). Earlier Jon Del Arroz was accepted as a member to GAMA and made a post in their Facebook group introducing himself. He was hired to work with The Gaming Goat Games and Jeff Bergren. You’ll recall that Bergren made the news last summer when he was escorted out of Gen Con.

Shortly after the post, Rodney Smith of the Watch It Played channel made note of his thoughts on Jon via his Twitter feed and on Facebook:

I made a post today to the GAMA FB group after seeing that Jeff Bergren had hired Jon Del-Arroz and both were now GAMA members. The post was removed by moderators for violating posting rules, so I’m posting it here in the hopes that other GAMA members see it. 1/3 pic.twitter.com/h5votLmHgd

— Watch It Played (@WatchItPlayed) May 4, 2022

For those that don’t want to read the whole thread, Rodney basically has concerns that Jon is a serial harasser and has repeatedly violated GAMA’s code of conduct. Back in 2018, it was reported that Del Arroz was banned from Worldcon for harassment. Jim Chines has a detailed blog post on that topic.

Shortly after Rodney’s post, well-known game designer and activist Eric Lang chimed in on the topic.

After learning that Rodney Smith’s post highlighting a serial harasser’s pattern of abuse and violations was erased, I followed up with GAMA.

Let’s be clear, though: this is not a “GAMA is the enemy” post. It’s a renewed public reminder that harassers don’t disappear. pic.twitter.com/ChMy1Fb0En

— Eric Lang (@eric_lang) May 4, 2022

After looking into the matter, GAMA eventually released a statement on Del Arroz and suspended him for 28 days.

Earlier today, it came to the attention of GAMA staff that a new member was