https://techcrunch.com/2023/10/25/roblox-palestine-protest/

In the Lego-like world of Roblox, about a hundred blocky avatars march through a lamplit street, wielding Palestine flags that are larger than their own animated bodies. Characters dressed like cartoonish dinosaurs, steampunk zombies and pastel pink pop stars chant together via instant messages in both Malay and English as they arrive at a stage, where leaders of the Roblox server stand together to dictate when the next march around the pixelated streets will begin.

It’s an unexpected demonstration to find within a children’s game, but the larger a platform grows, the more it imitates the outside world. During pandemic lockdowns, more than half of all U.S. teens were playing Roblox, a sandbox MMO game that lets users build their own servers and social experiences; even as kids have gone back to school, the game remains incredibly popular with over 65 million daily active users. But in times of crisis, the game can serve as an outlet for young people to safely engage in political activity and learn about world events.