‘Gamergate’ critic Brianna Wu running for Congress in 2018: report

Game developer Brianna Wu, who spoke out against harassment of women in the gaming industry, will run for Congress in 2018, Venture Beat reported.

Wu, a Democrat, hasn’t officially announced her run, but said she is setting up a team of advisers.

She posted a photo on her Facebook page that resembles a campaign poster with the words: “Brianna Wu for Congress.”

{mosads}Below, the image says: “She fought the alt-right and won. Now she’s fighting for all of us. Fearless leadership for 2018.”

Wu came to prominence in 2014 after speaking out in support of women in the video game industry and against “Gamergate” — a controversy about sexism in the gaming community.

Wu blasted Gamergate advocates for “fighting an apocalyptic future where women are 8 percent of programmers and not 3 percent.” 

She said she received about 180 death threats during the controversy and was driven from her home.

Wu told Venture Beat she will focus on the economy.

“Here in Massachusetts, taxpayers spend an amazing amount on subsidizing education – particularly with infrastructure. But then students and entrepreneurs take that investment by our state to San Francisco or Austin,” she said. 

“I think we can do a much better job keeping startups here in our state. Also, look at the game industry, which has been devastated here in Boston with the loss of Irrational and others.”

Wu said she hopes to serve on the House technology subcommittee.

“It was very disturbing to me to see members of the House tie the Mirai botnet (malware that hijacks computers) to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA), simply parroting special interests,” she said.

“It’s an example of how our tech policy doesn’t serve the American people. We need people making policy that actually understand technology, that understand the assault on our privacy. It’s a national security issue, and we’re failing badly.”

She also said she decided to run is because President-elect Donald Trump is “terrifyingly now in the White House.”

“I can’t sit by making pleasant video game distractions for the next four years while the constitution is under assault,” she said.

“Hillary [Clinton] ran a brave marathon, and now it’s time for women of my generation to pick up that baton and commit to public service.”

Updated at 9:15 a.m.