Holy hell the comments on this thread are toxic. I didn't realize that SRS was leaking.
The community is mad because this guy was only banned because a twitter shitstorm started by a SJW writer. A member of the committee was bullied and harassed, and Hasbro endorsed that behavior.
Throughout the entire process, Zach Jesse was entirely professional. Something that was not matched by Hasbro. They didn't even release a statement, just stated that he was banned for life. They didn't even have the guts to stand up for their values, they just wanted Jesse gone to make the talk go away.
It should also be noted that he Zachary Jesse, wasn't convicted of rape. I'll let you make your own decision on the actual incident:
In 2003, during his second year as an undergrad at the University of Virginia, Jesse was charged with rape, accused of both vaginally and anally raping a 19-year-old classmate. During her testimony at the preliminary hearing Dec. 11, 2003, the victim said the incident had occurred while she was drunk, slumped over a toilet in her apartment. She had met Jesse at a party earlier that evening.
According to her testimony, the victim said she had gaps in memory regarding the events that transpired, but that Jesse had helped her to her apartment after she had been vomiting at the party. She was led to the bathroom, where she continued to dry-heave, and then lost her memory.
...
On April 26, 2004, in the Charlottesville Circuit Court, in a plea agreement, Jesse pled guilty to the reduced felony charge of aggravated sexual battery.
12 years later he is an outstanding member of the community, and absolutely not a threat to anyone's safety. He did something awful while drunk, but in over decade never had another problem and continued to work to become a better person.
He isn't just a rich kid that got a good court case and continued destructive behavior. This guy volunteers in his community regularly, and was elected to leadership positions throughout his school of law, including acting as a justice on an ethical board. He even earned a prestigious $30,000 scholarship with the felony hanging over him. This shows that those that knew him, worked with him, and evaluated him all believed that he was a man whose character was greater than a felony conviction.
Basically, the issues are:
I would have a lot more respect for Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast if they had simply said:
"Yes, we are singling out Zach Jesse. No, we are not banning any other convicted felons. No, we are not requiring background checks to apply for a DCI number or play MTGO. Zach Jesse is a registered sex offender, his past conviction is well-known in the community, and we don't want people associating him with Magic: The Gathering.