But if in the scene there´s a gay, black-asian-spanish, Muslim, etc... character and suddenly you have to justify your presence there, you need to have a compelling backstory, character development and a plot justification to be there, just because.
Although black is obvious enough, how would you know a background character is or isn't gay, Spanish, Muslim etc? You don't unless they're making a point of it, in which case the point needs to have some sort of relevance otherwise it sounds gratuitous or incongruous. I actually just added the latter as I was thinking of a less controversial example, such as Mass Effect's Anderson announcing he was born in London, but it was pertinent; the reason I went "well okay then" is because he announced it in his very strong American accent. But I now digress.
But back to the point, ish, for example how many forum members would you know are any of the above? Some may or may not have mentioned any of that stuff but maybe not enough to make a lasting impression, which is the sort of thing I was getting at. Whereas people might be more likely to remember if someone announced it when there was no relevance to the subject matter, however controversial it is or isn't.
