  As consumer adoption of immersive technologies grows, virtual avatars will
play a prominent role in the future of social computing. However, as people
begin to interact more frequently through virtual avatars, it is important to
ensure that the research community has validated tools to evaluate the effects
and consequences of such technologies. We present the first iteration of a new,
freely available 3D avatar library called the Virtual Avatar Library for
Inclusion and Diversity (VALID), which includes 210 fully rigged avatars with a
focus on advancing racial diversity and inclusion. We present a detailed
process for creating, iterating, and validating avatars of diversity. Through a
large online study (n=132) with participants from 33 countries, we provide
statistically validated labels for each avatar's perceived race and gender.
Through our validation study, we also advance knowledge pertaining to the
perception of an avatar's race. In particular, we found that avatars of some
races were more accurately identified by participants of the same race.
