PSA: responsible representation within roleplay.
I could easily be one of the LEAST qualified people to write this post, but lately I’ve noticed a phenomenon within roleplaying communities. writers will change their muses’ race, sexuality, ethnicity, and gender ( or attempt to tackle a muse of another race, sexuality, ethnicity, and gender ) without writing any supporting headcanons or making any attempts to incorporate those identities into their muses’ story. Sometimes these “efforts” at representation go no further than a simple faceclaim change ( and, in the worst cases, an alt faceclaim ). This can feel like a token gesture to minority groups, and to be honest, it is. It is GREAT roleplayers are beginning to understanding the need representation within roleplay communities !! Representation is needed. But RESPONSIBLE representation is needed. Writing a character of a marginalized identity should be proceeded by education and dedication.
1. EDUCATE YOURSELF:
🗸 learning about systemic racism, intersectionality, sexual & racial & gender discrimination, cultural & ethnic norms, external & internalized oppression, whitewashing & erasure, misgendering &passing, tokenism vs. diversity, nuance & stereotypes ( and much more ) will contribute to your ability at writing good representation. If any of these topics may sound completely foreign to you– so DO YOUR RESEARCH!
HELPFUL LINKS FOR STARTERS:
writing people of color
writing poc when you are white
writing characters of other sexual orientations
comprehensive list of lgbtq+ terms
stereotypes and tropes navigation
preventing tokenism
gender-inclusive guidelines
introducing race & skin color naturally
2. DEDICATE YOURSELF: reach out to qualified friends and acquaintances with a genuine curiosity and willingness to learn what life is like in their shoes. be open to accepting hard truths, facing hidden biases, and correcting personal misconceptions. puruse articles and blogs that address the identity you’re looking to write. When re-working your muse, DO incorporate what you’ve learned into their history, psyche, mentality, logic, and ultimate story.
things to avoid straight out the gate:
X stereotyping - falling back on tropes & generalizations
X cultural appropriation - writing about a culture that is not yours, while perpetuating stereotypes or egregiously misrepresenting it
X whitewashing - portraying your muse as lighter than they are
X fetishism - fetishizing a person or culture belonging to a race or ethnic group, as well as a person belonging to a certain sexual or gender identity group
X tokenism - including a minority character for the simple sake of having a minority character
X homogenizing - “every gay is the same”, “every latinx person is the same”. to avoid this, write your muse with their own unique dreams, goals, thoughts, stories, and passions.
important things to remember:
🗸 just because you fall into a specific minority group does NOT mean you understand life through the eyes of another minority group.
X “Oh heck, I could easily write a black muse without research, after all I’m gay.”
🗸 “As a gay man, I acknowledge that people of color have their own unique perspectives and experiences that I have never lived.”
“But that’s a lot of work!” BINGO. People can’t peel their identities off like a pair of clothes, so arbitrarily changing or writing a muses of a certain race / sexuality / ethnicity / gender without appropriately explaining how such changes alter the fabric of their identity, sends out the message that these identities are totally inconsequential.
“But I might screw up.” It’s quite possible you won’t get everything right, but that’s where you stay open to critique, criticism, and pointers, and reach out to people where you can’t find answers. The answer isn’t to totally throw in the towel.
“It would just be easier to write my own identity.” Again, representation is needed within writing. refusing to do so because it’s “work” is a major cop-out.
In summary, offering up the bare minimum representation isn’t good enough anymore. Representation must be rooted in learning and understanding. So educate yourself, dedicate yourself, and REPRESENT the people groups who need it the most. Be safe, and be responsible with your muses’ identities. 💖
jacobvanloon
gummygunk
titsay
izzy806
vaporwave
turnnoffyourmind
