Sensitivity Writers. AKA: avoiding cultural appropriate in writing

[Bedrockgames]

The argument is over whether the term is useful and whether or not it describes something that is bad or not.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

So going back to the OP!

My question is, in the context of RPGs, where do you really find someone like that? Has anyone else used a resource like that, or what other ways have you tried to keep from engaging in cultural appropriation?

I haven't used a resource like that. In my opinion, the best way to deal with questions of cultural appropriation is to constantly interrogate yourself, and to be open to criticism.

There's the old saw about the difference between artists and critics, and I think that there's some truth to it. It is always really hard to put yourself out there. It takes a leap of faith, sometimes, to offer a part of yourself - whether it's through writing, or music, or painting, or anything.

So when someone comes back and says, "Hey, I don't like that," it doesn't feel good. And, even worse, it someone says, "Hey, I don't like that, and even worse, you're crudding all over my culture," I think that there will be a natural defensiveness; a desire to attack the messenger.

Don't do that.


I finally got around to watching Eye of the Beholder movie last night about the art history of D&D - WATCH IT, IT'S FREE ON AMAZON PRIME. Anyway, there was a long bit about the four in the middle (Easley, Elmore, Caldwell, and Parkinson) and it was discussing how Caldwell, in particular, tended to draw female characters without realistic armor (is that a good euphemistic way of putting it?) and relayed the anecdote about Goldmoon.*

Anyway, I was thinking about this thread when I was watching that bit; times have changed. I love the early TSR art as much as (if not more than!) most, but I also know that some things that were par for the course back then wouldn't fly today. Times change.

So to answer the OP, there is no perfect answer, but the important thing is that you are asking yourself the questions. IMO.

*Look it up.

This is good advice, and what I’d like to add is that, it is much easier to avoid the hurt feelings and difficulty post publication, if you expose the work to potentially affected people who volunteer to read it and see if their relevant perspective finds points of offense that will cause that backlash...before publishing.

The point of sensitivity readers is to put the work through that process before it is finished, so that you can iterate and finally put out a work that doesn’t bring that backlash onto you.

 

[Sacrosanct]

The argument is over whether the term is useful and whether or not it describes something that is bad or not.

You think this:

"cultural elements are copied from a minority culture by members of a dominant culture, and these elements are used outside of their original cultural context—sometimes even against the expressly stated wishes of members of the originating culture"

is even up for debate on whether or not it's bad? Wow...

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Umbran]

I don’t think this is going to happen.

Then, I suggest you just stop. Not as a punitive, moderator-order thing, but as a, "there is no practical benefit to banging your head against a wall," thing.

I then ask you, and others who deny that cultural appropriation is a thing, to stop, because, to be honest, the OP asked a basic question - how to be more sensitive to the needs of others. Yours... is a non-answer to that question.

If you have that much of an issue with the idea of cultural appropriation... that's an issue for another website. We are here to talk about games - in this thread, how to write game material in ways that are inclusive, but not appropriative. If you aren't down for that discussion, go find a discussion that you're actually interested in engaging with.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I had to step back for a day to compose some responses to a series of replies Bedrockgames made to some of my replies, yada, yada, yada...

At this point, not gonna post them. There’s enough warm water in the Gulf of Mexico to feed this particular storm for a while.

 

[lowkey13]

*Deleted by user*

 

[Derren]

You think this:

"cultural elements are copied from a minority culture by members of a dominant culture, and these elements are used outside of their original cultural context—sometimes even against the expressly stated wishes of members of the originating culture"

is even up for debate on whether or not it's harmful? Wow...

Small hint, it isn't. Its a natural process that happens when different cultures interact with each other and has been going on since millenia.
And for many people who are affected by this it is not a problem.

 

[Sacrosanct]

Small hint, it isn't. Its a natural process that happens when different cultures interact with each other and has been going on since millenia.
And for many people who are affected by this it is not a problem.

Indians, Africans, Islanders, etc who fell under the rule of colonial Britain, and Native Americans who suffered genocide under the American government might disagree with your argument that that was a "natural process"...

Do you know what else has been going on for millennia when cultures interact and one take control over the other? Slavery. Does that mean that slavery isn't a bad thing? Or it's no big deal because it's been a "natural process over millennia"?

Also, I don't know why you're sticking to this logic of "I can find a Native American who doesn't have a problem with the Washington Redskins, so therefore it's not racist to Native Americans." It's not a good look, man.

 

[doctorbadwolf]

I think that's a great idea for larger companies, WoTC, for example.

But it's harder for most TTRPGs, where the margins are small, there's a lot of DIY and indie and smaller publishers and self-publishers (DMs Guild, etc.).

But that's why we have the internet, right? Everyone has a platform that allows them, if they want, to send out early and pre-publication versions of their material and get some feedback.

Well that’s exactly it, we all have the internet. And there are people who will be happy to volunteer for this work, or work for very small pay, because they know that the indie creator has little resource to work with.

That’s also why I said in my own earlier advice drawn from conversations with various creators and critics of color that if you hire artists or an editor, try to prioritize artists and editors that can give a very different base perspective from your own on the work itself.

Being indie doesn’t mean you can’t get a sensitivity reader before publication. Even 10 years ago it probably did, but not anymore.

It’s worthwhile to try.