Equality Diversity And Gender

Sensitive Themes

Anarchy LRP takes place in a time period of infamous brutality, and we are not interested in brushing aside the suffering people endured in this era. At the same time, we are not interested in forcing OOC emotional distress on participants.

Our Sensitive Themes guidance details topics we rule out of inclusion in the game entirely, topics which we would like participants to "soft-pedal", and topics which we anticipate will arise frequently in play, to allow everyone the chance to make a reasoned call as to whether this is the game for them. It also describes our "eyeshading" technique, for use when you wish to remove yourself from a situation unobtrusively.

Gender in Anarchy

As you may have seen elsewhere on this site, Anarchy LRP uses historical gender roles IC. There are a number of things this does NOT mean:

  1. That these attitudes and structures are endorsed by the GM team
  2. That these attitudes will be tolerated OOC
  3. That you have an excuse to make another player (as opposed to character) uncomfortable ever, under any circumstances
  4. That rape and sexual abuse of men, women or minors is a part of the game. These topics are entirely off limits.
  5. That medieval attitudes and social structures actually represented the abilities and proclivities of people at the time.

Part of what is interesting about the Anarchy is Matilda’s difficulty in being accepted as a suitable ruler because of her gender… but that is not to say she was not up to it. The evidence suggests she was far better than Stephen by most metrics of ‘Kingship’. It is a period in which a great many significant female figures wield power, working with or against ideas about femininity and the feminine exercise of power. We hope having historical gender roles will help people explore this.

All that said, we understand that this won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. That’s fine, and there’s nothing wrong with you if so.

OC cross dressing is absolutely fine in Anarchy LRP however. Whatever gender you want to play you can play and if people do not treat you as that gender in play they are cheating, plain and simple. One thing we recognise about this however is that it can produce problems for gender nonconforming and trans people. We think this is particularly likely if there is IC cross-dressing, because it encourages players to question the gender of those around them. We couldn’t find a totally satisfactory way to deal with this, but ultimately deal with it this way: IC cross-dressing is NOT ALLOWED at Anarchy. You can play what gender you like, but your IC gender is not a matter for disguising.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact us at any time. We have members of the GM team who are not cis white men, and you are free to ask to speak to them specifically about your concerns if you prefer.

Note On Racial Discrimination

This game explores the political conflicts of the twelfth century, which included (for Christendom) the crusades against Muslims and social conflicts with Jews.

Therefore, we consider that in-character discrimination on the grounds of religious belief is both setting-appropriate and thematically relevant to our game (and anyone choosing to play a Jewish character should expect to encounter it to some degree).

Likewise, discrimination based on nationality is driven at this time by personal feudal affiliation and, in Britain, cross-border violence, both of which are subjects we anticipate being important to the game.

However, IC discrimination on the basis of skin colour is highly anachronistic, inappropriate, and against the rules of our game. Crusaders can expect to have met Christians of all hues in the holy land, and there is evidence of people of African descent living free in the British Isles from Roman times onwards.

That being the case, IC expressions of racial discrimination are not permitted at events. (We hope it goes without saying that OOC expressions will not be tolerated either.) Extreme care should be taken to ensure that IC discrimination based on religion or nationality is expressed exclusively in those terms, rather than along racial lines.

Note On Slavery

The slavery that existed in England at the time in question represented the last remnant of the sort of slavery practised under the Roman Empire - a practice which cared nothing for the racial background of the people it enslaved. Almost all slaves in England would have been Anglo-Saxons, like the majority of the population, since the Saxon nobility made a habit of enslaving foes defeated in their internal conflicts prior to the Norman conquest.

This does not make it less objectionable to modern sensibilities, and it does not change the fact that substantially more recent models of slavery have been extremely racially charged. We therefore ask that players treat the subject with appropriate maturity and sensitivity. Historically, the Church at the time disapproved of slavery, so you have every IC reason to be as hostile to the practice as you want to be

Note on LGBT+ Representation in Anarchy

We have been fairly criticised for the lack of visible LGBT+ representation in our setting. We accept this, apologise, and have made some plot design changes which, whilst not immediately visible, should be obvious to anyone playing at the Battle of Lincoln and onwards.

One thing the GM team have discussed is the anachronistic nature of the idea of “sexual identity”. If Henry Beauclerk engaged in sex with his knights (as well as half the female aristocracy of Western Europe), he wouldn’t have thought of the same-sex acts as changing any intrinsic part of his identity: he wasn’t gay or bisexual; he was just sleeping with someone (again). A noble maiden shared her bed with her ladies. Of course sex happened.

The Church, equally, at this time had no formal critique of homosexual behaviour. Yes, the sex was sinful, but so was sex with your wife during Lent, or sex with… well, half the female aristocracy of Western Europe. Sin and the need for penance are expected failings of humanity after the Fall, and Norman nobles are not noted for their saintliness.

What this means in practice is that you shouldn’t be targeting characters with criticism of their same-sex sexual acts - if you can’t find some other criticism of them then your imagination is lacking. And if you have multiple issues to critique, it won't spoil your argument to leave the homophobia out-of-focus. Do feel free to shame promiscuity however - if they are a woman or clergy - that is after all what the Unchaste flaw is for.

Equality and Diversity Policy

Our full Equality and Diversity Policy is below. We expect every participant to read it, but ultimately it’s a dry document without us indicating what our intentions by it are. In short:

We want to run an event that is welcoming to all members of the LRP community. If that means excluding people who make others unsafe or unhappy, then so be it.

We aim to eliminate all OC discrimination and harassment from our game. It’s going to be mostly impossibly, but we’re going to try. We hope for and expect the help of all our players and crew with that.

We will support absolutely anyone who is feeling unsafe, harassed or discriminated at our events.

We do not expect you to ‘prove’ allegations, and will always take some form of action in response to a complaint, which will at least be a warning to the subject that their behaviour is upsetting someone (unless the complainant doesn’t want us to take any action).

We will always treat complaints in confidence and will never reveal the identity of a complainant without permission.

If you have a complaint about a GM, please contact another GM directly. They will not reveal your identity when discussing the complaint with the other GM if you so wish.

The Anarchy LRP Equality and Diversity Policy (EDP)

1. The following Equality and Diversity Policy (EDP) binds all players and crew (including the GM team) at Anarchy LRP events. Compliance with this policy is a condition of participation and a condition of being allowed to remain on site. Persons considered by the GM team to be in breach of this policy are liable to be asked to leave an event immediately without explanation or refund.

2. The EDP is administered by the GM team. If you have any questions about this policy they can be contacted at moc.oohay|prlyhcrana#moc.oohay|prlyhcrana

3. The objectives of the EDP are to:

  • a. Ensure that participants in Anarchy LRP are not subject to discrimination based on gender identity, ethnicity, disability or religion.
  • b. Ensure that all participants at Anarchy LRP are clear on their rights and obligations under the EDP
  • c. Ensure that the GM team is aware of its rights and obligations under the EDP

4. Participants at Anarchy LRP must NOT under any circumstance:

  • a. Discriminate Out of Character (OC) against any other participant based on OC gender identity, ethnicity, disability or religion
  • b. Continue to take any In Character (IC) action against any participant who has indicated they are OOC unhappy or otherwise uncomfortable with it.
  • c. Take or possess illegal drugs at Anarchy LRP events
  • d. Commit any other criminal offence at Anarchy LRP events
  • e. Touch another participant other than in LRP combat with a LRP-safe weapon, unless with the specific approval of that participant
  • f. Harass, sexually or otherwise, any other participant
  • g. Make any reference, IC or OOC, to any non-consensual sexual activity or sex with children

5. Participants at Anarchy LRP MUST:

  • a. Obey the rules of Anarchy LRP, including this policy
  • b. Leave site if directed to do so by a member of the GM team
  • c. Follow any safety instructions given OOC by a member of the GM team
  • d. Take reasonable precautions not to cause OOC distress to any other participant. This includes abiding by the Sensitive Themes guidance.

6. If the GM team are made aware of a breach of the EDP, they will:

  • a. Treat the complaint in absolute confidence
  • b. Maintain the anonymity of the complainant unless they specifically wish it to be waived
  • c. Take the opinion of the complainant into account when considering what action to take against anyone who has breached the rules
  • d. Expel from the event under s1 of the EDP where there is any risk to the safety of participants by their continued attendance

7. Complaints against an individual GM will not be handled by that GM. The identity of the complainant will not be revealed to them.

8. In the event the GM team does not act with unanimity on an issue, the head GM (Julian Lynch) has the final decision on interpretation and enforcement of the EDP.

Equality and Diversity Issues Outside the Game

If the GM team are made aware of incidents which might amount to a breach of the Equality and Diversity Policy, and which take place outside of Anarchy LRP, we will consider these incidents in the same way we consider incidents that happen at an event. However, the when and where of this will also be considered, and in particular, if someone has a history of unacceptable behaviour at other LRPs we are likely to consider the risk of such behaviour at Anarchy is high.

Risk Assessment

Risk assessment is a process of determining likelihood and severity of harm. When considering whether to ban a person from Anarchy LRP, we will consider factors including (but not limited to) the following:

  • The general seriousness of any alleged behaviour, and in particular the level of harm such behaviour would cause to participants at Anarchy LRP.
  • How likely such behaviour is to be repeated.
  • Whether any measures can be put in place at Anarchy events to mitigate or eliminate the risk.
  • Complaints about physical or sexual violence will always be treated with the utmost seriousness.
  • Allegations that a man has engaged in threatening behaviour may be judged to pose a higher risk than similar behaviour from someone non male. We consider this essential for the safety of our non-male participants.
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