The mod team has decided to add a few new rules aimed at upholding our welcoming environment for larpers of all races and cultures.

This subreddit has participants from all over the world. I think nearly everyone tries to make their games welcoming to larpers of all races and cultures, but standards for what is and isn't welcoming vary from place to place and game to game. The /r/LARP mod team aren't here to tell you how to run your game, but we do need to set our own standards for what's OK to post here. When those standards conflict with what you think is right for your game, we encourage you to continue playing your game however you think is best while being considerate of other people who find these rules address barriers to their enjoyment of LARP.

Rule 6a: Black Face Paint

Pictures of costumes with black face paint over the full face are not allowed on /r/LARP. "Blackface" is a symbol of racism in many places and costumes with full black face paint are too close to that symbol to meet our standards for a welcoming environment, even though those costumes are typically not designed with any racist intent.

Other dark colors of face paint are allowed, as is black face paint used for partial-face markings or as a base layer underneath a mask. In general, we are inclined to view nearly any effort to differentiate a costume from blackface as sufficient. However, a wig, elf ears, or other costume elements that indicate the costume is of a fictional species are not sufficient if the costume still has full black face paint. This rule applies to all costumes visible in the photo.

Pictures that break this rule will be removed, but we will by default assume they were posted without racist intent and so won't blame the poster unless there's evidence the poster was trying to be inflammatory. Posters will be welcomed to submit other pictures that don't break this rule.

Rule 6b: "Gypsy" Is a Slur

The word "gypsy" is considered a slur on this subreddit and is therefore not allowed. This rule applies whether the word is used as a description of the real-world Romani ethnicity, a fictional ethnicity, or colloquially as a synonym for "wanderer." Serious and sensitive discussion of the word as a slur, e.g. a request for advice on how to remove the word from a larp, is allowed under this rule.

Awareness of the pejorative use of this word has increased over time and is not well know in some places. (This change in how a word is understood happens to many words that are eventually understood to be slurs.) So, unlike most other slurs, we will not assume ill intent from posts that use the word. Posts using the word will be removed and the poster will be invited to repost using a different word.

Rule 6c: Portrayals of Real-world Cultures

When done well, larp portrayals of real world cultures expand the world of larp by showing that people, ideas, and stories from all cultures are welcome in larp. When done poorly, these portrayals can be disrespectful and treat the cultural background of other larpers as a crude stereotype or a joke. It is rare that a single picture posted here shows whether the portrayal was done well or done poorly. So, we will not assume a picture is contrary to our welcoming standards just because is portrays a real-life culture. We will also not assume a portrayal is done poorly just because the player appears to be from a different culture than the portrayal; we're in no position to judge players' background or ability to portray a culture well just from their appearance. If you feel like you've done a good job in portraying a real-world culture in larp, please do post and show the world that larp is more than just people dressing up as European-inspired fantasy.

Some portrayals stand out from the rest for their immediate resemblance to insulting stereotypes, and these will encounter closer mod scrutiny. When we see evidence the portrayal is hurtful, we will generally not accept as an excuse that the costume is actually of a fictional culture if we see a strong resemblance to a real-world culture or stereotype.

Although portrayals of real world cultures are allowed, so is criticism of those portrayals. If someone feels like a picture shows another culture portrayed inaccurately or disrespectfully, that criticism is welcome here, though we discourage criticism solely along the lines of "this player's appearance doesn't look like they belong to the culture of their costume." If you see a portrayal that you think shouldn't be allowed here, we welcome reports or mod mail.