Dungeons & Dragons & Inclusion
The party is gathered. They all sit in a tavern, observing the locals getting their drinks and food, waiting for their next adventure hook to rear its ugly head and send them on a new quest. Before that happens, though, let's take a look at what the party sees when they look around the tavern. Better yet, let's first take a look at the party itself.
Dungeons and Dragons has, historically, been a white-dominated hobby. Sure, there are examples of African-Americans who play and DM, or LGBTQI individuals who dabble in the Forgotten Realms, but for the most part, everyone in your party is probably white. Not the characters, but the players. And that's okay. There's nothing wrong with not having a "token black guy" at your table; some might argue that to forcibly include your black friend might be MORE insulting than not inviting them at all. I don't know the correct answer. What I do know is this:
Dungeons and Dragons is for everyone. Literally everyone. So why isn't there better representation of "everyone" in the game, in the real world and in the fantasy world? The answer is multifaceted, complicated, and convoluted, but the simple answer is: racism and prejudice. I know, I know, you didn't come here to read some social-justice warrior on his soapbox preaching to you about how the white, heterosexual man is the devil. That's not what I'm saying. Whether intentional or not, however, racism has played a significant role in our preconceptions about what a fantasy world or futuristic world will or did look like, and here's a fun fact: it's wrong.
Regardless of whether or not you think racism is still a problem today (spoiler alert: it is!), it is still the responsibility of all of us, whether players or DMs, to be as inclusive as possible. Even if your group is made up of pasty-white Europeans and Americans, you should still sprinkle in the ideas of inclusivity. How do you do this without shoehorning it in? It's easy, and it begins with your world's population. In the world today, there are a vast array of colors, ethnicities, and religious backgrounds to draw inspiration from. Use them. Remember what I said about stealing a few posts ago? Well, stealing from real life is even easier than stealing from fiction. Example: If you have a port city, throw ALL of the ethnicities, religions, and accents you can muster into that city. Port cities are a glorious melting pot of cultures, and are a great way to show your players that the world is not made up of white folks, Dragonborn, Elves, and Orcs.
If your players visit a small village along a major roadway, apply the same technique as with the port city, but on a smaller scale. Show a meshing of cultures even in this small town; the Half-Elf woman who runs the tavern has brown skin, curly black hair, and speaks with a refined English Accent. That Halfling fellow running the magic shop? He wears a turban, has a thick bushy red beard, and speaks with a slightly Middle Eastern accent. The point here is to not overtly jab your players or your audience (if you stream your game) in the chest and say, "Look at my diverse world! Look how inclusive I am!", the point is to subtly and nonchalantly showcase that the world is not Euro-centric. It's not Ameri-centric. It is our world, transposed onto a fantasy setting.
The next step is a bit harder, and it involves your players. If you have an open-minded group, when character creation comes along, maybe suggest a different skin color for one or more of them. Remind them that, in your world, Elves come from the Southern region, so their skin is naturally darker than the fair-skinned folk of Tolkien's lore. Most people, I've noticed, don't really think about their character's skin tone once they start playing, but if you're pitching the idea to a newcomer who is of a different ethnicity than you and your group, just knowing that your world includes people who look and sound like them might be enough to convince them to give it a shot.
Lastly, there's the issue of sexuality in D&D. The trope of the neckbearded, overweight nerd describing his character's Tiefling girlfriend's boobs is, unfortunately, a trope for a reason. Let's break that. Have NPCs that are androgynous, or overtly transgender. Throw in some drag queens. Let your players seduce NPCs of the same sex if they want. Remind your Elves that they are, by nature, somewhat androgynous and gender-fluid. Even if your group eschews your nudgings, at least you will have tried, and if someone leaves the game because of it, it opens a spot for your buddy who prefers the pronoun "they/them".
Look, I know this is going to come across as a white dude sitting behind a keyboard, preaching inclusivity to assuage some bruised conscience or to make himself feel better about his own bigotry and prejudices-and you're right. But that's how change begins. Change begins with one person feeling guilty enough to do something about it. When I first imagined my campaign setting, I gave no thought to the idea that every single NPC I imagined was white.
It took a bit of self-reflection and examination to realize that I was projecting my own biases of what a fantasy setting "should" be onto a narrative that is, quite literally, whatever the hell I want it to be! And I decided that I want a world where the shop owner is androgynous and flirts with the entire party, regardless of gender. I want a world where the Half-Orc has frizzy hair and coal-black skin. I want a world where the Captain of the town guard is also the town's most beloved drag queen. I want a world where every race, color, creed, nationality, ethnicity, and religion are equally represented as good, wholesome, positive influences on the society they are a part of. Because they are. In the "real world", prejudices weigh our lives down enough. Don't bring them into the game with you. Keep it friendly, and keep it friendly towards everyone.