Hello! c:
I was talking to some PW friends on a discord server, and we were discussing pronouns & pronoun roles. I brought up how the main PW discord did not have these roles, and someone linked me to this original forum post about it. Here is the link to the original thread, which I would like to discuss: https://potterworldmc.com/threads/new-discord-roles.4039/
The primary issues and reasons for not being accepted, in short, were these:
-Possible misuse of the roles, which may cause offense to others
-An escape environment that could be compromised with the implementation
-Players expressing in ways that may not be included in the roles, possibly excluding/ostracizing them
-People being forced into labeling their identity, feeling pressured
I think all of these issues have resolutions. Some of my other discord servers have pronoun roles, which usually include “she/her”, “he/him”, “they/them”, and an “other” or “ask for pronouns” role. This would theoretically cover all the bases for pronouns, considering the most common pronouns are covered and anything else can be under other/ask. Pronoun roles would be optional, therefore not forcing anyone who is uncomfortable or just doesn’t want to label themselves to choose a role. If you don't want to have these roles, you don't need to participate, and vice versa.
There are two ways I can think of to theoretically misuse these roles. The first being to add all the pronouns as a joke, but I know people who actually do use any/all pronouns so I think genuine misuse would be insignificant. The second would be to pick the pronouns as “other” and then when anyone asks, say something along the lines of “My pronouns are nor/mal” or “I identify as an attack helicopter!!1!” which is just blatant homophobia and would be reported by many people.
A few people in the original thread brought up that you could just put your pronouns in your nickname, which is already done by many people on the discord server. I like being referred to using they/them pronouns, but because my name is Zoe on the PW discord (a typically female name), no one uses they/them unless I put it in my nickname. I know several people on the discord who use nonbinary pronouns & have their pronouns in their nickname as well, but in my perspective, having it there is arguably more ostracizing than having it as a role (as it is less common to see she/her or he/him in a nickname, they/them sticks out). I have never really had this issue in servers where there are pronoun roles because people understand to check other's roles if they are unsure. Implementing pronoun roles would allow people to express their identity without just having it in their nickname, minimize misgendering, and promote LGBTQ+ inclusivity as a whole.
I was talking to some PW friends on a discord server, and we were discussing pronouns & pronoun roles. I brought up how the main PW discord did not have these roles, and someone linked me to this original forum post about it. Here is the link to the original thread, which I would like to discuss: https://potterworldmc.com/threads/new-discord-roles.4039/
The primary issues and reasons for not being accepted, in short, were these:
-Possible misuse of the roles, which may cause offense to others
-An escape environment that could be compromised with the implementation
-Players expressing in ways that may not be included in the roles, possibly excluding/ostracizing them
-People being forced into labeling their identity, feeling pressured
I think all of these issues have resolutions. Some of my other discord servers have pronoun roles, which usually include “she/her”, “he/him”, “they/them”, and an “other” or “ask for pronouns” role. This would theoretically cover all the bases for pronouns, considering the most common pronouns are covered and anything else can be under other/ask. Pronoun roles would be optional, therefore not forcing anyone who is uncomfortable or just doesn’t want to label themselves to choose a role. If you don't want to have these roles, you don't need to participate, and vice versa.
There are two ways I can think of to theoretically misuse these roles. The first being to add all the pronouns as a joke, but I know people who actually do use any/all pronouns so I think genuine misuse would be insignificant. The second would be to pick the pronouns as “other” and then when anyone asks, say something along the lines of “My pronouns are nor/mal” or “I identify as an attack helicopter!!1!” which is just blatant homophobia and would be reported by many people.
A few people in the original thread brought up that you could just put your pronouns in your nickname, which is already done by many people on the discord server. I like being referred to using they/them pronouns, but because my name is Zoe on the PW discord (a typically female name), no one uses they/them unless I put it in my nickname. I know several people on the discord who use nonbinary pronouns & have their pronouns in their nickname as well, but in my perspective, having it there is arguably more ostracizing than having it as a role (as it is less common to see she/her or he/him in a nickname, they/them sticks out). I have never really had this issue in servers where there are pronoun roles because people understand to check other's roles if they are unsure. Implementing pronoun roles would allow people to express their identity without just having it in their nickname, minimize misgendering, and promote LGBTQ+ inclusivity as a whole.
