Hi, it’s Chai, and I’m one of the Discord moderators. If it matters to you guys, I’ve been on RPG since 2010 and it’s related iterations of chat clients for just about that long. Throughout my ~2 years of helping to keep the Discord safe and secure, we’ve had numerous issues regarding the use of racial/ethnic/gender-based/sexuality-based slurs, discriminatory language, and also just some abhorrent statements that don’t belong in a community that values the safety of its members. They’re also things that don’t belong in polite company. Think along the lines of certain groups shouldn’t have rights, or conspiracy theories that perpetuate hate of certain ethnic groups… you get the idea. 

My job on Discord is to keep the community safe; my job is to promote a healthy environment in which all members feel welcomed to come chat about their lives, their roleplays, or whatever else. That’s my priority. By all means, please use whatever language you want in your private life, in your private messages, in your Discord DMs — that’s not my business. But in the same way that administration in schools and HR in workplaces limit the use of damaging language, I believe I also have a duty to show that same care to the community that I’m a part of. It should also be common sense not to use slurs and hateful language in a room full of diverse people, most of which are strangers, yet here we are having this discussion. 

Another thing to consider is that, on Discord at least (though I have seen cases of it on site as well, particularly in the status bar), it’s been common to see sexist, transphobic or whatever else content said casually. And because it’s not directed at another member, the offenders will argue that it doesn’t break the site rules of “be respectful.” I personally am no longer willing to play the game of “show me where it says that in the site rules.” 

I hope this can shed some light on what is happening. 

Thank you.