I'm going to reply to this as it is one of the first posts I've seen that wasn't condescending about this issue (thanks Bodhi). I agree with this. I don't think it's hard to do, and I don't know why WotC hasn't done it yet (other than inertia and perhaps latent racism) https://twitter.com/YourBuddyBodhi/status/1334935724072767490

But here is my dilemma. I took care of this in my home game about 20 years ago (I play AD&D 1e and have for 35 years), I eliminated all "inherently evil" groups and the "savage other" / "barbarians against civilization" themes from my games. I also eliminated gender based mods

It took me a long time to do it as I was young and stupid, I had no idea about "othering", about the long history of racism and colonialism, and how they worked. I didn't see the game as a vehicle for these things, and I also didn't understand the power of representation..

I made the changes because I had LGBTQ+ and POC at my table. I was also teaching, and getting educated really opened my mind. I didn't do it for internet favor points, or popularity, I did it because I educated myself and listened to my friends.

Now, since I play a 40+ year old game, I have no company to rail against, and no "vote with your wallet" option. I haven't given WotC a single thin dime in my entire life. The company I support disappeared years ago. I don't play 5e or buy its products

However, since everyone thinks D&D is 5e, they are incapable of discussing how you can address these problems at your table and salvage what you want from your favorite game. Instead, they assume you are a racist of some kind. I've been called so more than once

Funny thing is, I've been teaching about colonialism, imperialism, racism and gender bias for about 20 years, I've been railing against these things for longer than some new gamers have been playing, longer than some of them have been alive

So if I suggest what Blackmoor is suggesting, that you can play D&D without WotC, and you can fix whatever edition/retroclone you want to eliminate what you don't like, then I'm a racist. This isn't hyperbole, it happens here all the time. It's happening to Blackmoor now

I have 0 issue with trying to get 5e to change, but stop pretending that the ONLY way to effect change is to do so by "taking down a corporation". Change, real, measurable social change, has always had a bottom up component, fixing things at your table isn't a cop out

I would also point out that no one, at least not as far as I have seen, has taken this critical lens and applied it to independent products in the way they have to D&D. I will give just one example. I purchased a newer game recently to review it. I won't mention it specifically.

As I read through it I saw lots of "problematic" stuff, ableism, ageism, issues with representation, issues with gender, violence, class, you name it. It is inevitable with certain settings that they will bake in "isms" as the material they are inspired by have them

But since the game is new and made by the "right" people, no one will say anything. It's an independent game, and since you don't get any Twitter points for bagging on independents, no one cares.

People need to take a breath. For 35+ years I have played D&D with women, LGBTQ+ and POC at my table, friends and family members all. I still do. I play in a game free from racist tropes and gender stereotypes. But none of that matters because I play D&D, so I must be racist

I have seen a number of posts from old guard players who are POC or LGBTQ+ over the last year saying that they just did what Blackmoor is suggesting, they changed what they didn't like. But I don't see anyone suggesting that the (often) white people demanding change at WotC...

... should back off and listen to POC and LGBTQ+ people who have found a way to make D&D more inclusive and welcoming. Rather than listen to people who have wrestled with these issues before they were sources of social capital, Twitter ignores them.

To be clear I'm not accusing you of any of this, I have only seen this Tweet of yours, but I am honestly at a loss as to how to have these conversations anymore. I've tried blogging or posting and it's just pointless. No one wants to discuss this, just to name and shame.