For allies /////
How to be a good ally by Racing Pride /////
Rather than reinvent the wheel, we obtained permission from Racing Pride to embed their guide "How to be a good ally" on this page. It's a pretty good guide to start with, explaining the basics of GSRM allyship in motorsport in an easily digestible manner.
For broadcasters /////
Here are a few recommendations to broadcasters wishing to make simracing and esports racing more inclusive.
- Do not assume either your audience or the grid you commentate on is composed entirely of men. Not only it is a sure way to alienate the part of your current audience that isn't men in the long term, it also sends the message that you do not care about potential new audience members who aren't men. This creates a feedback loop limiting both your audience and simracing's community. Using gender neutral language in general and when you don't know or are not sure about someone's identity is a great way to counter that.
- Drop the usage of "male" and "female" as nouns entirely. Both are a dehumanizing way to refer to a person. "Female" in particular has sexist and bio-essentialist roots, furthered by its racist use to dehumanize black enslaved women during the nineteenth century. Their use as adjectives is however fine. Be aware that some women will prefer using "woman" as an adjective despite being "grammatically incorrect" due to the connotations "female" has.
- Get people's pronouns and do your best to respect them in the heat of a race. Some people may use pronouns that are currently uncommon (they/them and it/its) or new, often called neopronouns. (for example, xi/xir or fae/faer) The best way to make them as normalized as any other word is to use them for the people using them; even if their initial usage might feel "weird" or like "making things up". (languages evolve!) The trusty "car [number]" formulation is always there as backup if you forget and need to check your notes, same as when you forget a name.
For organizers and league admins /////
Here are a few recommendations to organizers and league admins wishing to make simracing and esports racing more inclusive.
- Do not try to "help" marginalized drivers by giving them leeway when stewarding. Seriously, don't. Just don't. Nobody needs this kind of backhanded "help".
- Ensure that people remain in control of their personal information. Many people may change their first or last name for a huge variety of reasons. Further, some may also change pronouns or gender. The reason behind these changes can be deeply personal and being forced to interact with a tech support - or worse, being forced to pay - to rectify one's personal information adds undue burden on the person. The vast majority of people do these changes in good faith and there are much better tools at your disposal than these to enforce accountability and prevent cheating.
- Take an active stance for inclusivity and against bigotry in your community. While most communities will have in their rules that general bigotry is not allowed, this falls flat on its head when moderators are not able to recognize more subtle, sometimes insidious forms of bigotry. Dog whistles (coded, suggestive language) and doublespeak (disguised or reversed language) are commonly used to express racist, sexist, GSRM-phobic and xenophobic views and sentiments which will mostly only be recognized by like-minded individuals. Learning how to recognize these at least on a surface level and openly challenging such behaviors makes your community safer for marginalized people.
- Keep an open line of communication for victims of abuse - especially minors, even if your rules forbid minors in your community. A sad reality of motorsport and esports is that abuse in private happens often, especially towards marginalized people like women and people of colour. Whether it be blackmailing, sexual harassment or grooming (among others), abuse can happen in any community. If your organization is relatively new, asking other community admins and organizers who to look out for is always a good starting point.
A minor lying about their age does not constitute an excuse to overlook the abuse they might have been subjected to.