The Unbearable Otherness of a Global South Creator
Will We Ever Be Allowed to Create As We Will? (Not On America's Watch, Apparently.)
This is going to be a rant.
It will be a relatively well-structured, assuredly eloquent rant. My Philippine education is top tier, right down to the English that I and so many others inherited from our erstwhile imperial masters white big brothers from the United States of America. But it will be a rant nonetheless.
Hey: at least it’ll include some helpful pointers for your consideration. Free of charge.
The Disk Horse Race around the D&D Summit Hasn’t Stopped Running.
Let’s get this out of the way: I wasn’t invited, and that’s perfectly fine by me. There are some good Twitter threads and articles floating around for folks who want to see how it went down for a few of the attendees.
What I want to bring attention to is this post from Indrani Ganguly. She is a South Asian creator and community leader, and notably one of the only - if not the only - Global South creators who was brought in for the Summit.
And here is my addition to her post, in case you didn’t already see me go off:
“Ugh, not ANOTHER Global Souther talking shit about how hard their lives are!” you might be thinking.
“I’ve heard all of this before, Pam! I understand.” may be a kinder possibility.
But, do you? Really?
If my fellow peers in ttrpgs and consumers of our games truly understood, this post would not exist, and neither would Indrani’s thread. And yet so many of us have been screaming ourselves hoarse about who we are and what we want for years, to little effect.
Lessons Learned from American Peers Since 2019
After five years of being in the ttrpgs spaces, these seem to be the unspoken rules that govern a Global South creator’s existence:
“Make what you want, but unless it’s something NEW and ORIGINAL and SHINY and CUTTING EDGE you’re not Global South enough for us to give you money and thus feel good about supporting someone in need. None of us NEED more of your D&D, your WoD, your CoC, your PtbA, your FitD, your Pathfinder/Starfinder, your FATE ideas. Gives us something, y’know, exotic.”
“Taking commissions is totally acceptable, but if you’re freelancing for WOTC and Other Big And Evil Corporations you’re a fucking sellout. And don’t even think about wanting to work for them.”
“Come to our conventions because
you don’t exist for us unless you’re physically breathing the same rarefied air as we arewe’d LOVE to meet you, but also no don’t go because you’re KILLING US by ignoring this GLOBAL PANDEMIC. The failure of our healthcare system is YOUR responsibility.”“Be 250% apprised of what happens in America and the issues of our choosing. If we don’t see you post enough about them, you’re a terrible human being.”
“Speak your truths unless they point out the flaws in our thinking/our potential complicities in imperialist/colonialist structures, because THEN that just means you’re IGNORANT and RACIST towards your fellow people of color in North America.”
To be a Global South creator, it seems, is to be subjugated over and over and over again. We are only allowed to speak and grow on America’s terms.
What Would True Equity Look Like?
This isn’t an exhaustive list, but some starting points:
An enormity of choice. Whether it’s making our own shit or working at a top position in Wizards of the Coast, whether it’s freelancing for whoever we want or making our own companies, remember that your opinion should not dictate what we choose to do for our personal growth, in pursuit of our own interests, and for our survival.
Existing as ourselves, not as your charity case or woke awakening. #RPGSEA, #RPGLATAM, and #RPGSA aren’t not fun, vogue, trendy fads for your consideration: they were hashtags of folks from those regions speaking to each other, and speaking for themselves. Supporting us should not mean that we owe you anything. Support a creator from those spaces because they deserve to be supported as they are, in all their endeavors.
Being free of the Corporation vs. Indie rhetoric. We do not exist to perpetuate the American fantasies of “fighting The Power”, or going “against The Man”. That is your overly romanticized burden to carry. Our decision to ignore it doesn’t make us subhuman or evil.
Being free of the Oppression Olympics. There is no kind way of saying this: if you are a ttrpgs worker/consumer of color in North America, you ARE far more privileged than we are. The playing field is not even, and in many ways, you directly benefit from the structures that oppress, silence, and render invisible your counterparts from other countries. This is NOT an argument; this is a stone cold fact. Nobody is saying you aren’t oppressed, or victims of terrible violence. But to compare your lot with ours and claim victimhood in comparison to any one of us is ludicrous.
But I’m Just One Guy/Gal/Queer! Whatever Can I Do?
Plenty, actually.
Stop Making Your Discomfort Our Problem.
This is, unfortunately, directed at marginalized folks in North America. Please remember that your issues and our issues are not the same, and that there are far more differences between us than there are commonalities.
Let me break it down for you:
The issues of North American queer folks are not the same as the issues faced by queer folks outside of North America.
The issues of North American neurodivergent folks are not the same as the issues faced by neurodivergent folks outside of North America.
The issues of disabled North Americans are not the same as the issues faced by disabled folks outside of North America.
The issues of people of color in North America are not the same as issues faced by people from other countries.
That is a GOOD thing. Similarly, us having often divergent or downright conflicting opinions/takes/perspectives on issues is ALSO a good thing. These are meant to be conversation starters and potential opportunities for dialogue and understanding. It is NOT meant to be a competition of who’s got it worse. Or, worse, yet, who is Right and who is Wrong.
So you’re just going to have to excuse me if I push back on your takes on, let’s say, anime and representation, especially if they lack the same amount of research, nuance, and statements based on lived experience as mine do. Or if I question your ideas of how violence must be used in TTRPGs, and what revolution/rebellion against a dictatorship truly mean.
Demanding that we agree with your takes on the basis that “you, too, are colored/queer/neurodivergent/disabled” almost certainly means that you’ve become an oppressor yourself.
Check Yourself For Christopher Columbus-like Tendencies.
A problem that persists until today is how many folks who have supported #RPGSEA in the past conflate supporting an individual from that space with supporting the majority. I hate to break it to you, loves, but ensuring that one Global South creator gets to pay their bills for a month with your commission isn’t saving the entirety of our space. So, don’t act like it is.
There’s also this consistent trend of taking credit for “discovering” Global South creators, or design trends/movements from the Global South. We have existed for about as long as the rest of you have. You did not “discover” us; you’re just late to the party.
Dismantle The One Global South Creator Syndrome.
Related to resurrecting the ghost of Christopher Columbus: as with white folks and tokenism, non-Global South peers tend to hyperfocus on one or two creators from an entire swath of creators rather than actively branch out and search for more. This happens at all levels, from the baseline of playing games from just a few favorites to limiting participation to just a few of the same names in, let’s say, a Kickstarter project, then calling it a day. Go forth and explore websites like Across RPGSEA.
Here’s something that may be a little more uncomfortable, but necessary: if you were brought in for a project and don’t see enough Global South talent on it, try and see what you can do to change that. Of course, if it risks your own position on the team, exercise proper judgment. Alternatively, if a Global South creator can’t take you up on your own project, ask them if they have recommendations for folks from their spaces first before considering anyone else.
Ask More Questions About Our Contexts.
If you see me, for example, consistently RTing posts from local Filipinos on our government on Twitter and you have no idea what you’re reading, Google the hell up and ask me to fill in any blanks. Actively interrogate and compare what things are like for you versus what they’d be like for me. There have been discussions in the past revolving around currency rate exchanges and how they effect the way Global South creators price themselves in ttrpgs versus how their non-Global South peers might do it.
Another hot button topic is convention attendance. Often times, the only barrier of attendance for a North American PoC is money. A Filipino attendee, however, needs to have a visa (which requires scheduling and paying for an appointment, having a prohibitive amount of dollars as “show money”) on top of enough cash for food, transportation, travel, and accommodations. Every Filipino with a Philippine passport faces these costs on top of dealing with the natural American tendency towards forgetting that anything outside of themselves exists unless said foreign element is consistently in their face. Thus, whenever you tell a Filipino creator that they’re evil for going to a convention during this pandemic crisis, you’re basically saying that they don’t deserve the opportunities that you do, and that you’re likely okay with them starving.
No, the argument is not as simple as “just get another job, don’t go for ttrpgs!” And also, if that IS your argument, why aren’t YOU looking for another job?
Support Diversity Scholarships/Subsidies/Visibility Initiatives or Make Your Own.
There’s a wider conversation to be had about how we shouldn’t even have to need things like this, and how people of color in general ought to be hired not because of their race but because of their talent. Unfortunately, we’re not at that level yet.
The biggest way to ensure that a Global South creator can create the way they choose is to ensure that they are financially stable, and that doors that would normally be closed to them are either opened in full or opened just enough to make going through them easier. Hunt down scholarships; build yourself a list. Throw money towards them. Find your Global South friends or creators you follow from those spaces, and link those initiatives to them - there’s a big chance that they have no idea that they exist.
Another unfortunate thing to remember is that TTRPGs-centric awards ARE directly tied to surviving in the spaces. Some of you might think of them as glorified popularity contests and a means to validate yourselves as creators. Tragically, for Global South folks in particular, being able to append “awarded/award-nominated” to their bio may be the only way that anyone will give them the time of day.
Check the awards you know, and raise hell if you don’t see a lot of Global South names among the nominees. If you’re in a position to dictate things like selecting nominees, actively push for people from the Global South. If you’re close to a Global South creator, see what you can do to help them nominate themselves/their work.
Collaborate With Us More/Put Us In Leadership Positions.
Save us from the purgatory of Mandatory Global South Kickstarter Stretch Goal. Bring us on as your collaborators, your mid to high level staff/contractor on a project. Let us dictate payment schemes and royalty arrangements that suit OUR needs, tempered, of course, by your own constraints. People of color in North America are often questioned due to their lack of experience, and this often stems from white folks simply not having them in the network. It’s doubly, triply worse for everyone who doesn’t come from the center.
Related to this would be mentorship and guidance. The contexts we come from are rather different than yours, and in more ways than one, a Global South creator may have a far steeper learning curve than your average employee/contractor. Be sensitive to this reality. Be open in your support, and your assurance that they can state their needs and ask their questions without fearing the possibility of being passed over. To simply bring us on board to something without being ready to bridge gaps is the same as setting someone up for failure.
Buy Our Shit/Support Our Subscription-Based Platforms/Talk About & Signal Boost Our Work
These things may look small, but they do add up. Besides, these simple acts go ways towards fighting the pervasive loneliness and emptiness that comes from feeling like one is truly invisible in a sea of voices.
If you don’t personally like your stuff, find a friend of yours who might and pimp the fuck out of the work in question/creator in question to them. And keep on doing it; don’t just stop at one person, one game.
Help Us Build Our Own Tables
There is beauty in diversity, and that includes having completely separate places of support that can at least approximate an understanding of the concerns we as Global South creators have. There are times when we should be sitting at your tables, and there are times when we need to have our own - and no, you are not owed an invite.
I’ve mentioned Across RPGSEA already. This website is a concrete example of a table. Support Across RPGSEA, even if it’s a website that, due to its very nature, won’t showcase your games if you’re not Southeast Asian.
Big Bad Con has a PoC Programming Track. Donate to it when the drives go live, or tell people who are in the position to help to go and offer their assistance.
If you hear an awesome idea from a Global South friend of yours - one that will help themselves and their peers - and there’s something you can do to help them create it, fucking do it. Invest your time, energy, and - yes, when and where you can - money. The only way to grow the pie is to add some more slices, or even make new pies entirely.
Rant done. For now.
May this become a post that I can just reshare whenever more bullshit comes up rather than a consistent topic that I am going to have to dig into until I die, or quit TTRPGs entirely.
If you walk away from this post feeling uncomfortable, defensive, and/or insulted, take some time out and ask yourself why. I don’t have time to hold your hand through it.