About diversity and inclusivity (including VEKN Rules Team Rulings 05/07/2020)

answer made to: Henrik Klippström - Marketing Director on facebook


Henrik Klippström so there dear, there is a mistake. Gipsy is racist only for you. I lived 25 years with gipsies who are proud of it and were deported by the Nazis because they were gipsy. It's community is absolutely not stigmatized by this term and they even have a music group called gipsy king! this term is therefore only racist for some and negating it can be an offense for us just as the reverse for others! So why listen to one part of the world and not another?
We're just here to alert you to the bans and other rule changes that are taking place that would alter the fundamentals of our game.
Your last banns can open the way to others under pretexts just as far-fetched.
Where is the line that will stop you? today Gipsy, tomorrow what?
When has your idea of ​​community spliting been an official proposal from you?
The France that I represent is one of the 1st nation present during international events in number, you want us to leave the official tournaments?
I do not agree with your communication, nor your recent course of action, and for once, I come out of my reserve to express our grievances. We do not agree to the establishment of a free vampire contest and for the bans of the cards that seem to you to be rasists.
Is that clear enough for you as an explanation?

Alain Greiner NC France

What about Gitane St Claire ?
Gitan/e means gypsy in french.

Or Fleecing the Gaje ? Which means "stealing from non gypsies"

IMHO you should have stated that you were going through a process to rename some cards which pose problems in certain countries...

Banning them was a mistake.

Even if later you changed your announcement and told about filling the spaces of those banned cards...

And btw, Alain expressed the way the majority of French players feel about those bannings...

Looks like Central European nations (except perhaps Germany) are also mostly not satisfied with the bans, as far as i can tell.

From my perspective, given information about it from others, i don't think that Tarbaby Jack is widespread enough to warrant change, as it is also used in neutral/positive concepts in majority of cases AND is lore character.

When it comes to Tsigane, it's very unoriginal name and name change is totally warranted, the sooner the better. It's like calling some latin-american Latino, and show maybe not bad will but stunning ignorance.

Terrorists would be salvageable with other art and no clan requirement, but the card is so bad that straight out ban is best solution, instead print new card that is playable.

Gypsy cards are tough one, i don't really agree that they are racist slurs (as they are widely used by Romani to describe themselves), but i wouldn't mind simple name change. Gangrel card is useless so i wouldn't mind just ban

Overall, most of those cards could be put on TEMPORARY BAN (except full ban terrorists and gangrel's gypsies), and work on replacement. This way, you would avoid huge outcry.

Also, many people fear that there will be further bans, especially when it comes to sensitive cards (all indie main clans, midget, bum's rush etc). Hugh spoken that the fear is unwarranted, but i'd like to get confirmation and discussion (not post on NC mailing list 48h before implementing changes).

Last question is BML support. Due to hugely racists remarks of controversial BML organisation co-founder, it's better to distance yourself from it. The ideas to have just society is good, their implementation is not. Of course, you can ignore that point, but it's way more controversial that you might think.