Thread by @paul_keiter

@WinningerR @Wizards_DnD #WOTCstaff

To Mr. Winninger and the Dungeons and Dragons team,

You are likely aware of the discussions occurring in the Dungeons and Dragons community. I felt the need to add my voice and I hope you take the time to listen to all the voices. (1/16)

I believe that Dungeons and Dragons and Wizards of the Coast have an opportunity to step up, set the example for other tabletop role playing games, and truly be leaders.
(2/16)

Who am I? I am a father, a scientist, and someone who has played Dungeons and Dragons (D&D) for 35 years. I have made many friends who I cherish through D&D. The game holds a special place for me. I took a break after v. 3.5 and was amazed at the popularity for 5e. (3/16)

This was a pleasant surprise given how the game was received when I started in the 80s. As much as the game has meant to me, I have concerns that make me question my support of the game. (4/16)

A chief concern is the lack of diversity with the company. I look at the D&D community and I see many exceptionally talented people from minoritized groups, but I see little representation from these groups in the published material. (5/16)

Rime of the Frostmaiden took a step in the right direction by having several women writers. However, the company should stride towards including more Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPoC) creators. (6/16)

Besides being the right thing to do, increased diversity will bring different viewpoints and result in an improved product. There are experts that can be brought in to help with increasing diversity in the workplace. (7/16)

They can aid you in the process and provide tools to help maintain a diverse workforce.

In addition, when hiring freelancers for projects, I would encourage you to lead the industry and set the bar for compensation. (8/16)

Freelancers deserve to make a livable wage and not to be hired as cheap labor. Setting the standard will attract the best talent, leading to an improved product. (9/16)

I believe you will find that happy freelancers will speak more highly of you and help attract more people into the field and as customers. (10/16)

Lastly, feelings of distrust towards the company have risen from the lack of transparency when dealing with association with accused abusers. This concerns me greatly. (11/16)

It would be a step in the right direction for the company to have more transparency on what has been done and what will be done to reassure the community that Wizards of the Coast does not condone or support abusers. (12/16)

Addressing these issues is a challenging task, but one I hope you are up to. It will take hard work and time to implement everything. However, taking these steps would go a long way towards repairing the relationship with the community. (13/16)

In the end, it is your choice. You can choose to stand out as a leader in the tabletop role playing game community and serve as a model to others, or you can stand aside and let someone else take that role. (14/16)

I sincerely hope that you take steps to improve the diversity and the transparency soon. Without seeing progress, I will have to ask myself is this a company I still want to support. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Paul Keiter
(15/16)

I have turned off responses except to those tagged, not because I want to silence voices, but because I don't want this to become a pile on. My goal is to share my opinion in a constructive way. I encourage others to share their opinions in their own ways. (16/16)