Sexual Harassment

“Sexual Harassment”

Knight Realms takes the topic of sexual harassment very seriously. Over the last seventeen years multiple players have been banned because of it. I am sometimes worried of the concept of “The Witch Hunt” where a mob mentality inadvertently causes an innocent person to be persecuted. I want to protect and be fair to everyone. If someone is banned without being certain of all the details, then we risk the possibility of an unjust punishment for things as innocent as bumping into someone or placing a hand on someone’s shoulder. That kind of environment in not something we want to foster. What we do want is an environment where everyone, both men and women, can feel safe and protected and are taken seriously.

For the most part, I am proud of the way we have dealt with sexual harassment. We have dealt with the accusations that were reported to us. When these issues haven't been handled to everyone's desire, it has mostly been because they were either not reported through the proper channels, or the details were so vague we had little to investigate. However, the mostly positive track record is marred by how transparency of the following issue had been handled, and for that I apologize.

In the past, one marshal in particular has had accusations that have fueled a great deal of unrest among some in the Knight Realms community. Myself, as well as responsible, mature, and non-biased adults (both men and women) listened to the issues and investigated each one. Warnings had been given, and actions were taken against him. At the time, I felt I made the appropriate call. If at any time I believed that he was a threat to anyone at Knight Realms I would have taken those actions further. Due to the continued unrest and also the discovery of new accusations being brought up, I will, for the greater health of the community, ask him to no longer attend Knight Realms and will wish him well elsewhere.

Let me be clear, anything that happens away from Knight Realms is not something I can legally manage. In the past, if anything happened away from camp people were told there was nothing KR could do and they should consider contacting the authorities. No one, not one person, to the best of my knowledge was ever told their concerns, feelings, or issues were not valid. They were certainly not "brushed under the rug" the way I and my staff were accused by some.

Going forward, we will be dealing with any future incidents in full transparency. I will not be banning or harshly reprimanding people for simple mistakes of an obviously non-sexual nature. Just as I want people to feel safe that they will not be sexually harassed. I don't want people to be afraid that if they put their hand on someone’s shoulder then they will be accused of harassment.

Those who make unwanted advances to another player will be harshly reprimanded and told to cease such behavior immediately and indefinitely. Depending on the severity they will be asked to end any interaction at game with their accuser. If the situation warrants, they will immediately be asked to leave game with a suspension or a banning.

All steps taken by my staff and myself will be shared with the appropriate parties in an effort to have full disclosure to all involved.

This is a re-affirmation of an already existing policy against sexual harassment. This is a pledge to all players. I will personally see to your safety. It is also a pledge to those who would feel falsely accused. I will continue to be fair in how I investigate and deal with every issue. I will always do what I feel is best for the community.

We have heard talk of players who are proactively seeking to look after others and that is great. However, I will insist that you still inform me personally of your problem and preferably very soon after they happen.

I will restate that I promise to be more transparent to all parties involved in these incidents and to be fair and listen to all sides before making a decision on serious matters involving anyone in the Knight Realms community. No matter how busy I may appear, I will always make your problem and/or your safety my number one priority. I will take your issue seriously, but any actions that I take have to be fair for everyone.


Lastly I wish to implore those who had some harsh words and thoughts for each other over the last couple of days to consider forgiveness. There was a myriad of heated discussions and similar topics that crossed over one another and in some cases got convoluted twisted around and misunderstood. I know that you will be better people for deciding to cut each other some slack for those heated interactions. I ask you to consider this for yourself and for the spirit of moving forward in a more positive direction and to see these positive changes take place in our community that we all love. Thank you.