Cyberbullying and Alacrity
This is a news post I was hoping I'd never have to make.
First off, I'd just like to say that, by and large, this update is unnecessary. The vast majority of our users are delightful, well-meaning people who do not verbally abuse or harass other players.
However, as of late we have seen a rise in cyberbullying, harassment and verbal abuse on Alacrity. This simply cannot be allowed to continue.
As many of you have already noticed and commented, the mean age of Alacrity players has dropped in the last year. Many of our players are coming to our community younger and younger, and even our player staff is now made up mostly of kids and young adults - people who are even more hurt by such attacks than the fully grown variety. As such, it has become even more vital to the administration that Alacrity continue to be the game it was founded to be - one of friendly, civil discourse and mutual respect.
While we recognize and agree that many of the growing pains the site has been going through lately are unpleasant, they are not the fault of any staff member or members, but rather the result of the unfortunate situation in which we find ourselves as a community.
I make this post to implore you all to resist the temptation that internet anonymity brings with it to treat the human beings behind the screen names as nameless, heartless, morally devoid bots here for you to abuse at your leisure.
Each username and account number on this site represents a real, breathing, harm-able person who deserves your kindness - whether they are players or if they are, on top of that, also staffers. Please treat these people as you yourself would expect to be treated.
On the subject of staff, specifically - if you haven't had the chance to get to know some of our staffers, I highly recommend it. These players take on long hours of complicated and often thankless work - without pay - because they want to see Alacrity succeed. These are kids with feelings. They're 20-somethings trying to figure out how to pay their mortgages, they're students working full time to get through school - they're not the devil. Alacrity isn't a big bad corporation trying to squeeze out every last dime, it's a bunch of young people trying to make something great happen on the internet. It has not been easy. It will not always be easy, but not one person on this staff - or on this website at all - deserves to be treated rudely just because you're unhappy about something.
I have gotten to know many of our players well over the years and I find myself protective of all of you, whether we know each other personally or even get along. We are, all of us, players. Lets all try together to be the people we expect ourselves to be, and we'll get through the rough bits and be all the stronger for it.
Always and intrinsically at your service,
~Kit
Posted by
Kit.Astrophe (#7244) on Feb 18, 2014
Neon Chemical
ZJ (#1511) on Jan 26, 2014
Tsukiko Sakura II
Fysha
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Hearing that some members are having to endure treatment like this is quite disheartening. It's extremely uncalled for & childish.