Gender Identity in Roleplay

[Sgt. Ian MacBrooke]

Greetings all! I'm appearing before you today to help 'boost the signal' from a recent trio of friends, Greg, Leo and Bunny, on the Book of Faces concerning an idea for a 'more friendly' experience between our gender-specific and transgender populace.

From Greg, Leo and Bunny;

Hey everyone, I have a problem. 
That problem is gender awareness and recognition in our community.
For the last 8 months, I've watched my partner come home from every single game that we've attended and be hurt by someone misgendering him, and/or his characters. 
Now, I'm going to let you in on a big secret. It's /okay/ to be wrong. It's okay to make mistakes. We're only human and none of us can read minds. 
What's /not okay/ is to make an inaccurate assumption about another human being, and then try to defend or excuse your mistaken perception. Just apologise and make the adjustment.
Sometimes gender and body type are not paired in the ways you expect, and it's our responsibility to make the adjustments needed to allow our fellow players to feel safe, recognized, and real. 
The phrase "I identify as" means "I am", and we don't get to say or imply that's not true. 
If we can believe that somebody in a black t-shirt and jeans is a zombie at game, we can wrap our heads around the idea that a female-bodied person can be male and vice versa. As LARPers, we pratice the ability to change how we see reality. Let's use that ability to make our fellow players safe and respected.
In solidarity with our transgender, non-binary, and genderqueer players, along with everyone else who has been fighting for recognition in a hundred little battles across our network, I am adding a signifier to my costume.
From now on a small strip of red fabric pinned on my chest will serve as an indication that my character is male. Bunny Rose Spady is joining me in wearing a strip of blue fabric to signify her characters are female, and we'd like to encourage players who portray characters that exist outside the binary to wear a green strip. 
What your body looks like doesn't determine what your gender is, and we need to stop acting like it does.
I ask you all to join us, and help make our community a place where gender acceptance and recognition is the norm, and no one has to fight to be seen as who they are. 
Thank you.

[Sgt. Ian MacBrooke]

Just cuz I'm an old fogey, doesn't mean I'm stuck in the past. I've never liked any kind of bullying. I accept or deny people access into my life according to our interaction, never race, ethnicity, creed, nationality, gender or faith.

[Arabella Porter]

Ian, I must say, I'm rather impressed by your activism in this matter. :) I never took you as an active ally to the GLBTQ community. Thank you for posting this, it's very informative.