Boundless Announces Ban on Race Play at Events

Release Date: January 11, 2024

To Boundless and the greater Kink community,

As we learn and grow from experience, the people around us, and the evidence that surrounds us daily, throughout our lives and in the world, we as Boundless organizers are always reevaluating our positions, mores, and policies based on what is needed by our community.

The purposes of community are many, but one very important purpose of community is to protect the most vulnerable within it. It’s the duty of those who are least vulnerable and in the positions of power to have a greater sense of care and responsibility for those in the community with less power, less representation, and less privilege.

While always keeping in mind that consenting adults are responsible for themselves, the places they choose to go, and the activities they choose to pursue, and while personal responsibility and agency are invaluable and essential, we believe that additional steps to care for community need to be implemented when even those amongst us with the strongest agency may still be harmed.

While our policies have always disallowed implied consent of any kind, and our policies at parties have always had strict consequences for othering language used to cause harm intentionally, Boundless Events is announcing a formal policy that it will not allow race play at our events. 

The parameters for the ban on race play at Boundless events are as follows:

• There will be no use of racial epithets or ethnic slurs during our events, at all. Degradation or humiliation centered on racial traits, ethnicity, culture, religion, or racial/cultural identity are never permitted.
• People of the global majority (Black, Indigenous, people of color, and others) may negotiate (with support if needed) a scene’s boundaries and their role. If they choose to engage in D/s play or power exchange play, it will be at their discretion. Participants who are white/European will respect and adhere to the boundaries set by people of the global majority.
• When engaging in power exchange play, please consider the privileges you experience, and the company you are surrounded by, as well as the image you are projecting. 
• People of the global majority are to be addressed by their chosen or pre-negotiated terms only.
• All participants will respect the consent and agency of each other at all times. There is no implied consent within Boundless Community culture regardless of race, role, status, gender, religion, socioeconomic status, age, or experience level.
• White/European people will defer to the lived experience of people of the global majority when determining what is and is not “race play”.
• People of the global majority who are submissives and degradees are not, by default, accepting of any forms of denigration, and the terms must be set and respected before any play can begin.
• Scenes in which race or ethnicity are the focus of sexual titillation such as “BBC”  or “queen of spades” scenes are not permitted. Cuck/hotwife is permitted, and gangbangs are permitted, but the racial overtones and language are not. 
• Racial fetishization is not permitted. (See link for more information: The Real Difference Between Racial Preference And Racial Fetishism | by Petiri Ira | Equality Includes You | Medium) 

These parameters are subject to change as we learn and grow, and were developed under the consultation of people of the global majority who are members of the kink community. We have chosen to omit some specific racial language in these rules as they may be triggering to some community members.  If there are any questions or clarification needed, please ask  at conduct@boundlessevents.org.

Full details and more information on this policy can be found, and will be maintained, on the Boundless Policy on Race Play page of our website.

We hope you will support us in making the kink community safely accessible for an expansive and beautiful network of folks. 

With love, intention, and care, 

Boundless Events Organizers