The purpose of our Community Code of Conduct is to ensure that all feel welcome to participate in the ORD2 Indivisible community. This is a guide to make it easier to be respectful to each other and to those we encounter in doing our work. The code covers our behavior as members of the ORD2 Indivisible community in any public meeting, online forum, mailing list, website, or private correspondence.
We have a few ground rules that we ask people to follow to ensure that the ORD2 Indivisible community is welcoming to every person and an effective example of the kind of change we advocate for with our MoCs. Please follow the spirit of these guidelines, not just the letter.
- Protect others’ privacy needs. Political organizing can be a very public act, which can be risky for some members of our community. We want everyone to participate to their level of comfort, so please do not share personal information about other participants without their consent.
- Be patient. This mostly applies to forums and mailing lists. This community is built on volunteer time. It is possible that your question or suggestion might not receive an immediate response. Be patient and consider the norms of the community.
- Be courteous to congressional staff. We will often deliver very assertive messages to our MoCs through their staff, however we must be mindful that the staff do not make the final decisions on our MoCs’ actions and positions. Staff members may even agree with us, but are required to faithfully represent their employer’s views, not their own.
- Be brief. When calling MoCs’ offices on a call-to-action, be clear that you are a constituent from the district (name, zip code), state your position to a specific vote, thank the staffer and hang up. They don’t need to hear your political philosophy. When speaking at a rally or event, express your passion, but tell your story and make your point briefly. This is polite and more effective.
- Be courteous, respectful and polite to fellow community members. Not all of us will agree all the time, but disagreement is no excuse for poor behavior and poor manners. We cannot allow the frustration we might feel occasionally to turn into a personal attack. Please remember that a community where people feel uncomfortable or threatened is not a productive one. We expect members of the ORD2 Indivisible community to be respectful when communicating with other community members, as well as with people outside the ORD2 Indivisible community.
- Harassment Policy
- We do not permit offensive verbal comments related to gender, gender identity or expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, or religion, sexual images in public spaces, real or implied violence, deliberate intimidation, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, sustained disruption of meetings or other events, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention.
- Participants will be asked to stop any harassing behavior and they are expected to comply immediately. Organizers and invited guests are subject to the anti-harassment policy. If a participant engages in harassing behavior, organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, including warning the offender, excluding them from online forums or public meetings.
- To report harassment during any event or venue, please contact an organizer directly, or through this form. To the best of our ability we will assist any person experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of our events. We value your attendance.
We’d like to thank the Indivisible San Francisco group for allowing us to use a modified version of their Community Code of Conduct.