Draft only
ETHICOMP has a long history of being a friendly, supportive conference environment. This Community Statement is our public declaration that, as a conference, we are dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience for everyone. We do not tolerate harassment of conference participants in any form. Conference participants violating the spirit of this ethical requirement may be asked to stop their behaviour or leave the conference (without a refund), and, when warranted, be reported to the police.
If you believe someone is violating the principle of our Community Statement we ask you to consider addressing the issue yourself in a collegial manner when it is safe to do so. We recognise, however, that there may be cases where doing so may cause additional harm or may not be feasible. In those cases, please report it as soon as possible to one of the conference organisers.
ETHICOMP Steering Committee: (details)
Local organiser: (details)
You are also welcome to contact any of the ETHICOMP Steering Committee members, a full list of which is available here: https://sites.google.com/site/ethicompsc/members
In emergencies, the police can be contacted on 112.
Presentations
Presentations or similar events should not be stopped for one-time gaffes or minor problems, although the presenter can be spoken to afterward. However, conference organisers should take immediate action to politely and calmly stop any presentation or event they are attending where there are repeated or serious violations of the community statement.
Giving warnings and taking reports
There are two ways that conference organisers may need to deal with harassing behaviour. One is when encountering it directly which necessitates giving a warning, and another is when behaviour is reported by another conference attendee.
Warnings
Any conference organiser can and should issue a verbal warning to a participant that their behavior violates the conference's anti-harassment policy. This action helps protect our conference attendees. Warnings should be reported to the ethicomp-sc email list (ethicomp-sc@jiscmail.ac.uk) as soon as practical. The report should include:
Identifying information (where appropriate) of the offending participant
The time you issued the warning
The behaviour that was in violation
The approximate time of the behavior (if different than the time of warning)
The circumstances surrounding the incident
Your identity
Other people involved in the incident
Reports
When taking a report from someone experiencing harassment you should record what they say and reassure them they are being taken seriously, but avoid making specific promises about what actions the conference organisers will take. Ask for any other information if the reporter has not volunteered it (such as time, place) but do not pressure them to provide it if they are reluctant. Even if the report lacks important details such as the identity of the person taking the harassing actions, it should still be recorded and passed along to the appropriate staff member(s). If the reporter desires it, arrange for an escort by conference staff or a trusted person, contact a friend, and contact local law enforcement. Do not pressure the reporter to take any action if they do not want to do it. Respect the reporter's privacy by not sharing unnecessary details with others, especially individuals who were not involved with the situation or non-staff members. Email reports to the steering committee chair (or deputy chair) as soon as is practicable, noting if any actions have been taken. A subcommittee of the ETHICOMP steering committee chair or deputy chair, the report-taker and at least one other member of the steering committee will convene to assess the report.
The report should include:
Identifying information (where appropriate) of the participant
Identifying information of the person taking the harassing actions (if volunteered)
The behaviour that was in violation
The approximate time of the behavior
The circumstances surrounding the incident
Your identity
Other people involved in the incident
Any actions taken
Expulsion
A participant may be expelled from this and future conferences by the decision of a subcommittee of the conference organisers involving the ETHICOMP steering committee chair or deputy chair, any relevant report-taker and at least one other member of the steering committee, as a result of a warning or report being taken. Other members of the steering committee or ETHICOMP community may also be consulted, depending on the case. However, here are some general guidelines for when a participant should be expelled:
A [first/second/third/seventeenth] offense resulting in a warning from organisers
Continuing to harass after any "No" or "Stop" instruction
A pattern of harassing behavior, with or without warnings
A single serious offense (e.g., punching or groping someone)
A single obviously intentional offense (e.g., taking up-skirt photos)
Hotel/venue security and local authorities should be contacted when appropriate.
Public statements
As a general rule, conference organisers should not make any public statements about the behavior of individual people during or after the conference. In general, consult with other conference organisers when possible but act when necessary.