[Debconf-team] DebConf anti-harassment policy

[Richard Darst <rkd@zgib.net>]

Hello,

You may have seen that recently, a loose geek feminism group has
produced a draft anti-harassment policy for conferences (technical
conferences in particular).  Based on their experience and
consultations, they have produced something which can be taken and,
with minimal effort, adapted to us:
  http://geekfeminism.wikia.com/wiki/Conference_anti-harassment_policy

What are your thoughts on adopting some sort of thing?  I think it's a
good idea, and we can leave the adaptation and posting to some team
who takes it on and reports back to us.


It's important to consider that for DebConf, it takes more to make a
policy than just posting it on a web site.  Since DebConf changes so
much each year, and isn't really run top-down, each year someone needs
to make sure that the policy isn't neglected and year-specific things
are updated somewhere.

I think for DebConf it would make sense to have a well-respected,
trusted group, selected in the usual DebConf way of "who volunteers
that year and people approve of".  We publicize a way of contacting
them and they can serve as an interface to the organizers that year
and the wider organization to make sure that disrespectful behavior
can be dealt with.  As a concrete example (not applicable every year),
those on registration@ for DC10 could have served as a contact point
because most people there would have fit the "well-respected
established community members" mold.


Just remember, there are many forms of harassment and disrespect, and
just because you haven't heard about instances doesn't mean that they
don't happen.

- Richard

-- 
| Richard Darst  -  rkd@          -  boltzmann: up 499 days, 7:07
|            http://rkd.zgib.net  -  pgp 0xBD356740
| "Ye shall know the truth and -- the truth shall make you free"