Code of Conduct and Inclusion

Code of conduct

THATCamp New Souths abides by the THATcamp anti-harassment policy. In short, we do not tolerate discrimination or harassment in any form. THATCamp organizers have both the power and the duty to investigate all reported incidents of harassment and to remove confirmed harassers from THATCamp venues both physical and virtual.

Check the handouts at the conference registration desk for information on who is serving as duty officer for code of conduct reports.

Inclusion statement

Our inclusion statement borrows heavily from VCUarts faculty member Courtnie Wolfgang:

We’ll be grappling with sensitive and sometimes controversial subject matter. We hope conference organizers, participants and session moderators will always do their best to fairly and sensitively moderate discussion, as well as make themselves open to difference and opposition.

We encourage attendees to share your varied positionalities in the spirit of community, learning, and growth. Please know that it is no one’s responsibility to “teach” another about difference. We are all responsible for learning about each other and the world. In this space, our expectation is that we all honor the experiences and lives of others. That means trusting one another as best we can.

That said, any hate speech or speech that shows willful malice towards an individual or group is a violation of our code of conduct and is grounds for organizers to ask attendees to leave the conference.

Welcome! Let’s go forth and learn together.

Space considerations

THATcamp New Souths is held at VCU’s James Branch Cabell Library, which is accessible for folks with mobility issues. Ask a staffer if you need directions! Or explore floor maps of the building for more information.

Access

Most sessions are held on the second and third floors which are accessible via elevator.

Restrooms

There are restrooms on each floor of the library. Gender-inclusive, single-stall, all-gender restrooms are located on the third floor and in the lower level.

Inclusion at unconferences

Unconferences by nature are unstructured, informal and quickly changing. That means we all need to understand how we can make space that includes everyone.

  • Speak up and encourage other participants to do so.
    • It’s about volume. There are not always microphones in smaller meeting rooms. If you can hear well in general and are straining to hear a speaker, someone else is, too. Just ask.
    • It’s not just about volume. If someone hasn’t had a chance to speak or isn’t piping up as much as others, bring them back into the conversation.
  • Use silence too. Think about having a few minutes of silence during a session so people can reflect and write their thoughts. Some folks need time to think things over.
  • Respect where other attendees are coming from. 
    • Folks will have varying levels of technology experience. We believe people should be comfortable saying “I don’t know” and “I don’t understand.” For people who are more technical:
      • Don’t act surprised when people say they don’t know something
      • No well-actually’s. Well-actually happens when someone says something that’s almost – but not entirely – correct, and you say, “well, actually…” and then give a minor correction.
      •  More at the Recurse user manual
  • Check your assumptions about other attendees’ group memberships.
    • Use the names and pronouns folks wish to be called.
    • Don’t assume that because a person says they are in, or appears to be in, a group, that they speak for that group.
    • Rather than using gender-specific greetings like “ladies and gentlemen”, say “colleagues”, “attendees”, “folks”, “y’all”
  • If you’re showing something on the computer:
    • Make sure that the text can be read by everyone in the room and that the color contrast is very clear. See more in this guide to making accessible presentations from DLF.
    • Provide clear verbal descriptions of visual content, such as images, charts, and videos. Imagine delivering your presentation on the radio.

Resources