Code of Conduct

1. Purpose

A primary goal of Colossalcon is to be inclusive to the anime community and attendees as a whole, with the most varied and diverse backgrounds possible. As such, we are committed to providing a friendly, safe, and welcoming environment for all, regardless of gender, sexual orientation, ability, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and religion (or lack thereof).

This code of conduct outlines our expectations for all those who participate in our event as well as meetings, business, community social media as well as the consequences for unacceptable behavior.

We invite all those who participate in Colossalcon to help us create safe and positive experiences for everyone. A supplemental goal of this Code of Conduct is to increase open citizenship by encouraging participants to recognize and strengthen the relationships between our actions and their effects on our community.

Violations of our Code of Conduct may result actions such as:

  • Internal investigation from senior staff
  • Ejection and revokement of event badge (staff, panelist, etc. are not exempt from this rule)
  • Ban from online participation and/or future events
  • Possible prosecution and enforcement from legal authorities

If you see someone who is making an extra effort to ensure our community is welcoming, friendly, and encourages all participants to contribute to the fullest extent, we want to know.

2. Expected Behavior:

The following behaviors are expected and requested of all community:

  • Participate in an authentic and active way. In doing so, you contribute to the health and longevity of this community.
  • Exercise consideration and respect in your speech and actions.
  • Attempt collaboration before conflict.
  • Refrain from demeaning, discriminatory, or harassing behavior and speech and in written form.
  • Be mindful of your surroundings and of your fellow participants. Alert community leaders if you notice a dangerous situation, someone in distress, or violations of this Code of Conduct, even if they seem inconsequential.
  • Remember that community event venues may be shared with members of the public; please be respectful to all patrons of these locations.

3. Unacceptable Behavior

The following behaviors are considered harassment and are unacceptable within our community:

  • Violence, threats of violence, or violent language directed against another person.
  • Sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist or otherwise discriminatory jokes and language.
  • Posting or displaying sexually explicit or violent material (exceptions are 18+ carded events, panels, etc).
  • Posting or threatening to post other people’s personally identifying information (“doxing”).
  • Public displays of intoxication and heckling.
  • Personal insults, particularly those related to gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, or disability.
  • Inappropriate photography or recording (excludes con official photography team (see photography policy)).
  • Inappropriate physical contact. You should have someone’s consent before touching them (please see our anti-harassment policy here).
  • Unwelcome sexual attention. This includes, sexualized comments or jokes; inappropriate touching, groping, and unwelcomed sexual advances.
  • Deliberate intimidation, stalking, or following (online or in person).
  • Advocating for, or encouraging, any of the above behavior.
  • Sustained disruption of community events, including talks and presentations at conventions or events.
  • ANYTHING THAT IS ILLEGAL IN THE PUBLIC LOCAL, STATE, AND FEDERAL LAW IS ALSO ILLEGAL AT OUR EVENTS.

4. Consequences of Unacceptable Behavior

Unacceptable behavior from any member of staff, volunteer, attendee, participant, sponsor, vendor, contractor, partner, or guest, including sponsors and those with decision-making authority, will not be tolerated. Anyone asked to stop unacceptable behavior is expected to comply immediately.

If a badge holder engages in unacceptable behavior, the Colossalcon organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, up to and including a temporary ban or permanent expulsion from the community without warning (and without refund in the case of a paid event).

If the offense is deemed illegal and/or needing legal authorities, the individual(s) will be subject to the full extent of local law.

5. Reporting Guidelines

If you are subject to and/or witness unacceptable behavior, or have any other concerns, please notify a convention organizer as soon as possible.

You now have multiple ways to address unacceptable behavior or violations in our code of conduct:

  • At convention or event: contact security.
    Locate a Colossalcon security taskforce member (typically a staffer wearing a security shirt/vest and has a security badge) and they will assist you in filing a report. If you CANNOT find security, please find a convention staffer, or go to Con Operations.
  • Online/Anonymously: Colossalcon SafeTalk
    Safetalk is a portal which will allow you to anonymously contact staff and report code of conduct violations. You can use a form and/or text. You may send images via text as well.

    • Social Media: Any unacceptable behavior will be reported (Twitter, Facebook, etc) by DM/PM or by the Colossalcon SafeTalk portal

    Additionally, convention organizers are available to help community members engage with local law enforcement or to otherwise help those experiencing unacceptable behavior feel safe.

    6. Addressing Grievances

    If you feel you have been falsely or unfairly accused of violating this Code of Conduct, you should notify Colossalcon with a concise description of your grievance using our contact us page.

    7. Scope/Volunteers and Staff

    We expect all convention participants (contributors, paid or otherwise; sponsors; and other guests) to abide by this Code of Conduct in all venues–online and in-person–as well as in all one-on-one communications pertaining to convention business.

    Limitations: Illegal Code of Conduct violations occurring outside of official event or online spaces cannot be enforced by Colossalcon; situations of this nature might require engagement of law enforcement by the individual. Examples including, but not limited to: stalking, drugs, weapons, assault (sexual or otherwise).

    Colossalcon expects all representatives at every level to conduct yourself in a professional and business appropriate manner while representing the organization. Harassment of any kind will not be tolerated, and violations will be considered grounds for possible and immediate termination with the organization.

    8. Contact info

    9. License and attribution

    The Citizen Code of Conduct is distributed by Stumptown Syndicate under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license.

    Portions of text derived from the Django Code of Conduct and the Geek Feminism Anti-Harassment Policy.

    Revision 2.3. Posted 6 March 2017.
    Revision 2.2. Posted 4 February 2016.
    Revision 2.1. Posted 23 June 2014.
    Revision 2.0, adopted by the Stumptown Syndicate board on 10 January 2013. Posted 17 March 2013.

    Anti-Harassment Policy

    Our event strives to provide a fun and safe atmosphere for the attendees. Anyone who is making an effort to make people feel uncomfortable is not contributing to the fun atmosphere and potentially making it unsafe. Anyone caught doing so, may face consequences ranging from a verbal warning to expulsion from the event and property.

    This policy is to applicable to all persons in attendance, including staff, vendors, panelists, etc. This policy also expressly prohibits retaliation of any kind against anyone who is identifying themselves of being harassed or reporting harassment.

    Harassment by anyone (attendees, guests, volunteers, security, staff, and/or venue employees) should be reported, and can be reported by anyone. Colossalcon Safetalk Portal Link coming soon!

    Please read and understand our guidelines below:

    Definition of Harassment:

    Undesired behavior, derogatory comments, stalking, and/or unnecessary intentional physical blocking of others that creates an intimidating, offensive, or hostile environment for the person being targeted. Harassment can take many forms: physical or psychological, verbal and non-verbal, and may be subtle, unintentional, premeditated, and it is not always evident. No gender identity makes harassment acceptable or wanted, and all gender identities are to consent.

    Colossalcon has a ZERO TOLERANCE POLICY for harassment of any kind. This pertains to any (sorted alphabetically) of these Representations of Individuals*:

    • Age
    • Appearance
    • Body Size
    • Color
    • Culture
    • Disability
    • Gender
    • Gender Identity
    • Gender Presentation
    • National Origin
    • Pregnancy
    • Race or Ethnicity
    • Religion (or lack of)
    • Sexual Orientation

    If someone tells you that your comments or behavior are unwelcome, you must stop immediately. If that person tells you to leave them alone, you must cease contact. It doesn’t matter whether you think your behavior was harassing: harassment is defined by the victim and you must respect their boundaries.

    What constitutes harassment?

    Verbal:

    • Threats of violence, or violent language directed against another person.
    • Discriminatory jokes, insults, bullying,) innuendoes, and language towards any of the Representations of Individuals above in regards to their appearance, ability, or anything disparaging. This is not to confused with occasional compliments of a socially acceptable nature (Complimenting someone’s personality, skills, and/or style, rather than directing it towards a physical asset of that individual.)
    • Threatening to post other people’s personally identifying information (“doxing”).
    • Public displays of intoxication and heckling.
    • Degrading sexual remarks (referring to someone as a stud, hunk or babe), whistling, cat calls, comments on a person’s body or sex life, and/or any kind of non-consensual flirting, sexual advances, or pressures for sexual favors.
    • Sustained disruption of speakers, panels, signings, or other events
    • Repeated texting, phone calls, and/or emails, after being told to stop Non-verbal:
    • Inappropriate, unwanted physical contact: Brushing against a person’s body, glomping, hugging, patting, physical/sexual assault and/or battery, and/or touching.
    • Inappropriate, unwanted non-physical contact: Gestures, staring, standing too close, exposing oneself, or miming sexual acts.
    • Exposing an individual(s) to substance/chemicals against their will.
    • Deliberately stalking, intimidating, following someone, entering an attendee’s room against their wishes, or blocking a person’s movement (bathroom policing), attending a person’s panels solely to intimidate them.
    • Deliberately harassing or interrupting photography or recording.
    • Covert photography or videography for the purpose of exploitation (hidden cameras, upskirt video, etc.).
    • Posting or displaying sexually explicit or violent material (exceptions are 18+ carded events, panels, etc).
    • Racist or other derogatory cartoons or drawings.

    Cosplay is not consent:

    If a person is in cosplay, be mindful your words towards them and how you act around them. This is a real person with a life outside of their cosplay. If you are in cosplay as a character that might harass others, that does not give you a pass to harass real people even if you are “in character.”

    In regards to photography, touching, and communication: ask first and respect a person’s right to say no. “No” always means “No.” “Go away” means “go away.” Only “Yes” means “yes.” Do not follow or attempt to disrupt their convention experience in any way upon being asked to leave or that they do not consent to a request.

    In the event of harassment:

    If you feel that you or another person is being harassed or being subjected to prejudiced or unwelcome behavior; or if you withness someone behaving inappropriately (such as violating hotel or convention policies), we respectfully suggest the following:

    • If you feel you can point out the inappropriate behavior to the person(s) involved. This may de-escalate the problem immediately.
    • If you do not feel comfortable talking with the person(s) involved or if talking to them does not resolve the issue, please report the situation immediately verbally via general staff (identified by a staff badge), security (identified by a security badge), or department head. You also have the option to alert the staff via Safetalk. Con staff will request names, badge names, badge numbers and/or physical descriptions of the person(s) for further investigation and follow up.
    • If you feel threatened, make it a priority to remove yourself and others threatened from the situation, come to Con Operations, security, or find anyone on staff. You can also text Operations via the Colossalcon Safetalk
    • Please report the event to staff as soon as you’re comfortable. Time can determine how successful we can be at de-escalating or catching the harasser, Faster reporting also decreases the likelihood of more victims.

    What is a Safe Space?

    A “Safe Space” is a location within the convention that is, or can be altered to be places of increased physical, intellectual, and/or emotional security. “Safe Spaces” either have staff present or we can summon to the location to assist. These locations are provided to anyone who seeks them, without judgement and without expressions of doubt.

    Resolution:

    Our level of involvement will be your choice. Our response can range from a verbal warning the other party to contacting local law enforcement and assisting them. You will not be required to confront the other party and unless you tell us otherwise, we will not reveal your identity to them.

    Depending on the severity of the offense, actions may result in confiscation of the offender’s badge and removal from the convention without refund. If law enforcement becomes involved, please be professional and respectful.

    If additional support is needed, Colossalcon staff/security will also assist in escorting you to where you feel safe and/or getting you in contact with your friends or family.

    Colossalcon reserves the right to revoke membership and deny future membership to individuals in violation of its Code of Conduct, or those who are deemed to pose a legitimate threat to the safety of the convention and its attendees.

    If the offender is an internal with the convention (Minor and Senior Staff/Security), we will create counsel with the department heads and senior staff to determine if the individual(s) will continue to move forward with the organization.

    This policy applies to everyone at the convention, including attendees, panelists, vendors, guests, and staff.

    If you have any concerns prior to the convention, you can contact us here: