Conference Code of Conduct

The DH2020 Virtual Conference is governed by the ADHO Conference Code of Conduct.

DH2020 is dedicated to providing a harassment-free experience for everyone regardless of gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, origin, or religion. By participating in DH2020, you signal your commitment to contributing to a safe and inclusive experience for all. We do not tolerate harassment of event participants in any form and in any forum used by the conference. Participants in DH2020 violating these rules may be expelled from the conference platform at the discretion of the organizers.

Harassment includes but is not limited to: derogatory verbal or written comments; sexist, racist, or otherwise discriminatory jokes and language; sexual or discriminatory images in public forums; deliberate intimidation; stalking; and disruption of talks or other events.

Participants asked to stop any harassing behavior are expected to comply immediately. If a participant engages in harassing behavior, the organizers may take any action they deem appropriate, including warning the offender or expulsion from the conference and its platform. (Participants in DH2020 are reminded that by using the Humanities Commons platform, they are also bound by its Terms of Service and Guidelines for Participation.)

Reporting Guidelines

All code of conduct violations will be treated seriously. If you are being harassed, notice that someone else is being harassed, or have any other concerns, we ask that you contact us immediately. To ensure that we receive all the pertinent information, we ask that you provide a formal report (see below) that outlines clearly the nature of the concern.

To report a violation at any time during the conference, please contact codeofconduct@adho.org. Any such email will be received by the following members of the DH2020 committee and held in confidence:

If for any reason you would prefer your report not to be seen by all of these individuals, please feel free to contact any of them individually and to specify your concerns.

All reports will be kept confidential to the extent possible. In some cases we may determine that a public statement will need to be made.

If you believe anyone, including yourself, is in physical danger, please bring this immediately to our attention. If you yourself are in immediate physical danger, please first contact your local emergency services or someone you trust to help you. Then bring this as soon as possible to our attention.

In your report please include:

  • Your contact information (so we can get in touch with you if we need to follow up)
  • Names (real, nicknames, social media handles, or pseudonyms) of any individuals involved.
  • When and where the incident occurred. Please be as specific as possible and include any relevant links.
  • Your account of what occurred.
  • Any extra context you believe existed for the incident.
  • If you believe this incident is ongoing.
  • Any other information you believe we should have.

What happens after you file a report?

You will receive acknowledgement of receipt of your complaint within 12 hours. We will attempt to respond as speedily as possible with the goal of resolving all complaints. Within 24 hours, we will seek to document either a resolution or an explanation of why the situation is not yet resolved to the individual reporting.

The DH2020 organizers will use the following questions to better understand the incident:

  • What happened?
  • Whether this event constitutes a code of conduct violation?
  • Whether this is an ongoing situation, or if there is a threat to anyone’s safety?
    • If this is determined to be an ongoing incident or a threat to safety, the organizers’ immediate priority will be to protect everyone involved. This can include removing individuals from conference platforms, conducting separate virtual meetings with the individual(s) making the report and individuals involved in the incident, and/or requesting assistance from legal authorities. This means we may delay any “official” response until we believe that the situation has ended and that everyone is safe.

Once the organizers have a complete account of the events, they will make a decision as to how to respond. Responses might include, but are not limited to:

  • Nothing (if we determine no violation occurred)
  • A private reprimand from ADHO to the individual(s) involved
  • A public reprimand
  • A temporary or permanent ban from ADHO events
  • A request for a private or public apology

Once we’ve determined our final action, we will contact the original individuals involved in reporting the incident to let them know what action (if any) we will be taking. We will take into account any feedback we receive from the reporter of the incident on the appropriateness of our response, but we do not guarantee we will act on it.

We value your attendance.

Signed,

  • Diane Jakacki, DH2020 Virtual Conference Co-Chair
  • Hannah Jacobs,  DH2020 Virtual Conference Co-Chair
  • Brian Croxall, DH2020 Virtual Conference Co-Chair
  • Matthew K. Gold, ADHO COB President
  • Leif Isaksen, ADHO EB Chair
  • Juan Steyn, ADHO Deputy Treasurer
  • Karina van Dalen-Oskam, Independent Person of Confidence

This statement was adapted from the ACH2019 Code of Conduct, which in turn was inspired by by the Geek Feminism Conference Anti-Harassment Policy and the codes of conduct  and statement of values published by the Django Software Foundation, the Digital Library Federation, and HILT. Parts of this policy were adapted from the Django Code of Conduct – Reporting Guide.