Code of Conduct

[Jess Mitchell]

More Yes-and(ery),

In the spirit of being fond of disagreement, perhaps Shawn M has some interesting points that, if nothing else, could help us sculpt our CoC to address often lobbed criticisms. He’s open to "learning about other people’s thoughts” and so are we! And at least “agree[s] with most of the Open Code of Conduct." It’s at least a point of commonality from which we might have some understanding of his points. Awareness of systemic inequality is throbbing through our thoughts and all of our work — with that in mind, I think Shawn M is saying that intent matters and immeasurables are hard to see and agree on. Which presumably is why many of the CoC are explicit. 

Presumably Shawn M is fond of open debate and disagreement (like Dawkins and Hitchens). We too are fond of that and building a CoC that creates the healthy, inclusive, supportive conditions for that sounds like a good goal. As JT says in her class, ‘expect to be offended, expect to disagree, and do it in a productive way’ — I think we’d want Shawn M to be interested in joining our community, wouldn’t we?

Best,
Jess



> On Feb 9, 2017, at 4:20 PM, Colin Clark <colinbdclark at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> From my perspective, this blog post really reflects some nasty and conflationary thinking, though it might seem subtle at first. This invocation of the trope of "political correctness" is always a marker of privilege. And it's a reminder of how privileged thinking is so often unable to even recognize or confront itself. One of the counterintuitive aspects of inequality it that often *seems* so equal—but only to some. 
> 
> Remember, as the quote from one of the CoCs Jess suggested reminds us: our community's social engagements are always sedimented in the power structures and asymmetry of the culture it is embedded in. To say things like "To be offended is a choice" is to entirely overlook the systemic nature of inequality: when you live and experience it every day, you don't have the freedom to choose whether or not to "just" be offended. Choosing not to be or respond in some way is a privilege reserved for those who have power. Freedom of speech and action needs to be inclusive of everyone's sense of freedom and safety.
> 
> Here are a couple of links that may help to break down the logics of privilege that I see at work in parts of the blog post you mentioned:
> 
> http://everydayfeminism.com/2014/10/complaints-about-political-correctness/
> http://everydayfeminism.com/2016/06/your-racist-jokes-arent-funny/
> 
> Mistakes and oversights happen, and are not really what a code of conduct is all about. But it is when those things are systemically ignored or excused and allowed to accumulate that we risk creating a culture in which the most crucial members of our community—those who bring the different, otherwise marginalized, and unique perspectives that we need most as designers—may feel uncomfortable to speak or to contribute.
>