My Thoughts on WisCON

[lydamorehouse]

I missed a lot of the excitement this weekend over WisCON's harassment subcommittee's decision because we were in a small, resort town in Wisconsin enjoying our friends' cabin at Crooked Lake.  I took some awesome photos, but the uploading thingie here on LJ is still being stubborn so I may have to point interested parties to another site.  The lake was ice cold, but Mason, being Mason, braved it anyway.  I ended up in the water, too, though initially under much duress.

But, because we were away from Twitterverse and the rest over the weekend, a lot of what needs saying abut WisCON's decision has already been said.  I have to admit that I'm far less invested in this, despite knowing Jim personally (he was my agent), because I haven't been a regular attendee at WisCON for nearly a decade.  It used to be one of my favorite cons.  The ratio of writer-to-fan was skewed heavily toward the writer end of the scale and, at a certain point in my career, WisCON was the place for me to meet colleagues, agents, and editors in a relaxed setting.  I suspect that's probably still true, but when I switched to being a romance writer I felt less welcome, though never explicitly so.

So, everything I have to say about this is as a complete outsider. My only point is one of comparison. This year at CONvergence, I had a programming issue come up.  I felt it was handled so professionally and swiftly that I don't even feel the need to rehash the details here, except to say that I wish that WisCON could learn and take notes.  The programming head responded to my complaint within hours of my issuing it (even though it was the day after the con and everyone had every right to be off-the-clock, as it were.)  Not only that, but they had a very clear and firm policy that was expressed in unambiguous language to all parties involved.  There was a clear electronic "paper trail." When it seemed we'd reached an understanding, the programming person basically said to me, "I feel from your previous communication that you consider this resolved, but please let me know if there is any part of this issue that you feel is not resolved.  If you feel it is resolved, we will consider this matter closed."

It was amazing.  It was so professionally handled that I almost wondered if the folks at CONvergence were all required to take conflict management courses.

Having a clear, unambiguous policy was paramount to my feeling satisfied by the concom's response to my issue.  The programming head was able to say, "CONvergence expects x of this kind of panel" and there was no, "but we will review this if y or z is involved."  The hammer came down hard.  In fact, it was so intense I was like, "Uh, I'm not sure..." to which I was given a polite, but firm, "Understood, but these are the rules and we're clear about them, full stop."

Granted, this is an entirely different issue than harassment. But, the fact that this was how a relatively minor programming issue was dealt with, it gives me the sense there are even more clear and firm policies in place for other infractions.  They have a well-thoughtout harassment policy written in their souvenir program, for instance, though I'm not sure how well it would work for WisCON's clientele.  That aside, JUST the way this was dealt with could be a lesson for the WisCON folks, you know?

CONvergence is much, much larger than WisCON.  Not only is it on a significantly larger scale, but CONvergence's mission is very different from that of WisCON.  However, I think that WisCON could take note.  If they survive this particular misstep (and I do have to wonder if they will), I think it could behoove them to talk to bigger, more professionally run cons.  I'm sure a con like CONvergence has to deal with police calls and all sorts of things that a small con might never have to, but I would think that, if anything, this whole sexual harassment issue should show WisCON that maybe being prepared for all future contingencies might be a plan, so that there are clear rules and consequences from the start... for the next problem that comes up, because there will be one.

So, that's my two cents.  There are a myriad of other issues involved that I'm not going to comment on because I'm very much removed from the WisCON community.

With luck, I can get some photos of our trip up somewhere.  

Comments

[trishalynn.livejournal.com]

I remember you talking about your programming problem before the panel that followed the one in question (I was the person who said she knew one of the other parties involved), and I can infer from a private message I received from that party that he/she felt it was also handled in a professional manner; the words "extremely reasonable" and "polite" are direct quotes.

Having been a senior staffer at an East Coast anime convention for a few years and having volunteered at the Bridge during this year's CONvergence on Thursday and Friday, I am very impressed with the people who organize this convention. If there's a problem that I've heard regarding CONvergence, it's that there are way too many parties and too much emphasis is made about them.

Also, another thing I learned about CONvergence is that they log/record everything that is brought to their attention and like a tech support trouble ticket, those items are handled/reviewed very quickly. Also, on the nights I was at the Bridge, I saw a uniformed officer (off-duty, most likely) sitting behind the desk at the Bridge. So perhaps they hire off-duty police as a safety precaution the way some stores that are open late are.

[lydamorehouse]

I saw Aton with a police officer at one point during the con and, afterward, asked him if everything was OKAY. He couldn't figure out what I was worried about at first and then explained that he was just showing the officer around, because that officer had just come on shift. So, yes, CONvergence has some kind of deal with either an active duty or off-duty police officer who patrols DURING CON. I wouldn't doubt if they were actually required for insurance purposes to have a cop on site. I would think the hotel might require it as part of the deal--not only is there a lot of cash changing hands both in registration and in the dealer's room, but there's also the party scene you mentioned.

I'm also glad to hear that the other parties involved in my CONvergence programming snafu feel as satisfied with the outcome as I do. I think it was so well handled that there won't even be any bad blood between us all (at least that's my sincere hope. I'm sure things will be awkward, but I don't expect miracles either.) Thing is, the swiftness, the clarity, and and the sense of organized policy did SO MUCH for my feeling of satisfaction that I can only imagine they might have HELPED to some degree if WisCON had been able to do the same. Harassment obviously has its own special issues, which I'm not trying to discount, but simply being prompt and firm about policy can go a surprising distance to feeling... taken care of, respected, and possibly even more safe--even when it's a minor issue like the one I faced.

[mle292.livejournal.com]

CONvergence's actual harassment policy is one of the worst I've seen, which is disappointing considering what a good experience you had when they managed to communicate clear expectations with their programming department. I'm glad that you had a positive interaction with programming.

But... CONvergence's harassment policy. The first issue that one notices with their policy is that it's really unclear what the actual consequences are. The second issue is that bullying "jokes," taunts, epithets, inappropriate name calling, or other forms of verbal harassment are never mentioned. I suspect this second one is possibly to make room for Vilification Tennis to be able to perform unfettered.

BUT THE HUGE, GIANT, ENORMOUS issue is how much ink they give to the "falsely accused." It's almost like they think most claims are grossly exaggerated or entirely made up.

CONvergence is dedicated to providing a safe and comfortable convention experience for everyone. Harassment of any kind, including physical assault, battery, deliberate intimidation, stalking, or unwelcome physical attentions, will not be tolerated. If people tell you “no” or to leave them alone, your business with them is done.

Leave them alone. Do not follow them or attempt to disrupt their convention experience in any way. If you continue to attempt to have contact with those people, you may be removed from the premises.

—

CONvergence is not responsible for solving any interpersonal problems that may arise between individual members. In general, we can take no action to prevent a person from attending the convention unless that person has made a specific and credible threat toward the convention itself. If you feel that a threat exists against your person, we advise you to seek a restraining order against the individual in question and to involve the host hotel itself (security staff specifically) and the municipal police department in advance of the convention; otherwise, we recommend simply avoiding that individual.

If that individual stalks, harasses, or attempts to assault you at the convention itself, you may report that individual to a member of CONvergence Operations (they will report it to the hotel’s security staff who will get the police involved if necessary) or you may report it to hotel security directly, and the appropriate action will be taken. Conversely, any attempt to have an innocent person removed from the convention by falsely accusing him or her of threats will be itself treated as an act of harassment and will be dealt with appropriately. The responsibility for settling interpersonal disputes lies solely with the individuals involved, and CONvergence will not tolerate being used as a leveraging point in such disputes attending the convention unless that person has made a specific and credible threat toward the convention itself. If you feel that a threat exists against your person, we advise you to seek a restraining order against the individual in question and to involve the host hotel itself (security staff specifically) and the municipal police department in advance of the convention; otherwise, we recommend simply avoiding that individual.

Source, to prove that the redundancies are not mine. (http://www.convergence-con.org/at-the-con/policies/#harassment)

[lydamorehouse]

Yeah...

I don't really want to get in the business of defending anyone's policy, because you make very, very excellent and valid points, but I suspect that CONvergence made a choice to go with a very strict definition of sexual harassment (as defined by law) very deliberately because of their size. I'm sure, similarly, there's this emphasis on false accusations because it's really not any con's business to get in between fandom's feuds (of which there are legion.)

The way I read all that, by way, was exactly that: don't involve us in your feuds.

I will also note that while their policy may suck, I feel like their practices might be a titch better. For instance, I saw all around con rooms marked as "Safe Space." I never had cause to use one, but it was interesting to see them provided. I don't know for a fact that they were set up to help intercede with the squishier/gray areas of harassment, but I got the sense that they were. If for no other reason than that there seemed to be a volunteer in each room with a walkie-talkie.

I have a friend in the advocacy business who says that her organization was approached by various local science fiction convention runners for advice about dealing with sexual harassment--to quote what she wrote on my Facebook page, advice was solicited to "both prevent sexual harm from happening at their events and to learn what to do if/when something does happen. " So, maybe CONvergence's policy is worded for crap, but the local conventions are, it seems (according to non-fans in the business) at least reaching out and trying to do their research. I suspect a lot of people are going to fuck this up. CONvergence may as well, but it seems like steps are being made even if, right now, they're not all that we want or need.

Are they perfect? No way. Would this work for a convention like WisCON? I already said it wouldn't.

[mle292.livejournal.com]

I agree that their intentions are probably good, despite their policy looking like it was written by someone who has been repeatedly "falsely" accused of harassment, and doesn't understand why bi****s are haters.

Good intentions in a policy that actively frightens 45 year old me into thinking that the convention's ONLY goal is to protect themselves, are not well spent. What is a "credible threat"? Am I threatening the convention by making a claim of harassment if it involves a member of their concom? Am I a threat if I'm expressing my displeasure with their policy in the comments of a public post on Livejournal?

I have experienced light assault at SF conventions, and committed a bit of cockblocking. I have never formally reported any harassment against myself or against another member of a convention. I would be extremely reluctant to report it to a convention that had a well written policy on harassment.

I don't understand "safe space," and I'm pretty leery of it after hearing a small amount of negative feedback about implementation.

What is "safe" about the space? If I feel threatened, the first directive the policy clearly tells me is to contact law enforcement and take action through the judicial system. Will someone in the party room recommend a lawyer to represent me, or let me use their phone to dial 911? What if I'm drunk and I'm concerned about how the cops will treat me for reporting something as "benign" an ass fondling?

[mle292.livejournal.com]

Sorry. Got carried away.

Yes, I agree that their model would not work for Wiscon. The whole Jim Frenkel thing is very frustrating.

[lydamorehouse]

Yes, yes, and very much yes. (Edited to be clear: I'm not saying "yes, you got carried away" but "yes, you make sense." I hadn't seen your other comment come in and, it's perfectly okay to get wound up about this. It's a crazy-making, gnarly issue.)

Everything you say makes sense to me. I'm probably being stupid/unthinking about this because I've never been actively (or even passively) harassed at a convention. I'm much more likely to be the jerk in any given interpersonal situation. :-)

And, I totally see what you're saying about safe spaces. I guess I was thinking that if local cons really are reaching out to women's organizations with on the ground experience in how to deal with preventing sexual harm and dealing with the aftermath that maybe this involved some kind of ACTUAL training in providing safety/advocacy/protection? I don't know. i don't even know what kinds of information they sought and what they did with anything they got. All I know is that a FB friend said her organization was contacted and that gives me a kind of hope in all this hopelessness.

?

I'm also not sure what a convention's responsibility is in all this. I've been reading and listening and trying to sort out what's a reasonable expectation for an organization and I don't know.

[la-luna-llena.livejournal.com]

Actually, CONvergence's policy sounds very reasonable and clear to me.

In the discussion about FrenkelFail, I sometimes got the impression that some people expect Wiscon to protect them from every discomfort, to edit out every possible unfriendly ex or colleague from the Con. I appreciate this clear "get a restraining order if they are dangerous, & contact the hotel." BUT I am also a practical Midwesterner, as are the planners of CONvergence. Wiscon is very diverse & exists not in Madison WI so much as in an idealized sphere in cyberspace slightly near the SF Bay Area.

[lydamorehouse]

Vilification Tennis is... yeah, I've never had any desire to attend that.

[mle292.livejournal.com]

I only want to punch their performers in the face *ironically*.

[marlowe1.livejournal.com]

In a con as large as CONvergence, there is a chance that there will be various methods of harassment that include false accusations. This is just their way of saying that they will take it seriously, but so seriously that if it's found out that the accusation was made as a form of bullying, it will not be tolerated.

The example of Nickolaus Pacione is an extreme one, but it's appropriate here since the man is very much a troll and someone that attacks everyone online to the point where HWA had to change their admission policies to make sure that he wasn't calling people out of the blue to harass them. He's mentally ill and he's not nearly as toxic as Vox Day or the like, but whenever he comes back out into the world to bully people, one of his first tactics is to accuse them of bullying him.

If Jim Frankel's behavior was not as well known, it's not entirely inconceivable that he would hear about someone wanting to accuse him of sexual harassment and accuse them first.

[mle292.livejournal.com]

Sure. That's great that they've got a clearly defined course of action as to what *exactly* CONvergence will do if they are asked to deal with a false accusation.

Where is the equivalent statement of action if they are asked to deal with a truthful accusation?

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[la-luna-llena.livejournal.com]

As I live in Madison, I have considered joining the ConCom to help out. I think a big problem here is that the leadership has just recently been turning over, from the Baby Boomer hippies that started it all to the next gen. So you've got a lot of people just in the thick of their careers & late 20's/early 30's for the first time taking on this responsibility, and the ranks aren't full yet.

[la-luna-llena.livejournal.com]

I never found Jim to be harassing or creepy. I'm surprised that his misbehavior is widely known. No ever told me "watch out for that guy," which I'm surprised about because I was always friendly at parties & cons.