OSFCI, and all of its events, strive to be inclusive and safe for people of all backgrounds, regardless of race, heritage, sexual orientation, gender, religion, disability, or any other category. To this end, we have a Code of Conduct that we have developed to ensure that all of our members can be aware of our intent to achieve this goal.
As some of you are aware, there was an incident during Westercon 69 in which a member did not feel safe and, as stated in our code, reported it to our staff. Unfortunately, we as an organization failed to properly realize the gravity of the incident, and we failed to follow our own noted procedures for follow-through, with both the offended party and the offender. This inaction and inappropriate handling have caused considerable distress for all of those involved, and shows that OSFCI as an organization has a great deal to learn in order to prevent and handle comparable situations in the future. One member of our convention staff violated our Code of Conduct with inflammatory remarks directed at the person who reported the event; that former staff member has been removed from their position.
While we cannot erase this incident, we are taking steps to better improve our processes, as well as our understanding of issues relating to diversity. We are taking steps to better interact with everyone, and to continue to provide an environment we believe will be safe, inclusive, and fun for everyone. Toward these ends, we are taking the following steps: [Read more…] about Board’s Statement