Standards of Conduct & Dealing with Misconduct

GD2 welcomes everyone: people of any sex, gender expression or identity, sexual orientation, affectional preference, race, color, age over 18, religion, marital status, disability, national origin, or background. GD2 also welcomes people who have an interest in all forms of kink, some of which are popular, some of which or not.

The following standards of conduct help ensure everyone feels welcome at GD2. To facilitate productive engagement, we ask that you:

• Take responsibility for your own conduct when someone points out problematic behavior and respond appropriately by focusing on the conduct in question. Please remember that it is your behavior that is being addressed, not your intentions and character. 
• Try to give people the benefit of the doubt when it comes to minor or unintentional issues.
  
• Correct minor or unintentional issues in a non-confrontational manner when you initially encounter them.
  
• If someone unintentionally crosses your boundaries, let them know and give them an opportunity to correct their mistakes before escalating.

Please let GD2 staff know about any recurring instances of minor problematic behavior or about single instances of behavior you believe should be addressed by staff.

Use Appropriate Names and Pronouns.

• • Respect the name or pronouns by which someone prefers to be called and use them.
  • If you are unsure of what name or pronoun to use for someone, ask.
  • If you make a mistake using a name or a pronoun, apologize, move on, and correct it going forward.
  • If someone calls you by something other than your name or pronoun, correct it.
  • If you have an ongoing problem with someone referring to you other than by your name or pronoun despite being corrected repeatedly, please inform GD2 staff.

Be aware of and respect other people’s personal boundaries, physical, social and otherwise.

• • Do not encroach on anyone’s personal space or monopolize their time.
  • As a general rule, do not touch anyone unless you are invited to do so, and do not touch anyone in a sexual or intimate way without express permission.
  • Do not treat a person who identifies with a particular role (for example, dominant or submissive) as someone who ought to relate to you in that role unless it is agreed upon in advance.
  • Do not stare at, objectify, or follow someone around.
  • Do not attempt to scene with anyone without negotiating and without permission.
  • Outside of scenes, and within scenes unless specifically negotiated otherwise, words have their ordinary meaning — that is, words like  “no“, “stop“, or “I am not interested” or “yes“, “keep going” and “I am interested” mean exactly that.
  • Anyone asked to stop any unwelcome attention is expected to comply immediately, without question.

Be clear about your own personal boundaries.

GD2 encourages direct, forthright communication.

• • If you have an ongoing problem with someone overstepping your boundaries after you have informed them of having done so, let GD2 staff know immediately.
  • When setting or maintaining boundaries, be clear and direct with your language. Say what you mean and mean what you say.
  • If commonly accepted social behavior intrudes on your personal boundaries, be sure to tell people.
  • If someone oversteps your personal boundaries, even unintentionally, tell them.

Unwelcome physical contact or unwelcome sexual attention, physical or otherwise, is prohibited.

When it comes to physical contact, get express permission. For anything short of physical contact — including suggestive words or attitudes — be sure you know the attention is welcome.

How do you know whether your attention is welcome?

Be aware of how people respond to you. What message are they conveying with their speech, body language, and eyes? Are they engaged and focused on you? Making eye contact? Reciprocating your interest and attention? Maintaining physical proximity? Or are they providing short responses, not making eye contact or looking away from you? Taking on a protective posture, such as crossed arms, or creating distance by backing away?

See and interpret these types of responses objectively, not as you hope them to be.

Do not attempt to scene with anyone without permission.

Scenes should only take place between people who have negotiated and agreed upon the type of scene they would like to do together.

Do not join in any scene, including preparing for a scene or aftercare, unless expressly invited to do so.

Joining in a scene without express permission is a violation of others’ boundaries. Uninvited physical, verbal or other participation in a scene is always unacceptable.

Similarly, do not approach people who are preparing for a scene, who are involved in a scene, or who are engaging in
aftercare following a scene unless expressly invited.

Without direct permission, it is also inappropriate to interact with someone outside of a scene in way that directly references or relates to a scene. For example, if someone enjoys being called a humiliating name in a scene, it is presumptuous and disrespectful to call that person the name outside of a scene.

Watching others is permitted, but do so unobtrusively and without staring.

Voyeurs are welcome but must not intrude upon others. Good rules of thumb: maintain a respectful distance, generally at least 15 feet, and do not make eye contact with participants to avoid staring.

If you see something, say something.

Inform GD2 staff immediately if you become aware of any violation of GD2’s policies or if you have concerns about inappropriate conduct.

If you have had an experience with misconduct and have not personally told us about it, or if you know of someone who has had an experience with misconduct and you have not told us about it, please do not assume we are aware of it. We want to know about any and all incidents so we can address them effectively.

GD2 has an open door policy and we rely on you to bring problems to our attention.

GD2 has an open door policy when it comes to reports of problematic behavior. Please let us know about misconduct promptly. The sooner we know about any problems that arise the sooner they can be addressed appropriately.

GD2 staff keeps an eye out for potential problems, but we can’t be everywhere at all times, and we rely on attendees to bring issues to our attention. Reporting problems does NOT make you a snitch or a troublemaker, and you can come to us:

• • If you just want to make us aware.
  • If you want to learn about available resources for help for a specific problem.
  • If you want GD2 to address an issue related to a specific person.

When you report a violation of GD2’s policies or other misconduct, we will listen and take you seriously.

If you come to us with information about a violation of GD2’s policies or other problematic behavior, we will:

• • Provide a safe, private space to discuss the situation, and maintain your confidentiality.
  • Listen to what you have to say and take your concerns seriously. If we ask follow up questions, it is to understand your experience and the issue as fully as possible, not because we doubt you or think you did anything wrong.
  • Provide information about applicable resources for dealing with the problem, if desired.
  • Always take into account your safety and the safety of others, as well as consider your preference, when determining an appropriate response.
  • Staff will bring the issue to GD2’s directors, Foxy and Wilson, to promptly address the situation.  Alternatively, you can contacted them directly.

How to contact us.

You can reach GD2 in the following ways:

• • The contact form on our website. This goes solely to GD2’s Directors.
  • By email at info@galleriadomain.org. This email goes solely to GD2’s Directors.

If you would like to reach one of GD2’s Directors:

• • You can reach Foxy at foxy@galleriadomain.org.
  • You can reach Wilson at wilson@galleriadomain.org.

GD2 deals with allegations of misconduct on a case by case basis.

GD2 directors, Foxy and Wilson will follow up with people who have first hand knowledge of the situation and may otherwise seek out relevant information.

We take many factors into account when taking steps to examine and respond to misconduct.

The factors we consider include, but are not limited to:

• • The specific conduct brought to our attention
  • The people involved, including, where appropriate, prior conduct
  • The safety of and effect on the people involved
  • The needs and preferences of the target of the inappropriate behavior
  • The response of the the accused to the accusations
  • Protecting others from future misconduct by the accused
  • Keeping people safe from similar misconduct by others
  • GD2’s commitment to safeguarding the personal information of our members and attendees
  • GD2’s ability to continue to provide a safe space for our communities

We do NOT alter our approach based on:

• • Someone’s popularity, real or perceived
  • Someone’s standing at GD2 or in the community, real or perceived
  • Whether someone volunteers, works at, hosts an event at, or is any other way affiliated with GD2
  • Rumors, alleged facts or information that is not based on first-hand knowledge or experience

Consequences of misconduct.

GD2 may respond to inappropriate behavior in any of the following ways:

• • Use the situation as a teachable moment to reinforce appropriate standards of conduct
  • Warn someone not to engage in similar behavior again
  • Remove someone from the premises immediately
  • Limit attendance to certain types of events
  • Put someone on probation
  • Suspend membership
  • Terminate membership
  • Ban someone from entering GD2

When taking such actions, the person who engaged in inappropriate behavior will be informed. Where appropriate, we will also inform the person who is the target of misconduct of the specific actions we have taken.

Although we understand that people often wish to know exactly what happened, what we concluded, and what action we have taken regarding a report of misconduct, we do not publicly announce such decisions, in accordance with our privacy policy.