Community Charter: What to Expect in the FreeWorld
A plain-language contract between the FreeWorld community and our leadership
because we all deserve to be safe & free.
Together, we belong.
Table of Contents
1. Ideals
2. Rights & Responsibilities
3. Procedures (Incident Reporting)
4. Instances
5. Promise
1. Ideals
FreeWorld Ideals
This is our guiding principle:
We’re not free until we’re ALL free.
The purpose of government is to protect the vulnerable from the powerful.
“The FreeWorld Ideals” are a list of values which the idealized government & social structure of the free world would embody.
This list exists to serve as a foundational mission statement—a moral & ethical compass for the FreeWorld Initiative & its surrounding collective, community, & activities, writ large.
Anti-kyriarchy
Kyriarchy is any system that relies on oppression to sustain itself. FreeWorld openly & actively works to eliminate & prevent regrowth of such structures.
“Justice over decorum”
Niceness & politeness are tools of oppression. They serve to protect oppressors & oppressive structures, and silence the oppressed.
Order in the absence of justice is oppression; it is moral, kind, and just to disrupt oppressive order.
Zero profit
Profit is stolen wages, wealth generated by workers but given to owners.
Profit feeds greed. Greed drives exploitation. To starve greed, eliminate profit.
Intolerance of intolerance
If tolerance is to prevail, intolerance must be checked & constrained. Intolerant attitudes, when left unchecked, will inevitably wipe out everything but themselves.
Total enfranchisement
Enfranchisement is the act of being set free, and given full rights & privileges of citizenship/social participation. We openly seek such investiture for every person born.
“Scarcity is artificial”
Issues of resource scarcity on earth (and beyond) can all be traced back to problems with distribution & management, not measurable quantity.
It is demonstrable that there is enough of everything for all on earth to have all they could ever use, and to spare.
The only reason anyone anywhere is without anything, is greed.
Radical cooperation
The first sign of civilization was a healed femur. It is through cooperation that individuals’ and societies’ most devastating wounds are healed.
What we’re able to achieve by working together is so much greater than what any or all of us could accomplish alone.
Radical kindness
In the FreeWorld, we are eagerly & radically: generous, helpful, gentle, considerate, caring, patient, and merciful.
Discernment
Bad actors routinely try to hijack the mechanisms that produce peace for us all, to instead hoard wealth and power for themselves.
Wise members & leaders of society will see through these ruses and name them directly as what they are, in full view using plain language.
Harm reduction
There is no ethical consumption under capitalism. Yet our duty remains to minimize or eliminate harm wherever it’s within our power to do so.
“Clean up this mess”
Clean up your own mess. Help your neighbor clean up their mess. Clean up mess in your area that someone else abandoned. If we see mess that’s not supposed to be there, we do our best to clean it up.
***
Each of these concepts represents a blade that strikes directly at the root of oppression in a powerful, lasting way.
We declare that a world without oppression is achievable within this lifetime. The thing we have to do to create it, is decide collectively to do so.
We’re not free until we’re ALL free.
2. Rights & Responsibilities
Every life is precious.
We all, every one of us, come into this world with our own body, nature, and dignity.
That body, nature, and dignity each deserve to be honored and protected, always.
As FreeWorld community members, we:
- protect who we care for, and we care for everyone
- believe survivors & help them remember & recover, until the evidence says to stop
- trust power holders who verify their claims
- ask meaningful questions & receive direct answers
- follow the evidence, wherever it leads
- take responsibility readily & consciously
- embrace vulnerability & frank honesty
- admit & correct mistakes, especially when harm has been caused, regardless of intent
- make room for mercy; everyone comes in the same door
- reject dogma of all kinds; instead, we invite good-faith questions & discussion of all kinds
- put the safety of the vulnerable before comfort of the strong
- hold sacred our duty to protect the vulnerable from harm, with our fullest effort, as well as our memories of those we failed to save
- share freely with those who have less; if there’s enough for one, there’s enough for two
- give power to those who will use it to make our lives better; our leaders serve Us
- stop harm by taking power away from those causing it
As community leaders, we:
- listen to, trust & believe community members, especially the most vulnerable ones
- hold sacred our responsibility to first protect the communities we serve from ourselves, before protecting them from others
- understand our place as part of the community we serve, and accept the power vested in us as the promise of care & protection that it is
3. Procedures / Incident reporting
Believe survivors, notice patterns, move deliberately, follow the evidence
Transformation not exile
Impact before intent, always
You’re responsible for the harm you cause, even if you didn’t mean to cause it
If someone in our community harmed you, please tell us! We, your community leadership, want to know so we can help protect you and do what we can to make the situation safe again, for you and for others.
Steps of reporting process
Reporting process in action looks like
1. Target or advocate makes report to leadership
2. Leadership meet together & review the report record, panel must include: no more than 1/3rd sitting members are men, no more than half are white, at least ¼ are disabled
3. Leadership notify reportee in writing of accusations made, then interview reportee regarding the report, giving reportee ample opportunity to defend themselves
4. Leadership meet again to make & record action plan, including how to meet support needs of target & reporting person, what action against the reportee is appropriate based on all information gathered during investigation, and what restitution requirements are appropriate to set for the reportee
5. Leadership notifies reportee in writing of: results of investigation, actions being taken against them, and restitution requirements, as relevant
6. Reportee accepts terms & complies with restitution requirements, or does not and is suspended fully until they do
Making a report (as a community member)
If you report that someone has harmed you or another community member, leadership will:
- take your report as de facto accurate/true & treat you with gentle kindness
- make a permanent record of your report & provide you with a copy
- accept the report anonymously, if desired
- help you make the report, if requested
- take care at every step to protect your safety & privacy
- permit an advocate/witness of your choice during the reporting process
- ask what action you would like us to take to help you be & feel safe in our areas of influence
- take meaningful action as possible & necessary based on your report to protect you & other community members from future harm
- notify you in writing of actions taken against the person/people you report, if any, as well as any restitution tasks assigned, whether their membership standing changes, and their written answers to the Restitution Questions, if given
Types of harm a member might report that could trigger an investigation:
- harassment, stalking, bullying
- assault, rape
- abuse (pattern of using power dynamic to cause harm)
- breaking trust/confidence
- lying, bearing false witness, defamation (slander, libel)
- dereliction/abandonment/neglect
- theft/property damage
Responding to a report (as leadership)
Harm vs discomfort
Leadership should be keenly aware and on the lookout for those who would attempt to weaponize this reporting process against survivors. Discernment between harm (real, measurable damage) and discomfort (an unpleasant but ultimately benign sensation) is essential to ensure that the vulnerable remain safe from our attempts to help them.
Those with power advantage often mistake their discomfort at being inconvenienced for being more harmful to them than the real injuries they cause, and may even try to fool leadership by playing the victim or preemptively accusing their target of crimes they imagine to be worse than their own; wise leadership will include power dynamic analysis in their investigations to correctly identify & focus on reducing real harm, however they become aware of it.
Creating Permanent Reports
Each permanent report should contain:
- written responses to Report Questions from reporting person
- Power Analysis Worksheets, completed by:
- person reporting
- reportee (person being reported)
- leadership committee
- third party community representative
- all written correspondence with reportee
- written responses to Restitution Questions from reportee, if given
Report Questions – do not begin answering until you’ve read thru all the questions first.
1. What is today’s date?
2. Who is this report about?
3. Who is making this report? Leave blank if anonymous
4. Who was harmed?
5. What happened to them? Focus on describing the harm they experienced, include details like who/what/where/when
6. How was that harm caused? Name specific actions, who took them, whether those actions were part of a pattern, and whether they used a leadership role or power dynamic to engage in the harmful patterns described
7. Optional: use this space to attach, describe, or direct leadership to additional reports, evidence or witnesses, as relevant/desired
8. Is the harm described in #6 still affecting the injured person today? If so, how? Describe symptoms & accommodations they live with that result directly from the harm discussed in this report
9. Have you, the person reporting, tried to address the problem directly with the person causing it? If yes, what happened? If no, is it because there is a likelihood of retaliation? If retaliation is likely, use this space to describe what that you expect that will look like
10.What steps are you taking to protect yourself & those in your care from this person?
11. What actions would you like the leadership & community of FreeWorld to take to help you be and feel safe from further harm?
12.Is there anything else you would like to include in this report, that you have not had the chance to include?
Power Analysis Worksheet
Each completed form should have responses for both the person harmed and the reportee.
Person harmed:
Reportee:
For each question, circle one answer.
What is their race? 1 Black / Indigenous – 2 Brown / Asian / ambiguous – 3 white
Are they a man? 1 No – 2 yes
Are they queer/LGBTQIA2S? 1 Yes – 2 no
Are they disabled? 1 Yes, visibly – 2 yes, invisibly – 3 no
What is their current housing status? 1 Unhoused – 2 housed, with assistance* – 3 housed, independent
Are they food secure? 1 No – 2 yes**
Do they have health insurance? 1 No – 2 yes, technically*** – 3 yes
What is their highest education level? 1 Below high school graduate – 2 high school graduate – 3 college graduate, Associates/Bachelor’s – 4 advanced degree, Master’s/Ph.D.
Total: out of/22
*: assistance includes but is not limited to: direct housing/rent assistance, income-based rate reductions on utilities, having essential bills paid regularly by non-household members, living in a one-income household while not a wage-earner
**: if they receive SNAP benefits/food stamps, or use community services like food banks, they’re not food secure
***: circle this answer if they go without care because of inability to pay despite having insurance including Medicare/Medicaid
How to score: Add up the numbers next to each answer circled.
How to interpret & use results: scores are to be read relative to each other. The person with the lower score has less power. Therefore, more weight and credibility should be given to them, and more scrutiny & responsibility for personal change given to the person with more power as indicated by the higher score. Use the table below to compare multiple results.
Assigning restitution tasks
The purpose of restitution tasks is to give the reportee the opportunity to model for leadership that the FreeWorld community and its members will be safe from them, should they be readmitted.
If they had action taken against them because of problematic behavior, restitution tasks should have them model:
- their newly-acquired mastery of that behavior
- what behavior to expect in its place going forward
- understanding of the harm they caused
- acceptance of responsibility for the actions that caused it and for ensuring that they stop causing the harm
Restitution Questions
When deciding whether a reportee is safe to be readmitted, especially after establishing that they have caused harm (knowingly/intentionally or otherwise), leadership should also have them answer the following questions in writing, and keep a copy of those responses in the permanent report:
1. Who experienced harm?
2. How was that harm caused?
3. Did they experience that harm as part of a pattern? If no, explain how the harm
occurred, and why it is unlikely to happen again. If yes, answer next question.
4. Describe the pattern. How does it keep happening? What would have to be different for the harm to not happen again? How does that relate to you?
5. Is there anything else you’d like to add, that you haven’t had the chance to say?
Care should be taken when assigning tasks to avoid hazing, retribution, deliberate humiliation, shunning, or other dehumanization. The reportee is invited to ask clarifying questions and put right any good-faith misunderstandings. Leadership is directed to move deliberately and with gentle discretion when investigating allegations. Leadership shall not ever misrepresent allegations or evidence, use force to obtain information or answers, or deliberately mislead or unjustly coerce anyone in any other way. Institutions that cannot survive the scrutiny of oversight do not deserve to do so.
Care must also be taken not to cause additional harm when taking reports and actions; everyone involved is a person and community member.
Responding to a report about you (as a reportee)
If someone has reported that you harmed them, leadership will:
- notify you in writing of the accusations made against you
- ensure you have a meaningful opportunity to answer questions/address concerns directly, and respond on record, if desired
- notify you in writing of actions being taken against you, if any
- if action has been taken against you: notify you in writing of the steps necessary to restore your membership standing, and then restore your standing upon your full, good-faith completion of all steps listed
- protect you from retaliation but not from consequences
During investigation, leadership should ask reportees:
1. Is the reporting person telling the truth? How do do you know?
2. If yes, answer all five restitution questions
3. If no, explain your understanding of the situation
4. Complete Power Analysis Worksheet
Failure to cooperate fully with investigations or complete assigned restitution tasks should be taken by leadership as notice of reportee’s disinterest in maintaining their FreeWorld membership
Types of Action
- dismissal: you may be asked to immediately leave a gathering, activity or event, but your formal membership standing is not affected
- suspension: you are temporarily disallowed to participate in certain or all community events & activities, details to be outlined in writing, and pending resolution of an investigation or completion of restitution tasks
- cancellation: your membership is terminated and you are banned from all community events & activities
- re-admittance: your membership and permission to attend and participate in community activities & events is restored
Grounds for action
- unresolved crimes or severe/repeated wrongs against one or more community members
- making a false report to leadership
- failure to complete restitution tasks properly or doing so inadequately, reluctantly or in bad faith
Grounds for re-admittance
- resolution of all pending investigations and full, good-faith completion of all restitution tasks assigned
4. Instances
Whenever & wherever we meet, we connect & build community.
Let the evidence of our presence be growth & healing.
What is a FreeWorld Instance?
Ideally, the “real world” would be governed by a list of principles like the FreeWorld ideals; until that is the case, we will be limited to only the parts of the world we influence directly.
From time to time, we gather from our disparate homes and spend time together living in a world of our own making, where we: work together to protect each other and the vulnerable from those who would use their power to harm us; enjoy being ourselves safely; and celebrate being free at last.
Each time we do this is an “instance” of FreeWorld.
Ideally, on or around the winter solstice (the shortest day of the year), we would gather together to reconnect & hold an all-night bonfire vigil to celebrate the returning of the light and the beginning of a new cycle.
Ideally, we would use this time to connect with & build the community around us/in the area hosting our event, in addition to reconnecting with ourselves & each other.
Ideally, let the itinerary look something like this:
Date of winter solstice: Sat, Dec 21
Thursday: Barn Raising (set up camp), Family Meal (meet & greet meal/mixer), light the Camp Fire
Friday: service project, camp feast & art/music festival
Saturday: “Come As You Are” (morning-after) Brunch, all-night fire & light festival (think “New Year’s Eve warehouse rave/underground speakeasy”)
Sunday: “Continental Breakfast”, Benediction & Camp Fire “containment” (“watch” it go out), strike camp
The purpose of meeting together is to connect, heal, and build.
However and on whatever occasion we meet, let those be the outcome.
5. Promise
Our Promise to Each Other
I will lift thee, and
Thou will lift me, and
Together, we shall ascend