Meeting
Safety
(October 24, 2006)
In
order
to make our meetings a safe place for everyone to explore the topics we
present, we have some requirements concerning mutual respect while
you're here.
One term we
use here is "at choice." That means that you can choose to participate
or "opt out" of whatever we're doing here at any time. You can simply
decline to participate or walk out of the room, to take a break, if you
wish. By the same token, please feel free to speak or not speak during
the sharing times. It is important to us that you honor your own
personal needs.
And along
with that comes a respect for the boundaries of the other people here.
That means a basic level of respect for each other and asking
permission before making any physical contact, no matter how benign it
may seem.
And it means
that if someone asks you for something or to do something that you
would rather not give or do, then we encourage you to decline, even if
you only feel unsure. That is, unless your answer is a clear 'yes',
then we're asking you to say 'no.'
If you are in
a position where it's hard for you to hold your boundaries or it's hard
to decide what to do or what you want in any given situation, or you're
having a problem with the presentation or what you're being asked to do
by the presenters, or especially if someone else is not respecting your
wishes, or if you have any other need, then we the members of the core
group are here to help you, at any time, no matter what else is going
on. If you want some assistance from us, then please raise your your
hand to get the attention of one of us and that person will come to
you. Please make sure your raised hand is seen by that person.
Also, we
ask that you agree to protect the privacy of everyone here and to share
only your own personal experiences with anyone who is not now in this
room. In other words, we ask that you agree to not disclose the names
or descriptions of anyone else here.
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