[Lingtyp] ALT: code of conduct

Wed Nov 22 05:42:27 UTC 2017

Dear all,

just weighing in very briefly. I am very happy to be a member of this
community and have benefitted greatly from less heated and less politicised
discussions. Having said that, I just wanted to add: Many people have never
felt safe at a conference because of their skin color, cultural background,
disability, gender, sexual orientation and similar aspects of identity as
it says in the proposed code.

If you have felt safe and at home so far, that is your privilege. And yes,
agreeing to a Code of Conduct might mean giving up some of that privilege
and taking a leap of faith that it will be handled responsibly. There have
been productive discussions about what exactly a CoC should look like and
some good results, but there is never going to be a completely fool-proof
version. I would like to ask us, who have been enjoying considerable
privilege (first person plural inclusive), to take a leap of faith, so that
everyone can enjoy a certain level of comfort and safety.

Best,
Kilu

On Wed, Nov 22, 2017 at 3:02 AM, Dan I. SLOBIN <slobin at berkeley.edu> wrote:

> Nice.  I would sign that too.
>
> Dan
>
> On Mon, Nov 20, 2017 at 11:13 PM, Giorgio Francesco Arcodia <
> giorgio.arcodia at unimib.it> wrote:
>
>> In reply to Hedvig: Martin H. actually did propose an alternative, I'll
>> paste it here:
>>
>> Conference participants will:
>>
>>    - treat fellow participants, students, volunteers, and any other
>>    members of the public with respect, dignity, impartiality, courtesy and
>>    sensitivity;
>>    - maintain a cooperative and collaborative approach to inter-personal
>>    relationships;
>>    - respect the privacy of others;
>>    - ensure that they do not become involved in or encourage
>>    discrimination against or harassment of participants, students, volunteers,
>>    or any other members of the public.
>>
>>
>> I think this is a very reasonable proposal, and I would support it.
>>
>> Best,
>>
>> Giorgio
>>
>>
>>
>> On 21 Nov 2017 01:48, "Maia Ponsonnet" <maia.ponsonnet at uwa.edu.au> wrote:
>>
>> Dear all,
>>
>>
>> I am writing to rectify the gender imbalance on this list, where
>> most conversations including this one seem to be male dominated ;-).
>>
>>
>> I am a woman and those of you who know me (even just as FB friends for
>> that matter) know that I care and am vocal about gender (im)balance.
>>
>>
>> This is precisely why myself and my colleague Gwen Hyslop, who I am just
>> discussing the matter with, *are voting NO to the code of conduct*.
>>
>>
>> While we agree that there is a need for awareness, the "trend" imposed by
>> such actions can only, in our opinion, be detrimental to interpersonal
>> relationships and to gender balance in particular.
>>
>> The reasons are multiple and complex, and I am not prepared to discuss
>> them on this list. I will be happy to discuss them in private (and
>> preferably face to face) if appropriate.
>>
>>
>>
>> With best regards,
>>
>> Maïa & Gwen
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Dr Maïa Ponsonnet
>> Senior Lecturer in Linguistics
>> ARC Discovery Early Career Researcher Fellow
>>
>>
>> Social Sciences Building, Room 2.47
>> Faculty of Arts, Business, Law and Education
>> The University of Western Australia
>> 35 Stirling Hwy, Perth, WA (6009), Australia
>> P.  +61 (0) 8 6488 2870 <+61%208%206488%202870> - M.  +61 (0) 468 571 030
>> <+61%20468%20571%20030>
>>
>>
>>
>> ------------------------------
>> *From:* Lingtyp <lingtyp-bounces at listserv.linguistlist.org> on behalf of
>> David Gil <gil at shh.mpg.de>
>> *Sent:* Tuesday, 21 November 2017 8:34 AM
>>
>> *To:* lingtyp at listserv.linguistlist.org
>> *Subject:* Re: [Lingtyp] ALT: code of conduct
>>
>> Having said my bit I was hoping not to have to add to the discussion,
>> but I feel the need to counter two lines of rhetoric that seem to have
>> emerged.  (I do so without offering actual citations because I think it
>> is important to maintain a civilized conversation devoid of ad hominem
>> remarks.)
>>
>> First, I am uncomfortable with the implication that there is a job to be
>> done and that this is somehow being "derailed" by too much discussion.
>> The debate is precisely on what should be done, what is ethical and what
>> is practical.  If we're to invoke train metaphors, then I would counter
>> by saying that we must avoid being railroaded into one very specific way
>> of going about addressing the problem. Which leads into ...
>>
>> Secondly, and perhaps more cogently, I am very uncomfortable with the
>> implication that people who support the code of ethics somehow take the
>> issues more seriously than those who are opposed to it. I suspect most
>> ALT members would agree that we are in a gender-based conflict involving
>> multiple levels of aggression, coercion and violence, mostly if not
>> exclusively waged by men against women. And that we desperately need to
>> do something about it.  The debate is over the methods, and it is a
>> legitimate debate.  Just is it is possible to argue over the
>> justification of the WWII carpet bombing of Dresden without being
>> accused of harbouring Nazi sympathies, so it should be possible to
>> criticize the proposed ALT code of ethics without being suspected of
>> lacking sympathy or understanding for the struggles that are faced by
>> women.
>>
>> David
>>
>> --
>> David Gil
>>
>> Department of Linguistic and Cultural Evolution
>> Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History
>> Kahlaische Strasse 10, 07745 Jena, Germany
>>
>> Email: gil at shh.mpg.de
>> Office Phone (Germany): +49-3641686834 <+49%203641%20686834>
>> Mobile Phone (Indonesia): +62-81281162816 <+62%20812-8116-2816>
>>
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>
>
> --
>
> *<><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> *
>
> *Dan I. Slobin *
>
> *Professor Emeritus of Psychology and Linguistics*
>
> *University of California, Berkeley*
>
> *email: slobin at berkeley.edu <slobin at berkeley.edu>*
>
> *address: 2323 Rose St., Berkeley, CA 94708*
>
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> <http://ihd.berkeley.edu/members.htm#slobin>*
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