Code of Conduct for Toronto Cocktail Conference
subject to refinement and expansion in the future.
Last updated August 11th, 2024.
Toronto Cocktail Conference is committed to a creative, participatory, local, safer and inclusive experience for all our community members, staff, volunteers, vendors and neighbours.
Toronto Cocktail Conference is dedicated to a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, or religion. All patrons, staff, vendors and volunteers are expected to comply with this code of conduct to ensure a safer and welcoming environment for all people from our diverse communities.
We do not tolerate harassment of any kind, of organizers, attendees, volunteers or staff in any form. All persons must use due care under the circumstances to comply with all rules, regulations, statutes, and laws of the province of Ontario and staff.
Anti-harassment and sexual violence policy
Harassment includes offensive verbal comments (related to gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race and religion), sexual images in public spaces, deliberate intimidation, stalking, following, harassing photography or recording, sustained disruption of talks or other events, inappropriate physical contact, and unwelcome sexual attention.
Harassment includes, but is not limited to:
Offensive, derogatory, threatening, aggressive, or silencing comments (related to gender, gender identity + expression, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, age, language, body size, race, ethnicity, nationality, religion, socioeconomic standing, or otherwise).
Unwelcome comments regarding a person’s lifestyle choices and practices, including those related to food, health, parenting, drugs, and employment.
Deliberate misgendering or use of ‘dead’ or rejected names.
Gratuitous or off-topic sexual images or behaviour in spaces where they’re not appropriate.
Physical contact and simulated physical contact (eg, textual descriptions like “*hug*” or “*backrub*”) without consent or after a request to stop.
Threats of violence.
Incitement of violence towards any individual, including encouraging a person to harm themselves or others.
Deliberate intimidation.
Harassing photography or recording, monitoring of activity
Sustained disruption of discussion, disruption of events, programs, or space functionality
Unwelcome sexual attention.
Pattern of inappropriate social contact, such as requesting/assuming inappropriate levels of intimacy with others.
Continued one-on-one communication after requests to cease.
Deliberate “outing” of any aspect of a person’s identity without their consent
Publication of private communication.
Violence, intimidation, stalking, cyber-stalking, or unwanted following of a person
Persistent, abusive, and non-constructive criticism regarding any project(s) any participant may show during an event, or program.
Persistent micro-aggressions in the form of comments, jokes, questions or otherwise.
Inappropriate physical contact without consent.
Sexually demeaning imagery that is not contextualized within an art practice or critique.
Advocating or encouraging any of the above behavior.
If a participant engages in harassing behavior, depending on the nature of the complaint and the extent of the harm, the person engaging in that harm may be:
–Asked to stop the behaviour immediately
-Time away from the space and event
-Zero tolerance- removed or no longer welcome because of their actions or harm that was caused
Toronto Cocktail Conference may seek the counsel and support of external consultants, educators, community leaders, support persons, mediation experts in the facilitation of conflict resolution, complaint investigations and healing/restorative work between our staff, members and other stakeholders.
If someone makes you or anyone else feel unsafe or unwelcome, please report it as soon as possible. Harassment and other code of conduct violations reduce the value of our spaces and events for everyone.
We want you to feel safer here.
We understand that speaking about the harm we’ve experienced is difficult and often traumatizing. We strive to honour those who come forward.
Anonymous Report
You can make an anonymous by filling out the form found on our website HERE. We can’t follow up on an anonymous report with you directly, but we will fully investigate it and take whatever action is necessary to prevent a recurrence.
Formal Report
You can make a personal report by:
Contacting: Jess, Gord or Josh, the organisers of Toronto Cocktail Conference, by finding us in person at the conference or by contacting a Trash Panda (TOCC volunteer) or staff member of The Drake Hotel who will have direct contact with those organisers listed. You can also email Toronto Cocktail Conference at torontococktailconference@gmail.com.
If you need emergency or crisis support please contact a member of Toronto Cocktail Conference or call 911.
When reporting formally in person, our staff will ensure you are safe and cannot be overheard. We will ask you to tell us about what happened and make sure to document this in a way that works for you.
The Toronto Cocktail Conference team will also help you connect with third party resources and supports including options for free counselling, support groups, mental health services and sexual assault supports.
Toronto Cocktail Conference vendors or partners violating these rules may be sanctioned or expelled from the conference without a refund, at the discretion of the festival organizers. Speakers, exhibitors, sponsor or vendor booths, or similar activities are also subject to this code of conduct.
All our vendors and operators and sponsors and ticket holders agree to our code of conduct for the conference, if a community member, staff or other vendor makes a complaint against you we will proceed with the following potential outcomes:
- A written letter of apology
- Removal from the conference
We appreciate and value your attendance. PLEASE READ CAREFULLY: BY PARTICIPATING IN THE TORONTO COCKTAIL CONFERENCE, YOU ARE EXPECTED TO COMPLY WITH THIS POLICY OF CONDUCT TO ENSURE A SAFER AND WELCOMING ENVIRONMENT FOR ALL IN ATTENDANCE AT THE CONFERENCE OR CONFERENCE-RELATED SOCIAL EVENTS.