Member Group Guidelines

As a benefit of one’s membership, all Atheists for Liberty members are able to join our Facebook Members group and Discord server where we foster community, organize activists, and host online events. Below are Social Media guidelines, each split into various sections for all types of members and supporters ranging from Nonbelievers all the way to State Directors, Moderators, and Staff.

Section 1: General Principles of Conduct

  1. Attempt decorum.
    • Content posted in groups or pages owned and operated by Atheists for Liberty should further discussion. While it is understandable that not all people will agree, the members should make every effort to engage in amicable discourse. 
  2. Stay on topic, when applicable.
    • Atheists for Liberty pages and channels are for intriguing discourse and are often designated explicitly for specific topics. Try to keep comments and posts appropriate to the venue.
  3. Do not post drama concerning other members.
    • Atheists for Liberty pages and channels are a place for community activities and intriguing dialogue. They are not the place to foment petty drama. Any personal grievances or vendettas amongst members are to be pursued via alternative venues. In short: take it outside.
  4. Respect the privacy of the members.
    • We are all on the same team. To share screenshots of conversations undertaken within the assumed privacy of avenues of communication such as DMs, discord discussion channels, etc., is to betray the trust of all individuals involved, and to potentially undermine our operations.
  5. No blocking Moderators, Staff, State Directors, or Volunteers.
    • The entire function of the staff is to manage the operations of the organization. The continued functionality of the organization depends upon communications between staff and the membership body. When members block staff, business operations are impeded. If there is a problem with any staff members, privately consult other staff members for assistance.
  6. Expect disagreement.
    • When posting or commenting about any contentious topic or topics, especially topics that don’t relate to Atheists for Liberty or its mission and values, all members should be fully prepared to have their views challenged.
  7. Make an effort to resolve conflicts peaceably. If interpersonal conflict resolution fails, and if the dispute demonstrably entails a violation of these guidelines, privately bring the issue up to a moderator.
    • If there is an issue with a particular member, please notify staff in a private fashion so that they can assist in the resolution of the problem.
    • Not all conflicts and disputes within persons constitute rules violations. In such cases, it is advisable that the participants involved realize that their differences are irreconcilable, and find a way to accept that fact.

 

Section 2: Volunteers and State Directors

  1. No blocking any member of the organization.
    • To volunteer for any role within the organization is to willingly take on the responsibility of working as a team member. It is to implicitly agree to work with the other members of the team. Since the function of the positions of volunteers and officers is to further the goals of the movement, no volunteer, officer, or any other individual working within any capacity in a position of trust within the organization will block any other such individual.
    • Furthermore, since volunteers are responsible for putting into action the value provided by donors, volunteers are hereby prohibited from blocking any paying member of the organization at all.
  2. Maintain professionalism and cordiality.
    • Volunteers, staff, and anyone else within a position of trust are members of a team. As team members, they must be willing to work with one another. As such, those who are serving within such roles will do what is possible to foster an environment of professional cordiality amongst fellow staff. At a minimum, establish healthy working relationships with your fellow staff members.

 

Section 3: Moderator Conduct

  1. Foster dialogue.
    • All members are entitled to criticize whatever ideas they disagree with. No censorship of any member’s posts on the basis of dissenting ideas will be tolerated. Members should make every effort to clarify and defend their stances rather than trying to shut down debate.
  2. Be open to feedback.
    • All members are entitled to offer constructive criticism towards the leadership of Atheists for Liberty. Feedback is welcome.
  3. Do not target posts and comments purely on the basis of profanity.
    • Certain words and phrases are not necessarily pleasing to everyone. However, to moderate based upon sensitivities is to censor based upon nothing of import. Moderators will not remove content purely on the basis of vulgarity. Profanity of all types is explicitly permitted. Moderators will, however, attempt to do what they can to encourage positive dialogue.
  4. Do not target posts and comments solely on the basis of insults or perceived insults.
    • Sometimes, communications break down to such an extent that members will hurl insults at one another rather than engage in respectful dialogue. Insults alone are not sufficient cause for moderator intervention, and there are circumstances in which a statement perceived as insulting is in fact true. 
    • On the other hand, when it is abundantly clear that a member is deliberately and maliciously trying to instigate or exacerbate drama between members, it behooves the moderator to intervene.
    • Moderators should try, whenever possible, to guide the conversation back to a state of decorum. 
  5. Notify the member when conduct is removed.
    • No content posted by any member will be removed without notification of the member either before or after said content is removed. This is to ensure transparency in the process.
  6. Be professional.
    • Moderators, while engaging in the act of moderation, shall make every effort to maintain professionalism and decorum. Moderators shall not, whilst performing duties relevant to their capacity as moderators, deride, insult, or belittle any member. Every effort shall be made to resolve conflicts with de-escalation in mind.
  7. Attempt objectivity in adjudication.
    • Moderators are not to make decisions based upon personal preference or dislike of any particular member. Moderators will settle disputes in a disinterested manner, based on whether or not behaviors did in fact constitute a breach of the guidelines of conduct.
  8. The items in this list are not to be interpreted as exhaustive or comprehensive. 
    • Moderators, and anyone else with power within the organization, must endeavor to maintain the highest ethical standards in their conduct. They will be expected to reflect the values and guidelines of the organization by their example as they perform their duties. And when they intervene, the end goal will always be the achievement of group cohesion and esprit de corps.

 

Section 4: Right of Association

  1. Just as individual members are free to associate or disassociate with the Atheists for Liberty, so too is the organization free to associate or disassociate with any member whose conduct can be rationally deemed to be irreparably disruptive to the organization’s operations, fundamentally inimical to the core values of the organization, and/or hostile to the cause of Liberty. 
  2. Due to the aforementioned freedom, any participation in the use of pages, channels, and other avenues of communication owned and operated by Atheists for Liberty constitutes consent to abide by these rules. Violation of these rules may result in deletion of content, repeated violation of these rules may result in a ban. You are free to engage in prohibited behaviors somewhere else.
  3. These rules will not be construed to impute upon the organization a responsibility to regulate behavior conducted via venues other than those owned and operated by the organization. 

 

As the organization progresses into the future this page could be modified