A terminology quibble from the Readercon fiasco

[womzilla]

A "zero tolerance" policy and a "lifetime ban" are completely separate things.

"Zero tolerance" is a type of enforcement--true "zero tolerance" means that if you break the rule, you will receive the punishment, no exceptions. "Lifetime ban" is a definition of a type punishment that is available for those who punish those who violate the policy.

A zero-tolerance policy can have many levels of punishment, based on elements such as specific offense (a "zero-tolerance" rule against possessing weapons could still have different levels of punishment for carrying a knife vs. carrying a suitcase packed with explosives) or repeat offenses. "Zero tolerance" and "lifetime ban" aren't synonyms.

Comments

[smofbabe.livejournal.com]

Admitting that you did the actions does not equal admitting that you are a sexual harasser. And I'm not talking about proof but about levels of behavior and offenses. As I said, reasonable people might disagree. Personally, the scenario in question to me does not rise to the level of an "attack": the person stopped the physical behavior when requested, did not approach the woman alone, and I personally don't class putting your arm around someone (despite being incredibly rude and a clear violation of personal space) as constituting sexual behavior.

I'm not at all meaning to say that the woman in question didn't experience this behavior as harassment, just that objective policies need to define levels of behavior and the relevant punishments based on some stated standards and not subjective reactions, which could occur for a whole host of personal reasons. For example, my reaction and the woman's reaction are both legitimate but vary significantly.

[womzilla.livejournal.com]

Putting your arm around someone, uninvited, probably does not by itself rise to the level of sexual harassment, though it's borderline. And neither does aggressive flirting, by itself. The combination of the aggressive flirting accompanied by repeated physical contact, until told to desist, on the first day, and later, grabbing and proclaiming, "Well, you and I will have a good time!"--that doesn't just speed past my threshold of acceptable behavior, it bumps up against the edges of assault. Genevieve seems to have reacted with fury rather than terror, but man, that's just out there.