We all want to have fun and feel supported, but we all need to agree on some ground rules--all members need to be able to have a good time without drama and to accomplish that we need agree on what behavior is acceptable or unacceptable.
NO drama - LGBT groups have a bad reputation (somewhat deserved) for being full of over-dramatic people looking to cause trouble. If you find you are unable to attend events without causing or perpetuating drama, then you may find the group voting to remove you from our ranks and you will no longer be invited to events.
NO bullying - Not only homophobes are bullies, and bullying doesn't stop automatically at any certain age. Bullying can include namecalling, gossiping and creating rumors, sending unsolicited messages, picking on an individual's physical or racial features, and/or unsolicited criticism.
NO hook-ups - The purpose of this group is to create a safe and supportive environment for LGBT students, not to find your next date or sexual partner. While it is somewhat inevitable that members may find themselves interested in one another, we ask that your intent in joining be related to your need for supportive friends and classmates, not lovers. Should you find yourself in a relationship with another member, consider yourself preemptively warned against involving the group in any relationship drama.
NO cliques - While it is natural to feel closer to some people than to others, it is unacceptable to try and form groups merely to exclude others which you feel are undesirable.
NO internalized homophobia - Some of our members may be younger than others and less comfortable with or questioning their sexuality and some of our members may be straight allies; while we recognize this, we cannot and will not accept, perpetuate, or encourage people to feel that they should ever have to hide who they are.
Any violation of these rules observed by any member will be handled immediately by the group as a whole. Handling matters in this way will enable us to eliminate rumors and unnecessary gossip. A member accused of violating these rules may be subject to a vote by members on whether or not they remain in the group. Either a majority of the group or a unanimous vote by the core group agreeing that the member in violation be banned will result in the former member being banned from event attendance. In the event that the member has violated more than once or accused of breaking the rules by five or more members, they will be on probation and any further breach of these rules will result in immediate banning from all HangOUT events.
