[New-imc] -PROPOSAL- for IMC Portland conflict resolution/recertification process

[anna]

From: Anna Kakazu
To: imc-portland at lists.indymedia.org
cc: resolve at lists.indymedia.org,new-imc at lists.indymedia.org
Date: October 11, 2002
Subject: -PROPOSAL- for IMC Portland conflict resolution process

I apologize for taking so long to provide the final revision of this proposal, 
which has been on the agenda since August:

http://lists.indymedia.org/mailman/public/imc-portland/2002-August/002873.html

SUMMARY:  Proposal to verify that IMC Portland is in compliance with the 
standards of all NIMC* membership criteria and NIMC Principles of Unity, as 
outlined in the new-imc documents, and proceed through a recertification 
process for IMC Portland.  The purpose of this proposal is two-fold:  
recertification (or what has also been referred to as an “audit”), and conflict 
resolution.

*note: NIMC =Network of Independent Media Centers, also referred to as 
IMCN=Independent Media Center Network.

BACKGROUND:  Some individuals within IMC Portland feel that there are several  
problems in our functioning as a collective, which have led to an erosion of 
respect, trust, and communication between many members.  Hostility, aggression, 
and personal attacks have been major obstacles in maintaining group functions 
and solidarity.  We would like to move past the hostile atmosphere, and 
concentrate on resolving the major, underlying issues currently facing IMC 
Portland.  To accomplish this, we propose the following:

[1 : FORUM] - Utilize an open, publicly-archived list, where we can engage in a 
discussion on each of the NIMC Principles of Unity and the NIMC Membership 
Criteria, one-by-one, as outlined in:

http://newimc.indymedia.org 

and evaluate how implementation, and/or a formal statement of commitment to 
each of these criteria, will help to resolve particular issues which have 
otherwise continued, with no foreseeable resolution, within IMC Portland.  
These evaluations will then lead to proposals, or recommendations, which will 
be sent on to the IMC Portland General Collective (see (3c), below).  The IMC 
Portland resolve group may also reserve the option to hold in-person meetings 
if it is agreed that such a meeting is necessary or eases the completion of any 
step of the recertification process.  The decision-making method will be the 
same for in-person meetings as it is outlined in [Section 4] for the listserv 
forum.

[2 : MEDIATION] – We request that someone (e.g., from the global imc-resolve 
list) who is willing to act as a neutral mediator, participate in this list. 
Without this mediation in place, we are concerned about the resumption of 
personal or character attacks, or increase in general hostility.  We may also 
request, if needed, a volunteer who is available in the area (or is willing and 
able to travel to the Portland area) to attend as a neutral mediator for any in-
person meetings, if it is possible to do so.

[3 : DECISION-MAKING] – In regards to decision-making, the decisions we 
foresee  being discussed, evaluated, and made on this list include the 
following:

(3a) - choice of which unity or membership criterion (and perhaps a related 
complaint) to deal with at any one time

(3b) - declarations on whether or not IMC Portland presently satisfies the 
individual unity or membership criterion being reviewed

(3c) - recommendations to the full IMC Portland collective regarding actions to 
take in order to satisfy each one of these criteria if it is not presently 
being satisfied.  The recommendations which result from the IMC Portland 
resolve process are not binding, but if the General Collective ultimately 
decides on action, or inaction, which results in not fulfilling the criterion, 
it risks violating NIMC membership criteria.  Any member of the IMC Portland 
collective is, of course, welcome to participate in the list and contribute 
what they can to the conflict resolution and recertification process.

[4 : DECISION-MAKING METHOD] – The Method will be as follows:

(4a) - PROPOSAL + (minimum) 48h deadline + consensus (3/4 supermajority after 
two passes at consensus), to be announced in CAPITALS, and including the date 
of deadline in the subject field of an email to 

(4b), (4c) - PROPOSAL of a (4b) declaration, or a (4c) recommendation, followed 
by FORMAL CONSENSUS with a facilitator. 

The separate levels of the process are:

[level (1) - broad open discussion]

[level (2) - identify all concerns.  Note: solutions and/or validity of 
concerns must NOT be discussed at this stage.]

[level (3) - resolve grouped and/or individual concerns regarding proposal]

Each step will be separated by CALLS FOR CONSENSUS.

The deadline for a CALL FOR CONSENSUS issued at any level listed above, is a 
minimum of 48 hours.  This will encourage and enable people to prepare their 
email messages carefully so that they can remove unintended negative vibes, 
personal attacks, or ambiguity.  The role of facilitator can be rotated, and 
guidelines can be documented for each rotating facilitator to utilize for 
participation in this process.  If the group is proceeding through an in-person 
meeting, all necessary meeting roles should be filled (such as scribe, stacker, 
timekeeper, mood-watcher) to avoid confusion or hostility.

[5 : ROLE and DEFINITION ] – We also request that IMC Portland consider how 
this group’s role (if any) will be defined after the above process has been 
completed, and IMC Portland is considered fully compliant with IMCN  
criteria/principles.  The purpose of this request is solely to avoid the 
effects of hostility and conflict in the future.  The following options can be 
considered:

(Option 1) - Create a permanent committee devoted to resolving conflicts at 
personal,  group, or process levels.

(Option 2) - Create or define an ad-hoc committee which forms as needed to 
resolve conflicts at personal, group, or process levels.

(Option 3) - Create a clear and effective conflict resolution process which can 
be utilized by the General Collective as needed to resolve conflicts at 
personal, group, or process levels.  The conflict resolution group could be 
assigned this task, and send a proposal for a process to the IMC Portland 
General Collective for approval and implementation.

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Comment: Going through all the IMC Principles of Unity + IMC Membership 
Criteria according to the method outlined above could be a long-term 
commitment. However, once we have stepped through the process for some of the 
criteria, enough trust and understanding may develop in order to accelerate and 
streamline the process for the other criteria. Only time and experience will 
show this.

Related documentation:

[Principles of Unity]

1. The Independent Media Center Network (IMCN) is based upon principles of 
equality, decentralization and local autonomy. The IMCN is not derived from 
a centralized bureaucratic process, but from the self-organization of 
autonomous collectives that recognize the importance in developing a union of 
networks.

2. All IMC's consider open exchange of, and open access to information a 
prerequisite to the building of a more free and just society.

[3. All IMC's respect the right of activists who choose not to be photographed 
or filmed.] 

4. All IMC's, based upon the trust of their contributors and readers, shall 
utilize open web based publishing, allowing individuals, groups and 
organizations to express their views, anonymously if desired. **see appendix: 
Open Publishing document (still in proposal phase, at this address: 

http://lists.indymedia.org/mailman/public/imc-communication/2001-
April/001707.html

5. The IMC Network and all local IMC collectives shall be not-for-profit. 

6. All IMC's recognize the importance of process to social change and are 
committed to the development of non-hierarchical and anti-authoritarian 
relationships, from interpersonal relationships to group dynamics. Therefore, 
shall organize themselves collectively and be committed to the principle of 
consensus decision making and the development of a [direct, participatory 
democratic process] that is transparent to its membership.

7. [All IMC's recognize that a prerequisite for participation in the decision 
making process of each local group is the contribution of an individual's labor 
to the group.]

8. All IMC's are committed to caring for one another and our respective 
communities both collectively and as individuals and will promote the sharing 
of resources including knowledge, skills and equipment. 

9. All IMC's shall be committed to the use of free source code, whenever 
possible, in order to develop the digital infrastructure, and to increase the 
independence of the network by not relying on proprietary software.

10. All IMC's shall be committed to the principle of human equality, and shall 
not discriminate, including discrimination based upon race, gender, age, class 
or sexual orientation. Recognizing the vast cultural traditions within the 
network, we are committed to building [diversity] within our localities.


[IMC MEMBERSHIP CRITERIA – DRAFT]

Each IMC and Global Working Group is expected to: 

a. Agree in spirit to the NIMC Mission Statement and Principles of Unity, 

b. Have a committed membership substantial enough to sustain a functional IMC, 

c. Have open and public meetings (no one group can have 
exclusionary "ownership" of an IMC), 

d. Work toward developing a local Mission Statement or Statement of Purpose.  
Network Mission Statement may be adopted or used on an interim basis.

e. Establish and publish an editorial policy which is developed and functions 
through democratic process, and with full transparency, 

f. Agree to the use of Open Publishing as described in the NIMC Editorial 
Policy [editorial collective comments: "We did agree that the term "Open 
Publishing" was one that is still being defined by the Global Network 
Collective, and we would wait and see what the results were before rewriting 
this criteria], 

g. Adopt a decision-making policy that is in alignment with consensus 
principles which include open, transparent and egalitarian processes, 

h. Have a spokesperson(s) willing and capable of participating in the global 
decision making process and meetings as a rotating liaison/representative, with 
a clear understanding of the responsibilities that come with this role, 

i. Participate in the key IMC Network Communication Methods that pertain to the 
health and vitality of the Network and that contribute to the work of the IMC. 
Assure that at least one person from your local IMC participates at any given 
time on the IMC Communications list, 

j. (NOT FINALIZED): Have no official affiliation with any political party, 
state or candidate for office (comments: but individual producers have freedom 
to do whatever they like and local IMCs can "feature" stories about various 
political parties and initiatives), 

k. IMCs shall in no way engage in commercial for-profit enterprises.  [We could 
add: The IMCN is committed to the decommercialization of information and will 
disassociate from any local IMC that decides to become a for profit media 
corporation.] 

l. Display a i² logo on your website and literature. 

m. Include the IMC Network current &Cities List² on your site, preferably on 
the front page. 

[NETWORK MEMBERSHIP]

1. Network Membership is open to any group that accepts the above criteria for 
membership. In the case of several requests from the same city or region, we 
will encourage them to meet and work together. 

2. Network Membership in the NIMC will be confirmed by the New IMC Working 
Group, which is accountable to IMC-Process and ultimately to the NIMC decision-
making process. 
            
DEFINING OUR TERMS: For clarity and precision, we need to define our terms more 
carefully so there is less room for misunderstanding.  Also explains how we as 
a culture (the IMC culture) use these terms. 

* NIMC = Network of Independent Media Centers 

* Open = means that diverse people and groups are welcome to attend and that no 
attempt is made to exclude people based on their sex, race, gender, class, age, 
ability or religion. 

* Official affiliation = still being worked on 

* IMC Network Communication Methods = international email lists,  IRC 
discussions and logs, phone calls and conference calls, and face-to-face 
meetings. 

* Local version = acknowledges the many variations of the name and the logo 
that will occur depending on the language and culture of the local IMC.