Stonewall Sports DC (the “Chapter”) considers bullying unacceptable and it will not be tolerated. Additionally, the bullying of non-members attending Chapter  events, including volunteers and spectators, is prohibited.  Any members found violating this policy will be disciplined, up to and including expulsion from the Chapter.

The Chapter defines bullying as persistent, malicious, unwelcome, severe and pervasive mistreatment that harms, intimidates, offends, degrades or humiliates a member, whether verbal, physical, online, or otherwise, at Chapter-sponsored events or spaces. The Chapter promotes a safe athletic and social culture where all members can join in an environment free of bullying behavior.

The Chapter encourages all members to report any instance of bullying behavior to the Director, Diversity, Equity + Inclusion through the Chapter’s designated reporting process. Reports of this type will be treated seriously, investigated promptly and impartially, and necessary corrective or disciplinary action will be taken. The Chapter will protect any participant who reports bullying conduct from retaliation or reprisal.

The Chapter considers the following types of behavior to constitute bullying. Please note, this list is not meant to be exhaustive and is only offered by way of example:

• Verbal or written bullying: Slandering, ridiculing, or maligning a person or their family; persistent name calling that is hurtful, insulting or humiliating; using a person as the butt of jokes; abusive and offensive remarks; intentionally misgendering another person.
• Physical bullying: Pushing, shoving, kicking, poking, tripping, assault, or threat of physical assault; damage to a person’s property.
• Gesture bullying: Nonverbal threatening gestures or glances that convey threatening messages.
• Exclusion: Socially or physically excluding or disregarding a person in Chapter-related activities.

As a volunteer-run organization, we rely on members of the community to volunteer as sport leaders and referees during games. As such, we consider the bullying of volunteers to be particularly egregious.  Any attempt to intimidate these volunteers will result in disciplinary action, including possible expulsion from the Chapter.