Not in Our House D.C. (http://notinourhousedc.wixsite.com/notinourhousedc) is an ongoing community project to develop a standard of safety in D.C. theatre, addressing sexual harassment and other abuse in the community. The project is informed and inspired by the work of the non-profit based in Chicago, Not in Our House (http://www.notinourhouse.org.).
Not in Our House D.C. is developing to serve the specific needs of our local community. Not in Our House D.C. has no spokesperson, leader, or limited group of members, this is a community project.
If you would like to be involved in the creation of the code of conduct, educational workshops, and invited to events, please e-mail notinourhouseDC@gmail.com and request to have your name included in the mailing list.
Next Meeting for Not In Our House D.C
Diversity & Inclusion Discussion: Tuesday, November 27, 6:30-9:30pm at Woolly Mammoth (641 D Street NW)
Posted June 2018 on the Not In Our House D.C. Facebook:
Not In Our House D.C. (NIOHDC) is in solidarity with victims and survivors of sexual harassment, abuse, and intimidation. We believe that the vibrant Washington, D.C./Maryland/Virginia theatre community should be a space of inclusion and fairness in which everyone involved is treated with respect, dignity, and honesty regardless of position. When the emotional or physical safety of any one of our community members is threatened through abuses of power, harassment, or assault, we all suffer.
We believe we have an obligation to one another that extends beyond our personal individual needs. To that end, NIOHDC is working to draft a community Code of Conduct that will outline simple practices and tools to prevent and respond to everyday challenges in arts environments. Some of those practices and tools include suggestions for (1) reporting damaging or dangerous behavior whether during or outside of a production, (2) addressing toxic working environments, and (3) developing common language. The overriding tenets of this Code of Conduct are: communication, safety, respect, and accountability.
Because a Code of Conduct may not be enough to address the systemic issues in our industry, NIOHDC is also exploring the potential community benefits of future programming such as:
• Town halls and teach-ins to share information about best practices and other community needs.
• Training sessions around building rehearsal room culture and consent processes.
• A facilitator program for victims and survivors of harassment, abuse, or safety violations.
We welcome any and all input into these ideas. Anyone interested in learning more about NIOHDC or joining our work is welcome to sign up for notices about upcoming meetings by emailing NotInOurHouseDC@gmail.com, following our Facebook page, or tweeting at us at @NotInOurHouseDC. All NIOHDC meetings are open to the public.
We believe in our theatre community. We vow to create the culture we deserve. We will not tolerate abuse in our house.
#NIOHDC #NIOH #NoMore #MeToo #TimesUp
Signed,
Not In Our House members Dane Figueroa Edidi, Allyson Harkey, Amy Kellett, Laley Lippard, Lindsey Morris, Joseph W. Ritsch, Erika Rose, and Deb Sivigny
Please find videos on the Not In Our House D.C. Facebook page of the first town hall meeting of Not In Our House D.C. which took place on January 29th, 2018.