Safety & Access

Here you can find our access and safety protocol, additional information is in our code of conduct 

Our Safety & Access coordinator (Kelly Hume) will be around all weekend, along with a team of excellent individuals that are here for your support. They will be identified by LED arm bands. We will point them out to you during announcements.

Please stay home if you are feeling sick!

  • We care about everyone’s access, health and safety. Please help us keep each other safe. 
  • If you are sick, send us a doctor’s note or proof of a positive test result and we will refund you in full. 
  • While at the dances, wash your hands frequently and use hand sanitizer.

Food and Water

We know dancing can take a lot out of you, and we want you to stay hydrated. Throughout the event a water station will be available near the front. Please bring a water bottle to refill! We will also have plenty of snacks available. Feel free to bring your own snacks and water as well.

For ease of access, we have put together a list of local food and grocery options that are near the venue.

Photography

There will be a photographer for a portion of our event. Wristbands will be available for those who do not want to be photographed. Do not post or tag photos of others without consent, even if they are in the background of your shot.

Decompression Room

For our Clubhouse venue there will be a decompression room in the basement of the building. At Lila Studio, this space will be the back room on the other side of the dance floor. This is a quieter and comfier place that is closed off from the rest of the dance. This room is not for socializing or dancing. It is a space for those who need a break to have a calm place to rejuvenate.

  • Please keep talking to a minimum, and in a quieter tone when you do. If you need to talk something through in a more private space, or if you need to decompress (including crying) in a way that’s loud, an event organizer can help you find somewhere to go.
  • Please use this space in a way that makes sense to you and your self-care needs. That might look like stretching, pacing, stimming, knitting, rocking, being very still, zoning out with your headphones on, etc. Please let others use the space in ways that make sense to them also.
  • Doing self care sometimes means time to yourself. Respect others’ boundaries, and only engage with others if they give clear consent to do so. 
  • If someone appears to be in significant distress, you can ask them if they need water, a tissue, a friend, a hug etc., or you can let a member of the access and safety team know.
  • You are welcome to cuddle consensually in this space, but please keep interactions platonic, and with the intention of self/community care.
  • Keep lighting low (no overhead lights).
  • You are welcome to use quiet fidget toys and other comfort items in the space.

First Aid

We will have designated CPR and First Aid certified individuals at the event. We will have a first aid kit as well as other necessary emergency products (Menstrual products, safety pins, hair ties, deodorant, etc.). Please don’t hesitate to ask an Access and Safety team member if you need something.

Reporting

While we aim to make our own observations and interventions, we also learn about safety and access needs through reports. These can be collected online or in person, but should only be collected/read by trained and designated members of the safety and access team. Someone making a report in person should be offered a private space, with the option to bring a friend for support.

Safety offenses at an event include dance-floor violations of consent or physical safety, social, interpersonal, or cultural concerns at an event, or major incidents inside or outside of the event. A range of interventions might be offered based on the nature of the offense; whether it is persistent, severe, or occurs after feedback; how it impacts the community etc.

Types of intervention might include:

  • Boundary setting around behavior, through conversation or written guide
  • Additional monitoring
  • Suspension or removal
  • Mediated restorative conversations

Our goal with interventions is not to determine truth or assign guilt, but to establish the safety of attendees. We cannot always make judgments about the validity of someone’s stated actions or intentions, but we can and will make space to hear people’s own interpretations of what happened.

You may report anything you think we should know, and can do so anonymously by filling out our online Form 

Intervention Practices

Only trained and designated safety and access team members should offer interventions, and any intervention beyond a boundary-setting conversation should be approved by the key event leads. Harmed parties and their close friends/partners etc. should not lead or make major decisions about intervention procedure. 

Interventions should be grounded in observable behavior whenever possible. This could include facts like: “we have received a complaint,” or “I saw your dance partner wince after dancing with you.” Intervention participants should be allowed to receive this information in private, with the option of a friend for emotional support. They should be allowed to provide their own explanation for the issues observed/reported, as far as this is possible without violating confidentiality or consent.