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FurcoNZ Exclusion Policy

The FurcoNZ staff can choose to exclude any individual from FurcoNZ, ahead of or during the event.

The FurcoNZ team endeavours to follow this policy whenever possible to ensure maximum transparency. However, FurcoNZ reserves the right to use any criteria, public or private, as deemed necessary by the team, as well as to amend this policy whenever required.

Details of any exclusions or restrictions may be private to the individuals involved, so we are not able to comment on the vast majority of decisions.

Exclusions and Restrictions are always a group decision of the FurcoNZ core staff, except in emergency situations where interim decisions may be made pending referral to the full group.

Process

Ahead of the Event

Any complaints, originating from FurcoNZ staff, other attendees, members of the public, other furry events, or any other source are passed firstly to a member of FurcoNZ Staff. If they believe there is any merit to the complaint, it is passed to the full FurcoNZ Staff Team for discussion.

FurcoNZ Staff may then request further information from the complainant, the relevant attendee, or any other individuals. This process will endeavour to protect the privacy of both the complainant and the relevant attendee as much as possible.

FurcoNZ Staff will meet and discuss the information provided in accordance with this policy, and make an interim decision.

If an exclusion, restriction, or warning is justified, the interim decision will be communicated to the relevant attendee and they will be permitted to make a response.

The response will be discussed by FurcoNZ staff and a final decision made.

At the Event

Any complaints, originating from FurcoNZ staff, other attendees, members of the public, venue staff, or any other source are passed firstly to a member of FurcoNZ Staff. The complaint is brought to the attention of the Head of Security, Con Chair, and optionally other Staff as soon as practicable.

FurcoNZ Staff may then request further information from any other person, including speaking to the complainant and/or the relevant attendee.

If an exclusion, restriction, or warning is justified, the interim decision will be communicated to the relevant attendee and they will be permitted to make a response. The response will be discussed by FurcoNZ staff and a final decision made.

Exclusions or restrictions made at any event will only be relevant for the event itself, unless otherwise reconfirmed by the full FurcoNZ Staff ahead of any future events. Warnings made at any event will be permanent.

Definitions

“Risk” includes any risk (real, genuinely perceived, or genuinely expected), as identified by FurcoNZ staff or brought to our attention from any other sources. “Other Person” includes any attendee, staff member, employee, contractor, visitor, group member, or other individual at the discretion of Staff.

Exclusions

Exclusions are the process by which a potential attendee is determined to not be allowed to attend one or more FurcoNZ events, or to participate in one or more of FurcoNZ’s online spaces.

Attendees who are Excluded will not be allowed to register for the event, and if they have already registered and are excluded prior to the event they will be fully refunded. Attendees excluded during the event itself will generally not be entitled to any refund and will be required to immediately leave the venue.

The following critera can make an attendee eligible to be excluded (at the discretion of FurcoNZ Staff):

  • The attendee poses a significant risk to the physical safety of any other person.
  • The attendee poses a significant risk to themselves.
  • The attendee poses a significant risk to the mental health of any other person.
  • The attendee may cause (or has caused) damage to FurcoNZ reputation (within the Furry community or otherwise), or there is a significant risk of such damage.
  • The attendee poses a significant risk of breaching the FurcoNZ code of conduct at a FurcoNZ event, gathering, or online space.
  • The attendee has previously breached the FurcoNZ Code of Conduct, Terms and Conditions, or other policies at a FurcoNZ event, gathering, or online space.
  • The attendee has previously breached the Code of Conduct, Terms and Conditions, or other policies of another Furry convention or event, and that conduct would also breach FurcoNZ Code of Conduct, Terms and Conditions, or other policies had the behavior have occured here.
  • A court order restricts the Attendee’s ability to attend, or would impose restrictions on FurcoNZ staff in delivering the event with the Attendee present, or would restrict any other person from attending alongside the Attendee.
  • The attendee has previously been convicted of any offence of a sexual nature, or any violent or non-violent offence against children or vulnerable people.
  • The attendee has previously initiated legal or other formal proceedings against FurcoNZ (including any of it’s owners, agents, or staff), except where a legal decision prevents this.

Restrictions

Restrictions are the process by which we put in place additional terms, caveats, limits, or rules on any attendee in order to manage potential risks. Examples include requiring an attendee maintains zero contact with another person or a class of people, or requiring specific testing such as alcohol, drugs, COVID, or similar.

Attendees who are Restricted will be allowed to register for the event, but may be required to sign or agree to additional terms. If they decline these restrictions and have already registered, they will be fully refunded. Restrictions will only be added during the event in the case of breaches of code of conduct. If the attendee refuses to agree to these restrictions they will generally not be entitled to any refund and will be required to immediately leave the venue.

The following critera can make an attendee eligible to be restricted (at the discretion of FurcoNZ Staff):

  • The attendee poses a perceived risk to the physical safety of any other person, and this does not meet the proof or certainty requirement for an Exclusion.
  • The attendee poses a perceived risk to the mental health of any other person, and this does not meet the proof or certainty requirement for an Exclusion.
  • The attendee has had previous incidents or infractions relating to drugs, alcohol, violence, or conduct at a FurcoNZ event.
  • The attendee is the subject of a Restraining Order, Protection Order, or Non-Contact Order in New Zealand, Australia, or their home country and the protected party of such an order is likely to attend FurcoNZ.
  • The attendee has previously breached the FurcoNZ code of conduct at a FurcoNZ event, gathering, or online space.
  • The attendee has previously breached the Code of Conduct, Terms and Conditions, or other policies of another Furry convention or event, and that conduct would also breach FurcoNZ Code of Conduct, Terms and Conditions, or other policies had the behavior have occured here.
  • The attendee has previously been convicted of any offence of a sexual or violent nature, or any other offence with a jail period of more than 2 years.

Warnings

At the discretion of FurcoNZ staff, a warning may be issued in any case, whether or not an action is a strict violation of this policy. Any attendee who violates this policy (or any of our other policies) after receiving such a warning will be dealt with more severely.

Appeals

Any attendee who is the subject of an Exclusion or Restriction may appeal the decision back to the FurcoNZ staff. This may be done at any time, however FurcoNZ staff reserve the right to refuse repeated appeals. Excluded or Restricted attendees have the right to attend a meeting with all Staff in lieu of a written appeal, however the deliberations will still occur privately.

Discrimination

Notwithstanding anything above, FurcoNZ Staff cannot make Exclusion, Restriction, or Warning decisions based on any of the following criteria:

  • Age (except as to set policies across all attendees, such as minimum age to attend or minimum and/or maximum ages for different accommodation options)
  • Sex or Gender
  • Sexual Orientation
  • Marital or Relationship Status
  • Whether you have a Family (except as to set policies across all attendees for the availability of Family or Youth accommodation and discounts)
  • Your relatives, family, or partner(s)
  • Your religious or ethical beliefs (however, this does not cover exclusions or restrictions based on your publicly expressed actions or speech deriving from those beliefs)
  • Your skin colour, race, ethnicity, or country of origin
  • Any disability, impairment, or illness (excluding where these pose a direct risk to yourself or others, or are not practicable for FurcoNZ to accommodate)
  • Your political opinions
  • Your employment status

Concerns, Complaints, and Tipoffs

We appreciate any concerns, complaints, or tipoffs regarding other attendees that may invoke usage of this policy.

At any time, conduct complaints can be made to info@furconz.org.nz and will be addressed in line with this policy. Please note that due to privacy restrictions we may not be able to provide updates or feedback on your complaint.

During the event, complaints can also be made to any core FurcoNZ staff member. Complaints about FurcoNZ staff members should be directed to the Convention Director only. Complaints about the Convention Director should be made to one of the other staff.