[WikiEN-l] Proposal: Harassment victim support fund

[Marc Riddell]

on 10/17/07 5:24 PM, William Pietri at william at scissor.com wrote:

> 
> Let me throw out an idea that might address the base problem,
> harassment, in a way that would perhaps obviate the need for censorship.
> I don't know if this is a great idea or not, but perhaps you folks can
> find and/or patch the flaws.
> 
> I propose that we create a fund to support editors who are being
> harassed solely or mainly because of legitimate on-Wikipedia work. We
> fund this through contributions from the community. No WMF money would
> be involved, but perhaps they would consent to hold and/or supervise the
> fund.
> 
> What do I mean by support? Well, that would be up to the community, but
> I imagine it would include:
> 
> * Legal or investigative support to someone pursuing criminal
> charges against a harasser.
> * Legal or investigative support to someone pursuing a civil suit
> against a harasser, especially when seeking a protective order.
> * Public relations assistance for the target of a high-profile
> harassment campaign.
> * Compensation for cash costs of dealing with harassment, like
> changing phone numbers or moving.
> * Legal support to someone frivolously sued for legitimate and
> beneficial on-Wikipedia activity.
> 
> 
> Why would we do this?
> 
> * To signal to community members that they will be supported when
> attacked by kooks.
> * To provide a deterrent for people who might harass productive,
> good-faith Wikipedia editors.
> * If necessary, to make an example of a harasser as a warning to
> future potential attackers.
> * To stand behind editors who might otherwise hesitate when wading
> in to clean up a mess.
> 
> 
> Would this work? Could it be done in a way that would be unlikely to go
> too far wrong? And would this help satisfy the people who are currently
> pushing for various forms of censorship as a solution to harassment?
> 
William, this is a wonderful idea!

Marc Riddell