On:
In: Online Services

This policy replaces the July 29, 2017, Official Ohayocon Facebook Group Policies.

Statement of Values

Ohayocon is committed to diversity & inclusivity, participant safety, community building, spam limitation, and providing all-ages settings for creative expression. All users have the right to respectful, impartial treatment from all participants, including moderators and Ohayocon staff and volunteers. Participants in Ohayocon’s online groups will have a reasonable opportunity to provide feedback on rule changes, additions and deletions. We intend to moderate our social media platforms with a reasonable mix of active and by-report moderation, striving to meet evolving expectations of the community we serve.

General Rules

The General Rules apply to all Ohayocon-affiliated online communities.

  1. All members of the public are welcome to participate regardless of whether they are or have been badgeholders. (Correlated values: diversity & inclusivity, community building)
  2. Harassment is not tolerated. Ohayocon’s general harassment policy is incorporated here and includes prohibitions on racist, sexist or otherwise disparaging or discriminatory expression. (Correlated values: diversity & inclusivity, participant safety, community building)
  3. Content depicting violence, sexuality, physically dangerous activity, illegal (in Ohio) drug use, or excessive drunkenness is not permitted. The moderators reserve the right to make specific exceptions on a case-by-case basis regarding recent events of great public importance. (Correlated values: participant safety, providing all-ages settings for creative expression)
  4. Exposing anyone’s private information (doxxing) is grounds for permanent access suspension (bans). (Correlated value: participant safety)
  5. Only specifically authorized businesses and organizations may post promotional material or solicitations for business. Ohayocon authorizes fully paid, current-year (March to March) Dealers Room and Artist Alley exhibitors to post occasional promotional material and solicitations. Without authorization, no one may write or display prices for products, services, admission or any other items. Ohayocon may offer separate media channels specifically for promotions and solicitations where otherwise prohibited material may be allowed. This rule is not meant to prevent members unaffiliated with a business from occasional, on-topic mentioning of specific things that have a cost (for example, a product used to address a specific circumstance being discussed). (Correlated value: spam limitation)
  6. Crowdfunding and other fundraising campaign promotions and solicitations are prohibited. The moderators reserve the right to make specific exceptions on a case-by-case basis regarding recent events of great public importance. (Correlated value: spam limitation)
  7. Ohayocon may take action against those who break any of these rules, including but not limited to warnings, post or comment deletions, and temporary or permanent access suspensions. (Correlated value: participant safety)
  8. Circumventing or defeating a moderation action by any means is grounds for banning. (Correlated values: participant safety, community building)

Additional Facebook-specific Rules

  1. Facebook’s Community Guidelines and Terms of Service take precedence in conflicts with Ohayocon’s rules.
  2. Nonmembers who wish to access the Official Ohayocon Facebook Group must answer screening questions affirming they have read and understand the rules and they are not joining with the intent of promoting or soliciting business in violation of the General Rules. (Correlated values: participant safety, spam limitation)

Additional Discord-specific Rules

  1. Discord’s Terms of Service take precedence in conflicts with Ohayocon’s rules.
  2. Members should strive to use the most relevant channels for the topics of their conversations. The moderators reserve the right to require members to move conversations to more appropriate channels. (Correlated value: spam limitation)
  3. Some channels may be designated for the purpose of direct communication between Ohayocon staff and customers. Ohayocon may restrict responses from non-staff in such channels.

On:
In: Costumes & Props

Cosplay is NOT consent. If you wish to take a photo of or with someone who is in cosplay, please ask the cosplayer for permission first and be respectful of personal boundaries when working out the photo ops. Just because they are dressed up as a particular character does not mean that they are required to act in any manner that is uncomfortable to them.

Be mindful of the space. Do not block hallways or public areas while taking photos. If you are taking a photo, please move to one side of the hallway against a wall, or move to another area. Photography and video recording are not permitted in the Room of Relaxation, video rooms, Dealers Room or Artist Alley. Additionally, if an Ohayocon volunteer acting in good faith requests that you move to a nearby location, please respect that decision.

Please feel free to take commemorative photos for your own enjoyment. You are free to share your pictures in the manner of your choosing, but you are on your own regarding the appearances of individuals in your photos. (That is, we are not giving you permission to share photos of anyone in particular, and if there is a dispute with someone wanting you to remove a picture with them, that’s between you and them.)

We do not permit you to sell photographs, raw or edited, at or during Ohayocon. You risk forfeiting your admission if you do so. After the convention and off-premises, we do not care as long as you are not using our branding or image and you are not telling people that your photos are “official” or that you work(ed) for Ohayocon. (You are permitted to make appointments for photoshoots as a paid service as long as the payment is done off-premises and not during Ohayocon.)

We prohibit you from setting up photo booths unless you have an agreement with us in advance, and we will likely refer you to our Dealers Room staff so you can negotiate purchasing vendor space. At-con photography is generally not considered for Artist Alley. If you have any questions about our policy, please send us an email.