Wade,
I second Bob's approaches. His projects' policy seems solid based on my experience, which I believe is also similar.
Unfortunately we did not have a comprehensive and written action policy at RIBs. What we had was a pretty simplistic paragraph in our participant policies document that was posted in every room on the premises:
"RIBs is a Safer Space- This means that we don't tolerate language or behavior that is sexist, racist, homophobic, trans phobic, condescending, abusive, or violent. Ask before touching anyone else's project, certainly ask before touching anyone themselves, and try your best to listen as much as you speak."
[ Side note to Bob re: inclusion policy: "breeches" are a type of pants. What y'all meant was "breaches" ;) ]
You also might want to look into "Trauma Informed Care" when considering your policies. This perspective helps enormously when interacting with people under the influence or behaving erratically. It's probably best to seek funding for staff and volunteer training in this kind of situations. Entities offering workshops and/or seminars in these methods would also probably consider waiving course fees for a low-budget community resource.
There are also the L.E.A.R.N. and R.E.S.P.E.C.T. interaction models. They are largely geared toward cross-cultural interactions in medical settings, but in my experience a lot of encounters with people with issues of substance abuse and deep trauma are between two very different cultural groups, especially where the homeless are concerned. Having a framework for relating to and communicating with groups not your own is vastly helpful in potential conflict interactions.
Ideally your local municipality at least requires EDP (Emotionally Disturbed Person) training for its police departments, or at best has more specialized and alternative response units that can be called for help with worst case scenarios.
~cyclista Nicholas
On 2023-10-07 21:01, wade--- via TheThinkTank wrote:
The Bike Connector is a non-profit, volunteer-run, community-based program that collaborates with community partners to distribute and maintain free bikes.
We've been serving the community for five years and have traditionally worked with schools and social service agencies. Most of our customers are referred to us through partner organizations. Recently, we've been seeing an uptick in unaffiliated adults walking into our shop looking for bikes. Many of these folks have heard of us through word of mouth. News of "free" bikes spreads fast. We do not know the stories of the people we serve, nor do we care. We treat everyone that walks in the door with dignity.
Occasionally we get people that walk in the door that appear drunk or high. There is a prevalent opioid use problem in our community. People often smell like they've consumed alcohol and/or weed. I recently noticed an adult visitor discreetly drinking a nip. He did not behave drunk and I did not intervene. I'd like to have an understanding of how best to deal with these individuals in a respectful manner. When someone comes into the shop smoking a cigarette, I don't hesitate to let them know that smoking is prohibited and to take the cigarette outside. When they smell of alcohol or weed, what do we do? When they exhibit signs of drug abuse or mental illness (stumbling, slurred speech, anger, confusion), what do we do?
We have policies in place for minors. With regards to adults, things get a bit more complicated.
Suggestions and resources are welcome. _______________________________________________ TheThinkTank mailing list -- thethinktank@lists.bikecollectives.org To unsubscribe send an email to thethinktank-leave@lists.bikecollectives.org To view this discussion on the web visit https://lists.bikecollectives.org/hyperkitty/list/thethinktank@lists.bikecol...