WikiQueer:Responding to threats of harm

WikiQueer structures and processes are designed to build a collaborative LGBT encyclopedia and resource. However, the community is generally ill equipped to deal with actual real-life emergencies or threats of harm, whether those are threats of physical violence against others, or against oneself.

Rationale
WikiQueer is not a mental health or support organization. By and large, its users have no special training related to handling individuals who are actively or potentially violent or suicidal. Mental health experts and suicide prevention specialists recommend referring such individuals to proper professional care immediately.

Responding
Some of these responses require administrator permissions, but many do not (such as calling and notifying emergency services). In all cases, administrators should be notified, including cases where an administrator is the first responder. Non-admins may still respond even though they may not have all the tools.

Treat all claims seriously
Although individuals who discuss committing suicide may not be actively suicidal, some of those people may become actively suicidal. The same can go for claims or threats of violence. Many claims are empty threats or hoaxes; some are made by people who are depressed or angry, but not suicidal or violent.

WikiQueerians are not as a rule properly trained to determine if such a claim or threat is an immediate harm to someone's well being, and should assume the worst and act accordingly. Treat all claims seriously and as an emergency.

Contact the Aequalitas Project
Notify the Aequalitas Project office staff of the apparent suicide note or claim as soon as it is posted. Foundation staff have been the key responders in prior incidents. Contact can be made by emailing, which forwards to several trained staff members who handle these incidents and are available to respond to emergency incidents even outside of normal business hours. This is the preferred method for reporting threats of harm to the Aequalitas Project; calling the office or emailing other addresses will simply delay the report from reaching the appropriate staff in a timely fashion.

Contact administrators
Any person who observes potentially suicidal or violent behavior (frequently made in discussion or announcements on talk or user pages) should notify WikiQueer administrators quickly. Possible venues for prompt attention include:


 * Contacting an administrator privately via Email, IRC, or other methods.
 * Also Requests for Oversight, as such posts often contain personal information requiring oversighter attention.

Administrators are advised to make such announcements even if they discover such behavior on their own. Other administrators may be able to help more effectively, and making a wider announcement is key to mobilizing such effort.

Once noticeboard threads have been responded to by appropriate parties, consider blanking them, possibly leaving a link to the last version of the thread for reference as needed.

Block user, lock pages
Potentially suicidal or violent users may be further aggravated by further interaction, whether by discussions or by misguided attempts to help. Users originating these threats may need to be immediately and indefinitely blocked.

In cases where a user threatens self harm, in particular, it may be desirable to fully protect their user and user talk pages, with a minimal administrative note explaining why. Threats or claims should be removed from any relevant pages, and are frequently deleted from page history. Use of oversight may be appropriate in extreme cases, but is generally avoided in favor of simple deletion if the authorities have not yet been contacted – if evidence is needed, it's easier to summon an admin to reverse deletion than a developer or oversighter to reverse oversight.

Contact local authorities
Note: The Aequalitas Project will handle this when you notify them of a threat of harm.

WikiQueer responders have consistently contacted local authorities in cases of apparent suicidal users. Law enforcement and emergency services have consistently stated that such reports are not a waste of their time, even in cases where the suicidal statements are determined to be a hoax or non-immediate threat. Please make as prompt a report as you are able to make.

In many cases, there has been a problem finding the proper contact information for the individual's locality. As an alternative, a user may contact their own local authorities, who may be able to make a judgement on how or whether to proceed.

Locating the user
Note: The Aequalitas Project will handle this when you notify them of a threat of harm.

It is important to determine where the user is. In some cases, users identify themselves with a real life name and general location (city, country), which are enough to make a reasonable report. If they have not done so, then an investigation should be performed utilizing any available information (WikiQueer:Checkuser logs, the listed Internet Service Provider emergency contacts, etc.). This type of emergency is generally felt to justify release of personally identifying information such as Checkuser results, to relevant authorities (but not the wider WikiQueer community).

Contacting authorities near the user
Note: The Aequalitas Project will handle this when you notify them of a threat of harm.

Once the users' location is determined, the best next step is to directly contact proper local authorities in the users' local area. The most efficient manner would be if a WikiQueerian who lives in that area makes a local emergency phone call to local authorities. In most prior cases, a WikiQueerian has not been located who is sufficiently local to the apparently suicidal user, and other methods have been necessary.

Some local authorities publish a general contact phone number for their emergency services dispatch center. If you know the location (city, etc.), you may be able to find a website with such contact information listed, using search engines or other Internet tools. This website can be helpful. If so, attempt to call authorities directly and make a report.

If you are unable to locate a contact method for the local authorities nearest the distressed user, then you could proceed to make a report to your local authorities, as described below.

Contacting your own authorities
If you are unable to locate a method for notifying the local authorities nearest the apparently suicidal user, the next best choice is to notify your local emergency authorities and file a report with them, providing all available information including name and address. In most cases, your local authorities can then forward a report via law enforcement or emergency services communications systems to the emergency services organizations nearest the apparently suicidal user.

The local police/emergency medical response hotline, such as 9-1-1 in the United States and Canada, 9-9-9 in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries, 0-0-0 in Australia, or 1-1-2 across the EU or on any GSM-based mobile phone, etc. may be relevant. You may also find relevant contact information in your local phone book.