Congregations have more power to draw boundaries on participation than they often know! This workshop offers guidance for developing congregational policies to address harassment, disruption, violence, threats of violence, and other forms of destructive behavior in the congregation.

Originally part of the Threats from Without, Care from Within Safety Conference.

Resources shared in the presentation

• Need to know where to get started? The UUA Safer Congregations page on Getting Started.
• Church Mutual Resources
• Find your Safer Congregations point person

Additional Resources

These links are non-UUA links unless specified.

• Destructive Behavior Policies (UUA) (particularly Rockford’s example, PDF)
• Digital Safety Policies for non-profits and for activism
• Social Media Communications Policies (UUA) help you establish safety in your online spaces.
• Mental Health First Aid training helps your staff and front-line leaders be able to address delusional, threatening behavior when it occurs.
• De-Escalation Techniques help us address and defuse hostile intruders. Several trainings in de-escalation are available online and in-person.
• Medical emergency response policies can mandate that staff and certain members receive training. Here are a couple: American Red Cross and Stop the Bleed.
• Active Shooter Policy Guidance (UUA) offers several options for prevention and response planning.
• Building Safety and Security (UUA) includes several relevant resources.
• Establish evacuation procedures that include people with disabilities.

Comprehensive Guides

• ADL’s Protecting Your Jewish Institution: Security Strategies for Today’s Dangerous World (PDF)
• SURJ-Faith has a forthcoming guide related to white nationalist threats. Should be available imminently.