Public Engagement Rules

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1. Public dialogue between Circling the Wagons Coalition members is encouraged. Dialogue is most effective when members authentically share their own perspectives while demonstrating respect for those with whom they disagree.
2. Silence regarding matters of extreme importance to individuals, families, communities and society is not healthy and is not encouraged.
3. The Circling the Wagons Standards of Ethical Communication and Conflict Resolution have been established to guide public and private dialogue between Coalition members and others.
4. Any official member of the Circling the Wagons Coalition may publish an article in a newspaper, journal or other online or print medium citing membership in the Coalition upon satisfaction of the following:
• The author must have fulfilled the requirements to become an official member of the Coalition by following the steps in number 5 below.
• The author must refer to membership in the Coalition only in the final lines of the article and as a part of a biography.

  The biography must read:



  ______ name ______ is a/the ______ title ____ of the Circling the Wagons Coalition, an organization that promotes ethical dialogue among Mormons and former Mormons who self-identify as LGBT or same-sex attracted.

• The author posts the entirety of the article to the Circling the Wagons Coalition Facebook Group prior to the date it will be published.

• In the first comment in the Facebook thread beneath the posted article, the author makes an argument as to why the article aligns with the Standards of Ethical Communication and Conflict Resolution.

• The author uses the thread beneath the article to respectfully defend any objections to the article’s alignment with the Standards of Ethical Communication and Conflict Resolution. If the author is not able to make an adequate defense to objections regarding alignment with the Standards of Ethical Communication, the author will revise the article or choose to not publish.


  “Adequate defense” will be self-defined by the author, not by the Coalition collectively. Authors are encouraged to seek to be honest with themselves when making the determination as to whether or not they have “adequately defended” an article’s alignment.

NOTE: As it is not expected that all Coalition members will agree with any one article and all articles represent authors’ individual opinions rather than the opinion of the Coalition collectively, other members of the Coalition may comment on an article, but do not have the right to censor an article’s content.


5. Official membership in the Circling the Wagons Coalition is contingent upon:
• Being issued an official invitation to join the Coalition. All official invitations will be given in writing and will come from the Coalition Coordinator.

• Accepting the official invitation through filling out the “Invitation Acceptance Form” on the Coalition website.

• Filling in the “Self-Introduction Form” on the Coalition website and agreeing to have a biography posted to the website.
• Electronically signing the Standards of Ethical Communication and Conflict Resolution and other official Coalition documents by allowing one’s name to be posted online at the bottom of the document(s).

• Hand signing hard copies of official documents at in-person Coalition meetings when opportunities arise.
6. Coalition members who violate these Public Engagement Rules may be subject to expulsion from the Coalition. Publications that do not refer to membership in the Coalition are not subject to these rules.