Approved by the SMT Executive Board on September 9, 2024.
The Society for Music Theory (SMT) is committed to providing an environment that defends the ideals of justice, dignity, and equality for all people, and the right to participation and free inquiry in a climate of safety and respect for all members. Consistent with the SMT’s Statement of Ethics, the Society repudiates and condemns discrimination, harassment, and bullying in any form.
SMT prohibits discrimination on the basis of age, color, disability, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, marital status, national origin, race, religion, sexual orientation, or veteran status (Protected Characteristics). SMT prohibits discrimination, harassment, and sexual harassment as defined in this Policy.
- Discrimination is treating or proposing to treat someone unfavorably because of Protected Characteristics (as defined above) or other personal characteristics protected either by law or SMT policy. Such discrimination often happens because of unfair assumptions about what people with certain personal characteristics can and cannot do. SMT prohibits discrimination in both the SMT-sponsored meetings and employment setting.
- Harassment is a form of discrimination that includes unwelcome conduct based on Protected Characteristics. Such conduct could include offensive jokes, slurs, epithets or name calling, physical assaults or threats, intimidation, ridicule or mockery, insults or put-downs, offensive objects or pictures, and other conduct that interferes with a person’s ability to work or engage in SMT’s educational programs or activities.
- Sexual Harassment includes conduct including unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, non-verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature when submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment or a participant’s status in a course, program or activity; submission to or rejection of such conduct by an employee or participant is used as the basis for employment or academic decisions; or viewed from the perspective of both the individual and a reasonable person in the same situation, the conduct interferes with performance, limits participation in SMT activities, or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment.
The SMT condemns bullying, physical or verbal, as well as cyberbullying, or using electronic media to threaten, embarrass, intimidate, or exclude individuals.
Expectations
- Registrants for SMT-sponsored meetings will be required to confirm their awareness of the Statement on Harassment as part of the conference registration process as well as the annual membership renewal protocols.
- SMT members are expected to comply with the Statement on Harassment at the Annual Meeting and in the review process of all SMT publications (e.g., MTS, MTO, SMT-V, SMT-Pod); discussion groups (e.g., Humanities Commons); and Interest Group interactions.
- For the annual conference each year, the Local Arrangements Committee will provide the addresses and telephone numbers of local police, rape and crisis centers, emergency rooms, as well as the coordinates for calling security at the conference hotel.
- Each year, the Annual Meeting Program Book will include this information, along with the procedure for reporting harassing behavior.
Reporting Information
SMT Members are encouraged, but are not required, to inform the harasser that the conduct is unwelcome. Regardless of whether the harasser is directly confronted, Members, Employees and Contractors must promptly report the conduct to a member of the Executive Board or the Executive Director to permit SMT to investigate and address the conduct. If an employee is involved in the situation, as either the offender or victim, a report must also be made to the Executive Director or Executive Board.
SMT encourages those experiencing prohibited conduct under this Policy to report to local authorities.
Contact
Please contact the Executive Director (smt@societymusictheory.org) if you have any questions or concerns about the Policy or its application.