Re: [Ksummit-discuss] New CoC and Brendan Eich

[Laurent Pinchart <laurent.pinchart@ideasonboard.com>]

Hi Jon,

On Thursday, 4 October 2018 22:05:53 EEST jonsmirl@gmail.com wrote:
> On Thu, Oct 4, 2018 at 2:32 PM Laurent Pinchart wrote:
> > On Thursday, 4 October 2018 19:23:33 EEST jonsmirl@gmail.com wrote:
> >> I would highly recommend getting the new CoC reviewed and approved by
> >> some of the very smart lawyers that help out the Linux community.  I
> >> would also recommend discussing the Brendan Eich situation at Ksummit.
> >> A situation like this needs to be planned for since an improper
> >> response will make things much worse leading to legal challenges.
> >> 
> >> Some random articles to refresh everyone's memory...
> >> https://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/mediatechnologyandtelec
> >> oms/digital-media/10743456/Mozilla-chief-Brendan-Eich-steps-down-over-
> >> gay-marriage-row.html
> >> https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/apr/07/brendan-eich-has-t
> >> he-right-to-fight-gay-rights-but-not-to-be-mozillas-ceo
> >> https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-26868536
> >> https://www.telegraph.co.uk/technology/technology-topics/10745283/Brenda
> >> n-Eich-is-a-homophobe-Im-a-lesbian-and-neither-of-us-deserves-to-lose-
> >> our-jobs.h tml
> > 
> > We're facing a textbook case that has a probability of generating heated
> > discussions no lower than 100%. I remember having a pretty strong opinion
> > on the topic when it came under public scrutiny (and while I generally
> > don't mind discussing it, I won't disclose that opinion here as that's
> > entirely irrelevant). The more interesting part was that waiting for the
> > debate to cool down gave me time to think, and realize that what is often
> > perceived as a black-and-white situation most often turns out to be more
> > complex than initially perceived.
> > 
> > One point that I would like to explore is thus how we can take the time
> > needed to solve such matters when the mob is waiting outside of the
> > courtroom with tar and feathers. I don't want to discuss here what our
> > response to such a case should be, but the process that we should follow
> > to come up with a response. It is of paramount importance in my opinion
> > for the body tasked with handling those issues to follow a process that
> > ensures it will be able to keep a cool head and have enough time
> > available to think the response carefully.
> 
> What is going to happen when someone gets fired after being accused of
> violating the CoC and they lose $20M in options? INAL but it appears
> to me that the CoC has created lawsuit exposure for all of the
> maintainers. This CoC really needs to be vetted by the kernel legal
> team.

You're not the only one raising concerns in this area. I believe it would make 
sense for the Linux Foundation, in their position of a legal body closely 
related to the community, or for the TAB as a deputy of the Linux Foundation, 
to consult the community at large and get legal advice. Even if the usual 
advice is for individual having legal concerns to consult their own lawyer, I 
don't think this could scale in this case. We need a forum where our questions 
and concerns can be expressed and gathered, and someone to fund legal counsel.

I do have personal opinions on this topics, and as I'm not a lawyer, I'll 
refrain from commenting on it further in this mail thread.

The community aspects of code of conduct enforcement that I raised in my 
previous e-mail still interest me, and those I would like to keep discussing.

> > Another point that I believe is important is the issue of representation.
> > The code of conduct mentions both "project" and "community". While
> > neither are defined, the term project is quite straightforward, but the
> > term community not really so. The code of conduct gives a mandate to the
> > TAB to handle enforcement in the name of the project (I don't want to
> > focus here on whether the TAB is the right instance to handle those
> > issues, this will likely be discusses separately and possibly be changed,
> > I will just use TAB here to refer to the code of conduct enforcement body
> > for simplicity), and I would argue that the mandate extends to
> > representing the community as a whole. When the TAB will have to decide
> > on a case that will generate a wide diversity of opinions, what kind of
> > process can we put in place to ensure that all community members will
> > feel represented (and thus heard) ? To put it differently, how can we
> > make sure that the community members who don't fully agree with the final
> > decision will agree to disagree and still feel part of the community ?

-- 
Regards,

Laurent Pinchart