Can we please stop throwing around the word "harassment" everywhere? It's been said on this page times. That's not including the archives. No one has said that this ban had anything to do with harassment. The Board barely even mentioned harassment, as an aside to additional training the WMF might be able to provide.
What the board did mention explicitly is what's actually important, and we need to understand and acknowledge the lessons being given to us. What the board did talk about:. It's naive to reduce this to the community struggling to deal with harassment. The issue is clear, and practically spelled out for us. The WMF wants us start taking behavioral conduct seriously. It's not just about harassment. We need to stop making excuses for "unblockables". We need to stop making excuses for toxic behavior.
We need to start enforcing behavioral policies, even read: especially against admins. We need to start handling behavioral issues with seriousness and decisive authority.
The days of excusing incivility in deference to content contributions are over. The days of log-jamming behavioral complaints with excuses and defenses are over. The days of admins unilaterally unblocking "power users" who are blocked for personal attacks and incivility are over.
The reign of the uncivil power user is finished. These editors are a sacrifice that should be made in order to encourage a more welcoming and diverse environment. And the board is willing to side with us on this. They'll tighten the Foundation's leash, and give us a genuine chance to fix this issue ourselves.
