The Frith Standard

Purpose

Frith is the peace that exists among people who are bound to one another and who deal fairly. This Standard sets out what a Heathen group promises its members and guests in order to keep that peace.

It is written for groups of every size, from a kindred of six to a festival of several hundred. A group adopts the Standard by announcing that it has done so, naming its frithkeepers, and making the text available to everyone who attends. No fee or permission is required.

1. Welcome

All who come in good faith are welcome, whatever their ancestry, nationality, sexuality, gender, age, or ability. We will make reasonable efforts to remove barriers to taking part. We ask every guest to extend the same welcome to every other.

2. Conduct

We treat one another with respect. The following have no place among us:

• Harassment, intimidation, threats, or violence of any kind.
• Unwelcome sexual attention, comments, or contact.
• Slurs or demeaning remarks about a person's race, sex, sexuality, gender, body, disability, or beliefs.
• Persistent interruption, belittling, or talking over others.
• Photographing, recording, or naming anyone publicly without their consent.

Plain speech and honest disagreement are Heathen virtues. Cruelty is not.

3. Consent

Consent is required for all physical contact, including embraces. It is required for taking part in any rite, and for trance work, oracular work, and anything that alters consciousness. Consent can be withdrawn at any time, and no explanation is owed. No one may use religious authority, rank in the group, or claims about what the gods want in order to pressure another person into anything.

4. The horn

No one will be pressed to drink alcohol. A drink without alcohol will be offered with equal honor at every blot and symbel, and a toast may always be made by raising or touching the horn. Those who lead rites and those who serve as frithkeepers will remain sober while they do so. A person who is too drunk to behave well will be asked to leave the gathering, and will be helped to do so safely.

5. Children and young people

Children are welcome at family gatherings and remain the responsibility of their parents or guardians. No adult other than a parent or guardian will be alone with a child. Events at which children are present will be planned with them in mind. Any concern about a child's safety will be reported to the proper authorities without delay.

6. Shared work

The work of a gathering belongs to everyone. Cooking, cleaning, setting up, clearing away, and looking after children will be shared in rotation among all who are able, without regard to sex. Leadership of rites and the holding of offices will be open to all members on the same terms. Those who do the work will be thanked by name.

7. Frithkeepers

Every group that adopts this Standard will name at least two frithkeepers, who should not both be men and should not be close kin to one another. Their names will be known to all who attend. A frithkeeper will:

• Listen to any concern, promptly and without judgment.
• Keep what they are told confidential, except where someone is at risk.
• Make a brief written record, dated, of what was reported and what was done.
• Step aside from any matter that involves themselves, their partner, or their kin.

8. When something goes wrong

Anyone may bring a concern to a frithkeeper. The person who raises it will be told what will happen next and will be kept informed.

1. Safety first. If anyone is at risk, the frithkeepers will act at once to separate those involved and to see that the person at risk is safe.
2. Hear both. The person complained of will be told of the concern and given a fair chance to answer.
3. Decide in proportion. The outcome may be a conversation, a warning, a requirement to stay away from a person or from events, or removal from the group.
4. Protect the one who spoke. No one will be punished, shunned, or pressured for raising a concern in good faith. Retaliation is itself a breach of this Standard.
5. Know the limits. Where a crime may have been committed, the person harmed will be supported in going to the police if they choose. A group's own process never replaces the law.

When the person complained of is a leader of the group, the matter will be handled by people who do not answer to that leader. If there are none, the group will ask frithkeepers from another group that keeps this Standard to help.

9. Keeping the Standard

A group that adopts this Standard will read it aloud, or summarize it, at the opening of every gathering; review it together once a year; and tell its members honestly, without naming names, how many concerns were raised in the past year and how they were resolved.

Adopting the Standard

If your kindred or event would like to adopt the Frith Standard, you are free to do so today. We would be glad to hear from you, to count you among the groups that keep it, and to offer a place on our next frithkeeper training. See Advocacy and For Kindreds and Organizers, or write to us.