Rap 110100100 - Tech in the Woods

Tech Etiquette in the Woods

The gathering is an opportunity to employ and enjoy primitive tech. Please keep radios, phones, drones, wifi zones, etc. on the down low, or in private spaces or distant places. 

Please ask for consent before recording sound or images, whether or not posting online. Parents must consent to photos of minors. 

In the US and Canada, you have the right to record law enforcement in public spaces without consent, as long as you aren’t interfering. Please blur bystanders in final images.

Appropriate technology such as solar panels, water filters, pumps, batteries, communication gear, and LEDs for stages and/or shows make our gatherings more sustainable, safe, and enjoyable, but please carefully consider their placement.  Please dispose of batteries properly (pack it in, pack it out) and/or reuse rechargeables. 

There is longstanding community agreement to not use chain saws or other internal combustion engines in the woods once the gathering begins, barring emergencies. 

Flashlights can be helpful at night, but please direct downward, and avoid pointing the beam in others’ eyes (aka “hippie mace.")  Using a red light can help preserve night vision. 

Embrace being Home, unplugging from everyday technology and plugging into the rainbow.  Have fun, enjoy the beauty and family around you & the living here and now. 

Rap 151 and 515 on Alcohol at the Gathering

Rap 151

It is a tradition in our family to discourage alcohol use at the Gathering.

We, especially our children, need a safe and sane environment to celebrate in. We respect the alcoholic’s right to drink, but the alcoholic must respect the rights of others to gather in an alcohol-free environment.

The gathering is a prayer and peace sanctuary, not a booze party. Your siblings can help you through it if you wish to stop. Be whole, be healthy, be your true self at Rainbow.

Rap 515

If you are hyper-sensitive to drinkers, don’t become a nuisance to them or to Shanti Sena.

If a drinker is bothering you, bring others along with you and try to use reason; do not grow angry or reactionary.

Many now respected siblings were once where this drinker is. Love them and they will come to the center.

If you are panhandled or otherwise insulted by a drunken individual, say no or leave. If someone has a legitimate problem, help them if you want. If you don’t, tell them to look for someone else.

The Mini-Manual of Gathering Consciousness

The Mini-Manual has been around for decades and has seen some updates from time to time, but it contains all the basic info. This is a great document to make copies of to bring to the gathering. Everyone needs this information and accessing the Internet at a gathering is a tough thing to do.

Find the Mini Manual 2014 edition online.

Where Do I Poop?

There have been a few versions of booklets that help gathering participants understand the logistics of the gathering.

Where Do I Poop? is the latest?   Find the full PDF online, print out copies, and distribute when you get to the gathering.

Rap 451 - Fire Safey

 

Rap 451 Fire Safety

PLEASE join our consensus: There are no leaders here. We each are responsible and accountable for creating a culture of fire safety. To protect ourselves and the forest, fire safety is vital.

Community Fires Only! Reduce wildfire risk, reduce smoke and build community. Please, no personal fires.

Be safe! Build fires away from tents, trees, and brush. Remove duff (flammable organic matter on the forest floor), and all debris down to the dirt for at least twenty feet around fires and smoking areas. 

Have shovels and water buckets nearby. Control the size of the fire and sparks. Never throw anything into a fire. Never leave a fire unattended. Extinguish by drown-stir-feel = cold to the touch.

Reduce Impact: Only gather/burn dead, down, and dry fuel. Avoid digging large boogie pits as they scar the earth. Preferably build fireplaces/structures above ground, 200 ft away from bodies of water. If you must dig, line pits with rocks/clay to avoid igniting roots. Warning: rocks from wet areas may explode when heated.   

No Fireworks: They are dangerous and illegal in our National Forests.

Wind Danger: Be aware of wind directions and speed, be cautious of wind spreading sparks which may ignite fires.

Vehicles: Avoid leaving vehicles running in parking areas, as this can ignite fires. Do not drive onto dry grass or brush. Heat under the car, sparks, backfiring, or exhaust, can start fires that you won't see - until it's too late. 

Power Tools: Use extreme caution with chainsaws, generators, propane devices and other power equipment, in accordance with forest regs. 

Smoking Safety: 1. Shade 2. Sit. 3. Smoke. Ensure all embers are fully extinguished, dispose of remnants safely, pocket your filters/crutches. Practice safe smoking!

Cooking Safety: Put out grease fires by covering pot/fire with a lid, a fire blanket or if none of those are available, use dirt, not water nor flour.

Substitute LEDs where possible for lanterns, light dancing or fire poi.

      Please take care of family and the forest by being fire safe!

Rap 121 Sexuality and Consent

This is a gathering based on love and respect.

Please help create a safe space for everyone.

 

Respect each other and do no harm.

 

Ask before hugging or touching anyone.

 

Nudity is natural, and not a sexual invitation.

 

“No” means NO! The absence of “Yes” means NO!

 

A sleeping or intoxicated person cannot consent.

 

A person under the legal age of consent cannot consent.

 

A person unable to competently consent for any reason cannot consent.

 

Consent at one time does not imply consent at any other time.

 

Consent for one action does not imply consent for any other action.

 

Consent given can be revoked at any time.

 

Respect yourself and trust your instincts. If you don’t feel comfortable being intimate or alone with someone, or with what someone wants you to do, you have the right to say “no”.

 

If planning on engaging in sexual activity, open and forthright sharing about sexually transmitted infections is necessary.

 

Love happens – protect yourself – use condoms! If you don’t have one, just ask.

 

If you observe what you believe to be a boundary or consent violation, offer support or get help.

 

If you see immediate danger of any kind, yell out “Shanti Sena!” and other gatherers will rush to your aid. If you hear someone yell “Shanti Sena,” approach quickly, carefully and peacefully.

We are all Shanti Sena – Peace keepers!

Rap 420 - Know your rights

 

RAP 420

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects against unreasonable searches and seizures shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons and things to be seized. (The Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America)

 This rap sheet has been prepared to help you stay out of jail.

In the past, Rainbow gatherings have been the target of police harassment, often illegal. Many gatherers who have been arrested could have avoided jail time and expensive court dates if they had known a few of their basic rights. This rap sheet is a tool. Read it and understand it, and YOU will have the upper hand in the situation.

Roadblocks, DUI checkpoints, etc.

When heading toward a gathering, always assume you will run into a roadblock on the way in. It is very important to know your rights before reaching it because this is where the most coercive tactics and encroachments of rights take place.

Make sure your car is road-legal. No broken windshields, tail-lights, headlights, objects hanging from your rear view mirror, etc. Any of these will give them an excuse for stopping you, and you will be cited for any violations. Your driver’s license, car registration, and proof of insurance should be up to date and easy for you to find on quick notice. You may not need all three, as laws vary from state to state, but always assume you’ll need all three, and you’ll never have a problem.

Never consent to searches. Law enforcement officers are trained to intimidate people into consenting to searches. They may ask you several times if they can search your car or person. Always refuse and you’ll be fine. This is your Fourth Amendment right. The only legal reason they have to search you without arrest is that they feel they are in danger of being attacked, which should not be an issue with Rainbows. At Rainbow Gatherings in the past, officers have been known to plant drugs in cars after consent to search is given. You can avoid this problem by refusing to consent. JUST SAY NO!

Never leave anything illegal “in plain view”. Anything inside your vehicle that is visible to an officer standing outside is considered to be in plain view. Although this does not give them the right to search your vehicle, they can confiscate the items and place you under arrest. They will still need to obtain a warrant to search the rest of your vehicle, but this will not be hard if they have found something in plain view. They may even attempt to say this is “probable cause” for an illegal search.

Always exercise your right of silence if you find yourself under arrest for any reason. Continue to refuse to allow any searches, and politely inform them that you will not say anything until your attorney is present.

Write down all the information you can about the incident: the officer’s name, rank, and badge number, and the date, time of day, and location, etc. Contact one of the organizations at the end of this page to pursue the matter, or file a complaint with the officer’s superior.

It is important to remember a few things about police officers. One is that they are aware of your rights and have been known to intentionally violate them. If you find yourself in a situation with an officer who is out of control, it is best to be submissive in order to avoid injury or even death. Remember that they are armed and dangerous!

By refusing to consent to a search of your vehicle, you are maintaining your position. They may still get impatient and search without a warrant anyway (which is illegal). If this happens, anything they find will not be accepted by the court because it was evidence obtained illegally.
Other Police Contact

If you are stopped by an officer while outside of a vehicle, your contact with him or her will fall into one of three categories: consensual contact, detention, or arrest. We are mainly concerned with consensual contact and detention, as this document is intended to help you not get arrested.

Consensual contact

Consensual contact means the officer comes up to you and says, “Can I talk with you?” If you say yes, you have consented to contact with the police.

This is not good. When you consent to contact, you waive some of your rights. If you think you may be guilty of anything, never consent to speak with an officer.

Reply with something like “I’m sorry, I’m in a hurry, and I don’t have time to talk right now.” If the officer insists, ask, “Are you detaining me? Am I free to leave?” You should ask this several times to make sure the officer remembers you asking if the encounter does result in an arrest and court case. If it is really a consensual contact, the officer is required to let you go on your way if you ask. If you don’t verbally ask to leave, the court will presume you consented to anything that follows.

Detention

The police are only allowed to detain citizens when there are “Specific and Articulable Facts (SAFs) supporting suspicion” that you are involved in criminal activity.

This means they can’t detain you “on a hunch” They must have observed something about your behavior or character that links you with specific criminal activity. If you are detained without SAF, you are detained illegally. If your encounter ever lands in court, you may be able to get off because their original detention on their part was illegal.

When you use terms like “detention” and specific and articulable facts”, the officer will usually back down a bit. The majority of a corrupt police officer’s power comes from intimidation and preying on the public’s ignorance of its own rights. It is crucial that you let the officer know that you are not consenting to talk with him, and that the only way you will talk to him is if he detains you, which he cannot do without SAF.

Arrest

If you find yourself under arrest, there’s not much left you can do. Your body will be frisked and your pockets and bags will be searched. It is important to consider refusing to consent to searching your vehicle (if there is one involved), as they will still need a search warrant for it. This, however, will not be difficult to obtain now that you are under arrest.

These are the basic rights you have when involved with the police. By exercising these rights and using a little common sense, you should be able to have a safe and happy gathering.

 Pup 107

Our dog friends are part of our family, and we love them. Bringing a dog to a gathering carries both special joy and extra responsibility. In many ways, dogs are like small children, and need as much attention and care as children do. If you are able to leave them at home, your gathering will be more spontaneous and worry-free, and your dogs will be much safer.

If you do decide to bring them, attach waterproof I.D. tags to their collars with their names, your name, where you are camped, and your home phone number so you can be reunited if you become separated. Be sure they are current on all their vaccinations because there will be many dogs there, and contagious illness spreads quickly.

Be sensitive to your dogs' physical and emotional needs. Offer them food and water often. Make sure shade is available. Even though you are busy, don't forget to give them attention throughout the day. Be patient with them. They're in an unfamiliar environment, and it may be exciting or confusing. It may take them awhile to learn what "out of the kitchen!" means, and you'd probably rather teach them your way than have someone else teach them.

Be considerate of others. Teach your dogs good manners. When coming to a circle, ask them to lie quietly beside or behind you. Keep them out of kitchens, compost pits, and shitters. Don't let them fight with other dogs. Females in heat can cause serious problems, so leave them at home if at all possible. Spaying or neutering your dogs is always a responsible thing to do, and will spare you much hassle in a gathering situation.

Be environmentally aware. Keep dogs out of water sources and other sensitive areas. Pick up their poop, drop it in a shitter, and cover it up, just as you would your own. Remember that dogs are essentially pack animals. When they get together in the freedom of the open woods, they love to run. It's not a good idea to let them do it. They can harm wildlife or get into serious trouble by chasing sheep and cattle. Tying a dog in camp for long periods of time can be unfair both to your neighbors and to your dog. Keep your dog at your side – on a leash if necessary.

As with so many other things at the gathering, respect is the key: respect for your own needs, respect for your neighbors' needs, and respect for your dog's needs. We can have it all. It just takes some attention to detail.

Rap on Access

 For people with special needs, ask for Handicamp - a space for people with mobility and other related disabilities with lots of folks willing to help you make the most of your gathering experience. However, keep in mind that not all people who need close in parking at Handicamp will be able to get it as the lots do fill up.  Sometimes our ability to maintain Handicamp parking is constrained by the United States Forest Service. But the situation varies year to year and even day to day. Providing access for those who need it is one of the hardest things to manage at the gathering. We often work something out, then have to change it for a variety of reasons.  My best recommendation is arrive earlier as the later you come, the more challenging the parking situation tends to become.

The gathering proper can be 1/2 to 2 miles away from vehicle access and may involve hills. There is usually a drop-off point where people and gear can stage at the trail head even if parking is further out. While the trails can be tough and conditions vary from site to site, there's usually a couple of friendly folks just waiting to assist with the rough spots. Sometimes we have cool things like rickshaws to assist people in getting around but sometimes we don't or the service of such assistance devices is intermittent and it may take hours to coordinate transport.

Also, while I understand the desire to sleep in your rig, it is actually easier if you camp in the central part of the gathering by the kitchen of your liking as it will be much easier for others to provide support and you will have access to all the magical happenings. Getting volunteers to help 200 people into the gathering is one thing. Finding volunteers to help 200 people twice a day as they commute to the parking lot is a lot harder for everyone.

~~ Access Rap ~~

While the gathering has always been open to all people with physical disabilities of all levels, as people get older and more people with disabilities want to gather, it becomes more important to address their needs and their problems with access.

The gathering is a back country experience with minimal modifications to the natural landscape, and all people who gather need to be prepared for rough conditions that vary from year to year. However, there is an abundance of helping hands to assist with needs as requested, and, as our family grows and changes, an increasing awareness of how we can assist our family when they are coming home.

People with strong backs and strong arms: Our siblings sometimes need help in getting from point A to point B, especially while carrying gear. Be alert, and if you see someone having difficulties, ask if and how you can help. When constructing all those wonderful Rainbow spaces, think about how someone in a wheelchair would get to and into it – or better yet, find someone in a wheelchair and ask what would be best. Think about how someone in a wheelchair or on crutches can use a shitter and design accordingly.

People with special needs: Ask how to get to HandiCamp, a place for people with mobility problems and other disabilities, with folks willing to help you make the most of your gathering experience. While the trails can be tough and the conditions can vary from site to site, there are usually a few friendly folk willing to assist you with the rough spots. Sometimes people bring cool things like rickshaws to help people get around. Sometime we do not have any mobility transport devices. If you have a handicapped placard, please bring it. Some years that helps us get people closer parking, some years it doesn't.

We will have registered nurses and medical doctors on site during the main days of the gathering. It's a great idea to connect up with a health care practitioner when you arrive and before you need assistance so that someone is familiar with your needs and can assist more quickly.  Please, ask for help when you need it and give another gatherer a chance to be of service.

People with ongoing medical needs: Bring your own personal supplies, like catheters, wraps, special chairs, diapers, cleanups, oxygen, other medical items. Bring your own attendant if you need assistance with personal care (like bowel programs, skin transfers, catheterizations, dressing of wounds), or with supervision or other issues (like mobility, access, or safety).

Everyone: Come celebrate our interdependence! Participate in the joys of helping and the joys of being helped.

Rap 107/701

 

Rap 107

Gathering Consciousness

Please protect this Beautiful Land.

 

Walk softly. Harm no living thing. Harmonize - Blend in. Cut no living trees. Use only down, dead wood. Preserve the meadows; camp in the woods. We are caretakers of this land.

Everyone sharing makes a strong Human Tribe!

Please Protect the water sources by staying out of DELICATE spring areas. Avoid camping, peeing, washing above spring areas. Keep ALL soap out of streams, springs or the creek! Use a bucket to take your bath 100 feet away from any water source. To be certain of drinking water, boil it!

Protect our Health!

Use the slit trenches or covered latrines – cover your paper & waste with ashes or lime, wash hands. Dig no shitters near water areas or kitchens.

Break the fly/illness connection:
shit > flies > food > YOU!

Use your own cup, bowl & spoon. Wash them after eating and rinse in bleach water. Visit C.A.L.M. if you are injured or if you feel ill – especially if you have a contagious disease!

Camp Together - Establish neighborhoods. Community Fires only! ~ Each with a 5 gallon water bucket and shovel for Fire Protection. If you are the last to leave a fire PUT IT OUT! Watch your gear: Be Responsible ~ “Tempt Not Lest Ye Be Lifted From.”

Pets are discouraged but if you must bring them keep them fed, on a leash and out of the kitchens, springs, & fights. Clean up their shit. Love them.


PACK IT IN - PACK IT OUT !!!

Cleanup begins when you arrive. Bring in only what is necessary. There is no janitor here ... you are the cleanup crew. Separate garbage for recycling. Don't litter - Find collection point. Compost in pits only.

You are the Gathering! Participate in Shanti Sena, the peace keepers – and all activities, councils, work crews, workshops. Volunteer wherever needed: kitchens, welcome home, firewatch, parking lot, shitter digging, supply, front gate, etc. R-E-S-P-E-C-T eachother’s energies.

Keep the Balance: 
Earth, Sky, Trees, Water, & People!

Alcohol is Discouraged, Guns are inappropriate, violence is contrary to the spirit of the gathering. Please take no photographs or videos of people without permission. Discourage drug abuse.

Buying and selling endangers our legal right to be here. The Magic Hat is our bank, donate early to fund our needs. The Magic Hat goes around at mealtime circles and with the Magic Hat Band.

Our power together is many times 
our power separated.

Enjoy the Rainbow with an open heart 
and you will see the Vision.

Join us for the 4th of July Silent Contemplation & Prayer for Peace. Please respect those maintaining silence from dawn to noon.

WE LOVE YOU!!

Rap 701

In preparation for leaving...

Pack up all your trash and take it away. Take it far away. Do not impact the small towns near the gathering. Drop recyclables in appropriate collection areas.

Dismantle and disappear your encampment. Pick up litter, douse fire, ashes cold, scatter fire rocks.  Replace turf. Vanish ALL traces. 

Cover your local latrine and compost holes solidly with lime and soil. Burn any wood structures used for latrine seats. Remove string and twine from tree limbs. Break up hardened ground with shovels or picks for future root growth and moisture catch. Intermix humus from forest ground if possible.

NATURALIZE! When an area is clear and clean, scatter logs, branches, leaves. Disappear trails, renew forest habitat. Water systems are removed, cleaned and stored for next year.

Help with disabled vehicles, fully dismantle ramps and bridges. Water bar steep places to prevent erosion. The final crew re-seeds with appropriate vegetation to complete the process.

Transport as many riders as possible out of the area. Treat local folks with great kindness.

Drive safely and share this love wherever you go.

Happy Trails!

WE LOVE YOU!!!!

Consent - Rap 121

 

Rap 121

 

This is a gathering based on love and respect.

Please help create a safe space for everyone.

Respect each other and do no harm. 

Ask before hugging or touching anyone.

Nudity is natural, and not a sexual invitation.

“No” means NO!  

The absence of “Yes” means NO!

A sleeping or intoxicated person cannot consent. 

A person under the legal age of consent cannot consent.  

A person unable to competently consent for any reason cannot consent.

Consent at one time does not imply consent at any other time. 

Consent for one action does not imply consent for any other action.

Consent given can be revoked at any time.

Respect yourself and trust your instincts. If you don’t feel comfortable being intimate or alone with someone, or with what someone wants you to do, you have the right to say “no”.

If planning on engaging in sexual activity, open and forthright sharing about sexually transmitted infections is necessary. 

Love happens – protect yourself – use condoms! If you don’t have one, just ask.

If you observe what you believe to be a boundary or consent violation, offer support or get help.

If you see immediate danger of any kind, yell out “Shanti Sena!” and other gatherers will rush to your aid. If you hear someone yell “Shanti Sena,” approach quickly, carefully and peacefully. 

We are all Shanti Sena – Peace Keepers