BABSCon - Code of Conduct

Thank you for joining us for BABSCon! To ensure everyone has a wonderful time, please honor the following rules:

General Rules

1. Please be respectful to Attendees, Guests of Honor, Community Guests, Cosplayers, Musicians, Press, Hyatt Regency SFO Staff, and Convention Staff.
2. BABSCon is a convention suitable for all ages. As such, excessive use of profanity is prohibited in convention areas.
3. Appropriate clothing, as defined in our General Dress Code, must be worn while in public areas. In other words: naked is not a costume.
4. Smoking of tobacco products, use of e-cigarettes, and use of other vapor producing devices are allowed only in designated smoking areas.
5. Public consumption of alcohol is prohibited outside of designated areas on Hyatt Regency SFO grounds.
6. All Hyatt Regency SFO Policies, Burlingame Ordinances, California State Laws, and Federal Laws of The United States of America must be adhered to at all times.
7. Partaking of Medical and Recreational Marijuana is allowed only in the designated smoking areas by Hyatt Regency SFO Policy.
8. Children under the age of 14 must be accompanied at all times by a parent or legal guardian.
9. While the majority of BABSCon’s events and panels are suitable for all ages, access to some events and panels may be restricted due to content or other considerations. All attendees present at a limited access event or panel must meet admittance requirements. Failure to comply will result in attendee being removed from the event.
10. Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals are not pets, they are working animals. Therefore, there are some simple Rules of Conduct that we expect our attendees to follow:
    • Please do not pet, call, reach for, offer treats to, or otherwise distract these working animals.
    • If you wish to compliment the handler on their animal, please direct the compliment to the handler, and not to the animal.
    • Please remind your Foals, and Friends, that these animals are working. No matter how cute they are; these working animals are not available to be interacted with, unless the handler gives the initial offer.

general Dress Code

1. Shoes, or other adequate footwear, must be worn in public areas.
2. Clothing which publicly exposes—or provides the illusion of—genitalia, buttocks, or breasts are strictly prohibited.
3. Non-thong swim and dance wear are acceptable at designated BABSCon events and designated BABSCon areas.
4. Special events and panels may have additional specific dress guidelines. Please refer to panel/event descriptions for further information.
5. Clothing and tattoos must be appropriate for a family environment. Prohibited content includes, but is not limited to:
   • Blood
   • Gore
   • Profanity
   • Pornographic material
   • Hate symbols or messages (i.e. racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, anti-semitic, white supremacist, Nazi, Confederate, Trump/MAGA, etc.)

Cosplay Dress Code

1. All Cosplay Costumes are subject to the General Dress Code.
2. It is highly recommended for attendees wearing costumes with limited visibility or mobility have a handler to assist in navigating the convention area.
3. For male cosplayers wearing form-fitting spandex tights, BABSCon recommends wearing a Dance Belt to obscure the physical form of male genitalia.

Cosplay Props Policy

Please read this entire policy before attending BABSCon. Failure to follow this policy may result in removal from the convention without refund.

1. All cosplay props must be peacebonded at the BABSCon FLARE Office.
2. At the discretion of the BABSCon FLARE Office, the following may be allowed:
   • Plastic and Metal Shields
   • Lightweight Plastic/PVC Props/Lightsabers
   • Toy guns as long as they do not look like real firearms, cannot function or fire projectiles, and have an orange tip on the barrel.
   • Prop bows as long as all arrows have soft tips made of foam or cardboard.
3. If any of the above items are deemed unsafe by the BABSCon FLARE Office they will not be allowed inside convention areas.
4. Care should be used with props and accessories so they do not pose a safety issue or interfere with other attendees' enjoyment of the convention. Swinging, throwing, shooting, or waving props and accessories is prohibited.

Harassment Policy

BABSCon has a zero tolerance policy for harassment of any kind, to anyone. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Non-consensual physical contact or attention
• Photography or video recording without express permission
• Stalking
• Sustained disruption of panels, signings, and other events
• Bathroom policing
• Offensive verbal comments or threats
• Offensive signage or other written material
• Hate speech

relating to, but not limited to:

• Race
• Color
• National origin
• Gender
• Gender identity
• Gender presentation
• Sexual orientation
• Age
• Body size
• isability
• appearance
• religion
• citizenship
• pregnancy

If a person engages in harassing behavior, BABSCon Staff will take prompt action in any form they deem appropriate, including but not limited to expulsion from BABSCon with no refund. This policy applies to EVERYONE at the convention. Vendors, Fans (Attendees), Panelists, Guests of Honor, Community Guests, Press, Staff, Volunteers, and Security are all subject to this Anti-Harassment Policy.

Prohibited Activities Policy

Please read this entire policy before attending BABSCon. Failure to follow this policy may result in removal from the convention without refund.

The following activities are prohibited at BABSCon:

• Photography, video recording, or audio recording in locations where it is forbidden. Locations where this is forbidden include, but are not limited to children programming areas
• Photography, video recording, or audio recording for commercial purposes without express written consent from Harmonious Elements, Inc
• Distribution of printed or recorded material outside of a purchased and assigned vendor's table or on designated BABSCon flyer boards. Failure to comply is in violation of the BABSCon Vendor Relation's Agreement and Policy
• Selling/displaying/advertising goods or services outside of a purchased and assigned vendor's table. Failure to comply is in violation of the BABSCon Vendor Relation's Agreement and Policy
• Actions which pose a hazard to oneself, others, or the orderly operation of the convention
• Hate speech (i.e. racist, sexist, homophobic, transphobic, anti-semitic, white supremacist, Nazi, Confederate, Trump/MAGA, etc.)

Prohibited Items Policy

Please read this entire policy before attending BABSCon. Failure to follow this policy may result in removal from the convention without refund.

The following items are prohibited at BABSCon:

• Functional firearms (including, but not limited to air soft guns, BB guns, cap guns, paintball guns, and pellet guns)
• Realistic replica firearms (including,but not limited to reproduction, fake, or toy guns that can be confused for functional firearms)
• Functional projectile weapons (including but not limited to blowguns, crossbows, longbows, silly string, slingshots, water balloons, and water guns)
• Sharpened metal-bladed weapons.
• Explosives
• Chemical weapons
• Blunt weapons (including, but not limited to brass knuckles, clubs, and nunchaku)
• Hard prop weapons. See the Cosplay Props Policy for specific guidelines as to what is allowed at BABSCon
• Instruments that cause excessive noise levels like vuvuzelas, grenade whistles, and grenade horns
• Whips
• Drones
• Selfie Sticks
• Balloons (strictly forbidden per hotel policy)
• Stickers and decals (strictly forbidden per hotel policy)

Convention Rights

1. Badges remain the property of BABSCon and Harmonious Elements, Inc., and are provided to attendees as proof-of-payment to the event. Badges are non-transferable and must be used by the same individual during its valid period. Modified, tampered, or copied badges are revoked and void.
2. By obtaining a BABSCon badge the badge-holder agrees to abide by BABSCon’s Code of Conduct.
3. BABSCon reserves the right to change the BABSCon Code of Conduct without notice.
4. A valid BABSCon badge is required for events and panels requiring a separate admission charge or reservation.
5. Badges must be clearly visible while in the convention space and must be shown to BABSCon staff upon request.
6. BABSCon and Harmonious Elements, Inc. reserves the right to deny admittance to the convention, or revoke an attendee's badge, without refund or compensation at any time for any reason.

7. By obtaining a badge and in consideration for admittance to BABSCon, the BABSCon badge-holder consents to BABSCon, and BABSCon approved affiliates, the right to take photographs, video and audio recordings of attendees, events, panels, and public areas for private and commercial use by any means in all media now known or hereafter devised worldwide in perpetuity.

   In short: BABSCon attracts press from local, national, and international outlets. By attending BABSCon, all BABSCon badge-holders give their consent to be photographed or appear on camera.

8. Buyers assume responsibility for all goods and services purchased. Transactions are between individual vendors and attendees only. BABSCon and Harmonious Elements, Inc. make no warranties or guarantees concerning goods or services provided by individual vendors.
9. Should circumstances require: panels, events, activities, and Vendor Hall access may be canceled, rescheduled, relocated, number of attendees present restricted; Guest of Honor availability and appearance during the convention changed or canceled; and other modifications to the event without prior notification or compensation. Every effort will be made to announce any changes on BABSCon’s website and social media channels, but the possibility for last minute changes still exists. BABSCon thanks you for your understanding.
10. BABSCon is not responsible for lost, stolen, or damaged property.
11. BABSCon is not responsible for any injuries sustained during the course of BABSCon.
12. Failure to follow or abide by these rules may result in having the offender's badge revoked and taken, security or police action, and/or the offender being permanently banned from future events.

If you have any questions, please ask at any Info Desk location. Violation reports can be made to any member of BABSCon or FLARE staff.