Forum Guidelines Expanded: 6. Inappropriate Content

This post is a part of our series on expanded forum guidelines to help all users better understand the purpose of each guideline and for forum moderators to understand appropriate behavior and review examples of this rule in action.

My post was edited/deleted for inappropriate content. What does that mean?

Excessive Inappropriate or Graphic Language is not allowed, including cursing in thread titles, cursing at others, and cursing in excess within a post. Trigger warnings should be included in thread titles or beginning of body content where appropriate.

Purpose of rule: To maintain a professional and supportive environment. The purpose of this rule is to be mindful that cursing or graphic language is often used in abusive settings and so some people are triggered by them. However, we also recognize cursing as a form of informal language, so light cursing is okay in certain contexts. Additionally, when describing your issue, graphic language may be appropriate (with a trigger warning)

Examples: you **** (with or without stars) i **** cant **** believe this **** (without stars) they did [insert explicit graphic description] (without trigger warning)

Explanation: Cursing is allowed, as long as it is not prohibited by the specific community or subforum (see Rule 10), it is not directed at anyone, and it is not excessive. Listeners should not curse while on a listener account. Trigger warnings may be necessary (cursing cannot be in title). Graphic language for the purpose of seeking support may be allowed but require a trigger warning. In some cases, community specific standards may vary (e.g., cursing is more liberally accepted in Anger Management, graphic language regarding sexual acts is more liberally accepted in Sexual Health when used to seek support).

Appropriate Action: Forum moderators should review category / community specific guidelines prior to making edits on this topic. If at all possible, the forum moderator should remove the offending content while retaining the post. All edits should include the forum moderators name and the reason for editing (e.g. inappropriate content). In the event that the post cannot be retained, the forum moderator will delete the whole post. If you believe a forum moderator has edited or deleted your post in error, you can email forum@7cups.com and we will investigate.

Clarifications:

I had a shit day

This is not considered to be excessive cursing, nor is it attacking anyone else, so assuming this came from a member account, it would be acceptable (provided it is not posted in a community with specific guidelines permitting no cursing). In most cases, this should not be edited.

[with trigger warning] [moderate cursing or graphic language]

As long as this meets the particular community/categorys guidelines, the trigger warning would make this allowable. Note: there is not always a perfectly clear line between moderate and excessive and to some degree this does require a bit of a judgment call. Our goal is always to avoid editing/deleting when possible, but there may be instances where the content is deemed overtly graphic and working against the goals of keeping a safe space.

[on listener account] [any amount of cursing]

Cursing is not considered professional behavior for a listener and would not be acting in the listener role. Rules in other areas of the site specify that listeners should always behave in a professional manner, and that graphic language should be avoided, particularly in public spaces (e.g., username, bio, or picture). This follows over into other public spaces such as the forums, feed, and group support rooms. The Community Managers are working on amending existing guidelines to make this more explicit.

Do you have questions about what is or isnt okay or need further clarification on examples? Post below and we will problem solve together!