The Resolution 33 process was initiated at the 2017 DSA convention. The Resolution 33 process is intended to be confidential. To avoid conflicts of interest and to make the consideration of all grievance appeals as fair and impartial as we can make it, the NPC adopted procedures including delegating authority to the NPC Steering Committee to address grievance/appeal matters under Resolution 33.

The National Harassment and Grievance Officer works closely with the NPC and the SC to identify gaps/unaddressed concerns under Resolution 33 that must be resolved to adjudicate a particular grievance and/or appeal, and will make these approved motions available to DSA members, HGOs and chapter leaders in trainings, via listening sessions and email communications, and via the Harassment resource pages on the DSA website to inform and train members on best practices in implementing Resolution 33.

When the NHGO is contacted about filing a grievance, they will first ensure that it has already been handled by the relevant chapter if the chapter has over 100 members (although some smaller chapters and new chapters are voluntarily adding Resolution 33 language even though not required by the policy itself).

If they have, then the member seeking to appeal will be invited to fill out the appeal form. Based on this the NHGO will assess whether the grievance meets Resolution 33 requirements or is an attempt to appeal a non-Resolution 33 expulsion or discipline under the chapter’s bylaws. The chapter HGOs and/or leadership will be contacted to obtain information from them about the adjudication process below and any additional relevant information as to how and why the grievance was decided a particular way.

Then a summary report will be generated with a recommendation for adjudication by the NPC. The reports will not identify either the individuals involved or their chapter. While NPC members may have independent knowledge of the behavior and/or conflict at the heart of an individual grievance appeal, are expected to review the reports and recommendations fairly and impartially. The facts will be kept confidential as will the recommendations. NPC members are expected to recuse themselves if they feel they may know any of the parties involved or cannot otherwise be fair and impartial.

All communication on grievances should go through the NHGO and should not be directed toward any individual members of the NPC.