I. REGISTRATION

A. Anyone is welcome to register an account with DeaFreedom, with the following exceptions:

1. You already have an account with DeaFreedom. There is a strictly enforced limit of one Membership ID per person. If you forget your ID or password, contact the admin - if you register another ID, BOTH Id's will be removed.

2. You've had your account suspended by the admin. If you register a new ID while under suspension with another ID, you will be blocked from accessing the forums permanently.

3. You're a Spammer.

4. Your membership account has been removed at your request.

B. All new members must post at least once within 30 days of registration. After that, there is no minimum post requirement.

C. User ID's will be periodically removed if you do not log in at least once a year.

II. POSTING

A. All topics of discussion are welcome in DeaFreedom, with the following exceptions:

1. Vulgar, pornographic, or advocating violence.

2. Direct attacks on DeaFreedom Members.

3. Information known by you to be false, misleading, libelous, slanderous, or intentionally damaging to a person or groups reputation or general well-being.

4. Personal Information about yourself or others that could be an admission of a crime.

5. Advertising, except for approved deaf-oriented services.

6. Anything the moderating staff considers to fall in the above categories.

B. Due to the real-time nature of this type of forum, some posts which fall into the above categories may be posted for a short time, until a moderator can remove them. DeaFreedom.com, it's management, hosting provider, or owner cannot be held accountable for any post made by a member.

C. As a member, you alone are responsible for the contents of your posts, and the ramifications of making that post. DeaFreedom has members from virtually every walk of life, and if you have an opinion, odds are we have a member who will disagree with you. If you don't want someone to disagree with you, don't post.

D. Once posts are made by users and go past the allowable time when they can be deleted by that user, they cannot be removed by the admin for any reason other than a violation of DF rules. Once you've posted it, it becomes part of DeaFreedom permanently, and will not be removed, even at the posters request.

III. DISCIPLINARY ACTION

A. From time to time, our members step out of line. It is the policy of DeaFreedom's  admin staff to work with 'problem' members as much as possible, before resorting to permanent suspension. Disciplinary actions include:

1. Informal Warning: Member is contacted via PM or e-mail, and warned to keep within the rules.

2. Formal Warning: Member is warned through the board warn system, warning level is increased.

3. Level One Restriction: Members ability to post is restricted so they cannot edit their own posts, use PM, or reply to other members topics.

4. Level Two Restriction: Member is not allowed to post in DeaFreedom at all.

5. Level Three Restriction: Member is not allowed to view DeaFreedom.

B. These actions can be permanent or temporary, as the admin deems necessary. Members will always be notified by email and/or PM explaining disciplinary actions, and they may appeal any disciplinary action.

IV. REMOVAL OF MEMBERSHIP ACCOUNTS AT USER'S REQUEST

A. For various reasons, some members decide they no longer wish to be a member of DeaFreedom. If you decide this, the best thing to do is to simply stop posting. if you wish to go to the drastic step of having your membership account removed, here are the steps you need to follow.

1. Contact the admin by PM, and request that he remove your account, and state why. The Admin will then send an email to the email account in your profile, verifying your request.

2. Respond to the verification email. Admin will then immediately remove your account.

3. You will have one month to request that your account be reinstated, after which the removal will become permanent. You may only request that your account be reinstated once, so the second time you request your account be removed, it will automatically become permanent.

B. A user may not request that all of their posts be removed.

V. SUPERMEMBERS

A. SuperMembers are DeaFreedom members who have proven they have a lot to contribute, and can be trusted with expanded posting features. To become a SuperMember, you must:

1. Make at least 50 posts

2. Not have been disciplined in the last month for rules violations.

3. Be approved by the SuperMember Committee.

VI. ID PASSWORD RESPONSIBILITY

A. Your User ID and Password are your personal responsibility. Any posts made from your ID are also your responsibility, with no exceptions.