Chicago.com is a place to share local information and resources while building connections that improve our lives and strengthen our communities.

This space is our shared responsibility.

We are all responsible for creating and maintaining the culture here. If you see or experience anything that appears to go against any of these agreements, please let us know through our built-in reporting system and we'll review it as soon as possible.

Like any shared space, this works best when we all commit to a set of shared agreements about how we'll show up and treat each other here.

As a user of chicago.com, I agree to:

• Represent myself authentically I won't create multiple accounts, impersonate others, or falsely represent a business or organization.
• Use my own voice Chicago.com exists to help neighbors connect with neighbors. People come here to hear from real people, not robots. I'll write from my own experience and in my own voice, rather than relying on A.I. to generate posts or comments for me.
• Treat everyone with dignity and respect This includes avoiding hatred or discrimination based on race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, or physical ability. If disagreements arise, I'll approach them with empathy, curiosity and respect, avoiding threats, intimidation, personal attacks, harassment, or other overly-aggressive behavior. I won't post anything that dehumanizes anyone, denigrates or delegitimizes anyone’s culture or nationality, promotes racism, or celebrates or encourages physical violence.
• Stay within the law I won't use this space for any kind of illegal activity, including selling or distributing illegal goods or sharing content that violates copyright or intellectual property rights.

When creating guides, I agree to: 

• Keep guides constructive I’ll use guides to celebrate, recommend, and help people discover what’s good or useful. Guides aren’t the place for takedowns, score-settling, or collections of places and businesses to avoid or boycott. There are plenty of other places on the internet for that. 
• Avoid self-dealing or self-promotion I won’t create or contribute to a guide for the purpose of promoting a business, organization, or cause that I own, operate, work for, or have a financial interest in. Guides should reflect genuine community recommendations, not undisclosed advertising or self-promotion.
• Be thoughtful about identity and safety I can create guides that celebrate communities and help people discover places with meaningful connections to them. But I’ll be thoughtful about how I describe owners, staff, and community affiliations, especially when that information could be sensitive, incomplete, or bring unwanted attention to a person or business. Guides should never resemble doxxing or make it easier to target people because of their identity, beliefs, or affiliations. The same care extends to sensitive locations – private residences, schools, shelters, places of worship, and places where people may be seeking health care, safety, or other support. Guides that help people find public services and community resources are welcome; I won’t create guides that identify, target, recommend, or exclude places based on political affiliation or activity, or that could be used to harass, intimidate, or expose people’s personal information.
• Keep election guides informational I can create guides that help people find nonpartisan election and advocacy information and resources, such as polling places, voter-registration help, candidate forums, public meetings, or official voting information. I won’t use guides to promote or oppose a specific candidate, political party, ballot measure, or campaign, or to direct people toward places based on their political views or likely vote.

In community conversations (currently piloting 5 neighborhoods)

• Keep things local I'll use this space to share news, information, and perspectives about the people, places, and issues that shape daily life in my community. I understand that this is not a place to discuss national news or issues, unless it's directly related to our community. 
• Respect other people's time and attention I won't spam the space or be repeatedly and excessively self-promotional. Occasional personal business announcements that serve the community are ok (e.g. a grand opening, special event, or significant milestone).
• Not post items for sale or giveaway This space is not a marketplace for selling, trading, or giving things away. It is ok to announce garage sales or other in-person events.
• Share only reliable information Before sharing news or information, I'll confirm it's accurate. I won't post manipulated or AI-generated images with the intent to mislead people and won't share links or content with the intent to scam, defraud or take advantage of others. If I share information about health care, housing, legal services, safety, or other sensitive topics, I’ll take extra care to make sure it is current, accurate, and clearly sourced.
• Respect people's privacy I won't publicly share anyone's private personal information (full name, home address, phone number, or email address) without their permission. I also won't share highly sensitive personal information about myself, including my social security number, credit card numbers, or health records.
• Not share anything obscene This includes images, videos, or links that contain or feature sexualized nudity, sexual situations, or explicit sex acts.
• Avoid "suspicious person" posts These often create unnecessary fear and unfairly target community members. This is different from sharing helpful safety information during active emergencies, which is allowed and encouraged.

If we determine that someone has violated an agreement, we may hide or remove content, suspend or terminate their account, or in extreme cases, make a report to the appropriate authorities. You can appeal any moderation decision from directly within the app.