Concept Ten
"Any member of a service body can
petition that body for the redress of a personal grievance,
without fear of reprisal."
Although NA is a spiritual fellowship, its
members are human. We have strong opinions and attitudes, and
the free expression of those attitudes is our responsibility and
right during the course of contributing to the decision-making
process. We learned the value of considering all viewpoints in
the Ninth concept. When we have been the minority voice
ourselves, however, and have challenged the status-quo with our
ideas and input, sometimes our freedom imprisons us.
Occasionally we might become stereotyped and
judged rather than listened to and understood. If we suffer hurt
during the process, the Tenth Concept allows us a vehicle by
which we might address our grievance without fear of reprisal.
A process for considering a Tenth Concept
petition is an essential item for each service committee.
Hearing such a petition is often a painful time during a
committee’s life together. If a process has been developed and
clearly defined in the committee’s guidelines or procedures, the
anguish of hearing a fellow member’s grievance can be lessened,
and mutual respect between all parties involved should be more
easily attained.
As a guiding principle, the Tenth Concept is not
designed to be used as a weapon against those who disagree with
us. It is intended, rather, as a balance mechanism which can
protect the integrity of our personal involvement in the
delivery of Public Information services.
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