Privacy Policy

Effective October 19, 2026

The Upstander Archive (upstanderarchive.org) is a free, non-commercial project run by Gabriel Sokolov. This policy explains what information the site collects, why, who else handles it, and what you can ask us to do with it. "We" and "us" mean The Upstander Archive.

1. Information you give us

• The pledge. When you sign, the form collects your email address and any other details it asks for, such as your first name. The form is run by our email service, Kit, and protected by Google reCAPTCHA. Kit sends a confirmation email, so nothing is final until you confirm.
• Emails. When you email contact@ or [email protected], we receive your email address, your name if you include it, and whatever you write.
• Interviews. If you agree to be interviewed, we collect the recording, your contact details, and notes about what we discussed and how you want to be identified (full name, first name only, or anonymous). See section 5.

2. Information collected automatically

We don't use advertising or tracking cookies. Our own pages set no cookies. Some information is collected automatically by the services that make the site work:

• Hosting and security (Cloudflare). The site and the videos are served by Cloudflare. Like any web host, Cloudflare processes your IP address, browser type, the pages and files you request, and the time, to deliver the site and protect it from attacks. We may use Cloudflare Web Analytics, which counts visits without cookies and without building a profile of you.
• Fonts (Google Fonts). The site's fonts load from Google, so Google receives your IP address and browser information when a page loads.
• The map (OpenFreeMap). When the incident map loads, your browser requests map images from OpenFreeMap, which receives your IP address. OpenFreeMap says it uses no cookies and keeps mostly anonymized logs.
• The map search box. ZIP codes and most LA place names are looked up on the site itself, so nothing is sent anywhere. If you type a name the site doesn't know, that text is sent to OpenStreetMap's Nominatim search to find it, along with your IP address. Don't type personal information like your home address into it.
• The pledge form (Kit and Google reCAPTCHA). When the form loads, Kit and Google reCAPTCHA receive information from your browser, and reCAPTCHA checks that you are a person and not a bot. These services may set their own cookies. Google's Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply to reCAPTCHA.
• In your own browser. After you sign the pledge, the site saves a short scrambled code (not your email address) in your browser's local storage, so the same email can't sign twice from that browser. It never leaves your device. You can delete it by clearing your browser's site data.

3. How we use information

• to count pledge signatures and send updates about the Archive to people who signed;
• to answer emails and arrange interviews;
• to make the site work, keep it secure, and understand roughly how many people visit;
• to follow the law, and to protect the Archive, the people in it, and our visitors.

We do not sell, rent or trade personal information, and we do not share it for advertising.

4. Who else handles it

We share information only with the services that run the site for us, and only for the reasons above:

• Cloudflare: hosting, security and visit counts (privacy policy)
• Kit: the pledge form and mailing list (privacy policy)
• Google: Gmail for our inbox, reCAPTCHA, and fonts (privacy policy)
• OpenFreeMap: map images (privacy information)
• OpenStreetMap Foundation: map search for names the site doesn't know (privacy policy)

We may also share information if the law requires it, such as a valid court order, or if we need to protect someone's safety. People who help with the project, such as a mentor reviewing a video edit, may see interview material, and only for that purpose.

5. People in the Archive

Interviews are recorded only with permission. Before anything is published, we agree with each person on how they will appear: full name, first name only, or anonymous. Raw recordings, interview notes and contact details are kept private and are never published. If someone asks to stay anonymous, we leave out their name, face and other details that could identify them. If you are under 18, we need a parent or guardian's permission before publishing your interview.

Anyone who appears on the site can ask us at any time to change how they are identified or to take their interview down. Email [email protected].

6. How long we keep it

Pledge signatures stay on our list until you unsubscribe or ask us to delete them. Emails stay in our inbox as long as they are useful for the project. Interview material is kept while the Archive exists, unless the person asks us to remove it. Cloudflare and our other services keep their own logs for the periods described in their policies.

7. Your choices and rights

• Unsubscribe with the link at the bottom of any email from us.
• Ask us to show you, correct, or delete the information we have about you by emailing [email protected]. We'll answer within 30 days and won't treat you differently for asking.
• California residents have the right to know what personal information a website collects and who it is shared with. This policy describes that. We don't sell or share personal information for advertising, so there is nothing to opt out of.
• If you are under 18 and you appear in an interview or anything else on the site, you or your parent or guardian can ask us to take it down, and we will.
• Do Not Track and Global Privacy Control. We don't track you across other websites, so these browser signals don't change anything here. We still treat a Global Privacy Control signal as a request not to sell or share your information, which we never do anyway.

8. Children under 13

Kids are welcome to watch the videos and learn from the site. A federal law (COPPA) has special rules for collecting personal information from children under 13, so we don't knowingly collect any from them: please don't sign the pledge or send us personal details if you're under 13. If a child under 13 has done that, a parent can email us and we'll delete it.

9. Security

The site uses HTTPS and a strict security policy that limits what can run on its pages, and only the people who run the Archive can get into its accounts. No website can promise perfect security, but we keep as little information as we can and protect what we keep.

10. Visitors outside the United States

The Archive and the services above are based in the United States, so information is processed and stored in the United States.

11. Changes to this policy

If we change this policy, we'll update the date at the top of this page. If a change affects how we use pledge emails, we'll tell signers by email before it takes effect.

12. Contact

Questions or requests about privacy: [email protected]