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Reporting Sexual Harassment in SF/F
Please see http://www.jimchines.com/2013/07/reporting-sexual-harassment-2013/ for the most current version of this post.
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I want to make it as clear as I can that if you’ve been sexually harassed, it’s your choice whether or not to report that harassment. It’s not an easy choice, and as we’ve seen, even written policies don’t guarantee the outcome. But I can tell you that if someone has harassed you, it’s 99% certain that he (or she) has done it to others. You’re not alone.
Reporting to Publishers:
As a general rule, if you’ve been sexually harassed by an editor or another employee of a publisher, complaints can be directed to the publisher’s H.R. department. Please note that reporting to H.R. will usually trigger a formal, legal response.
I’ve spoken to people at several publishers to get names and contact information for complaints, both formal and informal. I’ve put asterisks by the publishers where I spoke with someone directly.
- Ace: See Penguin, below.
- Apex Publications*: “Any harassment issues related to Apex Publications should be sent to Jason Sizemore.” jason -at- apexbookcompany.com.
- Baen*: Toni Weisskopf, toni -at- baen.com. From Toni, “You would come to me with any complaint about the company.”
- DAW*: Sheila Gilbert (sheila.gilbert -at- us.penguingroup.com) or Betsy Wolheim (betsy.wolheim -at- us.penguingroup.com). They can be reached during normal office hours, Tuesday through Thursday.
- Del Rey/Spectra*: HumanResources -at- randomhouse.com.
- Edge*: Brian Hades (publisher -at- hadespublications.com).
- Harper Collins: feedback2 -at- harpercollins.com.
- Orbit: Andrea Weinzimer, VP of Human Resources. andrea.weinzimer -at- hbgusa.com. Inappropriate conduct can also be brought up with the publisher, Tim Holman tim.holman -at- hbgusa.com.
- Penguin: Contact page links to an e-mail submission form.
- Random House: Contact page has some info.
- Roc: See Penguin, above.
- Solaris Books: Please use the Contact Page.
- Tor*: Report the incident directly to Macmillan Human Resources, or to Beth Meacham, at bam -at- panix.com or in person.
Publishers – I would love to expand this list with better information. Please contact me.
Reporting to Conventions:
Often harassment doesn’t come from editors, but from authors or other fans. If this happens at a convention, another option is to contact the convention committee. Many (but not all) conventions include harassment policies in the program books.
A convention committee doesn’t have the same power as an employer. However, if harassment is reported at a convention, the individual may be confronted or asked to leave. In addition, reporting harassment by guests (authors, editors, etc.) is very helpful to the convention in deciding who not to invite back.
To any convention staff, I would encourage you to make sure you have a harassment policy in place, and equally importantly, that your volunteers are aware of that policy and willing to enforce it.
The Con Anti-Harassment Project includes a list of SF/F conventions and their sexual harassment policies (Note – As of October 2011, this list is rather outdated.)
Other:
Science Fiction/Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) – Per John Scalzi, current SFWA president:
If there is an instance where someone feels that they have been harassed at a SFWA event or in SFWA online environs, they may contact the board. This should ideally be done through their regional director, or by contacting SFWA’s ombudsman, Cynthia Felice, at ombudsman -at- sfwa.org. SFWA takes very seriously the responsibility to have its events and online areas be places where members and others feel safe and valued.
What to Expect:
Ideally, someone who was sexually harassed could report it and expect to be treated with respect. Her or his concerns would be taken seriously, and all possible steps would be taken to make sure the behavior did not happen again, and that the offender understood such behavior was unacceptable. Disciplinary action would be taken when appropriate.
This is not a perfect world. Employers are required to follow the laws and their own policies, which may mean a report results in nothing more than a warning (particularly if this is the first report of harassment). And as we’ve recently seen with Readercon, there are no guarantees that a convention will even follow its own policies.
That said, when I originally posted about sexual harassment in fandom, everyone who responded expressed that such behavior was unacceptable. And there were a lot of responses, from fans, authors, editors, con staff, and agents. The backlash against the Readercon decision suggests that a lot of us are taking sexual harassment more seriously.
As a rape counselor, I saw how powerful and important it can be to break the silence around assault and harassment. However, it’s always your choice whether or not to report. Making that report will be stressful. It may be empowering, but there are no guarantees. It may or may not have visible results.
First and foremost, please do whatever is necessary to take care of yourself.
Other Resources:
- The Back Up Project See also http://backupproject.livejournal.com/
- The Backup Ribbon Project
- On Harassment Policies, via Cheryl Morgan. Discussion and examples of convention harassment policies.
- Sample Conference Anti-harassment Policy, from the Geek Feminism Wiki. I particularly like that the policy includes internal guidelines for convention staff.
- The Con Anti-Harassment Project (Out of date, but still includes useful examples and information.)
Please contact me if you know of related resources which should be included here.
Mirrored from Jim C. Hines.
no subject
Unfortunately, as a result of Readercon's board's reactions, fans may decide that it's more useful to report harassment to the hotel staff, bypassing the fannish community altogether in the hope of getting immediate assistance.
I know that for myself and my daughters, if we felt harassed or bothered at the conventions where I have personal friends on the staff, I'd report to conops, or con security; if I were attending a convention in a different part of the country, where I didn't know the staff--I'd probably report to conops, but if I didn't get a fairly quick and satisfactory response, I'd report to the hotel management, who I know take "safety of the guests" seriously for legal reasons.
And while I know that it's almost always better to take inter-fan problems to conops--the hotel staff is not practiced in taking reports from people wearing medieval costuming with laser-tag accessories--the Readercon debacle and various other con reports have made me very aware that convention staffs often choose SMOF politics over the comfort of the membership.
If I see some drunken Klingon swinging a chair like it's a batleth, I look for con security, not hotel security. I don't want half the con shut down, or weapons policies changed to "no fans can move chairs around on their own" because of one idiot. If I see some drunken Klingon blocking a Vampirella from the door out before she squeezes past him... I'm thinking I make the initial report to conops, but then tell the hotel staff.
On the one hand, I don't want Klingon costumes banned, nor the entire Klingon Party ("Starbase 74 in 2416!") evicted, because one asshat can't keep his hands to himself. (Neither does Vampirella, which is why the majority of these incidents go unreported.) On the other, it is past time to say "if you insist on allowing behavior that gets 9-year-olds sent to a Time Out instead of recess, we may have to call in the hall monitors."
No way in hell does *anyone* who enjoys conventions want hotel security staff overseeing the party floor(s) for harassment (or any other security/safety issue). But if the choice is between "hotel staff interferes with the fanac" or "women just gotta put up with being groped and leered at," I know which way I'll jump.
no subject
- well-known and respected member of the community
- previous attender at the con in question, so known to the organisers
- corroborative evidence both as to the actions of Walling at Readercon and similar fact evidence that it constituted a pattern of behaviour on his part
- a well-documented and clear conference harassment policy in place that had been drawn to the attention of conference attendees in advance of the event
- no available easy discrediting factors such as previous relationship with harasser, short skirts or late nights in the bar to give those wanting to disregard the report any ammunition to do so**
- prompt reporting***
- no challenge to the facts reported by the perpetrator
- agreement by the Board that the offence had been made out.
There will never be a clearer case than this one. And the complaint was treated shamefully and - while the backlash this time against Valentine has been encouragingly slow in coming - it seems to be building a head of steam now.
When the controversy about the Shrodinger's Rapist paper was raging I attempted to point out to some obtuse bloke "Nice Guying" in comments that being constantly alert to threats of harassment was the default mode for women. His response? "I could never bear to live in fear like that. Why don't you just commit suicide and avoid the pain?"
Which was a bit of a shock, and while it's not something I think it's likely I'd do (low pain threshold, fairly big wuss generally) it's certainly a thought which came back to my mind with the recent incident - not the harassment, but the disappointment of the news of the Board's reaction, when I thought - and could tell that Valentine thought - that this time a report of harassment would be dealt with properly and there'd the that tiny chink of light at the end of the tunnel.
Instead, it's business as usual.
So - it's an amazing list of resources you've pulled together, but I can't help thinking, "Well, it's useful to have a phone number but what is really the point if the very best that could possibly happen is for the person to whom I report saying, 'We accept you aren't a slut, a whore, a drunk, an attention-seeker or a liar, but even so, he's more valuable to our organisation than you are. Thanks. Bye Bye.'"
*"Perfect" as in storm, obviously.
** No, of course none of the above would have made it the victim's fault, but they'd have made reporting even less likely and a sympathetic reception vanishingly unlikely
*** I agree entirely that it's up to the harrassee to decide when and if they're up to reporting an incident; nonetheless, there are actual practical difficulties - such as the relevant committee having dispersed after the com or evidence such as photos on mobile phones having been deleted or memories gone a bit blurry - which make delay in reporting a factor in bad outcomes, though since I've never actually heard of a good outcome in these circumstances, not a very major one
no subject
At the same time, there's been a huge backlash against Readercon's decision, and I think that's encouraging. I hope it makes it clear that the SF/F community is less willing to tolerate this kind of crap than it used to be.
But yeah. Readercon's decision hurt.
no subject
In fact, I was planning to go to Eastercon in Bradford, UK, next year, and while I probably will still go, I'll most probably not stay overnight, just come home on the train - it's only forty miles and the trains run all night, practically, so at least in that respect I'm fortunate to have a choice which obviously people at Readercon don't have.
The really interesting issue will be what's going to happen if the Board don't resign and if they vote to uphold the current punishment (or conclude they have no constitutional power to do otherwise). Everyone's assuming that the vote will go the "right" way, but there aren't any guarantees - after all, everyone assumed that kicking him out the first time round was pretty much a given, too.
But next time someone says, "And why are female authors underrepresented in SFF?" one point which might be pointed out is that those who do manage to get publishing contracts or who are seeking to make useful professional connections find it more difficult to do so, since the places where they are required to attend are hostile working environments for women.