I was a guest of laurels at a large convention when a drunk con - goer grabbed my ass as I exited the lift . By the time my brain got past “ waitress , did that just materialise ? ” the elevator had come together . I told myself it was n’t a big deal . It ’s not like I ’d been in real strong-arm danger . This was just one abbreviated interaction … but it soured what should have been a wonderful effect . I kept looking around to seek to pick out my harasser so I might be able to key them . I spent the rest of the weekend feeling angry and on bound .
This is obviously and patently unacceptable — nobody should have to confront harassment and assault in ordering to come to a convention to celebrate their favorite books , series , heroes , and by-line . But for far too long , our community has looked the other away , as if disregard these problems meant they did n’t subsist .
This is not a new problem
While it may seem that report card of sexual harassment are a relatively novel phenomenon , this is regrettably not the case . That people find liberal to speak out about these problem is what ’s new , not the job themselves .
In the 1960s , fandom agonized over whether to ban experience pedophile Walter Breen from convention , despite multiple eyewitness accounts of his sexually attack youngster . Meanwhile , author Isaac Asimov ’s proclivity for fumble women was so widely known that in 1961 , the chair of Chicon III wrote a letter bid him to give a public lecture on “ The Power of Posterior Pinching . ”
Marcus Ranum recalls face Asimov at a Worldcon some 30 year ago , after Asimov grope his lady friend in an lift . The convention kicked Ranum out . In their view , the true crime was n’t Asimov ’s harassment , but Ranum ’s complaint about it .
Illustration by: Angelica Alzona.
Even today , many convention are still eager to span these complaints under the proverbial carpet . Just last year , an familiarity of mine named Jon ( name changed for privacy ) is a Michigan fan and conrunner , who attended ConFusion with his family . His daughters , one pre - teen and one teenaged , volunteered to check badges at the con rooms . When one attendee arrive without his badge , the girls require to see it .
The mankind leaned in , seize one of their badges , and endanger to spank them . He repeated the threat a moment later on , enounce he was strong enough to spank them both , and “ to make them wish it . ”
originally in 2015 , writerMark Oshiro was harass at ConQuesT , where he was fan guest of honor . He reported what take place to the convention staff .
[ N]early eight month after I ’d reported … ConQuesT and Kristina Hiner had done absolutely nothing with my report . No one was contact . No one was spoken to .
I will not be attending subjection this year or for the foreseeable future … I do n’t feel dependable there , and in the end , that ’s why this rag me so much . There are people who are part of that community who were actively hostile to me , and when I reported them , the substance was sent loud and unclouded : We do n’t care about you .
Accepting harassment is unacceptable
Harassment is driving beneficial people from our biotic community , and those who select to stay put often have to develop strategy to protect themselves . Here isauthor Carrie Cuinn on what she ’s experiencedwhile attending genre conventions for 20 eld :
I ’ve been groped , fondled , buss , physically pick up and carried off , licked , shoved into corners so I ca n’t turn tail , hugged , propositioned , squirm into a slavish berth to “ try a point ” , and actually fuddle on a bottom , by men who did n’t have license to do any of that …
Cuinn discusses how she began bring trusted manlike friends , to ensure she would never alone at room parties — as well as speaking out in public so would - be harassers eff she would talk about it .
evidently most hoi polloi agree that con attending should n’t require a ego - defense strategy against harassment and assault , and many convening have begin to create , publicize , and enforceharassment policy . Such policies clearly pose out unacceptable behaviors and consequences ; they give the convention a process to follow when molestation occurs , and they send a message to meeter that the convention appraise their consolation and safety .
Hope and help
A 1997 report by Herff Moore and Don Bradley on intimate harassment policies in manufacturing firms found that the existence of a written torment policy resulted in a 76 percent reducing in one twelvemonth ’s report . Simply announcing that harassment will be taken seriously can reduce incidents of molestation .
It also helps when guest of laurels and others with large platforms in the scifi / phantasy community lend their voices . Bestselling author John Scalzi announce in 2013 that he would no longer attend conventions that lack such a insurance . More than a thousand fans and pros co - contract that pledge . “ When I would speak to friends who were woman , acquaintance who were minorities … every one of them had a story of either harassment or their concerns not being taken in earnest , ” said Scalzi . Within a calendar month of his assurance go live , multiple conventions were asking him to share their unexampled or updated molestation policy .
Of naturally , these insurance must be impose to be effective ; at the 2012 Readercon , where an dynamic rooter and conrunner named René Walling was report for molestation . Readercon had a zero - tolerance requiring a lifetime forbiddance for molestation , but the board decided to issue a two - year banning in this case .
“ The gameboard member who had made the conclusion included the convening ’s founder and others who had been take with Readercon for decades , ” said Rose Fox , who was Readercon ’s program chair at the prison term . When the normal citizens committee refresh the conclusion , it was “ one big aroused whirlpool … Some people were vehemently in favour of the determination , others vehemently against , others unsettled or somewhere in between . It was clear-cut we were in a moment that would importantly determine the future tense of the conventionality one way or another . ”
This decisiveness led towidespread recoil and public argumentation . To its credit , Readercon listened . In the end , the convention changed its decision and followed its station policy , issuing a lifetime proscription . The organizers also better their insurance policy and processes , including the formation of a reporting hotline staffed by a local ravishment crisis center .
“ All the criticism of Readercon from its member came from a post of love for the conventionalism , and terror of losing it , ” said Fox . “ That was what really brought the concom around in the end — reason that we all portion out a passion for Readercon and wanted it to continue in a way that let people find welcome and dependable there . ”
Reaction and action
In 2014 , despite serious and admitted mishandling of the position the class before , the feminist science fiction convention Wiscon shun book editor in chief James Frenkel from their convention for molestation . Meanwhile , grassroots groups like theBackup Ribbon ProjectandCosplay is NOT Consentcontinue to grow and agitate back against molestation .
In working on this clause , I spoke to other yardbird chairs about late incidents of harassment that were n’t publicise , specifically because they were handled well . Here are just a few examples of conventionality responding in effect to discontinue harassment and protect lover .
At one Midwest convention ( which request to remain anon. ) , an adult male physically harassed a pocket-sized male in the ConSuite . The con chair solace and take heed to the dupe , confab an off - duty police policeman , and cast out the wrongdoer . The minor has attended the con several times since , and has begun to volunteer as well .
An individual at a sealed California formula was told his verbal and strong-arm attentions were unwanted , but refused to stop . He was ousted from the upshot . For several years he attempted to return . The convention turned him aside each time . They also keep open his dupe inform as to what steps they were taking .
At a recent Arisia bunco in Boston , a woman reported a man for repeatedly touching and stroke her . The con took her report , look into , flagged this individual in their database , and also communicated with another local convention to give them a straits - up about what had happened .
And recollect Jon ’s daughters , who were endanger and chivy at ConFusion ? There ’s more to that taradiddle , too . The fille realized this was exactly what the convention ’s no - torment policies were supposed to deal with . They reported it to the Operations staff , who now escalated it to the con committee and the chair of the convention . They investigated and ejected the harasser from the conventionality , and helped Jon and the girls charge a law report .
The harasser was kicked out of the hotel . The next day , the board formally banned him from future events . When the harasser assay to return the next class ( under a different name ) , the conventionality quetch him right back out the door .
No more looking away
We might not ever be able-bodied to altogether extinguish torment and insult , but that does n’t mean we should n’t judge . We can make it clear that such deportment is unwished-for in our community . We can listen to victims . We can take dance step to remove abusers and harassers .
As Charlie Jane Anders said inher farewell essay here at io9 , “ skill fabrication is for everybody . Science fiction is for anybody who cares about science and futurism , and desire to reckon how the world will be , or could be , different . ”
If science fable is for everyone , and I believe it is , then the scifi / fantasy community of interests is for everyone . too , cons — the ultimate expression of our community — must be as well . That mean get to convict more welcoming and safe , which in turn means pee sure those who plague , assault , and endanger others are neither take nor excused , but are or else held accountable for their actions and penalize for their offence .
The first whole tone : No more looking by .
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