Gratitude to those brave enough to speak up

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 11/03/2024 (744 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For anyone still wondering if politics is an old boys’ club, just look at my friend and former colleague Sarah Guillemard’s social media post on International Women’s Day for the answer.

In it, she offers a courageous recounting of sexual misconduct she experienced in 2017 where she was groped by an “older and a former MLA” male at a charity fundraising dinner. For context, politicians are expected to attend these events to such an extent that for all intents and purposes they become like workplaces. After the incident, Guillemard maintained her silence for an entire year, and then after telling certain colleagues entrusted with helping make her workplace safe, she was met with resistance at first, followed up with consequences down the road.

Unfortunately, her experience is not unique. The #MeToo movement that started in 2018 revealed the extent to which so many workplaces are toxic with sexual misconduct.

To be clear, sexual misconduct in the workplace is almost exclusively about power. It is about someone with a higher ranking or prestige preying upon someone with less agency and getting perverse kicks from exerting their will and taking away that person’s power. It happens in every workplace but is seemingly rampant in “old boys’ clubs” where the “old boys” are fearing that they’re losing ground to up-and-coming, high-achieving women. Like in politics.

In male-dominated workplaces where women are vastly underrepresented, we are already lacking in agency because of historical norms and unconscious biases. It’s hard enough to be taken seriously. When sexual misconduct occurs, survivors often stay silent in hopes of containing further diminishment.

Perhaps these perpetrators who can’t keep their hands to themselves or think they can get away with a “lewd joke” or suggestive comment already know this, and that’s why they do it. It’s nothing short of a power grab.

Survivors also face a real fear of speaking out and not being believed, or worse, being met with consequences. That’s why for so long, we’ve been diminishing and downplaying our experiences as “not that bad” in hopes of holding onto any shred of dignity, agency and opportunity we’ve fought so hard to achieve in the workplace. Yet the very downplaying we’ve been doing ever since sexual misconduct became a trope in the hit television show Three’s Company has been to our peril. In making light of Suzanne Somers’ character Chrissy as she’s being chased around the desk by her boss, we’ve been perpetuating a toxicity that is specifically intended to keep us down.

But what about women in positions of power? Shouldn’t their privilege make them immune to these abuses?

To a certain extent, perhaps. For those like Guillemard, undoubtedly she has a greater privilege and platform than those not in leadership. That is why in her social media post, she candidly revealed her motivation to use her voice in attempt to stop further victimization of those with less power. Yet it doesn’t necessarily make it easier. By virtue of being a former cabinet minister, speaking out means having something done entirely with the purpose of degrading her become part of a news cycle. For all survivors in this position, the risk of having our bodies become fodder for public discussion can be enough to throw the covers over our heads and maintain our silence.

It’s also worth noting that politics within the party system is a blood sport, and we’re often told that speaking out against someone on our team is akin to shooting the puck in our own net. No one wants to bring their team down, and that’s why I’ve seen women on all sides of the political continuum remain silent in the face of their male colleagues’ bad behaviour.

As an aside, as uncomfortable as it is to write about sexual misconduct with gendered language, I do so because I can point to at least 10 instances in the last decade involving sexual misconduct and an elected official, and in nine out of 10 times, the perpetrator has been male.

It’s like we’re stuck in a loop and history keeps repeating itself. This isn’t the first time we’re hearing about sexual misconduct in the workplace and won’t be the last. Sure, some measures have been taken through policy and legislation to make things safer, but ultimately it’s going to take a societal shift for it to really end. Until women are valued in the workplace as much as men, until women are promoted into positions of power to the same extent as men and there are no more “old boys’ clubs,” and we’re seeing equal number of women around cabinet tables and executive suites and board rooms, these abuses will continue.

Meanwhile, we can offer our gratitude to those brave enough to speak up. To Guillemard and everyone like her, I say thank you.