This week we were asked to find a newspaper cutting, a magazine clip or an internet report that concerns discrimination. I typed “discrimination” into Bing, clicked on the “News” tab, and this one piqued my interest as it was about animation and cartoons. Being a big kid at heart, it caught my attention.
Female Animators Demand an End to Sexual Harassment & Discrimination in Open Letter
By Sabrina Rojas Weiss from refinery29.com
As Harvey Weinstein stories keep coming in, women who have experienced sexual harassment and assault in other industries and other subsections of the entertainment industry have decided this is their moment to speak out too. On Thursday, 217 female and gender nonconforming animators signed their names to an open letter to studio and network execs outlining their demands for an end to such treatment.
“As we came together to share our stories of sexism, sexual harassment and, in some cases, sexual assault, we were struck by the pervasiveness of the problem,” reads the letter, which was first reported on by Buzzfeed News. “Every one of us has a story to share, from tossed-off comments about our body parts that were framed as ‘jokes’ to women being cornered in dark rooms by male colleagues to criminal assault.”
The group of women behind the letter includes My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic creator Lauren Faust, Bob’s Burgers creator Wendy Molyneux, Steven Universe creator Rebecca Sugar, Danger & Eggs creator Shadi Petosky, and animators who work on such popular shows as BoJack Horseman, Adventure Time and The Powerpuff Girls. In it, they state that the Weinstein scandal inspired them to share stories with each other that they previously kept quiet about for fear of how it would affect their careers in an industry which is still only made up of 23 percent women. Though that number represents significant growth from the past, the women say it seems that some men have not accepted their place in the business of animation.
The letter lists three demands. First: that every studio put in place clear sexual harassment policies and takes reports of violations seriously. Second: that the Animation Guild create an Anti-Harassment and Discrimination Guild and add language to “censure, fine, suspend or expel any member” found guilty of “prejudicial” conduct. Last: that male colleagues speak up as well.
“Stop making excuses for bad behaviour in your friends and co-workers, and tell them what they are doing is wrong,” the last item asks.
Before the Weinstein scandal shook up Hollywood this month, some women in the animation industry spoke to Buzzfeed anonymously about their treatment. They said that they hadn’t reported incidents of harassment at their jobs because they suspected nothing would be done about it and, worse, that they would be labelled “difficult” or “not fun.”
On Thursday, Nickelodeon suspended Chris Savino, the creator of the cartoon Loud House, according to CartoonBrew.com. That was after a dozen women came forward to report Savino’s inappropriate behaviour toward them.
© 2017 Refinery29
Original article:
http://www.refinery29.com/2017/10/177610/female-animators-sexual-harassment-letter
My thoughts
The revelations about Harvey Weinstein and his treatment of female actors has given courage to others that have been abused or discriminated against in other industries to speak up, and has brought light to the actions of a group of people who have used their power and influence to mistreat another group. In this case, the discrimination is based on gender: It concerns women, who work in the field of animation, who have been sexually harassed and discriminated against simply because the men involved classed the women as sex objects rather than human beings, and they thought they could get away with it due to it being a taboo subject, knowing that the women would not speak up.
This story left me feeling quite surprised and enlightened about what it is like to be a female in a male-dominated industry. As a man, I do not get “hit on” at random times throughout the day, but by using a bit of imagination I can have a little think about it and step into a woman’s hypothetical shoes – being leered at, being spoken down to, and possibly being touched and assaulted does not sound like a fun time, or very conducive to a professional and respectful atmosphere.
The third demand in the final part of the letter struck a chord with me, as it is surely my role to not allow other men to believe they can behave in this way towards women. While I do not see a lot of sexism at my place of work (my current place of work has respect for the individual as one of its four core beliefs), if I ever see a colleague or friend harassing a woman, or hear one of them telling derogatory jokes or making rude remarks about a woman, or see a man I don’t even know do anything in-between, then I will do my part and tell that man, colleague, friend or not, to stop.
