Down with Double Standards

Last Thursday afternoon, the jury began its first full day of deliberations in the sexual harassment suit against Isiah Thomas. Although the verdict is still out in the case, the issue of appropriate codes of conduct and behavior norms has been firmly resolved. There will be no double standard or disparity in treatment of black women by their male counterparts -- not in the workplace, not on the airwaves nor in any other locale.

Anucha Browne Sanders, former Knicks' senior vice president for marketing and business operations, accuses Thomas of harassing her for the duration of two seasons. According to Ms. Browne, Isiah made unwanted sexual advances toward her and, when she rebuffed his advances, he called her a "bitch" and a "ho." When Ms. Browne reportedly brought this to the attention of senior level management, she met with indifference. Ms. Browne alleges that in January 2006, James L. Dolan, the Chairman of Madison Square Garden, fired her in retaliation for her sexual harassment complaint.

Isiah Thomas, Knicks coach and president of basketball operations, denies all accusations made by Ms. Browne. According to Isiah, Ms. Browne was fired due to under-performance on her part. By his own admission, Isiah Thomas "knows how to treat women" and disavows calling Ms. Browne a "bitch." In a video deposition, Isiah said that while it was always wrong for a white man to verbally abuse a black woman in such a manner, it was "not as much ... I'm sorry to say," for a black man to do likewise. As a black woman, I am truly at a loss as to how Isiah makes this distinction.

Back in April, shock jock Don Imus felt the wrath of the community at large when he referred to members of Rutgers University basket ball team as 'nappy-headed hos." Initially, MSNBC suspended Imus then went on to drop its simulcast of Imus in the Morning radio program, in response to the growing outrage. Civil rights groups and women's groups denounced the comments made by Imus. If the jury is convinced that Ms. Browne's claims against Isiah are credible, then the reaction should be the same. I was highly offended by Don Imus' statements; I am doubly outraged by Isiah's comments.

Over a decade ago, C. DeLores Tucker challenged the music industry, when she launched a campaign against gangsta rap lyrics, which she labeled "sleazy, pornographic smut." So passionate was she about her campaign against gangsta rap that Ms. Tucker, a Democrat, even formed alliances with conservative Republicans like William Bennett. On one occasion, at Time-Warner's annual meeting, Ms. Tucker challenged the company's leaders to read out loud the lyrics on one of their recording labels, but to no avail. Even after her death, Ms. Tucker's legacy endures. Young women in student organizations across campuses nationwide continue to rally and protest against gangsta rap's misogynistic lyrics.

I posit that the next step will be to take Ms. Tucker's campaign to the boardrooms of the corporate world. As Black women in increasing numbers join Black men in the transition from basketball courts to the management office, it is paramount that the safeguards designed to protect against hostile work environments are enforced. There must be a "zero tolerance" policy towards sexual harassment, whether it is white-on-black or black-on-black.

Follow Arlene M. Roberts on Twitter: www.twitter.com/arlenemroberts

Comments

[Flynnstone73]

I agree that sexual harrasment of any kind is not accebtable. Whether it be a person in a position of power using that power to request sexual favors from subordinates or people who make the work environment uncomfortable for someone by in engaging in mysoginistic,sexist behavior in the work place. But when it comes to limiting artististic expression by using any form of censorship I will have to respectfully disagree. If you do not like what any artist is doing in whatever format he or she chooses, Change the channel,don't purchase the disc, don't visit the art gallery. This idea that a given artform can influence a person to be anti-social that isn't already predisposed to that behavior, or that by limiting our cultural exposure to the expression this will somehow solve the problem is just ignorant. Support the forms of expression that best reflect your world view and let the chips fall were they may.

[realitytrumpsbull]

I'd say that, to put all this in perspective,
men are men, women are women, and when people
work fluff jobs where there's no production
pressure, their minds can and will turn to
other things. When you work in a busy office
where you HAVE to get it done by 5PM, and it's
critical that everyone work together as a team,
you'll by necessity have an environment where
people learn how to keep it in their pants when
they're on the clock. Professionalism is the
common denominator that keeps people pointed
in the right direction, and professionalism
is what gets developed when managers are on
the ball and getting work done. If the manager's
a slacker, or doesn't have it together, then
eventually everything else will fall apart.
Hire good managers, fire bad ones on-the-spot,
and you'll solve a lot of this kind of crap.
If it's the manager themselves that's doing this
kind of stuff, make a call to the company HQ,
and they'll take care of it post-haste, because
NO company has the time for this
type of stuff, none that want to stay in
business, anyway, and has to work to keep
their doors open...