You too? Me too..
One hundred percent of us will be harassed, sexually or otherwise, at lease once in our lifetime. Yes, I said 100%. That may seem shocking and false, but if you look at what (sexual) harassment is, you will understand why I say that. If you look at all the women (and men) that are coming out with their stories of harassment, then you will understand why I say that. If a man like Trump, a self-admitted, sexual predator, can become president, then you can understand why I say that. If a man like Charlie Rose is among the accused, then you can understand why I say that.
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When we think of sexual harassment we automatically think of being touched, but you can be harassed without being grabbed by the pussy. You can be harassed without being touched at all.
Have you ever read your employee handbook? Maybe when you first got hired during orientation, but after that we really don’t look at it…except for those of us in healthcare. If you’re in healthcare, you are required to participate in annual re-education on topics such as sexual harassment in the workplace, elder abuse, blood borne pathogens and fire safety, so it’s always fresh in your mind. But too often we are party to a joke, that is clearly inappropriate, and we simply brush it off as a joke. So, I implore you to read the definition of harassment. No one has to touch you. No one has to grab you. No one has to force themselves on you. Someone making a joke that is sexual in nature, is harassing you and if you witness harassment, you have an obligation to speak up. If you are harassed, you need to say something.
We all have that jerk on our job that makes stupid jokes that could be misconstrued as harassment but we all know that this person means no harm. If a co-worker decides to report him to human resources, this person can be terminated for harassment. So, this is a serious matter.
When something happens a long time ago, we may not be able to recall all the details, so it’s important to document everything. So, everyone should keep a journal. When you first start a new job, buy a journal and be sure to jot things down while they are fresh in your mind. Don’t forget to put a date and time on each of your journal entries. When you travel, get a journal for those travels as well. You don’t need a different journal for each job or each vacation but you should have a journal with enough pages to last the entire year. This journal could mean a world of difference.
For those women that are coming forward with their stories 20 or 40 years later…it makes you wonder…who knew? Because someone knew. When the Harvey Weinstein or Bill Cosby or Roy Moore or Al Franken or George H.W. Bush, or Kevin Spacey were doing this to these women and men…somebody knew what was going on and did nothing to stop it. When Ben Affleck or Roman Polanski, or Woody Allen or Ed Westwick were harassing and raping these women, somebody knew and did nothing. This problem is so pervasive that we elected a sexual predator to the White House. To which I credit this outpour of women coming forward to tell their stories. Many in the media are calling it the Weinstein effect, I’m calling it the Trump effect. I’m sure many of the 42% of women who voted for Trump are suffering from buyers remorse. How many of you are a part of this #metoo campaign? How many more will be accused? How many women (and men) who are not in public life, is this happening to? Don't be ashamed. Speak up! You are not alone.
#WhoDidYouVoteFor
#FireTrump
#NoSexualPredators
#MeToo
