Sexual Harassment of Women


Book Description

Over the last few decades, research, activity, and funding has been devoted to improving the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women in the fields of science, engineering, and medicine. In recent years the diversity of those participating in these fields, particularly the participation of women, has improved and there are significantly more women entering careers and studying science, engineering, and medicine than ever before. However, as women increasingly enter these fields they face biases and barriers and it is not surprising that sexual harassment is one of these barriers. Over thirty years the incidence of sexual harassment in different industries has held steady, yet now more women are in the workforce and in academia, and in the fields of science, engineering, and medicine (as students and faculty) and so more women are experiencing sexual harassment as they work and learn. Over the last several years, revelations of the sexual harassment experienced by women in the workplace and in academic settings have raised urgent questions about the specific impact of this discriminatory behavior on women and the extent to which it is limiting their careers. Sexual Harassment of Women explores the influence of sexual harassment in academia on the career advancement of women in the scientific, technical, and medical workforce. This report reviews the research on the extent to which women in the fields of science, engineering, and medicine are victimized by sexual harassment and examines the existing information on the extent to which sexual harassment in academia negatively impacts the recruitment, retention, and advancement of women pursuing scientific, engineering, technical, and medical careers. It also identifies and analyzes the policies, strategies and practices that have been the most successful in preventing and addressing sexual harassment in these settings.




Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment


Book Description

Sexual harassment is an issue in which feminists are usually thought to be on the plaintiff's side. But in 1993--amid considerable attention from the national academic community--Jane Gallop, a prominent feminist professor of literature, was accused of sexual harassment by two of her women graduate students. In Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment, Gallop tells the story of how and why she was charged with sexual harassment and what resulted from the accusations. Weaving together memoir and theoretical reflections, Gallop uses her dramatic personal experience to offer a vivid analysis of current trends in sexual harassment policy and to pose difficult questions regarding teaching and sex, feminism and knowledge. Comparing "still new" feminism--as she first encountered it in the early 1970s--with the more established academic discipline that women's studies has become, Gallop makes a case for the intertwining of learning and pleasure. Refusing to acquiesce to an imperative of silence that surrounds such issues, Gallop acknowledges--and describes--her experiences with the eroticism of learning and teaching. She argues that antiharassment activism has turned away from the feminism that created it and suggests that accusations of harassment are taking aim at the inherent sexuality of professional and pedagogic activity rather than indicting discrimination based on gender--that antiharassment has been transformed into a sensationalist campaign against sexuality itself. Feminist Accused of Sexual Harassment offers a direct and challenging perspective on the complex and charged issues surrounding the intersection of politics, sexuality, feminism, and power. Gallop's story and her characteristically bold way of telling it will be compelling reading for anyone interested in these issues and particularly to anyone interested in the ways they pertain to the university.




Sexual Harassment


Book Description




Sexual Assault and Harassment in America


Book Description

This wide-ranging resource uses evidence-based documentation to examine claims and beliefs—and provide the facts—about sexual assault and harassment and other forms of sexual violence in the United States. Each title in the Contemporary Debates series examines the veracity of controversial claims or beliefs surrounding a major political/cultural issue in the United States. They do so to give readers a clear and unbiased understanding of current issues by informing them about falsehoods, half-truths, and misconceptions—and confirming the factual validity of other assertions—that have gained traction in AmericA&Rsquo;s political and cultural discourse. Ultimately, this series has been crafted to give readers the tools for a fuller understanding of issues, events, policies, and laws that occupy center stage in American life and politics. This volume in the series addresses the issue of sexual violence in the U.S. It includes chapters devoted to quantifying the extent of the problems of sexual assault and harassment; demographic groups most likely to experience sexual violence; physical, emotional, and societal impacts of sexual assault; how investigations of sex-related charges are conducted; laws and policies pertaining to both victims and offenders; and sexual violence prevention and response services outside of the criminal justice system.




Stop Street Harassment


Book Description

Using groundbreaking studies, news stories, and interviews, this book underscores that there will never be gender equity until men stop harassing women in public spaces—and it details strategies for achieving this goal. Street harassment is generally dismissed as harmless, but in reality, it causes women to feel unsafe in public, at least sometimes. To achieve true gender equality, it must come to an end. Stop Street Harassment: Making Public Places Safe and Welcoming for Women draws on academic studies, informal surveys, news articles, and interviews with activists to explore the practice's definition and prevalence, the societal contexts in which it occurs, and the role of factors such as race and sexual orientation. Perhaps more crucially, the book makes clear how women experience street harassment—how they feel about and respond to it—and the ways it negatively impacts lives. But understanding is only a beginning. In the second half of the book, readers will find concrete strategies for dealing with street harassers and ways to become involved in working to end this all-too-common violation. Educators, counselors, parents, and other concerned individuals will discover resources for teaching about harassment and modeling behavior that will help prevent harassment incidents.




The Politics of Sexual Harassment


Book Description

Sexual harassment, in particular in the workplace, is a controversial topic which often makes headline news. What accounts for the cross-national variation in laws, employer policies, and implementation of policies dealing with sexual harassment in the workplace? Why was the United States on the forefront of policy and legal solutions, and how did this affect politicization of sexual harassment in the European Union and its member states? Exploring the way sexual harassment has become a global issue, Kathrin Zippel draws on theories of comparative feminist policy, gender and welfare state regimes, and social movements to explore the distinct paths that the United States, the European Union and its member states, specifically Germany, have embarked on to address the issue. This comparison provides invaluable insights on the role of transnational movements in combatting sexual harassment, and on future efforts to implement the European Union Directive of 2002.




Surviving Sexual Violence


Book Description

Victims of sexual assault experience their trauma in different ways, and often one path to recovery and healing is right for one person, but not right for another. While there are some general mental health effects of sexual violence, this book outlines and describes the impact of particular types of sexual violation. Whether the survivor has experienced childhood sexual abuse, sexual assault during adulthood, marital rape, sexual harassment, sex trafficking, or sexual violence within the military, they will find aspects of her experience in these pages. Once survivors understand the ways in which they have been affected, they are introduced to various pathways to surviving sexual violence and moving forward. The chapters provide case examples and specific activities which give a fuller description of the ways survivors can make use of the particular approaches, which include mind-body practices, counseling, group therapies, self-defense training, and others. Anyone who has been a victim of sexual violence, or knows and cares about someone who has, will find relief in these pages, which offer practical approaches to finding balance and healing.




Sexual Harassment


Book Description

At last a practical and thorough sourcebook for anyone faced with the ordeal of sexual harassment. Until two years ago, we were two ordinary working women with career goals and bright futures...Then suddenly everything changed. We encountered a situation we never thought would happen to us--we became victims of sexual harassment. While sexual harassment is increasingly in the headlines, it remains a confusing, isolating ordeal for the individuals whose lives it affects. In addition to the feelings of powerlessness, anger, and fear it often instills, a woman (or man) who is being sexually harassed is faced with a maze of professional, legal, and personal decisions. This book, written by two women who conducted intensive research in order to find their way through the maze, offers a lifeline of information and a safety net of support. With a balanced point of view and generous checklists, examples, and personal narratives, the book covers: Legal and practical definitions of what sexual harassment is--and not Whether and how to file a formal complaint Whether to hire a lawyer and what to expect from the legal process What retaliation is and how to fight it How to deal with the emotional stress, invasion of privacy, and career changes that often result from being sexually harassed This indispensable book sheds light on a difficult and little-understood problem.




Sexual Harassment of Working Women


Book Description

A comprehensive legal theory is needed to prevent the persistence of sexual harassment. Although requiring sexual favors as a quid pro quo for job retention or advancement clearly is unjust, the task of translating that obvious statement into legal theory is difficult. To do so, one must define sexual harassment and decide what the law's role in addressing harassment claims should be. In Sexual Harassment of Working Women,' Catharine Mac-Kinnon attempts all of this and more. In making a strong case that sexual harassment is sex discrimination and that a legal remedy should be available for it, the book proposes a new standard for evaluating all practices claimed to be discriminatory on the basis of sex. Although MacKinnon's "inequality" theory is flawed and its implications are not considered sufficiently, her formulation of it makes the book a significant contribution to the literature of sex discrimination. MacKinnon calls upon the law to eliminate not only sex dis- crimination but also most instances of sexism from society. She uses traditional theories in an admittedly strident manner, and relies upon both traditional and radical-feminist sources. The results of her effort are mixed. The book is at times fresh and challenging, at times needlessly provocative. -- https://www.jstor.org (Sep. 30, 2016).




Unwelcome and Unlawful


Book Description

Nearly every American woman will, at some point during her working life, be sexually harassed, according to Raymond F. Gregory, a lawyer specializing in employment and discrimination law. Unwelcome and Unlawful provides information for those victims as well as for those suffering same-sex harassment and for male victims of sexual harassment. Gregory analyzes sexual harassment from the perspective of existing federal law and describes the legal rights that may be asserted by victims of harassment to obtain either injunctive or monetary relief. Conduct of a sexual nature that occurs in normal workplace socialization is generally not unlawful, but it will be considered to have crossed the line of legality if it is unwelcome and is sufficiently severe or pervasive to undermine an employee's work life. Questions typically arising in a sexual harassment case include: *What types of workplace conduct are classified as sexually harassing? *When is sexual conduct considered unwelcome? *When is sexual conduct perceived as severe or pervasive? *What are the obligations of an employee to report acts of sexual harassment? *If sexual harassment is proven, what monetary damages and other relief may the victim expect to be awarded? *When is an employer liable for acts of sexual harassment committed by its workers and supervisors? *What privacy rights does an employee claiming sexual harassment have? By clarifying little-understood aspects of the law barring sexual harassment, the author presents an indispensable resource for victims seeking to learn what to expect from the legal system if they contest the actions of their harassers in the courts.