[INDOLOGY] Unfounded accusations of Sexism and Bias on INDOLOGY governing committee

Tue Apr 2 21:11:38 UTC 2019

Dear Professor Tieken,

I strongly disagree with you. First, sexual  harassment is a very common
behaviour in academia and we need to stop it and not to cover it.
Second, sexual harassment is a tragedy for who has been subjected to
unwanted attentions, and not for who has acted as an abuser.

Best regards,
Paolo

-- 

Paolo E. Rosati

PhD in Civilizations of Asia and Africa
(South Asia Section)
Italian Institute of Oriental Studies
'Sapienza' University of Rome

https://uniroma1.academia.edu/PaoloRosati/

paoloe.rosati at uniroma1.it
paoloe.rosati at gmail.com
Skype: paoloe.rosati
Mobile: (+39) 338 73 83 472

Il mar 2 apr 2019, 14:39 Tieken, H.J.H. via INDOLOGY <
indology at list.indology.info> ha scritto:

> Dear List members.
> Below you may find a mail which I sent on the first of October 2016 to one
> of the moderators of the list personally (Dominik Wujastik):
>
> Dear Dominik, I was rather amazed to find a message on sexual harassment
> on the list involving Bxxx Wxxx. It is a personal tragedy for the students
> involved as well for Bxxx Wxxx. But is this information that should have
> been passed on through the list? I am of the opinion that it is not and am
> even more amazed to see that the mail was sent by one of the moderators
> herself. With kind regards, Herman
>
>
> A week later hell broke loose.
>
> Herman
>
> Herman Tieken
> Stationsweg 58
> 2515 BP Den Haag
> The Netherlands
> 00 31 (0)70 2208127
> website: hermantieken.com
> ------------------------------
> *Van:* INDOLOGY [indology-bounces at list.indology.info] namens Philipp Maas
> via INDOLOGY [indology at list.indology.info]
> *Verzonden:* dinsdag 2 april 2019 11:13
> *Aan:* Indology List
> *Onderwerp:* [INDOLOGY] Unfounded accusations of Sexism and Bias on
> INDOLOGY governing committee
>
> Dear Audrey,
>
> In your latest message to the Indology mailing list you stile yourself as
> a victim of sexism experienced in recent times during your work on the
> Indology committee. Moreover, you pretend to courageously blow the whistle
> against the explicit advice of your colleagues who want to keep you silent
> probably in order to save their reputation.
>
>
>
> In this situation, it may be of interest to the larger community of
> colleagues that as a fellow committee member I did not witness a single
> instance in which, contrary to your claim, you “met with blanket denials,
> belittling of … [your] concerns, declarations that discussing sexism is not
> a substantive issue, accusations of being a troublemaker, and flat out
> refusals to discuss gender issues.“ On the contrary, all committee members,
> irrespective of their ethnicity and sex, always take your concerns
> seriously and devote as much time to their discussion as possible under the
> time constrains we all have to face in our daily work. Of course, we there
> is disagreed. But disagreement is not necessarily an indication of sexism.
> It may also occur on the (lack of) merit of arguments.
>
>
>
> Your move to go public with unfounded accusations in order to strengthen
> you position in the committee is something for which I have very little
> understanding. It is utterly unfair to your colleagues who spend a lot of
> time and energy to keep this list running to the best of their abilities. I
> can’t believe that you are not aware of this.
>
>
>
> Best,
>
>
>
> Philipp
> __________________________
>
> Dr. Philipp A. Maas
> Research Associate
> Institut für Indologie und Zentralasienwissenschaften
> Universität Leipzig
> ___________________________
>
> https://spp1448.academia.edu/PhilippMaas
>
>
> Am Di., 2. Apr. 2019 um 10:21 Uhr schrieb Jonathan Silk via INDOLOGY <
> indology at list.indology.info>:
>
>> Dear Dr Truschke
>> I am sure that there are many members of this list who are concerned. But
>> I confess that with the (lack of) information you provide, it is impossible
>> for me either to understand what is actually going on, or what you suggest
>> be done to correct the situation.
>> I do not mean this in any way to be dismissive; it is a request for
>> further information, and a proposed way forward.
>> J Silk
>>
>> On Tue, Apr 2, 2019 at 9:56 AM Audrey Truschke via INDOLOGY <
>> indology at list.indology.info> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Friends and Colleagues,
>>>
>>> I am writing to call your attention to the entrenched, worsening sexism
>>> I have been experiencing on the INDOLOGY governing committee over the past
>>> year or so (I have served on the committee for six years). Other committee
>>> members have warned me not to publicly discuss the bullying and abuse that
>>> I have faced from them in private. I break my silence and go against their
>>> explicit instructions here.
>>>
>>> I have repeatedly faced sexism within the INDOLOGY governing committee,
>>> ranging from patronizing comments to silencing of discussions about bias to
>>> overtly different standards applied to male and female members of the
>>> committee and list. I have tried many times to raise these issues
>>> internally among the committee and privately with specific individuals. I
>>> have been met with blanket denials, belittling of my concerns, declarations
>>> that discussing sexism is not a substantive issue, accusations of being a
>>> troublemaker, and flat out refusals to discuss gender issues. Indology as a
>>> discipline has deep-seated issues with male privilege, discrimination
>>> against female scholars, and even outright misogyny. The issues within
>>> INDOLOGY's male-dominated governing committee are arguably a reflection of
>>> this larger set of problems that systematically drives women out of the
>>> discipline. If Indology or INDOLOGY are going to survive in any worthwhile
>>> form, we must face our ongoing issues of sexism and bias. I have made
>>> numerous suggestions to the INDOLOGY governing committee in this regard,
>>> including striving for gender parity on the committee by adding more female
>>> members, conducting committee business more openly as a check on bullying,
>>> and undergoing bias training. I hope the committee follows up on these
>>> suggestions. But, to date, I have seen only a desire to circle the wagons
>>> and deny bias, rather than any serious attempt to make the committee or the
>>> list a more equitable place.
>>>
>>> Last week, following another case where I documented and called out a
>>> committee member for acting with bias, that committee member wrote that if
>>> he were in my position, he would consider resigning from the committee. In
>>> other words, if I find members of the INDOLOGY committee discriminate
>>> against women, then I should bow out. I find that suggestion highly
>>> inappropriate, and I do not acquiesce to it here. But I will no longer
>>> serve as a punching bag for men who insist I keep quiet.
>>>
>>> I expect to face significant pushback and recriminations for shedding
>>> light on the dark underbelly of the INDOLOGY governing committee. But,
>>> unlike many of my fellow committee members, I think that this is an issue
>>> for the list at large. Many of us, myself included, find scholarly value in
>>> this listserv. But knowledge exists within power structures, and I find
>>> that I can no longer stomach what I have to overlook in order to quietly
>>> run this forum. I think it is time for us to talk about the key issues of
>>> bias and sexism facing our discipline that make women unwelcome at every
>>> turn, including in running this listserv.
>>>
>>> All the best,
>>>
>>> Audrey
>>>
>>> Audrey Truschke
>>> Assistant Professor
>>> Department of History
>>> Rutgers University-Newark
>>> _______________________________________________
>>> INDOLOGY mailing list
>>> INDOLOGY at list.indology.info
>>> indology-owner at list.indology.info (messages to the list's managing
>>> committee)
>>> http://listinfo.indology.info (where you can change your list options
>>> or unsubscribe)
>>>
>>
>>
>> --
>> J. Silk
>> Leiden University
>> Leiden University Institute for Area Studies, LIAS
>> Matthias de Vrieshof 3, Room 0.05b
>> 2311 BZ Leiden
>> The Netherlands
>>
>> copies of my publications may be found at
>> https://leidenuniv.academia.edu/JASilk
>> _______________________________________________
>> INDOLOGY mailing list
>> INDOLOGY at list.indology.info
>> indology-owner at list.indology.info (messages to the list's managing
>> committee)
>> http://listinfo.indology.info (where you can change your list options or
>> unsubscribe)
>>
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>

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