Friday, May 24, 2019

Hello, Mr Keillor

After an absence of a year and a half, The Writer's Almanac is back! My morning feels complete once more. I am delighted that Garrison Keillor has returned with a history lesson and a poem for the day. As far as his fall from grace is concerned, I was not a witness to what happened between Mr Keillor and the female colleagues who complained about his behavior in the first wave of #MeToo. I do believe them! As a fellow victim of sexual assault I truly believe that nearly all of us tell the truth and live with the resulting trauma for the rest of our lives. I think that Mr Keillor likely isn't an easy man to have as a boss and that there certainly could have been touching that was interpreted as inappropriate. I think it's important to remember that there are degrees of unacceptable behavior. There is an enormous difference between the actions of a serial rapist and a man who has committed an occasional social faux pas. Neither end of that spectrum of behavior should be tolerated. Boys will be boys is bullshit. I hope that in the wake of #MeToo we all learn to recognize that and hold those accountable for their actions and make certain that the punishment fits the crime.

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