By Puja J . Amin
REPORT ABUSE
JUST IN TIME FOR CONTACT . IO : Troutman Amin , LLP Launches “ REPORT ABUSE ” Submission Form To End Gender-Based Abuse At Industry Events !!
By Puja J . Amin
LOOK , this is how we are going to make a difference .
It is no secret that women in the marketing / advertising world deal with an outsized amount of abuse and harassment from men in the industry .
And it is no surprise when the old timers still like telling stories about taking Muppets to strip clubs , or whatever . It is pretty disgusting .
See the button there in the upper right hand corner ?
Even with the efforts of great organizations like LinkUnite , we still need to deal with misogynistic nonsense and double standards . It is simply not tolerable .
I have heard dozens of cringe stories from women , and truthfully , we here at Troutman Amin , LLP are tired of it .
So to help end this terrible issue once and for all , we are starting a totally free and anonymous — if you choose to be anonymous — way for women to report abuse and harassment at industry events and conferences .
The idea here is to permit the firm to create a catalog of reported abuse and look for trends and ways that conference organizers and women leaders in the industry can better combat and control misbehavior . Plus , it will allow us to determine whether there are repeat offenders — or guys who are outright predators — out there so that we can identify bad actors and make sure they are removed from the ecosystem , shall we say .
Now look , this page isn ’ t perfect just yet , but we thought it was very important to have this up ahead of Contact . Io . I know Ferree has taken a very strong stand on this issue — and I love it — but until women have a safe space where they can go and report instances of abuse , the problem isn ’ t going to stop .
Help others avoid the same fate !
And look , we fully understand that a women ’ s choice to remain anonymous is her own . While we encourage women to come forward and assert their rights , it is brave enough to tell their story in an anonymous manner to help other women in the industry to avoid the same potential fate .
Last , let me add — we are not going to make a dollar off of this . This is not the sort of work we do , and we are not going to try to make a buck referring cases out to some Plaintiff ’ s law firm . That is not what this is about . It is about protecting and empowering the incredibly awesome female talent out there and making sure they are safe at these conference and events . ( By the way , employers , it is your job to keep these folks safe ! Take it seriously .)
You do need to read the disclosures on the site , folks — we do not become your lawyers just because you submit a form . Again , it is not that sort of thing . But we will help you to find resources if you want our help — because we really do want to assist folks who are suffering out there .
We will have more coverage of this critical issue , but for now , the Report Abuse button is live now on the troutmanamin . com website . Feel free to make your reports regarding past conferences right away so we can begin to develop visibility in terms of the scope of the problem here .
And to the guys out there — support the ladies . Encourage them to report abuse you hear about , and let ’ s all be respectful of each other .
TROUTMANAMIN . COM / REPORT-ABUSE
24 • TROUTMANAMIN . COM