Page 32 - ARUBA TODAY

A32 FEATURE
Monday 16 april 2018

In age of #MeToo, can there be forgiveness, second chances?

By MICHELLE R. SMITH work has focused on sexual
Associated Press harassment, armed conflict
If a man abuses his co- and apologies, said the
workers and apologizes, idea of "restorative justice"
should he be forgiven? offers a model for possible
What about a man who redemption. "Part of what
sexually assaults a stranger should be happening here
asleep in bed? Is redemp- is personal. Making amends
tion possible? to the victim, restoring the
Last week, Tom Ashbrook, victim. And a separate part
who was fired as host of is acknowledging that the
the popular National Public nature of this harm isn't just
Radio program "On Point," the individual, you are a
asked in a column in The community. That suggests
Boston Globe if there was you also need to be pub-
a way back after being lic about what specifically
fired in February for creat- was wrong and what you
ing an "abusive work envi- can do better," Wexler said.
ronment." Investigators for She pointed to the example
his employer, Boston radio of Mel Gibson, who went
station WBUR, cleared him on an anti-Semitic rant as
of sexual misconduct alle- he was being arrested on
gations. suspicion of drunken driving
"My behavior was offensive In this Sunday, Feb. 26, 2017 file photo, Mel Gibson arrives at the Oscars at the Dolby Theatre in in 2006, and also pleaded
and overbearing to some," Los Angeles. no contest in 2011 to one
Ashbrook wrote, going on Associated Press count of misdemeanor
to ask: "Is there room for spousal battery of his for-
redemption and rebirth, Ashbrook and Batali both an Louis C.K. , have made sexual misconduct," Acker- mer girlfriend. Among the
in our time of Google trails get credit for trying. But public apologies that man-Acklin said. steps he took to redeem
and hashtag headlines?" they fall short by continu- are deemed insufficient, Instead, the men should himself was offering pub-
There should be, say many ing to focus on themselves, it can cause them to re- be making connections lic apologies and meeting
experts who study issues rather than the people treat from view, said Alissa — possibly with their vic- with members of the Jewish
surrounding sexual abuse. they wronged, she said. In Ackerman-Acklin, an as- tims, if that's what the vic- community, she said.
Forgiveness must be pos- Jewish tradition, when you sistant professor of criminal tims want, or with others in "Within less than a decade,
sible if society wants to re- wrong a person, it's up to justice at California State a "safe, non-judgmental he's directing 'Hacksaw
duce instances of sexual that person to forgive you. University, Fullerton. But she space, people who have Ridge,' he's staring in 'Dad-
misconduct, but experts "You have to go to the said that's the opposite of caused this kind of harm dy's Home 2.' All of that is
say, it will take work and person you hurt and ask, what we should want. "If can really think about what happening in the absence
willingness to change from 'What can I do to make we want a society free of they've done and get really of the #MeToo movement,"
both the perpetrators and this right?'" Thompson said, sexual misconduct and introspective and come to she said. "This fear that men
society at large. adding that asking for for- we want people to really a place where they can of- are going to be exiled for
Many of the apologies giveness makes you vulner- und the impact of their ac- fer an authentic apology," the rest of their lives is vastly
men have made after be- able, an unfamiliar place tions, then publicly shaming Ackerman-Acklin said. overstated." After comedy
ing accused of misconduct for men with power. them is not the way to do it. Lesley Wexler, a professor writer Megan Ganz called
during the #MeToo move- At times, when famous It makes us feel good, but it at the University of Illinois out her former boss, Dan
ment have fallen short of men, such as the comedi- doesn't anything to reduce College of Law, whose Harmon, on the sitcom
what's needed for redemp- "Community" for sexually
tion: Think of Harvey Wein- harassing her, she got more
stein, whose apology after than a simple "I'm sorry."
a New York Times report in Harmon, in an episode of
October alleging decades his podcast in January, ac-
of sexual misconduct in- knowledged specific things
cluded a promise to fight he did to her. Ganz called
the National Rifle Associa- it a master class in how to
tion and an excuse blam- apologize. "He's not ratio-
ing the culture in the 1960s nalizing or justifying or mak-
and 1970s. ing excuses. He doesn't
Or, celebrity chef Mario just vaguely acknowledge
Batali, who ended his apol- some general wrongdo-
ogy for sexually harassing ing in the past. He gives a
multiple women with a rec- full account," she wrote
ipe for pizza dough cinna- on Twitter. She publicly for-
mon rolls . gave him . Just last week,
"We don't really have a a former Boston University
map for what public reha- student stood in a court
bilitation should look like," and presented her own
said Jennifer A. Thomp- lesson of offering redemp-
son, an assistant professor tion. The woman was sexu-
of applied Jewish ethics ally assaulted in 2015 by a
and civic engagement at In this Friday, July 21, 2017 file photo, Dan Harmon poses for a portrait during Comic-Con Interna- then-MIT student, Samson
California State University, tional in San Diego. Associated Press Donick, who broke into her
Northridge. Thompson said dorm room. q