Sex, Power and the Workplace

<v Speaker>Sex, power and the workplace. KCET Los Angeles Stereo Audio, <v Speaker>Channel One Left. Channel 2 right. <v Speaker>Channel 3 SMPTE timecode total running time 58 54. <v Narrator>Nearly half of all working women experience the problem. <v Speaker 1>On the way to work I used to think, you know, what are they gonna do to me today? <v Speaker 1>And by the time I got to work, I was usually <v Speaker 1>breaking out with hives just from nerves. <v Narrator>Many men are equally worried about it. <v Speaker 2>Yes, it does scare me a lot. <v Speaker 2>You can't ignore that the penalties and the consequences are huge

<v Speaker 2>potentially for me personally as well as for my company. <v Narrator>Most victims suffer both professionally and personally. <v Speaker 3>The emotions when that sort of thing happens are both embarrassing. <v Speaker 3>They are humiliating. It's degrading. <v Speaker 3>It makes me feel like a second class citizen. <v Speaker 3>I'm not playing with their bodies. <v Narrator>It's rarely about sexual attraction, but almost always involves power <v Narrator>and control. <v Speaker 4>He started encouraging other office members to join <v Speaker 4>in. In intimidation and harassment in the office. <v Speaker 4>And then he would offer his protection in exchange for sex. <v Narrator 2>Major funding for Sex, Power, and the Workplace is provided by the Durfee Foundation,

<v Narrator 2>which is pleased to support excellence in public television programing. <v Speaker 5>[music playing] I don't think it's truly a feminist issue anymore than it's a chauvinist <v Speaker 5>issue. <v Speaker 6>It's about the imposition of power, imposition of authority. <v Speaker 7>Women tend to blame themselves. They tend to think somehow they must have done something <v Speaker 7>that caused it. <v Speaker 8>So long as our society condones it, supports it. <v Speaker 8>Some men will continue to do it. <v Speaker 9>In plain language, we're talking about unwanted sexual attention. <v Narrator>Sometimes obvious, often subtle and always subjective. <v Narrator>Sexual harassment is just one of many issues of fairness that women have raised <v Narrator>throughout their battle for equal rights in the workplace. <v Narrator>Sexual harassment, it seems, has persisted as long as men and women have shared a working

<v Narrator>environment. <v Narrator>There are stories dating back some four centuries detailing harassment of colonial <v Narrator>women working in the mills of Massachusetts. <v Narrator>But the problem became more pervasive during the industrial revolution when women began <v Narrator>entering the male dominated workforce in large numbers. <v Narrator>With little legal protection, most victims simply blame themselves. <v Narrator>At the time, society's prevailing attitude was a woman's place is in the home. <v Narrator>During World War 2, when men marched off to war, it became more acceptable <v Narrator>for women to work. But sexual harassment remained unrecognized and regarded <v Narrator>as an unfortunate ?your? personal problem. <v News Announcer>Congress passes the most sweeping civil rights bill ever to be written into the law- <v Narrator>[News announcer inaudibly talking] In 1964, when President Johnson signed the Civil

<v Narrator>Rights Act, federal legislation was enacted banning not only racial discrimination <v Narrator>but discrimination based on sex. <v Narrator>It was the legal foundation for equal opportunity in the workplace. <v Narrator>But the new law did little to prevent sexual harassment, which we now regard <v Narrator>as a form of discrimination. <v Narrator>Although some women took their cases to court. <v Narrator>The vast majority of victims continue to suffer in silence. <v Narrator>Even at the outset of the 1990s, a time in which women held nearly <v Narrator>half of all jobs in this country, sexual harassment remained largely <v Narrator>hidden and ignored. <v Narrator>It wasn't until one momentous weekend in October of 1991 <v Narrator>that the issue finally exploded. <v Anita Hill>What happened next and telling the world about it <v Anita Hill>are the two most difficult things, e- experiences of my life.

<v Anita Hill>It is only after a great deal of agonizing consideration and sleepless <v Anita Hill>number, a great number of sleepless nights that I am able to talk <v Anita Hill>of these unpleasant matters to anyone but my close friends. <v Clarence Thomas>I can not imagine anything that I've said or did to <v Clarence Thomas>Anita Hill that could have been mistaken for sexual harassment. <v Clarence Thomas>But with that said, if there is anything that I have said <v Clarence Thomas>that has been misconstrued by Anita Hill or anyone else <v Clarence Thomas>to be sexual harassment, then I can say that I am so very sorry <v Clarence Thomas>and I wish I had known. <v Man>We are here today to hold open hearings on <v Man>Professor Anita Hill's allegations concerning Judge Thomas. <v Narrator>[inaudible speaking] The Clarence Thomas Anita Hill hearings galvanized unprecedented <v Narrator>public awareness about sexual harassment.

<v Narrator>Yet the lurid testimony seemed to raise more questions than answers. <v Narrator>If the disparity in public opinion is any indication, the Hill Thomas controversy <v Narrator>graphically illustrates that men and women often view sexual harassment from entirely <v Narrator>different perspectives. <v Narrator>Many sided with Clarence Thomas and saw sexual harassment as a misunderstanding <v Narrator>or a matter of false accusation, while others identified with Anita Hill, <v Narrator>whose stories symbolize the plight of the working woman. <v Narrator>Yet the fallout from the Hill Thomas debate raised larger and more urgent questions. <v Narrator>What is sexual harassment? <v Narrator>Who's to blame? <v Narrator>And why does it happen? <v Dan Stormer>Sexual harassment is about power. <v Dan Stormer>Sexual harassment isn't is a means by which a man <v Dan Stormer>can exert power over a woman whereby he can use his <v Dan Stormer>his resources, his extra power, his management position, his

<v Dan Stormer>uh application to the good old boy network, whatever it is that supports his power base <v Dan Stormer>to basically demean a woman. <v Jackie Morris>[machine running] My name is Jackie Morris and I live in Bonne Terre, Missouri, and I've <v Jackie Morris>been a mold maker for approximately 11 years at American National Can ?inaudible? <v Jackie Morris>Missouri. <v Narrator>When she was hired by the American National Can Company in 1981, Jackie <v Narrator>Morris was one of the first females to hold a skilled labor position at the plant. <v Narrator>Her coworkers were exclusively men. <v Jackie Morris>I was um sexually harassed about 2 or 3 years after I started working in there <v Jackie Morris>and things just started little things started happening first, <v Jackie Morris>which I took it as practical jokes. <v Jackie Morris>Then the things started getting worse and worse and I realized that it wasn't practical <v Jackie Morris>jokes, that they were aimed right at me for sexual purposes for me <v Jackie Morris>to get out of there.

<v Jackie Morris>My first thoughts were, well, I am doin' a man's job. <v Jackie Morris>I am in a man's environment. Maybe these are things that I supposed to put up with. <v Jackie Morris>Maybe that these these are necessary for me to do my job. <v Narrator>What Jackie didn't realize was that she was being subjected to a hostile work <v Narrator>environment. Nor was she aware that it was against the law. <v Freada Kline>Sexual harassment that takes the form of a hostile environment is usually cumulative <v Freada Kline>behaviors or practices in the work environment. <v Freada Kline>It can be graphic [audio cuts out] ?images? <v Freada Kline>[audio continues to cut out] uh like ?pictures?, ?posters?, and pinups. <v Freada Kline>It [audio cuts out] relentless banter. <v Freada Kline>Um [audio cuts out] ?one's? presence of the ?sexual culture? <v Freada Kline>usually it takes several events uh and often engaged <v Freada Kline>in by several people so that it reaches a level that it changes <v Freada Kline>the conditions of one's employment, that coming to work every day, being able <v Freada Kline>to focus on one's responsibilities is no longer possible because

<v Freada Kline>of the unwelcome sexual environment. <v Jackie Morris>Some of the things I received at my work area was pictures of like, for instance, <v Jackie Morris>women taking a bath saying I should do- be doing this instead of a man's job. <v Jackie Morris>There was other pictures on there, such as half ton, a big lady with my name written on. <v Jackie Morris>So there was no mistake. It was it was for me. <v Jackie Morris>And then I received a uh penis ?inaudible?. <v Jackie Morris>I guess it was a Playboy ?inaudible?. I don't know. I don't look at the magazines and I <v Jackie Morris>receive this one particular day that had a little note attached to it. <v Jackie Morris>And I- this is the one I took to the plant manager in my purse. <v Jackie Morris>And he told me to leave my prize in my purse. <v Jackie Morris>That he didn't need to see it. I deserved it. <v Narrator>For Jackie, like many victims, the harassment began to take a physical toll. <v Jackie Morris>When I would get up in the morning, I actu- I dreaded going in, I would make myself <v Jackie Morris>literally sick. I would break out in hives. <v Jackie Morris>I couldn't breathe. And I think a lot of it was stress and I was worrying myself, you

<v Jackie Morris>know, and it got eventually got real bad. <v Freada Kline>When we think about the common form of sexual harassment, starting subtle, <v Freada Kline>escalating over time, then doing all kinds of things to avoid and deny <v Freada Kline>the situation. It has a chronic, debilitating effect <v Freada Kline>on individuals that often what's reported is a whole host <v Freada Kline>of emotional and physical consequences. <v Jackie Morris>There will be times I'd come home and my husband had to take me to the hospital because I <v Jackie Morris>couldn't breathe. I was having like a asthma attack. <v Jackie Morris>After I spoke to my doctor the last time with his recommendation, I didn't have any other <v Jackie Morris>choice but to quit. <v Narrator>During this time, Jackie decided to file a complaint with the Equal Employment <v Narrator>Opportunity Commission. He was tried in federal court, which ruled in her favor. <v Narrator>She was awarded $16000 in back pay. <v Narrator>While the case was in litigation, Jackie was rehired by the plant. <v Narrator>But the legal victory apparently did little to improve the working conditions or the

<v Narrator>behavior of some of her male colleagues. <v Jackie Morris>The harassment is still there uh almost on a daily basis. <v Jackie Morris>They still will make uh hog noises, cow noises. <v Jackie Morris>They'll call me a hog um they grease my area. <v Jackie Morris>They've hit me with cartridge ?rows?. But as far as the sexual items, I have not received <v Jackie Morris>any of those except for the little newspaper clipping that had stated ?heaven? <v Jackie Morris>on a hog. <v Narrator>The American National Can Company would not comment for this program. <v Narrator>But according to Jackie's attorney, Michael Hoare, management's lenient attitude towards <v Narrator>sexual harassment is what perpetuated a hostile environment. <v Michael Hoare>It's not enough to say that boys will be boys and this is horseplay or pranks, <v Michael Hoare>because that indeed is the the mentality that generates sexual harassment. <v Michael Hoare>And if you accept that as the norm in the workplace, there won't be any change <v Michael Hoare>whatsoever. And women will be discouraged from entering these the workplace, will <v Michael Hoare>be discouraged from uh seeking promotions to better positions in the workplace.

<v Michael Hoare>And that kind of mentality generally perpetuates the harassment. <v Michael Hoare>It denies the very purpose for which the law was passed. <v Narrator>Sexual harassment often takes a more subtle course, as it allegedly <v Narrator>did at the Stanford University Medical School in Palo Alto, California. <v Dr. Frances Conley>We use our brain cells a lot more than ?inaudible? do. <v Dr. Frances Conley>So there are money more- yes, you'll have many more developed- yeah-. I'm Dr. Frances <v Dr. Frances Conley>Conley. I am a professor of neurosurgery at Stanford University's School of Medicine <v Dr. Frances Conley>and I am chief of the section of neurosurgery at the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs <v Dr. Frances Conley>Medical Center. <v Narrator>Though her story is different in scope and circumstances from Jackie Morris's, <v Narrator>Dr. Conley claims she was also subjected to a hostile work environment <v Narrator>and sexual discrimination throughout her 25 year medical career at Stanford. <v Dr. Frances Conley>In the medical profession, there is this mindset uh among physicians

<v Dr. Frances Conley>that says that women you can you if you wanna be here, <v Dr. Frances Conley>you're going to put up with that which we are are willing to offer <v Dr. Frances Conley>or we're we're going to offer. And I think this develops because of the hierarchical <v Dr. Frances Conley>structure that medicine always has been, i.e. <v Dr. Frances Conley>that doctor is God is male and doctor as God <v Dr. Frances Conley>who just male is waited upon by handmaidens that are women. <v Dr. Frances Conley>And so there's been a mindset develop that says, hey, this is OK, it's OK <v Dr. Frances Conley>to touch people inappropriately. <v Dr. Frances Conley>It's all right to remind women that they are very inferior and that they're inferior <v Dr. Frances Conley>because of their gender. <v Dan Stormer>The significance of of Francis Conley's case is that even in the highest, <v Dan Stormer>most intellectual arenas, [Conley inaudibly speaking] sexual harassment, sex <v Dan Stormer>discrimination exists. <v Dan Stormer>What Francis Conley's situation tells us is that education doesn't <v Dan Stormer>do anything to do away with sexism or issues of sexual

<v Dan Stormer>harassment. Education only makes it more sudden. <v Dan Stormer>And education only allows people to hide it better as opposed to refrain <v Dan Stormer>from doing it because it is ultimately an issue <v Dan Stormer>of power. <v Dr. Frances Conley>I can, you know, r- remember with vivid detail, for example, getting up in the meeting <v Dr. Frances Conley>of surgeons and having a surgeon yell to al- <v Dr. Frances Conley>everybody there, I could see the outline of your breast through your coat. <v Dr. Frances Conley>I mean, he has a right, I guess, to look at my body, but to make comments about it, no he <v Dr. Frances Conley>doesn't have that right, OK? Not in front of the whole audience. <v Dr. Frances Conley>Um uh other things that happened is that I'll be sitting in a meeting next to a surgeon <v Dr. Frances Conley>and uh usually it's in a company of surgeons. <v Dr. Frances Conley>It's a closed type of a corporation. <v Dr. Frances Conley>And the hand ?would? put on my thigh. <v Dr. Frances Conley>Everybody knows this hand is on my thigh. And what I do is pick the hand up and noisily <v Dr. Frances Conley>put the hand back on the table again. <v Dr. Frances Conley>Funsy, fun, fun at my expense. <v Dr. Frances Conley>That's not hurting you? <v Patient>Nope.

<v Dr. Frances Conley>That's not hurting. On a personal level it it impacts you because you always <v Dr. Frances Conley>question yourself. But that's what women do. <v Dr. Frances Conley>The impact for us is to make sure that our self-confidence is rattled every <v Dr. Frances Conley>single day. Am I really as good as he is? <v Dr. Frances Conley>Is my surgical technique are my surgical techniques as good as his? <v Dr. Frances Conley>Or is my research equivalent to his? <v Dr. Frances Conley>And we ask that constantly every single day. <v Dr. Frances Conley>Men never ask that. <v Dr. Frances Conley>Okay this guy [Man: Yep]. I saw him with Frank this morning and he's got <v Dr. Frances Conley>um- <v Narrator>[Conley still speaking] Dr. Conley says she suffered in silence for years simply to keep <v Narrator>her job. But she reached her breaking point when Dr. Gerald Silverberg, <v Narrator>the man allegedly responsible for much of the harassment, was appointed her boss. <v Narrator>Shortly thereafter, Conley resigned and went public. <v Dr. Frances Conley>The decision to come forward was not a difficult one at all. <v Dr. Frances Conley>When Dr. Silverberg was appointed as permanent chair, I saw the rest of my <v Dr. Frances Conley>productive professional life being spent in an environment where <v Dr. Frances Conley>my I felt like I was getting ulcers.

<v Dr. Frances Conley>The thing that really impacted my actions was to hear the medical <v Dr. Frances Conley>students that they were having real problems with sexist type <v Dr. Frances Conley>of behavior in their educational environment. <v Dr. Frances Conley>And in some ways I felt very guilty because by my not making an issue <v Dr. Frances Conley>out of some of the events that had happened to me, I was facilitating an environment <v Dr. Frances Conley>that was continue to be very hostile for them. <v Leo Turrell>I mean, victims who who remain in silence do more harm to <v Leo Turrell>women in general by not bringing their issues to the forefront. <v Leo Turrell>And tho- it tells employers that they have the right to continue harassment <v Leo Turrell>not only to that particular victim, but to other victims. <v Leo Turrell>And then you have the situation where victims are in the same workplace who share these <v Leo Turrell>problems. And yet they still remain silent to maintain their jobs. <v Narrator>The Conley case attracted national media attention and prompted the dean <v Narrator>of the medical school, David Corn, to investigate the allegations.

<v David Korn>In the investigation there was evidence obtained that <v David Korn>he had behaved in ways that we felt were inappropriate <v David Korn>for a leader of the institution, and for that reason he was <v David Korn>removed. <v Narrator>Dr. Silverberg would not comment for this program. <v Narrator>As for Dr. Conley, she has rescinded her resignation and continues working at Stanford, <v Narrator>convinced that her message has been heard. <v Dr. Frances Conley>I think my experiences are very typical of many, many women. <v Dr. Frances Conley>It isn't bizarre. It isn't way off base. <v Dr. Frances Conley>This is a very gray area that everybody has experienced and everybody <v Dr. Frances Conley>understands. And the reason that it has had the interests that it's had is because <v Dr. Frances Conley>everybody can relate to it. <v Freada Kline>We're talking about unwelcome or unwanted sexual attention <v Freada Kline>so that by definition, if it is welcome or desired by me, then

<v Freada Kline>it is not sexual harassment. <v Freada Kline>And that's where a lot of the confusion comes from. <v Freada Kline>We're not talking about a list of behaviors that are always safe. <v Freada Kline>And conversely, a list of behaviors that are always sexual harassment. <v Freada Kline>It has to do with the behavior, with the context, with whether it is wanted <v Freada Kline>from that person in that setting, whether or not one can <v Freada Kline>extricate themselves from the unwanted attention without consequences. <v Kerry Ellison>My name is Kerry Ellison. <v Kerry Ellison>I um used to work at the Internal Revenue Service in San Francisco as a revenue <v Kerry Ellison>agent and I was involved in a sexual harassment case there. <v Kerry Ellison>At first, um the harassment was real subtle.

<v Kerry Ellison>It was annoying more than anything else. <v Kerry Ellison>As it became more and more intense and I could see that the person seemed to <v Kerry Ellison>me to be rather disturbed, I became more concerned for my personal safety. <v Kerry Ellison>And I was also concerned that it was expanding ya know beyond the work environment to <v Kerry Ellison>like home visits or areas where I was not at the worksite. <v Narrator>What could have been perceived as innocent flirtatious behavior was unwanted <v Narrator>and unsolicited to Kerry Ellison. <v Narrator>Though Carrie tried to let him know she wasn't interested, the harasser kept pestering <v Narrator>her virtually every day. <v Michelle Paludi>There is a responsibility for women to say this is not appropriate. <v Michelle Paludi>I think that women hav- we need to have women take responsibility for their part in this, <v Michelle Paludi>but not to take also take responsibility for the man not hearing her. <v Michelle Paludi>And then to blame herself for what?

<v Michelle Paludi>For the behavior that's still continuing. <v Michelle Paludi>If for a woman to say no that means that the man's going to hear it is no and <v Michelle Paludi>not retaliate against her for saying no. <v Freada Kline>In her case, part of what created a hostile <v Freada Kline>work environment for her was the threat of escalation. <v Freada Kline>That threat of escalation that this person is enamored with me and <v Freada Kline>has done these 2 or 3 rather odd <v Freada Kline>things to begin with, the fact that it conjures up the threat of <v Freada Kline>physical or sexual violence for most women is an important way to interpret <v Freada Kline>that case, whereas for most men they say the person was being a <v Freada Kline>jerk. Yes. You shouldn't have to put up with it, but forget it. <v Narrator>Kerry was sent on a month long business seminar to St. Louis. <v Narrator>The trip came as a welcome relief, and she hoped her absence might defuse the situation <v Narrator>back in the office.

<v Narrator>Only her supervisor knew where she was staying. <v Narrator>Two days later, much to her surprise, Kerry received a letter from the harasser. <v Narrator>It was then she realized the magnitude of the problem. <v Kerry Ellison>Now, what really disturbed me was that, you know, I'm in this hotel room 3000 miles away <v Kerry Ellison>and I get a note, a letter from this person. <v Kerry Ellison>You know, clearly I'm not interested, I've let him know I'm not interested. <v Kerry Ellison>[clears throat] And now what does he do is he sends me a letter, which <v Kerry Ellison>is 3 pages long, and it's typed. <v Kerry Ellison>It's got little happy faces at the end. <v Kerry Ellison>And, you know, I c- I can even I can talk about it now, you know, which is which is good. <v Kerry Ellison>I'm getting over it. But when I um opened this letter, I was extremely shocked and <v Kerry Ellison>upset. I couldn't even read the letter. I I mean, I immediately called my manager and <v Kerry Ellison>said, I'm sorry, you have to do something about this. <v Kerry Ellison>I will not work with this person, period. I felt like I was at the end of my rope and <v Kerry Ellison>done everything that I could, you know, to show this person that I was not interested and <v Kerry Ellison>for him to take the hint. And you know, the what really disturbed me was I looked at the <v Kerry Ellison>bottom of the letter and it says here that he's gonna cover some more.

<v Kerry Ellison>So if he's gonna be in touch with me some more, so obviously he's not picking up on on <v Kerry Ellison>what's going on here. <v Narrator>After Kerry came back to California, the IRS claimed they tried to solve <v Narrator>the matter by temporarily transferring the harasser to another office. <v Narrator>But the problems continued when he returned. <v Kerry Ellison>At the time when all this was happening to me <v Kerry Ellison>um with this person. All I wanted to do [laughs] and every day <v Kerry Ellison>I said, all I want to do is go to work and do my job and go home <v Kerry Ellison>and pick up my paycheck. That's what I'm paid to do. <v Kerry Ellison>I'm not paid to deal with all this other stuff that's going on. <v Kerry Ellison>And it's really not fair to me. <v Kerry Ellison>And, you know, I deserve the right to be protected from this happening. <v Kerry Ellison>And I and I cannot understand why someone would not wanna do something <v Kerry Ellison>about that. <v Narrator>Kerry found herself in another difficult situation, this time trying to convince

<v Narrator>her supervisors to take the case seriously. <v Kerry Ellison>I thought, well, there is a right way to do this. <v Kerry Ellison>And everyone knows there's a right way to do this, but no one has the courage to do it <v Kerry Ellison>and I can understand that. And I kept saying, well look, I'm giving you an opportunity <v Kerry Ellison>here. I'm giving you everything you need. <v Kerry Ellison>All you have to do is say no to this person and stand up for me. <v Kerry Ellison>And time and time again, that would not happen. <v Kerry Ellison>It was almost like you were trying to <v Kerry Ellison>[sighs] um you know make an example of me and show me that I could not fight the system. <v Narrator>Unable to resolve the matter internally, Kerry filed a complaint with the <v Narrator>Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. <v Narrator>It was rejected. <v Narrator>On her own she took the case to federal court, but the judge threw it out, <v Narrator>calling the allegations isolated and trivial. <v Narrator>Instead of accepting the court's decision, Kerry kept fighting and took her case

<v Narrator>to the Federal Court of Appeals. <v Narrator>In January 1991, some 5 years after the problems began, <v Narrator>the court ruled in her favor, allowing her to retry the case for a final <v Narrator>decision. <v Narrator>This landmark ruling provided a new interpretation of the law and established <v Narrator>that the point of view of a reasonable woman is what determines sexual harassment. <v Bernice Sandler>The courts are acknowledging there that men and women can look at this behavior very, <v Bernice Sandler>very differently and that the intent of his behavior, you know, I didn't intend to <v Bernice Sandler>sexually harassing- harass her, I was just, you know, I put my arm around everybody kind <v Bernice Sandler>of thing or I pinch everybody's breasts, you know, whatever. <v Bernice Sandler>Um the fact that uh he didn't intend to do it doesn't matter, it's how it looked to her. <v Bernice Sandler>She is the reasonable person here. <v Bernice Sandler>And how he looked at her is what counts. <v Michelle Paludi>So the Ellison case supports women being in control of the situation, <v Michelle Paludi>giving women back the power to say this is what is offensive and

<v Michelle Paludi>derogatory to me, being somebody who's been socialised in the culture <v Michelle Paludi>that typically has not valued women. <v Narrator>While Kerry Ellison's case may empower other victims of sexual harassment, <v Narrator>the reasonable woman ruling also raises questions among men who worry <v Narrator>that the subjective interpretation of the problem may leave them vulnerable to claims <v Narrator>of false accusations. <v Bernice Sandler>I mean a lot of people are very worried- men are worried about false accusations, just <v Bernice Sandler>like men worry about false accusations of rape. <v Bernice Sandler>Are false accusations possible? <v Bernice Sandler>Of course that's possible. Are they likely? <v Bernice Sandler>Very unlikely. You cannot get women to file charges. <v Dan Stormer>There is no plus side for a woman claiming she sexually harassed because the result <v Dan Stormer>is more often than not that she's going she's the one that's going to be terminated. <v Dan Stormer>She's the one that's going to be interrogated. <v Dan Stormer>And even if she's correct, more often than not, she's the one that's going to be moved in <v Dan Stormer>the job situation.

<v Narrator>Far removed from the corporate or industrial workplace, Normal, Illinois seems <v Narrator>like an unlikely setting to begin understanding the behavior and circumstances behind <v Narrator>sexual harassment. <v Narrator>Here at Illinois State University, scientific research is underway <v Narrator>that may provide new insight into the psychology of people who harass. <v John Pryor>What we're going to do today is we're gonna show you some simulations, some of the <v John Pryor>studies that we've been doing- <v Narrator>Professor John Pryor is one of the few researchers in the country conducting <v Narrator>behavioral experiments, examining the social dynamics between the sexes [John Pryor: <v Narrator>teaching and training]. <v Narrator>During his research, Pryor screened dozens of men from college campuses <v Narrator>and studied those he found having a propensity to harass women. <v John Pryor>One of the things that we've found is that men who are high in the likelihood to sexually <v John Pryor>harass tend to be people who find it difficult to

<v John Pryor>understand or assume the perspectives of others. <v John Pryor>That's not only the perspective of women, but other people in general. <v John Pryor>So you can imagine uh that uh the perspectives of women are probably pretty alien to <v John Pryor>them. So basically what it is, it's sort of just like dealing with a word processor- <v Narrator>During a psychology class, Dr. Pryor recreated one of his more revealing <v Narrator>studies. <v John Pryor>What we're gonna do here is I'm trying to evaluate a uh program that I've developed <v John Pryor>for the Department of Office Management. OK? <v Student>OK. <v Narrator>In this scenario, a graduate student who is actually participating <v Narrator>in the experiment leads the research subject to believe that he will be training <v Narrator>undergraduate women to use a computer. <v John Pryor>What you're gonna do is instruct the girl that's gonna be coming in here on how to <v John Pryor>correct these mistakes, OK. [Student: ?inaudible?] I don't know if you noticed a girl out <v John Pryor>of the hall, but these girls that have been sent down here by the Department of Office <v John Pryor>Management got a real ?proxy?, OK?- <v Narrator>[Pryor speaking inaudibly] In reality, the true purpose of the experiment was to observe <v Narrator>if a computer trainer would harass given the opportunity.

<v John Pryor>Oh, Cindy? <v John Pryor>It is Cindy, right? <v John Pryor>I'm John. [Cindy: Nice to meet you] How are you? You look real familiar, don't I know you <v John Pryor>from somewhere? <v Cindy>[chuckling] I don't think so. <v John Pryor>No, you look like an old girlfriend of mine. [laughs] Why don't you come on over here, Cindy, this <v John Pryor>is Mr. Williams. <v Mr. Williams>Hi, Cindy. [Cindy: Nice to meet you] Nice to meet you too. <v John Pryor>Mr. Williams, will basically be your boss here [Cindy: OK] for about the next <v John Pryor>15 minutes. OK, so all you have to do is listen to what Mr. Williams has to say, follow <v John Pryor>his instructions, everything's gonna be OK, OK? <v Narrator>[Pryor inaudibly speaking] By design, the graduate student who is really part of the <v Narrator>research team, purposely harasses the woman, setting an example <v Narrator>for the computer trainer to do the same. <v John Pryor>Make yourself comfortable and just follow Mr. Williams' instructions [Cindy: OK] and <v John Pryor>you'll be doin' OK, OK? And do remember that you're gonna file u- fill out a evaluation <v John Pryor>form for us- <v Mr. Williams>Yeah, right I'm on it. OK. <v John Pryor>OK. <v Mr. Williams>OK. Thanks a lot. <v Narrator>[man speaking] Left alone and led to believe that sexual harassment is permitted and even <v Narrator>condoned, the computer trainer takes full advantage of the situation. <v Mr. Williams>You want me to give you the sentence now?

<v Woman>OK. <v Mr. Williams>OK. [Woman: ?inaudible?] It's <v Mr. Williams>number three. J- just hit number three, right over there. <v Woman>OK. Do I have to hit return to put uh- <v Narrator>Although this is a re-creation- <v Mr. Williams>Yes. <v Narrator>Similar behavior was observed during 90 percent of the experiments. <v Cindy>?inaudible? <v Mr. Williams>Just use those those are fine. Yeah. <v Narrator>Shannon Hoffman, who participated in the real studies, remembers feeling vulnerable <v Narrator>because of the permissive environment created by the men in charge. <v Mr. Williams>And uh it's really all you need to do and then just hit the letter and you're fine. <v Shannon Hoffman>It was very uncomfortable for me. I I realized that had it been out of the experimental <v Shannon Hoffman>settings a- as a woman, I would have been very nervous with someone that close <v Shannon Hoffman>to me and reaching around me. <v Shannon Hoffman>So it kind of made me feel a little bit powerless as far as that goes, 'cause there was <v Shannon Hoffman>nothing I could do about it. But I also realized that perhaps in a business setting or <v Shannon Hoffman>if this person really was my boss, that'd be harder for me to um send off the negative <v Shannon Hoffman>signals or whatever to try and fend off that type of thing.

<v John Pryor>People only do these kinds of behaviors when they think they can get away with it. <v John Pryor>Men are put into uh ?know? <v John Pryor>power positions themselves and they see [Mr. <v John Pryor>Williams inaudibly speaking] either a role model who who performs sexual harassing <v John Pryor>behaviors or they see a role model who who performs more professional kinds of behaviors. <v John Pryor>When sexual harassment occurs when its most flagrant, it's probably in a situation where <v John Pryor>management is allowing it to happen. <v John Pryor>Uh where where there haven't been proactive steps that have been taken to <v John Pryor>say, well, sexual harassment this our policy of sexual harassment. <v John Pryor>Uh these are not only things that we say that is the management. <v John Pryor>There are things that we do. <v Narrator>Though Congress has enacted legislation to prevent sexual harassment. <v Narrator>Statistics indicate that half of all working women claim to have experienced the problem. <v Narrator>Part of the reason is that employers and supervisors fail to uphold and enforce the law.

<v Pat Kid>My name is Pat Kid. I've been employed in the District of Columbia for 5 years as <v Pat Kid>a real estate specialist. <v Pat Kid>When I first experienced sexual harassment within the workplace, <v Pat Kid>my um supervisor, when he started to <v Pat Kid>make advances to me within 4 weeks of my employment, he <v Pat Kid>told me where his power was. <v Pat Kid>Uh he told me he had a lot of clout. <v Pat Kid>And um he set out to prove that immediately within the 4 weeks that I <v Pat Kid>started working there. And indeed, he had all the power that he said he had. <v Narrator>At first, Patricia Kidd's new job with the District of Columbia seemed promising, <v Narrator>but problems began when she approached her boss with a question about a work related <v Narrator>project. To Pat, his answer seemed inappropriate.

<v Pat Kid>His response was, a lot of men are asking about you and you can have any man you <v Pat Kid>want. And I'm interested, too. <v Pat Kid>Um I told him I wasn't interested. <v Pat Kid>Um he seemed somewhat annoyed by that. <v Pat Kid>Um the weeks to follow, um he would eventually refer to me as a <v Pat Kid>lesbian. <v Pat Kid>Um tell me that it looked like I needed some. <v Pat Kid>And from there he started uh, allowing it to actually impact my work <v Pat Kid>physically. <v Pat Kid>How many packages of sequins does she use in all? <v Narrator>[Pat inaudibly speaking] As a single mother supporting two children, Pat needed the job, <v Narrator>she hoped that by working harder and maintaining a cordial but professional relationship, <v Narrator>the harassment would subside. <v Narrator>It didn't. <v Pat Kid>Once he got away from um calling me the <v Pat Kid>lesbian, then what he started doing was actually taking me out in <v Pat Kid>the field. And um he started talking more

<v Pat Kid>about how interested he was in me um as <v Pat Kid>I rejected him or not answered him. <v Pat Kid>Then um he would become a little more hostile. <v Narrator>Pat found herself in a precarious position. <v Narrator>As a new employee, still on probation, she could be fired with little recourse. <v Pat Kid>6 or 7 months after I had been employed there, I <v Pat Kid>received a telephone call and um one of the employees <v Pat Kid>put the call through and uh it was my supervisor <v Pat Kid>and um he said he was over at the Comfort Inn Hotel and he wanted <v Pat Kid>me to get over there. And I just slammed down the phone. <v Pat Kid>I mean, I was just so angry and I was shocked, I guess more than angry. <v Pat Kid>I was just shocked. <v Pat Kid>And um it made me feel, you know, that I was kind of set <v Pat Kid>up. You know, I was so angry,

<v Pat Kid>um but I was able to go back to my work. <v Pat Kid>And um I guess within an hour, another phone call <v Pat Kid>comes. It is my boss again. <v Pat Kid>And this time he reminds me of a personnel action <v Pat Kid>and my probationary status. <v Pat Kid>And this time he did not request. <v Pat Kid>He demanded that I get over there. <v Pat Kid>When I went there, he was dressed in a robe. <v Pat Kid>He told me to join him in the jacuzzi and <v Pat Kid>um he had sex with me. <v Pat Kid>He acted like it was no big deal. <v Narrator>Although she didn't know it at the time, Pat was a victim of what's called quid <v Narrator>pro quo, a specific type of harassment in which she <v Narrator>was pressured to exchange sexual favors for workplace benefits. <v Pat Kid>He told me that um he would consider uh

<v Pat Kid>promoting me and my job. <v Pat Kid>If I would have sex with him again. I said, well, you know, you know how I am now. <v Pat Kid>You've already, you know, tried me. <v Pat Kid>So w- why now? <v Pat Kid>I mean, why don't you just leave me alone, you know? <v Pat Kid>And um he became very hostile andum <v Pat Kid>he stayed after me. And I did it again. <v Pat Kid>This time it was at his residence. He picked me up from my home and took me over to his <v Pat Kid>residence. This time he um participated in drugs, <v Pat Kid>got drunk uh and he sodomized me this time. <v Pat Kid>Uh and um, he kept me out <v Pat Kid>all night. You know, or to dawn. <v Pat Kid>I mean, you can actually see- um and <v Pat Kid>while I was at his house with me, I I wash and I wash and I wash and <v Pat Kid>I felt so dirty and I was so scared.

<v Pat Kid>You know, because I was so afraid that he would wake up. <v Pat Kid>And I was so humiliated because my son called me there, you know <v Pat Kid>uh, to see where I was, my oldest son. <v Pat Kid>And I don't stay out like that. <v Pat Kid>And I I felt so humiliated. <v Pat Kid>And I swore I swore then no matter <v Pat Kid>what the consequences, that I was never gonna subject myself to this. <v Pat Kid>It was blackmail is what it was. <v Pat Kid>It had turned to sexual blackmail. <v Carla Barboza>If you're in a situation where you can't afford to lose your job or you can't afford to <v Carla Barboza>jeopardize your relationship with your boss, then you're gonna be less reluctant <v Carla Barboza>to to report it, especially if the perpetrator is your boss. <v Carla Barboza>Women have not had a sympathetic ear so that oftentimes when they do <v Carla Barboza>decide to step forward, the response they get more often than not has been,

<v Carla Barboza>we don't believe you. It doesn't make any sense. <v Carla Barboza>Why did you do this? Why did you do that if that was going on? <v Carla Barboza>Well, a lot of women tolerate behaviors because it's a matter of survival. <v Carla Barboza>And so if they don't have a sympathetic ear, the last thing you wanna hear is that you're <v Carla Barboza>not being believed. <v Carla Barboza>[children playing] But beyond that, the attitudes towards those who speak up, <v Carla Barboza>um what might be considered lightweight type of sexual harassment is just verbal and no <v Carla Barboza>touching. They say, well, why are you complaining about it? <v Carla Barboza>And yet, if she's touched and assaulted or raped, they say, well, why didn't you say <v Carla Barboza>something sooner? So the woman catches herself in a catch 22. <v Narrator>Pat spent several painful months trying to discreetly resolve the problem within the <v Narrator>department, but her efforts were unsuccessful, so she began compiling <v Narrator>a legal case. Eventually, she sued the district and went to trial.

<v Pat Kid>You say, well, gosh, I have all this evidence. <v Pat Kid>You know, I mean, it's an open and shut case. <v Pat Kid>And then it's not that way. <v Pat Kid>You have to tolerate intimidation from the other side. <v Pat Kid>And you're watching legal fees just escalate and <v Pat Kid>you're watching that it's no longer <v Pat Kid>that department or their supervisor being the hostile environment <v Pat Kid>or individuals. But now it's gonna become the whole district government. <v Narrator>After enduring 3 years of harassment, Pat won her case. <v Narrator>She was awarded 300,000 dollars in damages. <v Narrator>However, the verdict is being appealed. <v Narrator>Defense attorneys who would not appear on this program maintain that the District of <v Narrator>Columbia went out of its way to provide a comfortable working environment. <v Narrator>The case is still in litigation.

<v Pat Kid>This is something that I have to deal with. <v Pat Kid>And I guess any reasonable woman has to deal with [sharp inhale] uh something that <v Pat Kid>society, un- until they are sensitized, just can not connect <v Pat Kid>with because we don't tell them. <v Pat Kid>If we tell 'em perhaps they'll understand that it's not <v Pat Kid>me coming home and my life is OK. <v Pat Kid>It's not OK. I'm not OK. <v Pat Kid>I look forward to being OK one day, but <v Pat Kid>uh I don't see it being anywhere in the near future. <v Pat Kid>It's just too much to get over. <v Pat Kid>And um I d- I do miss who I used to be. <v Narrator>Resolving sexual harassment is not something we should expect the courts alone <v Narrator>to handle. Ultimately, society needs to change its perceptions. <v Narrator>[sirens blaring]

<v Narrator>For many women, especially those working in fields traditionally dominated <v Narrator>by men, it may be a matter of sheer perseverance before they are accepted. <v Brenda Berkman>My name is Brenda Berkman and I'm a firefighter with the city of New York. <v Brenda Berkman>I had sort of a Pollyanna view of how long it would take before women were <v Brenda Berkman>really accepted in these in these nontraditional, very male dominated jobs. <v Brenda Berkman>You know, [horns honking] one always sort of thinks once I and the other women prove that <v Brenda Berkman>we can do the job, well, people will just accept us and we'll fit in. <v Narrator>Brenda Berkman was the first female firefighter in the city of New York. <v Narrator>Her story begins in the 1970s when she filed a lawsuit challenging the city

<v Narrator>to hire women. <v Brenda Berkman>As a result of bringing the lawsuit, I had experienced a tremendous amount <v Brenda Berkman>of uh harassment um, I had to get an unlisted telephone number <v Brenda Berkman>because I was getting death threats at my house and I was getting phone calls at 3 <v Brenda Berkman>o'clock in the morning that clearly were coming from a firehouse because uh, <v Brenda Berkman>the uh you know, you could hear the uh dispatcher in the background. <v Brenda Berkman>I mean, these guys were calling me on the department phone for crying out loud. <v Brenda Berkman>Very silly. <v Narrator>Brenda eventually won her case, but that was only the beginning. <v Narrator>She and 40 other women were sent to training school. <v Narrator>They were then split up and assigned individually to 40 different firehouses <v Narrator>where the harassment intensified. <v Brenda Berkman>Our group had pictures put up all over the firehouse that were pornographic uh, <v Brenda Berkman>you know, they had um used condoms left <v Brenda Berkman>around on one case, a woman had one put it in her sandwich at

<v Brenda Berkman>work. Uh they had uh um <v Brenda Berkman>sexual objects put in their bed, um they had dog shit put in their boots. <v Brenda Berkman>They had uh, you know, all kinds of really obnoxious things <v Brenda Berkman>happen to their lockers and their personal items. <v Brenda Berkman>I went to a firehouse where the men refused to eat with me. <v Brenda Berkman>They would not talk to me. <v Brenda Berkman>On one occasion, my protective gear had been tampered with. <v Brenda Berkman>It was always uh a a big question as to whether uh, in fact <v Brenda Berkman>you'd have anyone there to back ya up when you needed 'em. <v Brenda Berkman>[fire bell ringing] <v Narrator>Brenda refused to tolerate the harassment and complained to her superiors. <v Narrator>But instead of resolving the problem, she was labeled a troublemaker for speaking out <v Narrator>and later encountered even more difficulty. <v Narrator>After I had been on the job for a year, the city fired me and another woman who had

<v Narrator>also been very prominent and bringing to their attention incidents <v Narrator>of harassment. <v Narrator>After a very lengthy trial, the judge found that there was absolutely no reason for <v Narrator>firing us other than retaliating against us for our <v Narrator>leadership role in the uh in the fire department. <v Narrator>And that that's always been a problem with people who raise <v Narrator>uh a complaint about sexual harassment. <v Narrator>There there will be retaliation. <v Narrator>You have to prepare yourself for that. <v Dan Stormer>When you make a claim of sexual harassment, you are striking at the <v Dan Stormer>very core of power. You are telling the male, the male superior, <v Dan Stormer>whoever it is that you are complaining to, that they have to stop abusing <v Dan Stormer>and using their authority and they don't wanna do that. <v Narrator>While Brenda's legal victories won her reinstatement, improvements and working

<v Narrator>conditions came after the men's attitude began to change. <v Brenda Berkman>Initially, of course, I brought a lawsuit, but I found that lawsuits <v Brenda Berkman>are very imperfect way of achieving social change, and even when you <v Brenda Berkman>when your initial lawsuit ?inaudible? <v Brenda Berkman>there, there's no judge in the world that's gonna be there with ya on the workplace 24 <v Brenda Berkman>hours a day. So the judge is sort of out of the picture and after <v Brenda Berkman>that, you have to look to other ways of trying to make your your work environment <v Brenda Berkman>bearable. <v Freada Kline>Changing attitudes as the way to eradicate sexual harassment is probably <v Freada Kline>the long term strategy. <v Freada Kline>Changing attitudes is very difficult. <v Freada Kline>That what most workplace programs focus on is changing behavior. <v Freada Kline>And we hope that once an organization has said here <v Freada Kline>are the parameters of acceptable behaviors here, and once employees,

<v Freada Kline>employees, managers, everyone has to consistently <v Freada Kline>behave themselves at work, then we hope that practicing decent behavior will <v Freada Kline>rub off into uh a good habit. <v Bob Simmons>My name is Bob Simmons. I'm a senior waterworks engineer. <v Bob Simmons>[machinery operating] Many of my men work with female engineers or inspectors, and <v Bob Simmons>you can't ignore that the penalties and the consequences of sexual harassment <v Bob Simmons>are huge potentially for me personally as well as for my company. <v Bob Simmons>Over the years and I have been here 21 years now, I really haven't interacted socially <v Bob Simmons>with that many women, uh but I am single and I am human. <v Bob Simmons>And we're a big company with 12000 people. <v Bob Simmons>And from time to time I will involve myself socially with someone

<v Bob Simmons>that happens to work here. <v Bob Simmons>And that never bothered me that much in the past. <v Bob Simmons>But lately, I've been very concerned. <v Bob Simmons>I may ask someone to lunch once and they say no. <v Bob Simmons>I accept that as as no. <v Bob Simmons>Whereas in the past I might have asked them 2 or 3 times or 4 times <v Bob Simmons>and maybe the 5th time they say, yes, well, I consider that successful, [laughter] <v Bob Simmons>back in the past today, that would not happen. <v Dan Stormer>I think that what happens in our society is that we are trained <v Dan Stormer>as men to basically push even more after we hear <v Dan Stormer>no, because we're told that it really does mean yes, <v Dan Stormer>and we don't listen to the no. <v Dan Stormer>Uh and until men start listening to the no and accepting the no as no, <v Dan Stormer>there are going to be claims of sexual harassment, rightful claims of sexual harassment. <v Narrator>Bob Simmons concerns are typical of many men.

<v Narrator>Never before has there been so much confusion between the sexes over what is appropriate <v Narrator>and what is offensive behavior. <v Bob Simmons>Judy? Got a second? <v Judy>Sure. <v Bob Simmons>You had uh a left a message for me to see [Judy: Yes] about a customer service problem. <v Judy>I wanted you to come and look at this order on the screen. <v Bob Simmons>[Judy inaudibly spekaing] I can't help but recall one young lady complimenting me on a <v Bob Simmons>tie I happened to be wearing and she touched it. <v Bob Simmons>An and then she's s- step back and said, does it bother you when I compliment you on your <v Bob Simmons>ties? And I says, very seriously, sexual harassment has to be repeated <v Bob Simmons>and unwelcomed. And clearly, I welcome any compliments that you have <v Bob Simmons>and feel free to repeat them as often as you like. <v Bob Simmons>So, everybody laughed and it was fine. <v Woman>Did you get my message about ?inaudible? <v Bob Simmons>What has happened is a sensitivity has emerged as to <v Bob Simmons>how far can you go or is an activity that I've been doing <v Bob Simmons>for the last uh several years, uh is that <v Bob Simmons>harassment now?

<v Carla Barboza>I think what makes the topic difficult is that <v Carla Barboza>it's going to depend on who is experiencing <v Carla Barboza>the behavior as to whether or not that's unlawful sexual harassment. <v Carla Barboza>So what might not be objectionable to one person might be highly objectionable <v Carla Barboza>to the other person. And the way you decide that is based on how <v Carla Barboza>the person who's receiving the behavior responds. <v Bob Simmons>Who does know what the definition of sexual harassment is? <v Bob Simmons>Does anybody have an idea? ?inaudible? <v Bob Simmons>you look like you're about to say somwthing. <v Man>Uh yeah, I would say, uh you know, anything that's of- offensive and and <v Man>unwanted. <v Charlie>Bob, how would you distinguish between uh flirting and sexual harassment? <v Charlie>How can you distinguish between the two? <v Bob Simmons>That's a tough one sometimes. That's a tough one. <v Bob Simmons>It's up to the person again to let you know that something about what you're doing <v Bob Simmons>is unwelcomed. She does not want that.

<v Bob Simmons>It may be an invitation to lunch. <v Bob Simmons>It may be whatever. You're talking to her consistently. <v Bob Simmons>Let's just say you constantly walk over to someone's desk and you're talking to her 3 or <v Bob Simmons>4 times a day. You pass her in the hallway. <v Bob Simmons>Um you haven't really advanced persay yet, maybe ya have. <v Bob Simmons>If she doesn't like that, she's gotta let you or someone know that she doesn't like <v Bob Simmons>that. And then you're told that from someone and then you have to back <v Bob Simmons>off, 'cause now you've been warned. <v Bob Simmons>If on the other hand, you walk over and she says, oh be sure to come back tomorrow, or <v Bob Simmons>will I see you again this afternoon? Or how 'bout uh continuing our conversation after <v Bob Simmons>work? Then I'm thinkin' that you're pretty much, you know, so far, nothing's unwelcome. <v Bob Simmons>And but it's a judgment call, Charlie. <v Bob Simmons>[inaudibly speaking] If I can train my guys and make them more aware of what the <v Bob Simmons>whole subject is about, then I feel good about that. <v Bob Simmons>So I'm motivated to act in our workplace because it's the <v Bob Simmons>right thing to do. And I believe ultimately uh productivity is <v Bob Simmons>based on how people feel about themselves and their work environment and their morale.

<v Bob Simmons>Ron, you wanna ask someone out to lunch and they say no to you. <v Ron>That's good enough for me [laughter]. <v Ron>The way the policy is now, I'm outta there. <v Man>The question is, you know, is it OK? <v Man>We are in a situation like we're out in the field there. <v Man>And the thing about women walking up and down the street, the guys have a tendency to be <v Man>distracted, to stop what they're doing and looking at women, you know, and cutting their <v Man>eyes or whatever, whistling or whatever I said- <v Bob Simmons>[inaudibly speaking] We're not trying to change behavior persay, we're trying to make the <v Bob Simmons>guys more aware of how their behavior can be perceived by the people <v Bob Simmons>they're interacting with. I think that women and men both have an obligation <v Bob Simmons>to be a little bit more straightforward and and recognize the other person's <v Bob Simmons>concerns and positions. <v Bob Simmons>And then then you go from there. <v Man>Again, we've gotta realize that there's some sacrifices that have got to be met. <v Bob Simmons>I think as long as you have people in power, you're gonna have people that that

<v Bob Simmons>will try to use that power to their own benefit. <v Bob Simmons>You're gonna have other people that will try to do something to have that power used to <v Bob Simmons>help them. That's the world. <v Bob Simmons>I think that's life. It's gonna always be here. <v Bob Simmons>But the big thing that we can do is make sure that everyone <v Bob Simmons>understands the rules of the game. <v Bob Simmons>If you choose to violate those rules, you do so willingly and you have to suffer <v Bob Simmons>the consequences [Man: to follow up on a discussion-]. <v Carla Barboza>That's why this issue is so important, cause you're really talking about changing <v Carla Barboza>consciousness and encouraging people to pay attention <v Carla Barboza>to how their behavior affects someone else's behavior <v Carla Barboza>and feelings. And if if the people who were <v Carla Barboza>perpetrating this kind of abuse uh were able <v Carla Barboza>to pay attention to how the recipient was responding and then <v Carla Barboza>stopped based on the recipient's behavior, I <v Carla Barboza>think we'd have a loss lot less of it. We don't have that.

<v Narrator>[music playing] It may be generations before men and women finally share a mutual <v Narrator>understanding and become sensitized to each other's feelings. <v Narrator>If Brenda Berkman's situation is any indication, we seem to be moving in that <v Narrator>direction. No doubt conditions have improved for female firefighters, <v Narrator>but Brenda claims sexual harassment is still pervasive in the department. <v Narrator>Until old and ingrained attitudes are removed, the legal system as <v Narrator>limited as it is, remains her primary means of recourse. <v Narrator>[dog barking] Yet many victims who win their cases often feel they lose in the end. <v Narrator>Jackie Morris claimed to suffer both physical and emotional trauma on the job even <v Narrator>after she won her case. <v Narrator>Jackie filed a 2nd lawsuit, but it was settled out of court. <v Narrator>In July of 1992, she quit her job and is now attending a nearby

<v Narrator>community college. <v Narrator>[children inaudibly speaking] Women must realize they have a right to work in a <v Narrator>harassment free environment and no longer need to suffer in silence. <v Narrator>Patricia Kidd still works for the District of Columbia, where she claims the harassment <v Narrator>continues. <v Narrator>While her case against the district is pending appeal, Pat has organized support groups <v Narrator>to help other victims avoid the same problems she once encountered. <v Narrator>Education, however, must encompass more than just victims. <v Narrator>Since returning to her position at Stanford Medical School, Frances Connelly has <v Narrator>continued to raise public consciousness and promote social change. <v Narrator>She has also taken her crusade outside the university to other organizations <v Narrator>in an effort to further educate both men and women about the inequities of

<v Narrator>sexual discrimination. <v Narrator>And we really do seem to be making progress. <v Narrator>Kerry Ellison's landmark case has further clarified the issue of sexual harassment <v Narrator>and empowered victims to finally step forward. <v Narrator>Kerry has left her job with the IRS and now works for the U.S. <v Narrator>Forest Service in San Francisco. <v Narrator>Her case provides a legal foundation for all victims by legitimizing the point <v Narrator>of view of a reasonable woman. <v Narrator>And apparently the message is being heard outside the courts. <v Narrator>Some companies and organizations are enacting policies and procedures to prevent <v Narrator>unwelcome advances. <v Narrator>The role of supervisors like Bob Simmons is crucial in training employees <v Narrator>and creating a new social awareness between the sexes. <v Narrator>After all, sexual harassment is a learned behavior and people

<v Narrator>can learn not to do it. <v Bernice Sandler>It's the kind of education that we need to start at a very early age to help <v Bernice Sandler>boys and girls, men and women learn to be friends with each other <v Bernice Sandler>in a non-sexual way. That is a very powerful thing to do. <v Bernice Sandler>And I think that's why people, some people, are very upset about sexual harassment <v Bernice Sandler>becoming an issue because they recognize that the message is <v Bernice Sandler>a new time is coming where men and women will just be different with each other. <v Bernice Sandler>And many of us know that already. <v Bernice Sandler>But not everyone does. <v Narrator 2>Videocassette copies of sex, power and the workplace are available for both personal and <v Narrator 2>business use. Each video includes a 22 page resource guide. <v Narrator 2>To order call 1 800 3 4 3 4 7 2 7 or write to the address <v Narrator 2>on your screen. <v Narrator 2>[music plays] Major funding for sex, power and the workplace was provided by the Durfee

<v Narrator 2>Foundation, which is pleased to support excellence in public television programing. <v Speaker>This is PBS.