Women deserve better than the likes of Thomas, MSG

Robin Collum, the Gateway (University of Alberta)

EDMONTON (CUP) — As one of only two females on my newspaper’s editorial staff, I often complain about the extremely graphic “dude-versations” that I’m forced to overhear in the newsroom, not to mention having to deal with some male athletes who keep their eyes significantly below my face during interviews, if you catch my drift.

That said, it’s nothing compared to what some women have to deal with in the workplace — women like Anucha Browne Sanders, who was vice-president of marketing and business operations for the NBA’s New York Knicks. On Oct. 2, a jury ruled in her favour, bringing to an end a three-week-long sexual harassment trial she filed against the Knicks organization, Madison Square Garden (MSG), and Knicks president and head coach Isiah Thomas.

According to Browne Sanders, Thomas treated her terribly when he was hired by the Knicks in 2003, discriminating on her because of her gender and referring to her as a “bitch” and a “ho.”

Thomas, a married father of two, eventually began treating her terribly in a different way: making unwanted advances, trying to kiss her, and repeatedly inviting her to get to know him better with a few “off-site” visits.

When she complained to her bosses, and asked co-workers to back up her claims, she was fired for “incompetence.” So she took them all to court for harassment and wrongful dismissal — and rightfully so.

The fact that MSG was held responsible for their actions is fantastic — they’re being forced to pay $8.6 million in reparations for condoning a hostile work environment and retaliation, while MSG chairman James Dolan is on the hook for another $3 million for being the one who fired her and for doing so in such a childish and petty manner.

It seems slightly ridiculous that Thomas wasn’t found liable for any money; regardless, the whole affair has brought the issue of treatment of women in male-dominated workplaces back to the front of peoples’ minds.

To a certain extent, one expects sexism and crudeness to exist in an all-male environment like, say, a locker room. Though it’s hardly ideal, it’s private and not particularly harmful as long as it stays within those walls. It’s basically more of a bonding exercise than anything else. But it’s when that sort of attitude leaves the locker room and enters a place of work that it becomes completely unacceptable. In the case of Browne Sanders and the Knicks, it seems that blatant sexism was, if not actually encouraged, at least accepted; otherwise, Browne Sanders would never have been fired.

It’s outrageous that, in this day and age, people would still be pulling this crap. This isn’t the ’50s; the mustachioed executive can’t just pinch his secretary’s behind and expect just a giggle in response. It seems, additionally, that these sorts of incidences are especially prevalent in the sports world; hearing the sort of insults Browne Sanders had to endure inevitably brings to mind the Don Imus scandal earlier this year. Though of course his comments were more racist when he called the Rutgers University women’s basketball team “nappy-headed hos” on the radio, he was also being a sexist pig.

It’s about time that women in business, sports, and the business of sports stood up for themselves and their place in their professions. Browne Sanders deserved her job with the Knicks as much as any of her co-workers did; a college basketball star herself with Northwestern University, and an experienced marketer who had been with the Knicks longer than Thomas has, it was unacceptable that she was made to feel uncomfortable at work.

Women shouldn’t have to play along, act like “one of the boys,” or put up with bullshit like Thomas was dishing out. Browne Sanders did us all a favour by standing up for herself, and sent a message to teams and boardrooms everywhere that women belong in the world of sport and deserve respect.