Michigan CRLT Players: Moving the Needle – Lessons Learned
Date: Tuesday, April 9, 2019; Wednesday, April 10, 2019
During this two day session led by the Michigan CRLT Players, participants expanded their understanding of what sexual harassment is, how it impacts individuals and communities, and what makes an environment prone to its presence. Through research presentation, case-study observations, and community communication, the sessions showed participants the ongoing reflective practices that must be put in place in order to address the culturally embedded problem of sexual harassment. This two-day session involved over 160 attendees on the 1st day and over 140 people the following day. Topics of interest were the short-to-long term impacts of gender harassment and the cultural issue of low reporting with respect to the prominence of gender harassment. Learning objectives from this included the ability to identify what could instigate cultural and institutional change – notably in policy and interpersonal relationships – as well as be able to identify and act in moments of sexual and gender harassment.
There was an overwhelming increase in awareness around sexual harassment as a result of the day one session, with over 50% of participants planning to take action to improve their practices against sexual harassment. The second part had the attendees think critically about the sexual harassment culture and how to remedy it. Over 60% of attendees noted several weeks after the workshop that they had already taken action to support a work a culture which is more resistant to sexual harassment. Overall, the session was a great success in creating meaningful discussions about sexual harassment and building more awareness about the issues surrounding it.