My apologies as well for cross-posting . . .
I think Kay's comments go to the heart of the issues raised by Liz Bondi
in the initial posting that started this thread and reemphasized by
Sarah Holloway now. Both the law and rational people recognize that
harassment is a violation of the individual that is not only
unacceptable but illegal. But the law falls short, as do all our
appropriately outraged comments concerning Gill's case in particular,
when the suspect remains protected by the cloak of anonymity; in this
particular case, and in others like it, how can you censure or prosecute
someone who remains anonymous? Everyone has been rightfully cautious in
this regard, and no one more so than Gill herself. But without naming
names, there's no way this person can be held accountable by the
community that wishes to censure her (and here I intentionally reiterate
Sarah's use of that gendered pronoun as one step in that direction) or
be prosecuted under the law, which has been enacted for the very purpose
of protecting Gill and others who are being subjected to this kind of
abuse.
Obviously what is required is an aggressive pursuit of evidence that
will tie the suspect to the crime. Hiring a private investigator would
be one possible method to do this, but that's rather expensive; I would
suggest that one way all of us who are outraged by this particular
case-one way to put our money where our mouth is and to take all this
from the merely theoretical to the very practical-would be to contribute
to a fund to help Gill hire a detective who can gather the evidence
necessary to arrest and convict the perpetrator. Just a suggestion, but
one I hope might be taken seriously . . .
Best regards,
Becky
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Becky Kennison [log in to unmask]
Production Coordinator Tel.: 781-388-0433
Blackwell Publishers FAX: 781-388-0533
350 Main Street Blackwell home page:
Malden, Massachusetts 02148 www.blackwellpublishers.co.uk
-----Original Message-----
From: Graham, Kay 8604 [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Wednesday, December 16, 1998 6:56 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Cc: Taylor, James 8603
Subject: Harassment
I read, with interest, Sarah Holloway's call for 'protecting us
from one
another'. Sorry to bang on about this, but I think that is
precisely
what the Protection From Harassment Act, 1997 does do. It
applies
anywhere and protects against any (undefined) alarm, distress or
torment
provided the conduct has occurred on two or more occasions - if
there
has been an adverse effect on the victim. I'm sure this could
be
translated into the workplace - I am, however, equally sure that
it
would be a potential minefield (i.e. subject to abuse).
Bascially, I
just wonder is criminal law not enough to protect people from
harassment
of undefined motives? Anyway, just a few thoughts.
Kay.
Dr. Kay Graham.
Surrey Police Headquarters.
Guildford.
GU3 1HG
Telephone: +44 (0)1483 482043
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