A man I’m discussing Harvey Weinstein with reminds me of the Mel Brooks film, History of the World, in which Brooks’ character in several sketches molests women and then, to camera, reaffirms what we all have been told, “It’s good to be king.”
In 2003, a study found that men in populations across a large region of Asia carried specific Y chromosome variants (the Y chromosome is passed on largely unchanged from father to son over generations), suggesting they had a common ancestor who originated in Mongolia 1,000 years ago. While other male progenitors of this period could be expected to have approximately 800 descendants, this one had 16 million or 0.5% of the world’s population. It is highly unlikely this man’s fecundity could be put down to his great pick up lines and displays of resource-security adequate enough to raise a brood of hundreds. Rather, Genghis Khan, as he created the Mongol Empire, explained why one in 200 men on the planet could trace his roots back to him: “The greatest joy a man can know is to conquer his enemies and drive them before him. To ride their horses and take away their possessions. To see the faces of those who were dear to them bedewed with tears, and to clasp their wives and daughters in his arms.”
Pretty impressive, right? Even more so when you think nearly 1,000 years later, men are still socialised to regard women as sex objects and status symbols – the spoils of war. Nowhere is this more evident than in large corporations where attitudes ranging from casual sexism to predatory rape culture are not just tolerated but even nurtured by locker-room bonhomie and the silence (or silencing) of those who disapprove.
That’s why Weinstein seemed untouchable for so long, despite the rapes and sexual assault being “an open secret”. Such an open secret that in 2012, in the show 30 Rock, a character says, “I turned down intercourse with Harvey Weinstein on no less than three occasions…out of five.” So untouchable that The Weinstein Company had already paid settlements to no fewer than eight women accusing Weinstein of harassment but the board of directors still did nothing to address the issue.
You can imagine the aphorisms being passed around, “Boys will be boys”, “Power corrupts”, “Man is by nature the hunter”. It’s good to be king.
Women who work in corporations like that know the trickle down effect of having a sexual predator at the helm. Promotions, career tracks, even everyday meetings are coloured by sexual agendas, rivalry and harassment. Why not stand up then? Because we know for every Susan Fowler who took on a priapic Goliath in Uber, there are thousands of women who cannot afford the risk. Whose need for an income, lack of agency and support, or a learned acceptance that the system is built to protect men means they must bear it. Even if they cannot bring themselves to grin.
Times have changed?
Of all the organisations I have worked in, the largest was by far the worst. I speak as someone very privileged to have never been badly harassed (a situation I believe helped by always having had a very strong circle of supportive men and women and never being in a position where I had to risk personal principles or safety because I would go hungry or homeless otherwise). But I witnessed every form of corporate sexual harassment, and sexist remarks were the least offensive of them. No good woman went unpunished. Powerful corporate women, beautiful (and powerful in their own right) presenters, young secretaries, enthusiastic public relations women, feisty producers, shrinking violet researchers – everyone had to deal with lewd comments, inappropriate touching, their gender referred to disparagingly in a purely work context and worse.
The higher the office, the greater the chance of a serious incident having occurred. What was always consistently surprising though was how the men you worked with, the ones you relied on, would make a volte-face in the presence of the big guys. The Bro-code of Company Men superseded all.
Nearly 20 years later, I’m inclined to agree with Weinstein on one point – times have changed. Like with manspreading and mansplaining, two exhausting, infuriating male traits, many women of my generation and earlier treated everyday sexism at work as par for the course. In fact, if you wanted to prove your worthiness in the boys’ club, when a 45-year-old editor looked at a 20-year-old rookie and said, “Let’s see what you’re like a couple of drinks down”, she came back with a smart retort. Even if inside she was shaking with disgust. Even if later, other more accommodating women were accorded perks and career fillips.
Yes, times are changing. In certain countries. A little. We know Travis Kalanick was ejected from Uber thanks to Fowler. Roger Ailes was fired from Fox News following accusations of sexual misconduct. Presenter Bill O’Reilly followed. SoFi CEO Mike Cagney was sacked for similar. Bill Cosby is being prosecuted. But Donald Trump, despite his past interviews practically admitting to sexual assault, is still President of the United States.
Bad for business
Here in India, too, it is still good to be king. While one or two predators may face jail time or loss of face, it is usually nothing compared to the abuse and public character assassination their accusers endure. From the predators and the boys of the Bro-code. The airwaves crackle with the open secrets of untouchable men for now. But times will have to change.
And times change not because society is evolving or the Bro-code is dissipating or women are being empowered. But because, 1,000 years after the Mongol Empire, the tapestry of toxic masculinity, power and profitability is coming undone.
Psychologists have quite recently turned their attention to an aspect of personalities who enjoy great power. They call it the Dark Triad. A combination of psychopathy, narcissism and Machiavellianism in certain people can cement their success. Research is also beginning to show that not only are people with these traits more likely to commit crime and cause social distress, they are also likely to show hostile masculinity. This, in leadership positions, will cause their organisations to lose money.
A Fortune magazine article from 2015 states that companies whose CEOs were called out for (usually sexual) misdemeanours caused shareholders to worry that the errant CEOs were distracted and untrustworthy in general and that they had expensive lawsuits to manage. These CEOs were also likely to manipulate finances. Worse still, their companies suffered a fall in stock prices of between 11% and 14% over the subsequent 12 months.
Genghiz Khan may have created the Mongol Empire and populated a fair bit of it but sexually harassing women is bad for business in modern times. As Weinstein’s desperate email trying to garner the support he needed to prevent his board from sacking him proves, Bro-codes are not immune to market forces, open secrets mean losses and corporations can dethrone their kings.
Sexual predators in the corporate world will do well to take this, at least, as a warning.
PS: Do you have the Dark Triad personality traits? Try this test.
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