Content note: rape threats, rape trivialization
There’s been some discussion and debate over the fact that Hemant Mehta at the Friendly Atheist blog promoted a video by The Amazing Atheist, a persistent and well-known misogynist who has repeatedly made rape threats and trivialized rape. (There’s info about the rape threats and rape trivialization at Dispatches from the Culture Wars and Pharyngula.)
Just so y’all know: Hemant has now said in the comment thread on that post:
To be perfectly honest, I was unaware of the threats he had made online until last night. Whether he was serious or not, I don’t tolerate them. Had I known about them ahead of time, I wouldn’t have posted his video. Sorry, all.
I do wish he would say it more publicly: it doesn’t do a huge amount of good buried in a comment thread where very few people will see it. But further discussion of this issue should continue with an awareness of this fact. So — well, be aware.
Haven’t we been down this road with Mehta a few times already?
Under which rock has he been hiding the last years?
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- @ #2: I’m actually willing to accept “I didn’t know” as a response. I do wish that prominent people in the movement would pay closer attention, but I get that not everyone keeps close track of this stuff, and even I sometimes have a hard time remembering the players without a scorecard. I am, however, unhappy about the fact that he posted this “I didn’t know, I wouldn’t have done it if I’d known, I’m sorry” statement in a place that’s so deeply hidden, where it isn’t going to have much of an effect.
Greta
The problem is that Hemant seems to do these things frequently, like this or the pro-life debacle. “Totally not paying attention to the concerns of people less privileged than you” and then acting a bit hurt when people call you out on your poor choices seems a bit rich to me.
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- @ #4: No argument there.
I think Hemant does a great job with his blog. However, it seems to me that someone as prominent as he, with the following that he commands, must demonstrate more awareness of the misogyny of “The Amazing Atheist” and his ilk. Very disappointing.
Hemant’s great when he’s posting his own writings. I’ve rarely run across something that I staunchly disagree with (minor disagreements, yes, but nothing huge), and never seen him post anything outright offensive.
But he doesn’t really do a lot of vetting on the stuff he re-posts. This often causes difficulties, because he hasn’t gotten the memo that there’s a lot of really awful people who happen to be atheists.
As I’m no longer giving any hits to Hemant’s site after that appalling anti-choice guest post: when he says that he wouldn’t have posted the video had he known more, does that also mean he has removed the video from the post? Or is he just sending platitudes to the community of decent human beings while doing nothing substantive that might hurt the feelings of the serial harassers?
[…] is why it matters that Hemant Mehta promoted an anti-creationist video from a vlogger with a history of rape threats on The Friendly Atheist. That’s why it matters that when this was brought to his attention, he […]
[…] “Had I known about them ahead of time, I wouldn’t have posted his video”: Hemant M…–”I do wish he would say it more publicly: it doesn’t do a huge amount of good buried in a comment thread where very few people will see it. But further discussion of this issue should continue with an awareness of this fact.” […]