How feminists shut down discussion; the 'Official' Coercion of Hoff-Sommers

**Percy** · #1 2nd-November-2008

From Angry Harry's archives. Worth a reminder. An account by Christina Hoff-Sommers, an sound woman who stands with the MRM.

(P. Bolds and emphases are mine.)

Quote:

And this is what recently happened to Professor Christina Hoff Sommers ...

From: Christina Sommers

I enclose a statement I wrote about the event.

Statement by Christina Hoff Sommers regarding participation in a Health and Human Services program "Boy Talk : A Dialogue About the Health and Well Being of Boys in America"

On November 1, 2001 I served as an invited panelist at a program sponsored by the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP) at Heath and Human Services (HHS). The program was entitled "Boy Talk: A Dialogue About the Heath and Well Being of Boys in America." Before I describe the ugly treatment to which I was subjected, I shall describe my background.

I am a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute. I have written a well-received book on boys (The War Against Boys Simon & Schuster, 2000). The book was excerpted for a cover story in The Atlantic Monthly and was selected as a "notable book of the year" by The New York Times. So, now I am frequently invited to speak about boys at conferences around the country.

In the past year, I have delivered a keynote address at International Coalition of Boys Schools, read a paper at a scholarly conference on boys at Morehouse College, and addressed audiences at dozens of schools and colleges. Without exception, audiences and panels have hitherto been courteous and civil. The HHS panel on November 1st was very much the exception. Here is what happened.

My panel "What is Being Done for Boys?" convened at 1:30. The first speaker was Joe Ereneta, a young man from San Francisco who works for Lyric, a group that offers help to gay and lesbian youths, bisexual and transgendered youth. He was followed by Marvin Eisner from the Urban Institute who gave a talk that was well-structured and contained information critical to any successful program for boys.

Eisner emphasized the importance of evidence-based programs and the necessity of rigorous follow-up evaluation. The focus on evidence and outcomes seemed to exasperate some members of the HHS staff. In the middle of his talk, he was interrupted by an HHS official, Ms. Luisa Pollard, who criticized him for being off the point. Her objection was lengthy and somewhat incoherent. Mr. Eisner was flustered and never able to finish.

Now it was my turn.

I cited research showing that boys were at greater risk than girls for academic failure and for drug and alcohol disabilities. But I cautioned HHS to be careful in its remedies. There is no good evidence that gender-specific drug and alcohol programs are better than gender-neutral programs. HHS has invested millions of dollars in a highly dubious program called "Girl Power!" The new program for boys ( "Boy Talk") looks very much like Girl Power!. It was my intention to suggest that the HHS officials first do some careful studies of Girl Power! before replicating it for boys.

But before I could explain these concerns, I was cut off by Ms. Linda Bass, another HHS official. (She is Acting Branch Chief in the Public Education Branch of the Center for Substance Abuse and Prevention. ) She called out from her chair that I had not been invited there to talk about "Girl Power!" She instructed me to move on and to leave that subject alone.

I politely explained to her and the audience that if HHS was launching a program for boys modeled on "Girl Power!" it was essential that the Girl Power! be evaluated for effectiveness.

A furious Ms. Bass insisted again that I drop the subject. I was ordered not to talk about Girl Power! I was startled by her behavior and her efforts to muzzle me. It soon proved impossible to finish the comments I had been invited to present.

Ms. Bass and her associate Mr. Kevin Teal (a member of the CSAP "Communication team" at HHS ) immediately called for a break. They rushed out of the room and caucused intensely for 15 minutes. I was then informed that my question and answer period was canceled. We would proceed to a "facilitated discussion" led by Mr. Teal.

I asked Mr. Teal if we could take a vote to see if the audience would allow me to have a question and answer period. He did not think that was a good idea. "You can leave," said the less polite Ms. Bass.

But, I decided not to leave.This was, after all, a government-sponsored conference. I was an invited participant, author of a book on boys. All the audience members were there to share their expertise and views with HHS officials to help them with the "Boy Talk" campaign.

Mr. Teal soon lost control of the "facilitated discussion." It disintegrated into an all-out attack on social science. Several audience members attacked me and Marvin Eisen for paying so much attention to data. "You can prove anything with statistics," said one participant. Many in the room roared with approval for this insight.

I am a philosophy professor and I rarely walk away from an argument. I was troubled by the rampant ant-intellectualism in the room and I said so.

I made some attempts to defend scientific methodology. If you want to help at-risk children, you need to be sure that the methods you are using are effective. This invited more opprobrium, more denunciations.

Professor Jay Wade of the Department of Psychology at Fordham University delighted many in the audience when he said Shut the F*** up bitch." Miss Bass and Mr. Teal, who were officially in charge of the proceedings, did and said nothing to protect a speaker they had invited from this kind of abusive attack.

One member of the audience, Greg Orfalea , a public affairs specialist at HHS, had finally had had enough. He stood up and told the enraged professor from New York that it was inappropriate to speak to anyone in that manner. He also chastised his colleagues at CSAP for treating a guest so rudely.

I decided it was time to leave. Civil discussion was impossible. But, before I left, I stopped at the desk in the back of the room where a woman was taping the event. I requested that she send me a copy of the tape. Ms. Bass rushed over and told me that I could not have a copy and that CSAP had not decided how they were going to use it. (I now have a copy and a written transcript)

Something is seriously wrong at in the CSAP division at Heath and Human Services. I hope that someone in a position of responsibility will demand to a copy of the tape, listen to it and do something to restore some badly needed professionalism and common courtesy. No government official should be allowed to behave the way these HHS officials behaved to me.

Christina

Marx · #2 2nd-November-2008

I recall reading this a while back, and it's certainly a decent read!

**julie** · #3 2nd-November-2008

I don't get this.

She was a panelist??? Does that mean she was to decide with other panelists how the program should work?

**Percy** · #4 2nd-November-2008

Quote:

My panel "What is Being Done for Boys?" convened at 1:30.

Quote:

Does that mean she was to decide with other panelists how the program should work?

A 'Panelist' is one who speaks about a subject and answers questions from the floor that fleshes out their POV. They usually have some pertinent observations which might assist the Program operators to determine public or specialist opinion. They decide nothing.

shaazam · #5 2nd-November-2008

"""..."facilitated discussion" led by Mr. Teal. >>>>"""

political correct word favoured by new age manginas and feminits

that is the real theme has been deemed superfluous to the politically correct agenda anything that reflects against "girls" was out

shows you how much you can trust academics - especially feminits who run the universities nowdays remember Duke Lacrosse

these sort ofgoings on were in vogue during the USSR and might have had dissidents from the officail line sent to the Gulags

**julie** · #6 2nd-November-2008

Quote:

Originally Posted by Percy

A 'Panelist' is one who speaks about a subject and answers questions from the floor that fleshes out their POV. They usually have some pertinent observations which might assist the Program operators to determine public or specialist opinion. They decide nothing.

I thought this might be the case.

I have thought about attending some of these when the University invites community organisations to attend but I have always considered that we are just a nothing in the policy process any how.

Something paid for all this to come about.

But I do love the community groups. I have seen street people get things fired up and everyone stands and cheers for them while sitting and just going along with the so called experts. But they do offer great advice on how other programs in other countries work.

I had asked if these experts get to determine how things go and was told that someone in the community has to stand out and prove their worth to make the programs work (basically totally committed and running with it) but that the way the program works will be from other programs that have proved their way.

Someone has to do the work. I guess panelists are happy to have workers follow their ideas.

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How feminists shut down discussion; the 'Official' Coercion of Hoff-Sommers

How feminists shut down discussion; the 'Official' Coercion of Hoff-Sommers

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