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6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

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231–240 of 484 posts

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#231

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> that's still sexual harassment by the letter of the law and slimy as hell every other way. IANAL, but legally it's not sexual harassment because they don't work at the same company. Something is only sexual harassment in two cases: 1) a supervisor offers something to a subordinate in exchange for sexual favors 2) a company is found to have created a hostile work environment. In both cases it's the company that's li…

What? Anyone can be sexually harassed by anyone else, workplace has nothing to do with it. Sexual harassment in the workplace is egregious because the conflict of interests. E.g. my boss harasses me, but if I complain I jeopardize my livelihood.

Alex3917 is right that sexual harassment outside the workplace is not illegal, but it's incorrect to say it's not "legally sexual harassment." It is sexual harassment, it's just not illegal sexual harassment.

For example, catcalling on the street isn't illegal. It's still sexual harassment, it's still unethical, but it's not illegal.

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#232
post #164

from the pando article this references: > We are now in a post-Susan Fowler world, I think I know what the author was trying to say, but that's a really weird way to say it. Susan is most definitely still alive and well. Susan wasn't an event, like 9/11. she is a woman with a lot of courage who wrote about a series of terrible things that happened to her.

By putting the word "post-" in front of something, it makes the author sound smart. That's why they do it.

I honestly think this is the real thought process behind things like these, even though it sounds a little cheeky.

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#233
post #211

Earlier quoted context omitted.

First, his initial statement sounds like that (like he is genuinely shocked that he is part of the problem after all). His updated statement might reflect his realization of the reality of what went down. He looks pretty attractive - maybe there were other cases were the women were also attracted to him. Maybe women also unconsciously flirted to make him more likely to give him money, and he misinterpreted. (No, wome…

Whether you mean to or not you're trolling this thread hard. Please stop now.

Just out of curiosity, what about his comment is trolling other than it being a contrarian opinion in this forum?

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#234

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You really need to back up your assertions with concrete examples. Or you'll just be ignored.

Gillian Morris, Co-founder and CEO of Hitlist, left this comment on The Information's original article [1]: > I’ve never met Justin but can attest that his questionable behavior extends past allegations of sexual harassment. > In early 2016, I spoke with Jonathan Teo, Justin’s partner at Binary, about funding Hitlist, my company. In the course of due diligence, I sent bios of the key engineers on my team. Justin appr…

This is an absurd accusation. I've seen plenty of VCs try to recruit developers of companies that they've met with or even invested in. The Valley is tiny and it happens all the time. Moreover, not all this information is communicated to every partner, especially as it relates to seed deals.

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#235

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> repeated unwelcome advances even after it was made clear they had a significant other Repeated unwelcome advances are not OK even if the person is single.

I think they are using a euphemism for essentially saying "no" to sex/relations.

Yup, this one. It's a common tactic to bring up the significant other when it seems like the conversation might be going in a non-platonic direction and you want to head it off. It's a way to avoid taking on the personal risk related to giving an outright rejection.

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#236

I really wish other founders would name and shame more, even if anonymously, but with examples. For most of the female founders who face these, there is no resource to turn to, to know who to avoid.

Such systems are either signed, and thus barely used, or anonymous and thus easily exploited.

Journalists that could speak with people at length and confirm the story by further research still weren't willing to publish based on anonymous sources. This is in part because anonymous accusations can be a great tool in a defamation campaign.

Furthermore, publishing anonymous claims without due-diligence discredits future anonymous claims. It might even back arguments like "Those sexual harassment claims always turn out to be smear campaigns".

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#237
post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What "investigation" are you planning to wait for? Who's doing it? What URL will the final report be published at? Do you apply this standard in other areas? If someone tells you they had chicken for lunch, do you say, "Hold on, let's wait for the investigation to determine what you actually had for lunch"? Or if six people told you they had chicken for lunch?

the difference is that no one is harmed in this situation.

Except for... potentially... the chickens?

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#238

Serious question, does free speech apply in these situations? You have the unalienable right to speak your mind and some people may be offended but that is not illegal. I totally understand if you are employed by someone you can't easily get away if you are made uncomfortable but this is entirely a voluntary situation. Also, if you really think about it making something that makes someone uncomfortable illegal is wei…

> defending a position by citing free speech is sort of the ultimate concession; you're saying that the most compelling thing you can say for your position is that it's not literally illegal to express.

- xkcd

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#239
post #43
post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right, I read that, but is it necessary to be publicly on the record? Couldn't the information be privately confirmed, protecting the women from retaliation and still allowing the case/accusation to move forward? It just seems like an unnecessary risk/vulnerability. Of course, there's also the fact that by going on the record you also encourage others to do the same, which is an immeasurable benefit.

I am one of the three women who went on the record with my name: Niniane Wang. I initially asked to be anonymous, but no reporter would publish unless they had named sources. I knew that Justin was continuing to harass women. Using my name was the only way to stop him. In other words, yes, it was necessary to be publicly on the record.

Thank you!

Re: 6 Women Accuse Tech VC Justin Caldbeck of Sexual Assault and Harassment

#240

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What? Anyone can be sexually harassed by anyone else, workplace has nothing to do with it. Sexual harassment in the workplace is egregious because the conflict of interests. E.g. my boss harasses me, but if I complain I jeopardize my livelihood.

Alex3917 is right that sexual harassment outside the workplace is not illegal, but it's incorrect to say it's not "legally sexual harassment." It is sexual harassment, it's just not illegal sexual harassment. For example, catcalling on the street isn't illegal. It's still sexual harassment, it's still unethical, but it's not illegal.

That's fair. In many developed countries sexual harassment laws extend to any situation where there is a power imbalance such as in education or in housing (landlord vs. tenant).
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