It was the President of Harper’s Magazine during his interview on the CBC show “The Current” that finally pushed me out of my measured, careful journalistic frame of mind and into full-on rage. MacArthur was questioned closely by Anna Maria Tremonti for his decision to give John Hockenberry a 7,000-word cover story.
MacArthur was asked why he chose to publish the essay. He says, “Before we go there…Hockenberry is in a wheelchair. He is a paraplegic so that does inform the piece immensely.” MacArthur says Hockenberry was driven out of his job (no mention of the women the broadcaster drove from their jobs), and says “the woman who says she was assaulted or…I don’t know exactly what her charge is.”
When Tremonti presses him, he laughs and responds, “It’s hard to get out of your wheelchair and attack somebody. I think that’s one thing your audience should know.” Tremonti gives no ground and pushes back, as she should.
MacArthur clearly believes that females have become blinded by their own emotions and aren’t thinking rationally. “There is an inability,” he says, “On the part of MeToo to distinguish between Harvey Weinstein, who is physically aggressive—an accused rapist—and somebody like Hockenberry who showed bad judgment.”
And with that, we are back to the stereotype of the “hysterical woman.” These women are all riled up and crazy and can’t understand these complicated issues, MacArthur seems to be saying. You might think Hockenberry derailed careers, assaulted his producer, tormented his employees with sexually suggestive language and bullied his co-hosts but really, MacArthur says, he was just making “awkward passes from his wheelchair.” That particular remark was followed by another laugh.
Mr. MacArthur, women are quite capable of understanding and differentiating between rape and harassment. Yet if you think a man in a wheelchair can’t be a harasser or bully, then perhaps you’re the one who is unable to understand, or unwilling.
Perhaps you should stop telling women what’s happening to them and start listening. Stop assuming you know better and stop implying that we’re hysterical and irrational. We’ve had enough of that for decades.
Our rage is fueled not by ignorance, but by too much knowledge and experience. We’re not angry because we don’t understand but because we understand all too well. We see things you don’t. We know things you don’t. We will lead the movement to correct what desperately needs correcting.
I’m glad you can laugh. We, however, are not laughing.