Broadening #Metoo: Tracking Dynamics in Canadian
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Broadening #MeToo: Tracking Dynamics in Canadian Archaeology Through a Survey on Experiences Within the Discipline Lisa Hodgetts†, Kisha Supernant‡, Natasha Lyons§£, and John R. Welch£ Abstract. The #MeToo movement has afin d’identifier l’étendue des formes de dis- turned global attention to structural power crimination, d’exploitation, de harcèlement differentials grounded in gender, race, et de violence sexualisés et non sexualisés sexual orientation, and other aspects of dans notre domaine. Notre enquête a reçu identity, leading archaeologists to confront 564 réponses d’archéologues représentant injustice in different sectors of our discipline, un large éventail de sexes, d’âges, de stade with a focus on sexual harassment and sexual de carrière et de secteurs. Les résultats assault. In 2019, the Canadian Archaeologi- indiquent qu’une grande partie des archéo- cal Association’s Working Group on Equity logues canadiens ont eu des expériences and Diversity conducted a survey of Canadian négatives au cours de leurs travaux et de leurs archaeologists to identify the extent of both études. Cette première étape de l’analyse met sexualized and non-sexualized forms of dis- l’accent sur les tendances démographiques crimination, exploitation, harassment, and chez les répondants à l’enquête et les dif- violence in our field. Our survey yielded 564 férences notables dans leurs expériences responses from archaeologists representing fondées sur le sexe, le stade de carrière et la a wide range of genders, ages, career stages, participation au secteur académique ou de la and sectors. The results indicate a large gestion des ressources culturelles. portion of Canadian archaeologists have had negative experiences in the course of Our sciences stand to be better— their work and study. This first stage of ana- more rigorous, more creative, more lysis focuses on demographic trends among survey respondents and noteworthy diffe- inclusive—if a greater diversity of rences in their experiences based on gender, people is involved in their practice. career stage, and participation in the acade- – Alison Wylie (2010:241) mic or cultural resource management sector. any Canadian archaeologists, Résumé. Le mouvement #MeToo a attiré M like those elsewhere, were ini- l’attention mondiale sur les écarts de pou- voir structurels fondés sur le sexe, la race, † Department of Anthropology, Social Science l’orientation sexuelle et d’autres aspects de Centre, The University of Western Ontario, l’identité, ce qui a amené les archéologues London, ON N6A 5C2 [[email protected]] à faire face à l’injustice dans différents sec- ‡ Department of Anthropology, 13-15 Tory Building, teurs de notre discipline, en mettant l’accent University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB T6G 2H4 Article sur le harcèlement sexuel et les agressions § Ursus Heritage Consulting sexuelles. En 2019, le Groupe de travail Coldstream, BC V1B 1E3 sur l’équité et la diversité de l’Association £ Department of Archaeology archéologique canadienne a mené une 8888 University Drive, Simon Fraser University, enquête auprès d’archéologues canadiens Burnaby, BC V5A 1S6 Canadian Journal of Archaeology/Journal Canadien d’Archéologie 44:20–47 (2020) BROADENING #METOO: TRACKING DYNAMICS IN CANADIAN ARCHAEOLOGY • 21 tially drawn to the discipline by the faculty (LH, KS, JW) and a director of a excitement of connecting with people private cultural resource management in the past through the things they left (CRM) firm (NL), we feel we owe it to behind. Many of us look back fondly on our students and junior colleagues, who our formative experiences as students, are situated in more vulnerable posi- when we first fell in love with archaeol- tions, to bring these concerns to light. ogy (e.g., Supernant et al. 2020; Welch As four archaeologists with more than 2020). The challenges and rewards of a century of aggregated practice, we material analysis and fieldwork led us to have lived, witnessed, and heard from continue our studies and pursue archae- colleagues, students, and other archae- ology careers. We all have stories to tell ologists about many forms of negative about our journeys as archaeologists—a experiences. The two most recurrent favourite class, the long hours in the negative anecdotes that come to mind— lab that led to an “aha” moment, the which generate different responses humour and camaraderie at a field site. depending on the individual’s stand- There are other kinds of stories, too, that point—are as follows. First, archaeology get told more quietly, to more carefully has a fieldwork culture that can range chosen audiences—the unjust supervi- from irreverent to coarse, what one of sor, the passive aggressive co-worker, the our respondents called the “wild west”. casual “joke” about the attractiveness of Alcohol overconsumption often plays a student, the acts and events that hap- a role when archaeologists socialize in pened in the field that “should stay in field and other contexts (Miller 2018). the field” (Radde 2018). These experi- There can be considerable pressure ences inform and imbue the culture of to partake in the widespread drinking archaeology. culture, and it can facilitate and be used The four of us came to this work to justify many forms of inappropriate because we are all aware of a range of behaviour. While many thrive in this negative behaviours that have continued culture, others have been excluded, to occur as we progress through our repulsed, and/or harmed by it. careers, but have not seen our institu- Second, young scholars and prac- tions and professional organizations take titioners, and particularly women decisive action to assess nor address the and visible minorities, have suffered problem. Events at the 2019 meeting discrimination and other abuses from of the Society for American Archaeol- senior faculty and CRM management, ogy (SAA) precipitated action by pro- demographic classes that remain pre- fessional archaeological associations dominantly white, cisgender, and male. worldwide to develop policies to support This senior demographic has varying member safety in all workplace contexts1 levels of awareness of their privileges, (Bondura et al. 2019; Foxx et al. 2019; of the powers they wield in others’ lives Hays-Gilpin et al. 2019). While these and futures, and of the harms they can developments are aimed at some of the cause. Ongoing demographic shifts most serious forms of negative behav- toward gender balance and greater iours in archaeology, our collective expe- diversity in our discipline are neither riences in the discipline suggest that the a guarantee of a cultural change nor a problem is much broader. As established rationale for inattention to historical professionals, three tenured university and current patterns of behaviour. We Journal Canadien d’Archéologie 44 (2020) 22 • HODGETTS ET AL. need continued attention to how we tive behaviours than previous surveys of treat one another within our commu- field disciplines (e.g., Clancy et al. 2014; nity of practice. Meyers et al. 2015; Meyers et al. 2018), The #MeToo movement has helped including discrimination, verbal harass- to upend the doctrine of silence ment, exploitation, physical violence, around sexual abuse and other forms unwanted sexual touching, and sexual of inequity. This movement, founded violence. The survey sought to capture by Tarana Burke in 2006, is dedicated the full scope of these behaviours and to to gauging the status and magnitude of enable and guide follow up interviews to the problems of sexual abuse and harass- understand historical and experiential ment against women and marginalized dimensions of negative incidents among peoples and to creating resources to a sample of archaeologists with diverse support survivors of sexual violence. It backgrounds. catapulted into public consciousness in Our work is unsettling on several 2017 with the #MeToo hashtag and has levels. The survey results point to sys- since grown to examine power struc- temic inequities and pervasive negative tures along multiple vectors, including experiences within archaeological prac- inequalities in workplace environments tice in Canada. This should concern all related to gender-based power, pay, and Canadian archaeologists and encourage opportunity differentials. The pervasive- behavioural self-study, more cognizant ness of the movement is unsettling cul- witnessing, and introspection and dis- tural norms and professional standards course about the desired futures of our around the world, including those in discipline and its attendant culture. archaeology (Jagsi 2018; Lukose 2018; Reflections on how and why we may O’Neil et al. 2018). have, perhaps unwittingly, supported In early 2018, we asked the ques- inequities and related harms may be tion: What does #MeToo mean for uncomfortable, but this discomfiture is archaeology in Canada? Originally, we important in exposing and ultimately had only anecdotal evidence on which dismantling the power structures and to draw, because we lacked even basic precepts of our professional culture that demographic data for the Canadian systemically disadvantage many archae- archaeological community, let alone ologists based on intersectional identi- nation-wide reporting on the experi- ties. Our position is that the discipline ences of individual archaeologists. This benefits when it is practiced by people lacuna prompted us to form the Cana- with a wide variety of backgrounds and dian Archaeological Association Work- personal experiences, who approach ing Group on Equity and