,
8 tweets,
3 min read
Read on Twitter
1/ There’s an extracurricular in high schools and colleges called “forensics”— a.k.a. competitive speech giving. It is an insular community, and students often share deeply personal things in their speeches. This is the story of a #MeToo nightmare that recently hit that world.
2/ Many students join academic speech teams out of a desire to improve their confidence. Brad Pitt and Sonia Sotomayor are among the alumni, and the community has become a haven for insecure, awkward misfits.
3/ Peter Pober, a former George Mason University speech-team coach, was known for running one of the best teams in the business. “When Pober walked through the halls at a speech tournament, people would turn around and stare … Many admired the GMU team from afar.”
4/ This was partially because Pober recognized certain truths about competitive speech: that the best speeches—the ones that feel “real” and go on to win national championships—are personal. He encouraged his students to speak about experiences that were raw and often painful.
5/ Unfortunately, the emphasis on vulnerability in forensics “afforded Pober the ultimate cover,” for alleged sexual harassment, @CAKitchener writes. “If GMU team members’ competitive success led them to an emotional breakdown, Pober was there to help build them back up.”
6/ The power imbalance was further exacerbated by the fact that Pober appeared to unilaterally control the funds for speech scholarships. Occasionally, Pober revoked scholarships from team members, multiple GMU alumni say.
7/ Five men spoke with @CAKitchener about the sexual misconduct they say they experienced at Pober's hands, ranging from explicit comments to his outright attempts at persuading them to sleep with him.
8/8 Read @CAKitchener’s full article about what happened at GMU and the broader competitive-speech community: theatln.tc/AAGiP0dE
