We're in new territory now with J&JW, with reviews of reviews appearing. Which is kind of fun, especially when penned by someone like @JohnInazu. I welcome his expert perspective on one of the questions that troubled me while writing: connections between the evangelical...
https://twitter.com/JohnInazu/status/1364627431429189635
...presence at the AFAcademy. It was striking to me & I long pondered what to do with the fact that (contested) concerns over the (contested) ev presence at the Academy covered the same period as sexual assault scandals there. I did not have evidence proving causal connections...
...and yet I thought it important to note the overlap. I'm glad @JohnInazu cited my actual words, where I say that it seemed like these are 2 distinct issues, but then yes, I do suggest that they "might not be entirely disconnected." (Note the careful wording.)
Given the rest of my research, I could not ignore that question. Upon rereading, I think the book makes clear the broader context that prompts the question, and I think I am also forthright about the limits of my own evidence in making any causal or definitive claims.
Is this an attempt to link bad actors to bad things? Maybe. I draw on Weinstein primarily because he reveals in vivid detail the evangelical warrior masculinity at the Academy that is the central theme of my book. To ask if this might be connected to misogyny and abuse...
...in this same place is I think a legitimate question. Though that Q could have been framed differently. It is fair to critique that paragraph b/c it's in the book & Inazu has specific expertise here. But it's also important to note that the connection I entertain is framed...
...in a cautious (one might even say transparently tendentious) way. I long wrestled with how to discuss this particular question. This is the choice I ultimately made, and it is not above reproach.
I am grateful that despite this measured critique, @JohnInazu suggests that the central story of J&JW "will hold up remarkably well." And that @SeanMLucas's assertion that "J&JW should be required reading for those who live and move and have our being...
...within white evangelical denominations and churches" is also right. In that spirit, I will also affirm his call for journalists, pundits, and academics to engage both positive and negative reviews. We can all use more nuance and self-reflection.
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