scheherazadesghost

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We are entirely on the same page and it I encourage you (if you have the capacity) to reach out to some corps and offer your experience and knowledge. I'm trying to do the same but I can't volunteer any more of my time than I currently am without it impacting my finances and self worth. (I've tried so many times to help my corps to no avail.) Certainly no pressure, but you know how to resolve exactly the issues that corps seem to be so helplessly confused by. I can only imagine how it must feel to have your knowledge-base and then watch drum corps crumble in the face of this challenge. As I've reconnected in the last month or so, prompted by one of my closest alumni friends, it's been very discouraging. And make no mistake, the powers that be that allow/turn a blind eye to/enable sexual predators in this activity are the same powers that be that enabled my abuse and neglect when I marched nearly 20 years ago. I don't necessarily mean the same people (although that is partially the case). I mean the mindset that sees marching members as expendable. Even if unspoken. To your points, I can confirm that people speed through the trainings. I've watched it too throughout my career. We are totally only chipping away at this problem, as the recommendations I've made so far to the activity start with: "require training and don't hire people who refuse this minimal standard." It's truly a tiny bandage for corps to set this minimum benchmark for protection. Others are in the Bill of Rights I published for marching members to begin to protect themselves. Listen, I agree on your second point too. I made it through 7 combined years in marching band and drum corps, nearly 10 years teaching in the activity, PLUS another 10 years of dance education training/experience before I got trained up on mandated reporting. That's embarrassing for me and both activities. What's worse, I only came about it because a student disclosed their experience to me. I was at a loss at the time, had no idea what to do. This is so beyond unacceptable. I'm tired of chipping away at this. I've brought my sledgehammer and jackhammer. Young people are still being harmed. And this marching generation has already been through more in their young lives than anything like most of us that are alum. They deserve so much more to keep them safe.

Every industry has these issues and some are handling it better than others. There are minimal standards that most organizations still don't have in place that would begin to chip away at issues related to discrimination in its many forms, bullying, and abuse. My own racialized experience in corps really messed with me for a long time. I've heard board testimony to the same effect in the last several years at my home corps. It's out there. It hurts. And corps have to do better if they don't want to keep shrinking their talent pools minimally. And another, more significant benefit to adopting this work is that more (ideally all) marching members are safer. When they're safer, they have more fun.

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