The Cadets and GH history of sexual abuse (news article)

[Jeff Ream]

10 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

https://www.indystar.com/story/news/crime/2018/04/06/indy-based-drum-corps-international-investigating-sexual-misconduct-allegations/492909002/

what scares me about this:

 

the rumor was ablaze at the Januals. It was the worst kept secret. yet they say they didn't know. details? No. Call and say "um hey we heard...." yes, should have happened.

[Jeff Ream]

5 minutes ago, camel lips said:

In almost every case I have followed where Sexual Misconduct by a teacher/instructor  has been ALLEGED a pattern of behavior starts to come out of the woodwork. MORE victims come forward telling their stories that were afraid to before the arrest/allegation. 

 

NOT saying this is the case here. There have only been allegations so far and I am more than willing to wait for the investigation to unfold . 

 

I am no Fan Boy of GH. I hate what he did to the World of Drum and Bugle corps. With that said I would totally expect George Hopkins to have a consensual romantic relationship over his 30 something years with a staff member over the LONG summer months. I mean its his really only contact with someone while he is on the road. If it was not forced,,,,totally consensual and not somehow a product of Sexual Harassment or Harassment from a Authority Figure then I really don't have a problem with those type of relationships. That would have been between him and his consensual partner. 

 

Totally NOT cool with him having any sort of relationship with ANY marching member regardless of age. Totally inappropriate. Perhaps LONG after they aged out or something like that but even then its sort of iffy. 

only thing i will take you on about:

 

he did not change drum corps all by himself. others had to agree...and in some cases made the proposals he is blamed for to this day.

 

Facts....a damning thing

[dbc03]

3 minutes ago, camel lips said:

With that said I would totally expect George Hopkins to have a consensual romantic relationship over his 30 something years with a staff member over the LONG summer months. I mean its his really only contact with someone while he is on the road. If it was not forced,,,,totally consensual and not somehow a product of Sexual Harassment or Harassment from a Authority Figure then I really don't have a problem with those type of relationships. That would have been between him and his consensual partner. 

I disagree. It is inappropriate to have a relationship with a subordinate. Even if you think they are consenting it may be because they fear for their job if they turn down your advances. They may be forced to stay in an unhealthy relationship due to fears of career repercussions.

[Jim Schehr]

1 minute ago, Jeff Ream said:

what scares me about this:

 

the rumor was ablaze at the Januals. It was the worst kept secret. yet they say they didn't know. details? No. Call and say "um hey we heard...." yes, should have happened.

DCI is in CYA mode. There’s no doubt they knew. 

[BigW]

1 minute ago, Jeff Ream said:

he did not change drum corps all by himself. others had to agree...and in some cases made the proposals he is blamed for to this day.

He's been likened to the guy who stood in the middle of a field in the thunderstorm holding a lightning rod above his head to take all the blame and the the flak in that regard. He reveled in that. Scary.

[camel lips]

3 minutes ago, BigW said:

Admitting anything at this point could open another huge legal can of worms. It could be legal counsel has advised them to keep quiet so that a statement isn't made that could be drug into court as corroborating evidence..

Definitely if I was in GH shoes I would NOT be saying ANYTHING at this point and time. 

[Eleran]

OK, time for me to log off DCP, so I can drive down to Cadets camp.   Should be interesting!

[camel lips]

2 minutes ago, Jim Schehr said:

DCI is in CYA mode. There’s no doubt they knew. 

What they knew and when they knew it is what will be at the crux of the matter. The Sandusky case proved that. 

[garfield]

1 hour ago, Rusty said:

The BOD knew about this at least since January and refused the victims' request for Hopkins to be suspended (not fired) and for an independent investigation to take place.  This is all a matter of record at this point.   In short, a big part of the reason things got to this point is because the BOD refused to act.

So I ask, out of genuine curiosity: What part of my rhetoric was inflammatory?  I'm simply pointing out what has already happened and what is likely to transpire as a result.  Some of which, btw, is already taking place, such as pressure on corporate sponsors to reevaluate their relationship with the Cadets.

Believe it or not, I truly have no desire to see the Cadets destroyed.  For me, this is about saving the organization.

You said inflammatory, not me.  I was simply pointing out that, despite your definitives, your scenario was but one possibility that might occur in the future.  I think I paraphrase only slightly when I try to quote you: "Here's what happens next...", or some such.

Your claims that 3, or even 4 or 10, months since the BoD found out is incriminating are misplaced.  If you disagree, cite your source for "normal" timeframes for response - OR ACTION.

Your contention that the BoD was somehow obligated to accede to the claimants' demands in order to even know what claims they were making is not based in legal precedent or reality.  If "I know something REALLY bad about your ED but I'm not going to tell you until you suspend him from his duties" is a really tough place for any BoD to start, not just Cadets'.

 

[Ediker]

48 minutes ago, dbc03 said:

The alumni have no control over the board of directors. I'd much rather an outside group (Perhaps DCI itself) select a competent independent group for the board of directors than a bunch of alumni who may be tempted to cover up things to "protect the corps".

It's not that the alumni would force the board.  The board members know that all viable solutions involve their resignation.  Anything else is going to balloon their problems.  Someone needs to perform their duties, however.  It would make sense to find candidates among the Cadets community, but not necessary.  The board members will most likely resign as soon as their replacements are available.  It's far too late for anyone to attempt to cover anything up.  Sympathy for GH, or the current board, is likely to remain out of fashion for a long time.