Popular Post mfrontz Posted August 24, 2018 Popular Post Share Posted August 24, 2018 (edited) Drum corps has never existed in a vacuum. From Civil War colorguard, the post WWI VFW, CYO and American Legion, the baby boom, the flight to suburbia, the completion of the interstate highway system which helped corps to tour nationally, the late 2000s financial crisis: all of these have shaped what drum corps was and what it was becoming. We are in the midst of a seismic cultural shift in awareness of abuse of power in general, sexual abuse specifically and the almost reflexive tendency of people and institutions to ignore or cover up malfeasance and handle it in-house. I probably don't have to go through the list of people and institutions, but they run the gamut from secular Hollywood to the halls of religion. Common among the situations, however, is that those who abuse depend upon the fact that they hold both short-term and long-term power over the ability of their victims to do the things they love, or to make a career; the abuser has a respected, charismatic, and often autocratic position and thus the victim is afraid not to be believed, and the victim is afraid that the institution they also love will suffer damage if they speak out. All three of these elements which create the conditions for abuse to happen are present in drum corps. It would be highly unusual if drum corps was exempted from this reckoning. The Hopkins #metoo moment catalyzed the specific investigations into different organizations. But I believe the question is not 'What is wrong with drum corps?' as if drum corps was a unique case; but, 'How do the conditions which are present in drum corps today aid and abet abuse of power by individuals, just as we see in every other area of society? What checks and balances can be put in place to minimize or eliminate the perpetuation of such abuse?' This is a far different question than asking about individual actors. I certainly hope that DCI is able to find the proper ways to address living in the cultural moment. We have seen two extremes in response: the current YEA leadership to the positive, and Roman Blenski to the negative. I think the jury is still out on the current DCI leadership. Whatever one may think of Dan Acheson, he has led the organization through turbulent times and may be able to do so again. Whatever happens, I don't think the 'drum corps activity' will disappear. But again, far from simply focusing on actors, the above questions, 'what conditions exist which allow an atmosphere where abuse is probable to flourish,' and 'what changes and checks and balances are necessary to dispel this atmosphere?' are urgent, no matter how painful. Edited August 24, 2018 by mfrontz 11 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Windish Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 (edited) Certainly changes will be coming. It is necessary to further insulate the "brand" from damaging conduct that makes moving into the future more difficult. A few ideas: 1. Make DCI Membership (Seal of Approval, etc.) a more difficult standard to achieve. Score at Championship should not be enough. I'm sure there are underlying qualifiers beyond just this, but are they as rigid as needed? 2. Limit participation in sanctioned DCI events to just 25 corps (Open and World combined). 3. Minimum age requirement to perform as a DCI corps set at 18. Maximum age 22. Everyone over the age of consent. 4. Reduce the size of certified corps adult instructional staff. Way too many techs these days to monitor. 5. Independent safety inspections of all rolling stock. 6. Legally Certified medical person with corps at all times during group travel and participation in DCI events. 7. Firm guidelines on practice hours and rest time. To clarify, it just seems the "elite level" of DCI performance groups have way too much at stake to be tarnished by smaller, kitchen table managed corps. Edited August 24, 2018 by Fred Windish 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ediker Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 43 minutes ago, mfrontz said: I believe the question is not 'What is wrong with drum corps?' as if drum corps was a unique case; but, 'How do the conditions which are present in drum corps today aid and abet abuse of power by individuals, just as we see in every other area of society? What checks and balances can be put in place to minimize or eliminate the perpetuation of such abuse?' The right questions to be asking, imho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluzes Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 4 minutes ago, Fred Windish said: 3. Minimum age requirement to perform as a DCI corps set at 18. Maximum age 22. Everyone over the age of consent. I get what you are getting at but wonder what's the drivers. Abuse at any age is unacceptable the only thing this does is protect the perpetrators from added affecting minors charges after the fact. What does a potential MM do the year or 2 after HS. How do they hone their skill, not find other activities so as not to wait around for dci. What happens to open class? All the other points make a lot of sense. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ediker Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 14 minutes ago, Fred Windish said: 3. Minimum age requirement to perform as a DCI corps set at 18. Maximum age 22. Everyone over the age of consent. Something like this is what would hurt the activity. Age is not the problem. Plenty of accusers were above the age of consent. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Windish Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 (edited) 5 minutes ago, Bluzes said: I get what you are getting at but wonder what's the drivers. Abuse at any age is unacceptable the only thing this does is protect the perpetrators from added affecting minors charges after the fact. What does a potential MM do the year or 2 after HS. How do they hone their skill, not find other activities so as not to wait around for dci. What happens to open class? All the other points make a lot of sense. As to the age thing . . . . I'm thinking more about national touring groups who hold a DCI designation. Surely, there will be groups throughout the nation with younger participants. Just seems too risky to embark on official DCI "6 week long camping trips" with underage youths. Edited August 24, 2018 by Fred Windish Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Windish Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 1 minute ago, Ediker said: Something like this is what would hurt the activity. Age is not the problem. Plenty of accusers were above the age of consent. Yes, I realize the difficulty here. Abuse is still abuse, etc. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spatzzz Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 (edited) 24 minutes ago, Fred Windish said: To clarify, it just seems the "elite level" of DCI performance groups have way too much at stake to be tarnished by smaller, kitchen table managed corps. I was with you on most things until this statement. The corps and situation that brought this whole thing to a head was one of the premiere "elite level" DCI performance groups. GH and a large number of sycophantic followers/alumni as well as DCI itself allowed it to fester at the top for literally decades. I know people want to point to Cadets as a model for what should be done to correct issues but I think we need to tap the brakes there a bit and allow them to stay clear of issues for more than a few months before we all fall to out knees praising them. I'm sure I'll catch heck for saying this but come on people. Edited August 24, 2018 by Spatzzz 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bluzes Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 13 minutes ago, Fred Windish said: As to the age thing . . . . I'm thinking more about national touring groups who hold a DCI designation. Surely, there will be groups throughout the nation with younger participants. Just seems too risky to embark on official DCI "6 week long camping trips" with underage youths. There is an advantage to that. To some extent that is a natural occurrence with top corps with very few minors that older MMs take under their wing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cixelsyd Posted August 24, 2018 Share Posted August 24, 2018 38 minutes ago, Fred Windish said: 3. Minimum age requirement to perform as a DCI corps set at 18. Maximum age 22. Everyone over the age of consent. That would essentially end DCI participation for Shadow of Oregon, WI, a corps self-limited to high-school aged kids. Gives the term "Shadow banning" a new meaning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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