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Open letter to ALL CORPS DIRECTORS


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3 hours ago, KVG_DC said:

Someone I was discussing this with also raised the point that there's no "touring" aspect for WGI either.  So other than the weekend trips to competitions, there's not this constantly away on the road together type situation.  That's part of the toxic stew of DCI as well.  When an Drum Corps Org is on the road, they are the only oversight.  They can do all the training and policy work they want but if they're not following it, it's easy to side step all that and do 'business as usual.'   

a lot of the weekends do involve housing though, especially in Dayton.

 

and some stories i heard from percussion finals at a units housing site 10 or so years ago...good lord

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14 minutes ago, Jeff Ream said:

a lot of the weekends do involve housing though, especially in Dayton.

 

and some stories i heard from percussion finals at a units housing site 10 or so years ago...good lord

Still not like two months nonstop.  That’s a breeding ground for this. 

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1 hour ago, Terri Schehr said:

Still not like two months nonstop.  That’s a breeding ground for this. 

no but they usually share housing on weekends during the season. still a recipe for disaster if not policed right

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5 hours ago, fsthnds said:

WGI now requires mandatory "Abuse Prevention Training" for all WGI personnel (including judges and volunteers) along with all staff and leadership of all competing units. There has been talk about requiring this for all members

Maybe the time has come for DCI to do the same! 

No maybe about it!  Train each corps exec team and key org leaders.  Include language in all mm contracts.  Legalese the $&?? out of it.  Penalize non reporters (this is a real thing in the non DC world. Don’t report a crime you are aware of and charges can be brought against you. There are things that are easy to do.  It’s got to start somewhere.  How about everyone go after the DCI execs to get action? Expose THEIR inaction.

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2 minutes ago, LabMaster said:

No maybe about it!  Train each corps exec team and key org leaders.  Include language in all mm contracts.  Legalese the $&?? out of it.  Penalize non reporters (this is a real thing in the non DC world. Don’t report a crime you are aware of and charges can be brought against you. There are things that are easy to do.  It’s got to start somewhere.  How about everyone go after the DCI execs to get action? Expose THEIR inaction.

I’ll repeat I thought this was in DCIs changes when crap hit the fan few years back. The above is a bare minimum and if DCI not doing this then all their words and promises are empty.

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3 hours ago, LabMaster said:

No maybe about it!  Train each corps exec team and key org leaders.  Include language in all mm contracts.  Legalese the $&?? out of it.  Penalize non reporters (this is a real thing in the non DC world. Don’t report a crime you are aware of and charges can be brought against you. There are things that are easy to do.  It’s got to start somewhere.  How about everyone go after the DCI execs to get action? Expose THEIR inaction.

I am not sure this is generally possible, if you mean a criminal charge. The laws of a jurisdiction come into play in discussing criminal charges. It would depend on the laws of the jurisdiction where the corps was staying when an event happens. The mobility of the corps as they travel also makes this very difficult. If a corps is on the way to Texas from Maryland, and an event happens in Maryland, by the time things are reported and investigated, the corps might be 10 states away from the event location. Or, in the case of the Rookie event on the bus, it may span multiple jurisdictions as the busses are moving.

IMO there needs to be a management-level adult on every bus; it seems as if this doesn't happen today. Is that correct? Or am I misreading some of the posts? It doesn't have to be an instructional staff member, but it must be somebody who can ensure that these things do not happen, and the person needs to have the power to discipline any offenders on the fly, up to sending them home. 

Doing everything possible to see that these things do not happen in the first place is so important, and it seems to be missing in how the corps reported are conducting themselves. There just seems to be a lack of oversight by the corps admins in general. 

Of course, there still needs to be a robust reporting mechanism in place if something does happen, something else that seems to be given lip service and not much else, if these reports are accurate.

.  

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42 minutes ago, MikeD said:

I am not sure this is generally possible, if you mean a criminal charge. The laws of a jurisdiction come into play in discussing criminal charges. It would depend on the laws of the jurisdiction where the corps was staying when an event happens. The mobility of the corps as they travel also makes this very difficult. If a corps is on the way to Texas from Maryland, and an event happens in Maryland, by the time things are reported and investigated, the corps might be 10 states away from the event location. Or, in the case of the Rookie event on the bus, it may span multiple jurisdictions as the busses are moving.

IMO there needs to be a management-level adult on every bus; it seems as if this doesn't happen today. Is that correct? Or am I misreading some of the posts? It doesn't have to be an instructional staff member, but it must be somebody who can ensure that these things do not happen, and the person needs to have the power to discipline any offenders on the fly, up to sending them home. 

Doing everything possible to see that these things do not happen in the first place is so important, and it seems to be missing in how the corps reported are conducting themselves. There just seems to be a lack of oversight by the corps admins in general. 

Of course, there still needs to be a robust reporting mechanism in place if something does happen, something else that seems to be given lip service and not much else, if these reports are accurate.

.  

My comment you highlighted was meant as a general example in a way of “see something, say something”.  More to this discussion, it was an example only to amplify my point that,  if you are aware of an abuse situation as in the SoA, and are found that you didn’t report it (think the bus incident described), you are also subject to penalty or prosecution should it warrant it.

it can be fixed.  It will take dramatic change and more serious enforcement  of penalties.  An example of that in this recent instance if this late incident  is corroborated and proven, is a death sentence for SoA. Not suspension but a ban for life. And no current management persons or BOD members can participate in any DCI org or event.  Ban for some suspension of 2 year min for others.  

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On 1/13/2022 at 10:04 PM, Newseditor44 said:

Yes, absolutely serious. If you’re not able to see the contradictions (kids vs adults mixed into the same “youth” activity… what can go wrong?

A majority of the members in world class corps are 18 and over anyway, it wouldn’t be as drastic of a change as you might think. 

No, I don't get it either.  Just because someone turns 18 doesn't mean that they are suddenly fully consenting to any harassment they might encounter.  Like JimF said, it's about the maturity level, not the number.

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15 hours ago, Leland said:

No, I don't get it either.  Just because someone turns 18 doesn't mean that they are suddenly fully consenting to any harassment they might encounter.  Like JimF said, it's about the maturity level, not the number.

From a legal standpoint there is quite a difference between a 17yr, 364days old and a 18yr, 0day old.

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21 minutes ago, IllianaLancerContra said:

From a legal standpoint there is quite a difference between a 17yr, 364days old and a 18yr, 0day old.

And just to be clear my thought was age is no indicator of maturity. SoA incident great example as member blowing the whistle just out(?) of high school if I read right. And accused is in age out year(?).

Which of course has nothing to do with legal definitions.

Edited by JimF-LowBari
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