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Michael Balter (who has now blocked me) has been investigating abuses perpetrated by a Peruvian archaeologist, Luis Jaime Castillo Butters. He has interviewed a number of people and has built a strong case. 1/
In his reporting, however, he mentions a female grad student who has supposedly been romantically involved with Castillo. This student has apparently declined to be interviewed by Balter. 2/
Balter did not originally identify her beyond saying she was a student. In an interview with a Peruvian media outlet, Castillo supposedly named this student& #39;s institution, but the article was quickly edited to remove the name of the institution so she could not be identified. 3/
Balter thought the outlet replaced the name of the institution with a reference to this student attending school in the European Union. He misunderstood the Spanish: the outlet replaced the school name with a ref to it being a school in the "E.E.U.U," the abbreviation for USA. 4/
In thinking this outlet lied, Balter posted the name of the student& #39;s institution and said that because Castillo had named it, both he AND the student forfeited their right to courtesy. 5/
This student has still not agreed to participate. She is not the subject of any inquiry, nor is she involved in the accusations against Castillo. 6/
Balter then publicly claimed that this student ONLY got into her program because of Castillo (i.e., she did not deserve to be admitted?) while continuing to identify her as a potential victim of Castillo& #39;s advances or, at a minimum, as an innocent bystander in this scandal. 7/
He has pushed this issue repeatedly and as far as I can tell, this student has not made any statements, nor consented to be a part of this. She is in a vulnerable position as a woman, as an international student, and as an early career academic. 8/
In his crusade against Castillo - which, again, he seems to have plenty of consenting people to rely on - he is bringing this student into the fore, perpetuating any abuses Castillo may (or may not!) have perpetrated against her. 9/
She is being used, apparently without consent, by two men to bolster their own cases. 10/
What do we do when supposed allies think justice is worth trampling on the rights and privacy of vulnerable students? When they cause the harm that they supposedly fight against? 11/
As a female archaeologist, I have my own stories of harassment and bullying by powerful men. And I cannot IMAGINE if a man took my stories out of my control, without my consent, and used them in his attempt supposedly to help me. 12/
I guess that& #39;s all I have to say right now. I& #39;m disgusted, both by Balter& #39;s public tweets and his private messages to me on the matter. The cost of bringing down abusers can& #39;t be further victimization. /end
I& #39;ll also add that he has repeatedly accused me of being the problem because I commented on his post where he identified the student& #39;s institution, asking why he was focusing on her (incl naming her institution) and not on Castillo. This is gaslighting.
Balter used this student& #39;s supposed romantic relationship with Castillo (which she refused to discuss with him) as evidence that Castillo is an abuser. His own use of her is as a victim, making his repeated focus on her dangerous and harmful and damaging.
I don& #39;t know these people. Castillo is probably what Balter has shown in his blog. But there is no excuse for the harm Balter is causing not just this student, but anyone who is scared to share their stories for fear of them being taken out of their control like this.
I want to be clear. I do not support Castillo (I had never heard of him before this) and this thread is not intended to undermine anything that he has been accused of.
This is about Balter& #39;s handling of the information he is privy to and the rights of a woman who is not apparently implicated in the accusations against Castillo and has not consented to being a part of this.
