Abuse and/or harassment is rarely isolated or perpetuated by one person. It’s a part of a larger culture enabled by compliant or cowardly leaders who look the other way, resist asking difficult questions, or refuse to hold one of their own to account. #churchtoo #metoo

One person may be the perpetrator but their actions are facilitated by board members, staff, and powerful influencers who make such a person possible.

It’s people who laugh at sexist jokes, insist that it’s just a misunderstanding, or are accomplices in silencing or undermining the credibility of victims. There are a lot of ways to get your hands dirty.

So when abuse and/or harassment happens, it’s usually not sufficient to simply remove or deal with one person. You have to go wider and ask what type of system allowed for the harmful actions to happen? Who enabled it? If you don’t, you’ll be back at square one.