NYCHA really is unbelievable! This government entity has run amuck. Those at NYCHA's reigns possess no dignity and are so lacking in common sense as to make a mockery of their claim to being leaders.
A week has passed since we wrote of the four victims of sexual harassment by NYCHA executives, and the victims being fired or demoted. And, even though we were shocked at the callousness of NYCHA using an official punishment in order to help insure that the victims would be frightened of ever mentioning the disgusting habits of their organizational charting betters, we still thought that by shining a Spotlight on that punishment the powers-that-be* (Senator D'Amato, Mayor Giuliani, HUD's IG etc.) would intervene and cause the Neanderthal cowardly bullies to resign.
No! It didn't happen. There's a rumor that Franco/Finkel blinked a bit, and may have restored one woman's salary. But that still means the woman was demoted and transferred ILLEGALLY due to her being sexually harassed. (As we begin to send out this issue, we hear that a second woman may now have been offered her pay/title restored, but she also must accept her unfair transfer from a department where she had performed admirably! And anyway, how does NYCHA justify the original punishment?)
Other victims are coming forward. The Public Housing Spotlight now knows of 10 women who have sick, perverted stories to tell. And not every story concerns Bruce Gatewood. While Brucie is still in the lead for "the New York City Housing Authority's #1 Sex Criminal" other executives are being mentioned. And lawyers are being called!
Stories range from women who were told by male Executives that their jobs were on the line if they didn't accept the exec as a bed partner, to a woman who was propositioned by a female supervisor and has been constantly harassed since turning the supervisor down. Some women chose the humiliation of accepting the proposition, as their families depended on the women's jobs to get them through. Others refused, and retribution was dealt.
Giving any more details could identify the victims, something we choose not to do. Our using the four women's names in Issue 5 was a decision made after much discussion. As those women were either fired or demoted, and everyone at 250 knew of it within an hour of the women reporting to their supervisors, we decided using their names could cause them no further harm. We believed, foolishly, that some elected official would grab a phone and immediately straighten this mess out. Unfortunately, we forgot that the current Franco/Finkel team has many powerful friends. When either one of them can enter the Authority into non-competitive contracts worth over $100,000,000, they surely get powerful friends in the bargain.
So, while it looks as though the victims must still be treated unfairly, the situation is well on its way to a resolution! One thing has become obvious. Our corrupt leaders are held together by the power of money. The victims are about to hit them where it can be most effective, right in their heavy wallet!
If you were also
subjected to sexual harassment
while working at NYCHA,
call a lawyer
NOW!
© 1998 Public Housing Spotlight and John Ballinger. All rights reserved.
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