Maggie's Farm

Several days ago someone here at MF asked the question: "when did you leave academia?"

For me there were several plateaus before racing toward the exit.

First: In 1992 my husband had been working for 5 years in the country's most liberal private college to build a new program. When the new academic dean (two weeks on the job and on campus) took him out for coffee and said, "I want to put a black woman in your job--I can get you any job you want in town." Meaning of course any job he wanted at any of the major universities, including UW. What we didn't know at the time was that she was the white wife of an African/American man, both of whom were very active (panthers?) in the early years of the African/American community in WA state.

Both of whom had already been heavily funded by public funds to build a new and failing state university. In a leadership role on that state campus she had acted against all except a docile few with such brutality that she needed to be taken off campus--thus the job at a private school, while her husband went on to become academic dean at the state university.

It wasn't the unusual offer in itself that was so startling, after all he had done so well and the department he was in charge of had grown so much under his leadership, the offer did not make any sense--it was the next seven years of horrible abuse my husband and I endured because he refused to comply with her wishes.

Yup, those rich white folks in WA are terrified of their black community, which is why we now have the o in the white house. Same money, same value system.

Yes, I used to tell him that also--but, the program he built was a new way of seeing things. If you know who I am, or of what I speak you know that to be true. This "new way" has now been adopted by most major universities--Stanford included. The first mistake was his. But, the seven years of abuse that followed was unconscionable.

Seven years later--another new female (LGBT) came onto campus and publicly announced his resignation without every having discussed it with him prior to the announcement. During those seven years the program had grown into one of the top 10 at US World News. We then tried to leave as this new gal had broken the contract and we were soo tired of the harassment. BUT, by that time the owners of the campus wouldn't let him go!!! NOT FREE TO LEAVE until we allowed them to put the name of his replacement on his own work. Until we allowed them to apply for federal research money using my husband's name as the only qualified person on the app. NOT FREE TO LEAVE UNTIL WE STAYED AND MADE his replacement look like she was something she was not. The abuse continues. We tried to leave with grace and THEY REFUSED to let him go! You see my husband was not only the department chair, he also taught much of the curriculum. Why is that you ask? Well, because the three women on his faculty were not qualified in the field! They taught when they felt like it, and didn't teach when they didn't feel like it. One gal decided in August not to teach the following year--just like that no conversation, no warning, and NO WAY to fire her ass!

Perhaps, this is an insight into academic life that you have not been shown before--

WC:

It is my intention to show the growth of liberal abuse as it has developed over the years. I DO appreciate your concern for my well being. Thank you.

For WC:

I understand the grace you wish me to strive for, but I find I am not able to tell the story for it's accuracy without referring to the various camps, tribes, interest groups, etc. that evolved during these years. I know of no other way to describe the individuals behavior without identifying their purpose or intention. For each of the abusers came from separate groups and each was more concerned with demonstrating the growing power of "their" group against straight white males, and their straight white wives. For example after working there for six or seven years I heard that it was possible to obtain funding for your spouse to attend classes at other schools. Classes that were not offered on that campus. My husband's administrative assistant for years was a member of the lesbian community. A really good human being she had been able to take advantage of this program for her significant other to attend school across town. We believed that if the administrative assistant to could get this benefit then surely the wife of the department chair should be able to obtain the same benefit. WHen I went down to the HR department. I met with one of the original founders of that campus, she was a very aggressive feminist divorced three or four times. When I asked for the benefit application she put her hand over the benefits book and told me very clearly: "No deals for women like you". Meaning no deals for WASP housewives who loved their husbands. You see WC I was from that much hated group "housewife". So it is important to realize the political focus of each of these individuals and the perfect storm their groups have created in their drive toward total power.