Stephen Henderson Is Out...

[MikeyinBrooklyn]

I am shocked by this. While I very frequently disagreed with him, I always liked reading his column. Sorry to see this happen to someone who was probably our most prominent active Detroit print journalist.

https://www.freep.com/story/news/loc...uct/956319001/

[Zacha341]

Here we go....... Who can even keep up any more? It's everyday, sometimes twice daily. I hear a Kentucky lawmaker killed himself when sexual misconduct was discovered from his past!

Setting aside guilt or innocence of those involved, we now defacto live in an 'accuse' society poised for the construct of what's coming. Brother against brother, families turning on one another, etc.

On a lighter note [[eh-hmm) this whole mess is going to have a social impact on how men and women interact, or not interact with one another.

[Lowell]

This is very befuddling. His on-air and in-person demeanor as always been so gracious and his fairness while interviewing so well-balanced.

As has become usual with these incidents is that we often know so little of the allegations, nothing in this case, except for a policy violation, that seems to point to sexual harassment.

The Free Press said in a story published Friday that it conducted an investigation after Henderson was accused sexual harassment, along with two other local media figures, on Dec. 6 by Detroit minister W.J. Rideout III during a news conference at a local radio station.

Officials with 910AM Superstation announced Tuesday that they had indefinitely suspended Rideout's show, saying he failed to give any evidence or supporting facts for two of the allegations and had no victim names or testimonies for any of the three, the Free Press reported.

The newspaper said it "subsequently uncovered examples of inappropriate behavior dating back several years with female colleagues by Henderson."

Henderson provided a brief comment to Crain's: "I'm stunned. I dedicated 18 years to this newspaper over three decades, all of it performing at the highest level. I may have more to say on this later, but for now there is much other work to be done here in the city of Detroit."

WDET who airs his 9AM daily show, the one I frequently catch as it follows the NPR news is investigating the allegations and has not made a determination.

He also has hosted a weekly talk show, "American Black Journal," and has been co-host of the weekly news wrap-up show "MiWeek." They air on Detroit Public Television.

Marty Fischhoff, the station’s director of communications and community engagement, said the two shows would be placed on hiatus until “probably the end of the year.”

“We don’t have any independent information, so we need to conduct our own investigation,” he said. WTVS where is involved with Detroit Black Journal and MI

http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article...-inappropriate

[MikeyinBrooklyn]

I am not going to take a stand on the guilt/innocence issue in any of these cases until and unless their is either an admission of guilt or conviction in court. I truly hope in the [[appropriate and way late) desire to have a harrassment free workplace, employers are being respectful of the accuser while maintaining the presumption of innocence and open with regards to the accused. Since that which is not admitted as evidence in court is generally kept secret, we will probably never know.

An old boss and friend of mine- a prominent, well known NYC restauranteur- told me last week that at his direction his company now has policies in place under which he would never have begun dating either of the women he married over 40 years, and with whom he had 6 kids. Sad, but that seems to be necessary. I wish I could say here, "Boy, am I glad I'm gay." But that doesn't necessarily matter. I was once accused by a female teenaged busser of both groping her and shoving her. Luckily for me I was able to demonstrate that she and I had never been alone together during the date in question, and she recanted her allegations and quit. But it was a nightmare.

[Zacha341]

Dustin Hoffman also today:

http://www.cnn.com/2017/12/15/entert...ons/index.html

[Mark Smiles]

Many years ago SH wrote that he was proud that Detroit was ran by black people. Really?

Should white people be proud of politicians simply because they are white? Apparently so, if you think like SH.

SH was not a voice for fairness, he was a voice for intolerance.

Fitting that intolerance for a little shenanigans, brought him down. As Bill Clinton supporters were fond of saying "Hey, it is only sex".

[southen]

Many years ago SH wrote that he was proud that Detroit was ran by black people. Really?

Should white people be proud of politicians simply because they are white? Apparently so, if you think like SH.

SH was not a voice for fairness, he was a voice for intolerance.

Fitting that intolerance for a little shenanigans, brought him down. As Bill Clinton supporters were fond of saying "Hey, it is only sex".

Being proud of something does NOT mean you are intolerant of something else. Let me guess, you were the guy on election night in 2008 wondering why all of the black people were so emotional over BO winning election. When a group of people are systemically kept down in a country having some power becomes something to be proud of. Try thinking outside of yourself and looking for a reason to be offended.

[renf]

I have always had great respect for the opinions and ideas of Mr. Henderson. It is a pleasure to read his essays and to hear his comments on WDET.

[casscorridor]

The "innocent until proven guilty" thing is only in regards to the law, and for good reason. However, this does not apply to public opinion! There is no reason not to trust the accusations of victims. Furthermore, as stated, an internal investigation was conducted which found Henderson was indeed in violation of workplace ethics.

Because of the near impossibility of proving most of these acts of harassment and sexual assault in the court of law, public opinion is the only way to hold individuals accountable for their behavior. It's high time there was a movement in this country that says sexual harassment and assault will not be tolerated! If you harass or assault, you have no place in public life.

It's not asking much- don't touch women [[or any human being) who doesn't want to be touched. Don't harass. Don't use your power to manipulate people sexually. Somehow this is hard for some men????

[iheartthed]

Whether or not you agreed with him, he always seemed to be professional in his demeanor. But all we can assume at this point is that the Free Press made a fair decision based on what they know. If they thought what he did was enough to fire him, then at this point I care more that women at the Freep work in an environment where they feel comfortable.

I will say that I think it's more out of character for him than I would guess about other figures, like Matt Lauer. There were rumors for years about Lauer having extra-marital affairs with others employed at NBC.

[Hamtragedy]

Many years ago SH wrote that he was proud that Detroit was ran by black people. Really?

Should white people be proud of politicians simply because they are white? Apparently so, if you think like SH.

Not only black people are proud that Detroit was/is run by black people. I was privileged to grow up here in the black community, where we looked up to black and white leaders and role models, be they council-people, the mayor, teachers/administrators, business-people, even police officers, because the majority carried themselves with dignity, fairness, and even combative yet respectful roles.

Perhaps you'd be wise to see beyond your own intolerance.

[Cincinnati_Kid]

Being proud of something does NOT mean you are intolerant of something else. Let me guess, you were the guy on election night in 2008 wondering why all of the black people were so emotional over BO winning election. When a group of people are systemically kept down in a country having some power becomes something to be proud of. Try thinking outside of yourself and looking for a reason to be offended.

+ 100,000,000

[Chicago48]

I'm starting to think that many of these women have a vendetta and over-state what exactly happened to them. But for organizations to summarily fire someone -- and not Suspend them -- is criminal in itself. I hope all these men file counter lawsuits.

[ABetterDetroit]

Many years ago SH wrote that he was proud that Detroit was ran by black people. Really?

Should white people be proud of politicians simply because they are white? Apparently so, if you think like SH.

SH was not a voice for fairness, he was a voice for intolerance.

Fitting that intolerance for a little shenanigans, brought him down. As Bill Clinton supporters were fond of saying "Hey, it is only sex".

You thinking this way for “many years” says far more about yourself than it does about the man who said what his feelings where when he wrote that.

[Richard]

Being proud of something does NOT mean you are intolerant of something else. Let me guess, you were the guy on election night in 2008 wondering why all of the black people were so emotional over BO winning election. When a group of people are systemically kept down in a country having some power becomes something to be proud of. Try thinking outside of yourself and looking for a reason to be offended.

That kinda confuses me,I know quite a few African Americans that are business owners and in politics,how come they missed the systematic kept down process?

It does not matter what color you are,unless you are born with a silver spoon it is a process of climbing back up after getting knocked down for everybody,it is called perseverance.

Some give up in the process and place blame while others get right back up and refuse to be beaten by the system.

[bust]

That kinda confuses me,I know quite a few African Americans that are business owners and in politics,how come they missed the systematic kept down process?

It does not matter what color you are,unless you are born with a silver spoon it is a process of climbing back up after getting knocked down for everybody,it is called perseverance.

Some give up in the process and place blame while others get right back up and refuse to be beaten by the system.

Richard, if you don't think that you as a white man haven't enjoyed major advantages throughout your life and your career as a business owner you simply aren't paying attention. Of course there are successful black people, but that does not negate the fact that our society systematically disadvantages them. Now less than before, but now still, for sure. Following your argument one small extra step to its logical conclusion, the huge difference in wealth between whites and blacks is because whites try harder. Is that what you're saying?

Whites Have Huge Wealth Edge Over Blacks [[but Don’t Know It)
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/...rceptions.html

"Black families in America earn just $57.30 for every $100 in income earned by white families, according to the Census Bureau’s Current Population Survey. For every $100 in white family wealth, black families hold just $5.04."

[Richard]

^ Yea,I do not know,I have had bars,nightclubs,towing companies,salvage yards,buy here pay here car Lots,quick lubes pretty much all started with nothing,I get bored easy once the challenge of starting something from nothing and building it up to profit is done.

My first bar I worked from 10 am to 3 am the next morning 7 days a week,it was a biker bar that they used to ride their bikes onto the dance floor to have a drink,cool two story building on a lake,I turned it into a cool hang out where everybody mixed regardless of who you were or what your status was in life,bikers had to park in the lot verses the dance floor.

My Haitian partner in the restruant business now works from 4 am to 10 pm 7 days a week,he is young and hard headed like I was and is tough in accepting the whole work smarter then harder concept.

There is nothing that I have done or owned that an African American cannot do or own,I know many in the same businesses that started the same way,and they work just as hard as any other small business owner.

I am not highly educated,11th grade high school,6 years military and the rest is the school of hard knocks.They told me I had a problem with authority because when people tell me no I do not take that for an answer.

Not to imply that that relates to the op subject and when it comes to women.

Not shure when my white privilege kicks in but nobody ever said here ya go,there are actually more that wish to see others fail then not.

If you want to lease a property money talks,it knows no color and when you want to do buisness the only thing that the people that you come in contact with want to know is how much are they going to make off of you.

But anyways,the gentleman referenced in the op has nothing to do with color,he advanced on his own merit and deserves respect for that if it is proven that he succumbed to certain things then it shows that he is only human and subject to mistakes,I do not think the rest of his life should be ruined because of that.

Why did not accusers at the time document happenings,even if they could not do something at that time they would have had at least some kind of proof.

The whole he said she said part is scary,just as I would have imagine people felt in the McCarthyism days.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/McCarthyism

[bust]

^ Yea,I do not know,I have had bars,nightclubs,towing companies,salvage yards,buy here pay here car Lots,quick lubes pretty much all started with nothing,I get bored easy once the challenge of starting something from nothing and building it up to profit is done.

To try to close the circle on the side topic,
Not everyone has the same chances;
That does not take away from your accomplishments.

[southen]

I always love when anecdotal evidence is used to counter actual statistics and facts. Stop looking inward at your own experience and start thinking about what others need to deal with. It is hard to say given that I know nothing of your personal story other than what has been written to cite any specific instances of privilege, but I do find it interesting that you think it is only money that talks, not skin color. Obviously you haven't paid attention to the number of loans made to people of color trying to start a business in the city vs. those who are white or living in the suburbs.

[Lowell]

Stephen Henderson was on his Detroit Today show this morning. He began with a statement that was followed by a three-way conversation with the program manager and station manager, both female.

In his statement he asserted there were two events that Gannett cited as the basis of his dismissal from the Free Press. One was an off-color remark, the second was that he twice made un-wanted advances. The events were several years in the past. He asserted that he has had friendly relations with both women since. He felt the dismissal was unfair and he was investigating legal recourses. He apologized for any harm that may have occurred.

In the three way discussion that followed, with the program manager leading the discussion, WDET's position [and that of their license holder, Wayne State University] was to keep him on the show but that his status was still under investigation. Their initial investigation showed revealed no complaints during his tenure there. The regular show resumed after 20 minutes.

Stay tuned.

[southen]

I believe that both incidents took place outside of the workplace as well. Although details are still vague I think it will be very telling whether or not Stephen moves forward with a lawsuit.

[aj3647]

Here we go....... Who can even keep up any more? It's everyday, sometimes twice daily. I hear a Kentucky lawmaker killed himself when sexual misconduct was discovered from his past!

Setting aside guilt or innocence of those involved, we now defacto live in an 'accuse' society poised for the construct of what's coming. Brother against brother, families turning on one another, etc.

It was his choice to kill himself and he was not accused of "misconduct", he was accused of ASSAULT, as in molesting someone under the age of 18. That's not misconduct, that's a felony.

No rape victim should stay silent to appease YOUR sensibilities or those of their rapist. If you don't like that these women are speaking out, tough shit.

[Richard]

I always love when anecdotal evidence is used to counter actual statistics and facts. Stop looking inward at your own experience and start thinking about what others need to deal with. It is hard to say given that I know nothing of your personal story other than what has been written to cite any specific instances of privilege, but I do find it interesting that you think it is only money that talks, not skin color. Obviously you haven't paid attention to the number of loans made to people of color trying to start a business in the city vs. those who are white or living in the suburbs.

When you started out did you go to the bank and get a loan to open a studio? Or did you start out at the bottom and worked your way up dealing with the good times and bad?

That is the real world on how most small business are started regardless of color,forget about statistics,just ask small business owners as you are out and about how they got started,I think you may find more often then not it involved a lot of sacrifices and going without along the way,without the banks help.

Do I think that there is missed opportunity within the inner cities that is detrimental to the country as a whole,yes and that is also why I think we need to stop all of the political witch hunts and concentrate the energy on fixing that,if we are unwilling to deal with that then it becomes a moot point.

It does not matter who we are, where we are raised or what color we are,we are all in the same boat and we really need to be fixing it without distractions.

I am glad to hear the three sides of the discussion,everything needs to be on a leval playing field for everybody.

[aj3647]

Many years ago SH wrote that he was proud that Detroit was ran by black people. Really?

Should white people be proud of politicians simply because they are white? Apparently so, if you think like SH.

If you were white and lived in a country where white people were enslaved by black people for three centuries or so, followed by another century of living under an Apartheid-like system where white people were enshrined by law as being second-class citizens, followed by decades more of unofficial systemic racism against white people in everything from housing [[steering, redlining, etc.) to employment, then yes, I would say you should be proud as a white person of the accomplishments of white politicians.

Just like blacks in South Africa took immense pride in seeing black people in charge after the fall of the white minority government and the Apartheid system. But I guess they were racist too in your mind, right?

[drjeff]

If asking somebody out at work and getting turned down is harassment, then we might as well go ahead and fire every male employee in the country. I'm married to a former coworker. Would I have been guilty of harassment if she said no when I asked her out? I have great sympathy for women who have been harassed or worse but some of these stories of "harassment" are just innocuous behavior that for some reason is taken as offensive.