Stepping out of order (and begging pardon of my fellow bloggers) to give an update on the RWI MTM contest and attending controversy re the exclusion of LGBT books.
The contest has been cancelled.
http://rwimagiccontests.wordpress.com/
“After much consideration, RWI regretfully announces the MTM Published Author Contest has been cancelled. All monies received from entrants will be returned
as soon as possible. We have heard and understood the issues raised, and will take those concerns into consideration should the chapter elect to hold contests
in the future. Please note: our contest coordinator, Jackie, is a chapter member who graciously volunteered to collect entries and sort by category. It
is unfortunate that she has become the object of personal ridicule and abuse. We recognize the decision to disallow same-sex entries is highly charged.
We also opted not to accept YA entries. We do not condone discrimination against individuals of any sort.”
I’m sorry the contest coordinator felt targeted. This is an emotionally charged issue and as such I’m sure some of the email she received was less than polite in its disagreement with the chapter’s stance on the exclusion of LGBT entries.
But I think too that cancelling the contest was not the right (most effective) course of action. It feels like taking your ball and going home because you don’t want to play by the rules.
A better solution would have been to open the contest to LGBT books. But that’s not what happened.
As a dues paying member of RWA and RRW, I’m not happy or satisfied with this development. The issue of a nondiscrimination policy on the national level remains. The national officers have promised to raise the issue at their March board meeting. But imo this isn’t enough.
Delaying the establishment of a nondiscrimination policy implies that not discriminating is somehow controversial; that it may sometimes be okay in certain circumstances to discriminate. It’s not.
So stop sitting on your hands RWA national. Give us a nondiscrimination policy that applies to all chapters. Stand on the right side of history.
Written by Kimberly Gardner
As early as the seventh grade, Kimberly remembers slashing her favorite rockstars and reading romance. So it’s not surprising that her two passions, romance and putting pretty boys with other pretty boys, should come together in her writing. Moliere said, “Writing is like prostitution. First you do it for love, then for a few close friends, then for money.” Kimberly is delighted to finally be doing it for money.
Visit The Author's Website
Z.Allora wrote,
Kimberly,
You are absolutely right!!!
People who don’t seem to understand why it is a BIG deal are making me a tad crazier than usual! Not holding the contest instead of opening it up speaks loudly, doesn’t it?
This seriously has not been the best week!
Hugs,
Z.
Link | February 7th, 2012 at 11:56 am
Kimberly Gardner wrote,
That’s the truth. Although with today’s prop 8 ruling my mood has been lifted.
Link | February 7th, 2012 at 12:00 pm
Z.Allora wrote,
Movement in the right direction!
Hugs,
Z.
Link | February 7th, 2012 at 4:20 pm
Idyrrlaon wrote,
I agree with you Kimberly. I don’t think this solves anything, really, just the controversy over this one contest. I would be worried that the national RWA, in light of the contest no longer being an issue, remove the topic from their meeting. To me, this issue is NOT resolved, and it is something that should be discussed.
I agree that it’s unfortunate the organizer of the contest felt targeted, and I don’t condone such behavior, no matter the reason….but at the same time, weren’t GLBT authors and community members likewise targeted? Certainly not in the same way, but maybe it will give her (and others in that group leadership) an appreciation for the hatred and bigotry that we members of the GLBT community live with, sometimes on a daily basis.
Link | February 7th, 2012 at 7:24 pm
Chris Muldoon wrote,
I found it interesting that they said:
“We recognize the decision to disallow same-sex entries is highly charged.
We also opted not to accept YA entries. We do not condone discrimination against individuals of any sort.”
Is that supposed to be a defense? Don’t feel bad, we excluded TWO groups from our contest. I’m not familiar with the contest at all, but the title gives me the impression that the theme is magic. And there’s nothing about magic that makes it an inherently adult heterosexual concept. If the theme was “impregnation,” then you can build a hetero-only case. (And probably a good case for non-YA as well.)
But seeing as how magic is open to all magical practitioners, a story contest should be as well. Disallowing two groups for no rational reason and then stating you don’t condone discrimination is just weak.
Link | February 8th, 2012 at 5:11 pm
Tara Lain wrote,
I’m standing and applauding. My RWA chapter seems more advanced but a national policy is essential. This kind of ignorance is ridiculous. As if all those poor young adults are being discriminated against by not being included. Give me a break. : )
Link | February 9th, 2012 at 7:53 am