H.A. Breaking News--Case against USM settled - USM Forum -- Message Board

Date: Mar 7, 2006

H.A. Breaking News--Case against USM settled

Date: Mar 7, 2006

Williams said she never again wants to think about the ordeal, which has persisted for more than two decades since she entered the Southern Miss doctoral program in 1985.

And we wondered about Frank and Gary?

Date: Mar 7, 2006

One down...how many to go?

Date: Mar 7, 2006

This one is a direct slap in the face of the liberal arts faculty. As far as I know Thames has never been charged with sexual harrassement. Where were Stamper's fellow scholars? Wasn't his conduct common knowledge in the English dept.? Did they sit by silently while the poor victim suffered?

Date: Mar 7, 2006

Save Me wrote:

This one is a direct slap in the face of the liberal arts faculty. As far as I know Thames has never been charged with sexual harrassement. Where were Stamper's fellow scholars? Wasn't his conduct common knowledge in the English dept.? Did they sit by silently while the poor victim suffered?

Are you suggesting that anyone in the immediate vicinity of a problem somehow becomes responsible for it?

Date: Mar 7, 2006

"Thames has never been charged with sexual harrassment."

Help me! Help me! I've fallen [on the floor laughing so hard I can't breathe] and I'm only getting up to see what new fictions you have in store.

Dearie, why do you think he had to stop being VP on the Coast?

Date: Mar 7, 2006

Ah for the good old days when English was a powerhouse as Rex held court with his graduate students. W

Date: Mar 7, 2006

Little old lady wrote:

"Thames has never been charged with sexual harrassment."

Help me! Help me! I've fallen [on the floor laughing so hard I can't breathe] and I'm only getting up to see what new fictions you have in store.

Dearie, why do you think he had to stop being VP on the Coast?

Tell us, LOL. You seem to just throw it to the wall to see if will stiick.

Date: Mar 7, 2006

Ask anybody who worked down there twenty years ago, dearie. Ask anybody who worked up here twenty years ago. It's a very well-known story.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Little old lady wrote:

"Thames has never been charged with sexual harrassment."

Help me! Help me! I've fallen [on the floor laughing so hard I can't breathe] and I'm only getting up to see what new fictions you have in store.

Dearie, why do you think he had to stop being VP on the Coast?

I wasn't aware of this. Please provide details.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

I doubt if anyone is going to give you exact details on this message board, anonymous or not. As far as I have ever heard, Dr. Thames has never been "charged with sexual harrassment." There are stories floating around, and you'll have to get someone to tell you privately.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Save Me wrote:

Where were Stamper's fellow scholars? Wasn't his conduct common knowledge in the English dept.? Did they sit by silently while the poor victim suffered?

I spent two years at USM in the mid 90's completing my diss and working as an English department TA. I have generally favorable memories of my time in Hattiesburg, and feel that the English faculty and doctoral programs were superb (then). However, Rex Stamper's serial dalliances and sexual escapades with students, both undergrad and grad, were common knowledge at the time. He was even known to openly brag about his conquests when "holding court." I have no idea what went on behind the scenes with the dean and chair or whether he was ever counseled about inappropriate behavior, but anyone who was in the department at the time and claims ignorance of his shenanigans is either shading the truth or living in an alternate universe. It was always worrisome that no one ever saw fit to bring the hammer down on him. My hat's off to Davida Williams for fighting the good fight, and winning.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

English is not the only place this went on. In the School of Music, there was a professor notorious for sexually harrassing women--especially faculty and staff. As far as I know, there were no "trysts." It was simply a way to exert power. And as far as I know, the director (who was excellent in every other respect) never said anything to him, though it did slack off for a bit. Then when that director stepped down and the current one was appointed, the harrassment came back full force.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

LVN wrote:

I doubt if anyone is going to give you exact details on this message board, anonymous or not. As far as I have ever heard, Dr. Thames has never been "charged with sexual harrassment." There are stories floating around, and you'll have to get someone to tell you privately.

Why is it that nobody ever talks about what happened with Thames? I heard rumors about this event in my first semesters of my freshman year so there are plenty of people who talk about it. I thought that during the presidential search that people would bring it up, but no one ever did, except for vague references. And since the days of fireshelby, on a message board that usually feels quite free to talk about many, many rumors, I don't remember ever reading an account of what really happened, except in vague "we all know what he did" terms.

Is it in respect of the other person (I seem to remember a thread talking about this a long time ago), or respect of the people that just let him step down, or it because there are still things that we just don't talk about in public? I do not mean this as a slam, but simply an interesting observation (plus, I would like to know if the stories that I heard were in fact true).

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Once upon a time, in a small kingdom by the sea, there was a little king and a fair maiden. One day the queen happened to appear at court when she wasn't expected. The king's guard did her best to protect everyone. There was running in the halls and yelling and general confusion all around, or so one of the stories goes. There are variations on this legend, and others like it. Some say the fair maiden was tricked, some still protect her, some say that the king is very, very good to all his fair maidens. The Emperor called the little king to account and took away his crown, but he's found another one since then.

Many of the old ladies of the court wonder why the queen didn't nail the little king's hide to the wall, but that's her look-out, as they say.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Ah, but there is a thin line between harassment and consent. The thing I have the most trouble with is envisioning anyone consenting to the little gnome. It seems beyond comprehension.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Former English Doc Student wrote:

Rex Stamper's serial dalliances and sexual escapades with students, both undergrad and grad, were common knowledge at the time. He was even known to openly brag about his conquests when "holding court." ....It was always worrisome that no one ever saw fit to bring the hammer down on him.

The more I think about this, the more it pi$$es me off all over again. While at USM, on many occasions I heard senior liberal arts faculty make joking references to Stamper's legendary pursuit of comely female students. This was typically done with a wink and a nod and a dismissive comment to the effect that "That's old Rex, at it again."

In the Mississippi Supreme Court findings re the Williams v. USM case ( http://www.mslawyer.com/mssc/cases/20041110/0300190.html ) Stamper claims, under oath, that he was unaware of any university policy that precluded being involved in a sexual relationship with a student. He also asserted that he'd never been advised to stay away from Ms. Williams, even after she'd filed numerous sexual harassment complaints with the department chair and dean. Can this be true, that he was never even counseled, much less disciplined or terminated? The evidence would suggest as much.

Realizing that many of the players from that era have retired or moved on, I'd still be interested in hearing the "other side" of the story from anyone who reads this message board and was privy to the goings on inside the English department administrative heirarchy at the time. It would be instructive for all of us.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

This is an interesting illustration of liberalism at work in our criminal justice system. Apparently Professor Stamper sexually harrased a student ( he was convicted and this was upheld on appeal). However he doesn't have to pay; instead his employer,USM, has to foot the bill. Anyone over age 15 knows you can't do this to people. Anyone with an ounce of sense knows right from wrong. Stamper is no ordinary man. He is a scholar,like the other members of the USM faculty. He devotes many hours to research and serious contemplation. He is responsible for his actions. He consciously chose to commit a crime. USM should not have to pay a cent for his bad deeds. This makes as much sense as having USM foot the bill when one of it's employees robs a bank. If conservatives were in charge,Stamper would've been taken out and given a good A-- whipping.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

She told the people who were in charge and they neglected to act. That makes them just as guilty, especially if Stamper continued to harass.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Justice gone astray wrote:

If conservatives were in charge,Stamper would've been taken out and given a good A-- whipping.

Have to disagree here. That sort of behavior is no respecter of party or political bent. Trust me on this.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Former English Doc Student wrote:

Stamper ... asserted that he'd never been advised to stay away from Ms. Williams, even after she'd filed numerous sexual harassment complaints with the department chair and dean. Can this be true, that he was never even counseled, much less disciplined or terminated?

So you're asking why there was a closing of the ranks around Rex? This is only supposition on my part, connecting the dots so to speak, but in my opinion it would have been extremely risky, not to mention hypocritical, for certain of Stamper's faculty peers to take a hard line on his inappropriate behavior with female students. Clearly he was lacking in discretion and forcing himself on Ms. Williams, as she alleged, was criminal. However, you should know that he wasn't the only prof who felt it was perfectly acceptable to "get close" to his students. I don't mean to suggest that this behavior was rampant but without question Stamper wasn't alone in dining on forbidden fruit. Was he counseled? I know he was urged to be more discrete, but don't know about any disciplinary actions. Probably not, as it would have opened up a huge can of worms.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

LVN wrote:

Justice gone astray wrote: If conservatives were in charge,Stamper would've been taken out and given a good A-- whipping.

Have to disagree here. That sort of behavior is no respecter of party or political bent. Trust me on this.

Yeah, but it is a respecter of academic discipline. He'd never have gotten away with such mischief in the COB, specially with the moral rectitude of Dean Doty as a behavioral template.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Come on folks. LVN is correct. Sexual harrassment is no respector of profession or political party. It has been rampant in business, in manual labor, in law, in medicine, in the university. It is only recently that females in the workplace had any recourse. (See the movie North Country.) Thank goodness for someone who is willing to bring a lawsuit about this. Perhaps some of the perpetrators will get the message now.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Of course there's always my mother's method. Long ago and far away she wore high heels to work. She once had an occasion at the office to simply take a step backwards onto the "gentleman's" foot with a spike heel. Worked pretty well, and no lawyers were called.

Not to be making a joke of this, of course. Women like me and my mother, who were working in the 60's and 70's had almost no defense. I even threatened to call a wife one time. You had to do the best you could. I don't have any sympathy or patience with cover-ups and looking the other way, and I've seen plenty of it. I saw female residents and interns harrassed by an otherwise respected physician, and they were helpless to stop it for a long time until he harrassed the wrong person's wife. Then on the other hand, there are men like a former boss of mine who wanted to pay me a "safe" compliment on my appearance and finally came out with, "you're always so . . . neat!"

Date: Mar 8, 2006

I Was There wrote:

So you're asking why there was a closing of the ranks around Rex? ...I know he was urged to be more discrete, but don't know about any disciplinary actions. Probably not, as it would have opened up a huge can of worms.

Concerning the above assessment of USM's attitude toward Davida Williams, I view it as yet another instance of those in glass houses being loath to throw stones. I'm long gone from USM but certainly hope the offending university administrators and faculty, if any are still on board, have learned a lesson from the Stamper-Williams tragedy. Ms. Williams courtroom victory and damage award notwithstanding, be assured she'll never be the same after suffering through that grim experience. And let us not forget that from all accounts, she was an able and accomplished doctoral candidate who was effectively cheated out of her PhD by an administration that chose to look the other way rather than heed her cries for help.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Thanks for standing strong, Davida! Hope whatever amount of money that you settled for makes it a little bit easier for you. One never really ever recovers. Chaze's tax bracket continues to rise.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Where was her faculty, chair and dean when she was being abused, tormented, and denied her degree. Where was their character?

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Yet another one harrassed wrote:

Thanks for standing strong, Davida! Hope whatever amount of money that you settled for makes it a little bit easier for you. One never really ever recovers.

Weren't Stamper and several other USM profs and administrators named as co-defendants in the Williams suit? With respect to the damage award, is USM (actually the taxpayers of Mississippi) liable for the entire amount, or does some of it come from the pockets of other named parties? I'd appreciate a short tutorial on who takes the hit for paying out the cash . It seems to me that Stamper and the others who conveniently looked the other way while this was happening should at least be co-liable for paying. By the way, whatever money Ms. Williams receives, she deserves.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

if you want some details about the case go up about mid-thread to a hyperlink to the supreme court's decision. they present a chronology of the case and other details.

Date: Mar 8, 2006

Legal Questions wrote:

Yet another one harrassed wrote: Thanks for standing strong, Davida! Hope whatever amount of money that you settled for makes it a little bit easier for you. One never really ever recovers. Weren't Stamper and several other USM profs and administrators named as co-defendants in the Williams suit? With respect to the damage award, is USM (actually the taxpayers of Mississippi) liable for the entire amount, or does some of it come from the pockets of other named parties? I'd appreciate a short tutorial on who takes the hit for paying out the cash . It seems to me that Stamper and the others who conveniently looked the other way while this was happening should at least be co-liable for paying. By the way, whatever money Ms. Williams receives, she deserves.

I am sure there was a confidentiality agreement to keep Davida from talking about the terms. Where the money comes from probably wasn't stated in the agreement. Maybe there was insurance? Maybe it comes from the Foundation? Have you all been following www.usmpride.com? It raises some really interesting issues.