Letter to the 2023 Board of Directors of the Organization for Transformative Works
| Open Letter | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Letter to the 2023 Board of Directors of the Organization for Transformative Works |
| From: | dhobikikutti |
| Addressed To: | 2023 OTW Board Members |
| Date(s): | June 13, 2023 |
| Medium: | online |
| Fandom: | |
| Topic: | Racism in the OTW, 2023 OTW Management Controversy |
| External Links: | Letter on dreamwidth Archived version |
| Click here for related articles on Fanlore. | |
Letter to the 2023 Board of Directors of the Organization for Transformative Works is an open letter from dhobikikutti to the Organization for Transformative Works' 2023 Board regarding racism within the OTW. It was posted on June 13, 2023 in the midst of the 2023 OTW Management Controversy.
In the letter, dhobikikutti, then a tag wrangling volunteer, denounced a long-standing culture of structural racism fostered by the Board within the OTW, and called on the Board to concrete actions toward addressing and rectifying the racism within the organization.
Excerpts from the Letter
I am formally accusing the leadership of this organisation, both past and present, of fostering a culture of structural racism and discrimination that negatively impacts the well-being of its volunteers, and has driven many more away.
Every single committee in the OTW is infected by the structural racism that pervades the management of this organisation. Every committee chair has played some part, howsoever unwilling or unintended, in contributing to its sustained patterns.
I demand an external culture audit of the entire organisation to investigate, analyse, document and report on the ways that structural racism permeates its toxic work culture.
I call upon the membership of the OTW to hold the organisation’s leadership accountable for failing to meet its responsibility of providing an equitable, safe and just working environment towards its volunteer base.I ask the larger user bases of the Archive of Our Own, Fanlore and Transformative Works and Cultures to recognise the hostile and inequitable conditions under which volunteers have maintained these projects.
I stand in solidarity with the many, many volunteers, both past and present, who have attempted to reform the organisation, or even just survive within it. I do not speak for anyone but myself, but I also state that I have proof that this is not an individual complaint. I plan to spend my remaining time in the organisation documenting this evidence, so that future volunteers have an institutional memory to access.
Response from Other Fans
The letter was widely shared by fans discussing the management controversy, including on anonymous platforms like Fail-Fandomanon.
(Lack of) Response from the Board
Neither the Board of Directors nor any committee within the OTW responded to dhobikikutti's letter publicly, but dhobikikutti went on to share further communications sent to and received from the OTW in the weeks following the posting of her open letter. These included a CCAP she received,[1] which was described by several fans as inappropriate and exemplifying racist retaliation,[2][3] and copies of racist comments made by Board member Alex Tischer, accompanied by comments of support dhobikikutti received from other OTW volunteers.[4]
In August 2023, dhobikikutti ultimately resigned from the OTW, citing, among other things, the Board's failure to respond to her open letter, the CCAP she received, and other examples of racist behaviour from the OTW's leadership during the management controversy.
See Also
References
- ^ Copy of CCAP sent to me by OTW Chairs, and My Response to It, Archived version, dreamwidth post by dhobikikutti, 24 July 2023.
- ^ tweet thread by rahaeli (synecdochic), Archived version, 26 July 2023.
- ^ fail_fandomanon thread, Archived version, 2023-07-25.
- ^ Demand for Suspension of OTW Board Member, Archived version, dreamwidth post by dhobikikutti, 26 July 2023.