“I believe in the First Amendment, and BOOBS.”

Leadership comes from the top down. The boss, owner, anchor, or manager is expected to lead by example. Unfortunately, our recent examples include a resurgence of unprofessional, biased, sexist, misogynistic, and racist comments that women especially had hoped we’d left behind.

Some men think it is okay to express their brute opinions about women. These guys have yet to understand that women are anything but helpless. My eyes are so tired from me rolling them this much!

Meet the Players 

In this week’s example, we have the following:

• Brooke Baldwin – a female CNN news anchor and a Peabody Award finalist. She is one of the few women hosts of her own news show for the past seven years, and she has 17 years of experience as a journalist.
• President Donald Trump – a controversial figure. People have strong opinions about him one way or another.
• Jemele Hill – an African-American female sports journalist who hosts Numbers Never Lie on ESPN2. Hill called the President a “white supremacist” on Twitter. Trump took offense and wanted Hill to be fired.

To discuss the White House call for Jemele Hill’s dismissal, Baldwin invited two guests: Keith Reed, former senior editor at ESPN, and Clay Travis from Fox Sports Radio.

During the interview, Baldwin says she wasn’t prepared for what came next from Clay Travis. And who would be? Clay said, “I believe in the First Amendment, and boobs.”

What followed in Baldwin’s brain is a dilemma many women face everyday. We heard the comment (or are pretty sure we did), we ask for verification on what we heard, and suddenly we have to decide if we should let it slide (again) or if we TAKE ON yet another misogynistic, sexist comment that has no place in any conversation.

Baldwin took it on. She understands equality is an ACTION.

In her own words : “And then I did something I’ve done only a handful of times in my career. I told the control room to kill his mic and said “bye.” I invite a variety people on my show with wide-ranging opinions—sometimes even my jaw hits the floor, too—but I let them speak. Whether it’s left, right or center—I want to expose my viewers to other perspectives. Agree with them or not, the nation needs to listen. The thing is—this is not okay. Speaking to women like this is unacceptable. It is 2017. Why is this even happening?”

Out of my personal experience, as the founder of The Women’s Code, and based on feedback I have received from thousands of women who commented over the years on the topics of gender equality (or the lack thereof), I have this to say…

Words Matter

It doesn’t matter if you THINK it is locker room talk, or if you FEEL it was innocent banter, or if you INTENDED it as a compliment—words matter.

Intention and perception are two different things.

You can give a compliment by sticking to something simple, like pointing out a brilliant idea. If you must comment on appearance, make a compliment about the color of the dress or an overall professional look.

It is NOT OKAY—now or ever—to make sexual references in a professional setting. Never mention breasts (or stare at them!) no matter how inviting or provocative you perceive their shape or size.

Do not turn around and stare at a woman’s butt and comment on it. Even a comment on a women’s physique can be considered sexual harassment. And you definitely shouldn’t murmur to someone else that you’d “do her in a second.” None of this is considered complimentary to any woman I know.

The Bigger Problem

In the era of Trump and reverting to cave man talk, some men feel encouraged to express what they have been thinking all along: that women are sexual objects designed entirely for the pleasure of men.

This is a problem. However, the BIGGER PROBLEM is they are saying it out loud.

What has changed for women everywhere is an acknowledgement that we do not want to be spoken to in this manner or viewed as sexual objects. Not now and not ever.

If you have an example of this happening to you, please share. I want to hear from you.