Believe Them

Content warning: this post touches on sexual harassment.

Charisma reports that John Crist, a popular Christian comedian, has been accused by multiple women of sexual harassment, predatory, and emotionally abusive behavior.

Crist acknowledged his behavior has been destructive, violated his convictions, and hurt people. He has canceled his tour and claims to be devoting time to getting better. I hope he is sincere and it involves restoration of the people he hurt.

Something that struck me as I followed the Twitter discussion was multiple women emphasizing that so many people knew about this. They were telling their stories of his behavior for years, but they were largely ignored. When women tell their stories of abuse, they are often diminished, disbelieved, or nitpicked to death. These same reactions are probably more pronounced in evangelical Christian circles. That is probably a whole separate post.

“It’s not news, y’all just weren’t listening. Follow more women.”
— Caitlin J. Stout

I had been following Crist on Twitter/Instagram for the last year or so. This Charisma article was the first time I had heard the allegations. That might be because I don’t have my finger on the pulse of evangelical Christianity as much as I used to, but it’s still a good reminder to follow and listen to women. Believe them.