| Arwa Michelle Mboya is an early and very notable exception: an example of a person at the Media Lab with good judgement. She called for his resignation on August 23, and wrote the guest column "Why Joi Ito needs to resign" published in The Tech on August 29. Arwa Michelle Mboya - @RuMboya:
The MIT @medialab was nicknamed “The Future Factory” by @60Minutes . We are supposed to reflect the future, not just of technology but of society. I’m fighting for the #FutureOfWomen when I call for Joi Ito’s resignation.
1:38 AM · Aug 23, 2019 https://twitter.com/RuMboya/status/1164683383815004160 OPINION GUEST COLUMN:
Why Joi Ito needs to resign.
We need to set a standard that ensures a safe future for women where money will never be seen as more valuable than their lives. By Arwa Mboya, Aug. 29, 2019. https://thetech.com/2019/08/29/joi-ito-needs-to-resign MIT Media Lab People: Arwa Michelle Mboya. Civic Media. https://www.media.mit.edu/people/mboya/overview/ How Grad Student Arwa Mboya Helped Bring Down The Epstein Coverup At The MIT Media Lab https://moguldom.com/225575/how-grad-student-arwa-mboya-help... Ito’s resignation was necessary for the greater good, Mboya suggested. “This is not an MIT issue, and this is not a Joi Ito issue. This is an international issue where a global network of powerful individuals have used their influence to secure their privilege at the expense of women’s bodies and lives.” After Ito resigned, Mboyo told The Washongton Post, “I feel vindicated, like I’m not crazy.” Ito is to blame for his actions, but others are to blame for allowing his actions to continue, she wrote in the guest column. [...] “We have a bad history of forgiving talented men who wield power,” Mboyo wrote. “If there is no accountability for the people who bolster men like Epstein, sexual violence against powerless people will continue.” Mboyo is from Kenya. “I’m a young black woman (running the risk of being called ‘angry’ or ‘crazy’ for speaking up),” she wrote. “On the ladder of power, I am on a very low rung. That said, I am educated, I am smart, and I have a voice … I at least have the power to advocate for the girls and women who couldn’t speak out when they were raped and abused. I have the power to say no to a director who chose not only to ignore the accusations but to lie about his involvement as well. I can say that I am part of the #MeTooSTEM movement and will not be silent.” |