A barrister has been commended for outing sexist behaviour after posting a screenshot of a LinkedIn message sent to her by a senior partner at a law firm, who praised what he called her stunning profile picture on the site.
Charlotte Proudman, a barrister in human rights law at the Chambers of Michael Mansfield QC, received a message from Alexander Carter-Silk, who told her: “I appreciate that this is probably horrendously politically incorrect but that is a stunning picture.”
Carter-Silk, an expert in the protection of copyright, design rights and trademarks at the London firm Brown Rudnick, added: “You definitely win the prize for the best LinkedIn picture I have ever seen.”
Proudman, who specialises in violence against women and girls and is currently undertaking academic research into female genital mutilation (FGM) in the UK, responded by telling him she found his message offensive and explaining that she was using LinkedIn for business purposes, rather than to be approached about her physical appearance “or to be objectified by sexist men”.
She said: “The eroticisation of women’s physical appearance is a way of exercising power over women. It silences women’s professional attributes as their physical appearance becomes the subject.” Proudman signed off by advising Carter-Silk to “think twice before sending another woman (half your age) such a sexist message”.
She then took a screenshot of the correspondence and posted it on Twitter, asking how many other women have had similar experiences.
How many women @LinkedIn are contacted re physical appearance rather than prof skills? @Jessica_Asato @ObjectUpdate pic.twitter.com/YglDA1JdEX
— Charlotte Proudman (@CRProudman) September 7, 2015
In a statement provided to the legal news site and messageboard RollOnFriday, Carter-Silk said: “Most people post pretty unprofessional pictures on LinkedIn, my comment was aimed at the professional quality of the presentation on LinkedIn, which was unfortunately misinterpreted.
“Ms Proudman is clearly highly respected and I was pleased to receive her request to link up, and very happy to instruct her on matters which [are] relevant to her expertise that remains the position.”
Proudman was praised by other Twitter users, including women who said they had similar stories to tell.
Well done @CRProudman for calling out this inexcusable sexism http://t.co/xMTxDeTG2A
— Felicity Slater (@FelicitySlater) September 8, 2015
Take a look at how FWN's fantastic @CRProudman handled social media sexism http://t.co/QSFSSceNkO
— FabianWomen'sNetwork (@FabianWomen) September 8, 2015
Well done Charlotte! I've been in the same boat; amazing that so many men seem to think is acceptable behavior. https://t.co/DwHysOR1ql
— Neha Kinariwalla (@nehakinari) September 8, 2015
Proudman linked the incident to what she said was a wider problem of sexual harassment in the legal profession, and said there was a general issue with some people using LinkedIn as though it were dating app Tinder.
She told the Guardian that she was surprised in some ways by the positive response her actions had elicited in others.
She said: “In some regards I think I might even have been expecting a backlash, but the women that have come forward have been very encouraging and I think it follows on from campaigns to show up sexism in the legal industry and other industries.
“I think it’s important that we collectively call out this sexism and I think that is what this tweet has done. My LinkedIn profile is professional, there is no discussion of my personal life. It is a headshot photograph and yet people seem to think that this is an invitation to make advances or discuss your physical appearance, which is unacceptable.”
A spokesperson for Brown Rudnick said: “We are aware of the comments made by a member of the firm on a private social media account. We have apologised for the offence caused and have no further comment to make.”