They Don't Want Her There: Fighting Sexual and Racial Harassment in the American University

by Carolyn Chalmers

Before the nation learned about workplace sexual harassment from Anita Hill, and decades before the #MeToo movement, Chinese American professor Jean Jew M.D. brought a lawsuit against the University of Iowa, alleging a sexually hostile work environment within the university’s College of Medicine.



As Jew gained accolades and advanced through the ranks at Iowa, she was met with increasingly vicious attacks on her character by her white male colleagues—implying that her sexuality had opened doors for her. After years of being subjected to demoralizing sexual, racial, and ethnic discrimination, finding herself without any higher-up departmental support, and noting her professional progression beginning to suffer by the hands of hate, Jean Jew decided to fight back. Carolyn Chalmers was her lawyer.



This book tells the inside story of pioneering litigation unfolding during the eight years of a university investigation, a watershed federal trial, and a state court jury trial. In the face of a university determined to defeat them and maintain the status quo, Jew and Chalmers forged an exceptional relationship between a lawyer and a client, each at the top of their game and part of the first generation of women in their fields. They Don’t Want Her There is a brilliant, original work of legal history that is deeply personal and shows today’s professional women just how recently some of our rights have been won—and at what cost.

 

Genres: School

215 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 6, 2022

Reviews

[Abbie Cook · Rating 4 out of 5]

The case this book is centered around is a must-know for any woman in the world of academia. Chalmers close proximity to the case made the recounting of the multiple court battles digestible when paired with her reflections.

[Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. I found this book incredibly interesting and scary at the same time. As a Black woman in academia, I know this type of harassment continues to happen on college campuses. It was really interesting to see how long the legal process for Dr. Jew was along with how many risks she took to bring this matter forward to the courts. While I always like to believe that I would stand up for myself and others, doing so often comes at great personal cost. While I am happy and thankful that Dr. Jew has a “happy” ending, I can’t help but to think about all of the people who didn’t get validation. The women who didn’t get their name cleared. My heart hurts for them.

Technically, this book is fairly dry. The author puts in some descriptors and merges some conversation about her personal life into the narrative. Personally, I found those parts a bit awkward. As a reader, we didn’t get to know her husbands or kids, so I didn’t care that they were bored in California. For readers who do not like non-fiction, this book wouldn’t be my first choice. I’ve read more convincing narrative non-fiction that has come out in the last several years.

Structurally, I thought the book was really sound. I appreciated the detailed coverage of the federal trial. I also really appreciated the breakdown on waiting for decisions from the jury and the judge. The author had a nice balance between inserting her opinions/feelings/thoughts and sticking to the observable facts in the case. I felt like some of the sections that attempted to address race were a little muddled. It could be because of unexplored bias - the author alluded to it, but didn’t name it - or the fact that the case was narrowly focused on sex & gender based discrimination.

The only part of the book that I really didn’t like was the afterword. I’m not sure it accomplished what it ended. I was especially put off by the fact that the afterword is concluded with the Chamallas stating that she was still shocked Jew faced so much vitriol. That was a weird way to end at best, and really inappropriate at worst.

Thank you so much for allowing me to read an advanced copy! It means a lot as a fellow woman in higher education.

[Angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This non-fiction book is written by a lawyer who represented a woman named Dr. Jean Jew who was sexually harassed and experienced sexism and racism in her position at an Iowa University. The men who worked with her in the medical school felt threatened by a woman joining their ranks, and created a variety of rumours, gossip and allegations related to her relationship with another male colleague who was also her mentor and friend from before she arrived at the university.

This book is extremely thorough and covers each step of the case from the timeline of events prior to Dr. Jew seeking legal representation right down to the decision process the Judge and Jury faced. It is quite obvious from early on that this book is written by a lawyer. The writing is very factual and while opinions are mentioned at times, it is generally very neutral in tone. This makes it a bit difficult to connect with the author and the subject of the harassment, Dr. Jew. As far as "legalese", Chalmers did a really good job explaining the laws and the reasons why they chose one court vs another etc. so it was really easy to follow. It was also well planned out and for the most part told in chronological order, so the writing style choices the author made make perfect sense. That being said, these choices also really bogged down the book and made it very dry and slow. If you're looking for a non-fiction book that breaks down the case very carefully and in a way that is passionate yet not emotional, this is definitely a book for you. If you're looking for a memoir or biography related to sexual harassment in the work place, this book isn't quite that. Still definitely worth reading, but not quite what I was expecting.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read and review this book!

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just wow! Hard to believe that this litigation happened in what I consider the very recent past, and that while this case made some huge steps forward, we still have such a long way to go. It is still the white man’s world.

[Claire Chumbley]

I don’t have a review for this book because I very rarely read nonfiction, and it doesn’t feel right for me to rate it compared to my typical reads.

This book somehow went by so quickly and simultaneously dragged on. I want to be clear, that is not a critique of Chalmers’ writing or on the intrigue of the content itself. The reason it felt drawn out was because Chalmers and Dr. Jew had to face one obstacle after another and the trial process(es) were incredibly long and tedious — if this wasn’t a work of nonfiction, I would honestly find it unbelievable and unrealistic how much pushback they received. Therefore, it is a testament to the toll and time it takes to sustain a trial such as this. I could never be a lawyer, that’s for sure! It is unsurprising that the sexual and racial harassment that Dr. Jew experienced occurred in a place as notoriously conservative as Iowa, but it was astonishing how much the University of Iowa did to put off their inevitable need to take action. I teared up at the end because I can’t imagine how taxing this was on Jean Jew both personally and professionally.

I really enjoyed reading this as a change of pace from my typical reading habits, and I loved the feeling of being educated on a piece of history that stems so close to home and which I’d never heard of before.

[Elizabeth Tripp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jean Jew’s lawsuit undoubtedly positively contributed to the fight to eradicate workplace sexual harassment. For this reason, I am glad I read this book and learned about her. I would definitely pay money to see this as a film adaptation. The visual effect of her resilience given all that happened over eight years would be powerful.

I appreciate the timing of this book’s publication. Chalmers often muses on what she would have done differently and where she fell short during the litigation period. Her honesty really resonated with me. I can tell she's committed to giving an accurate portrayal of the events. Chalmers definitely writes like a lawyer. Let’s just say I don't necessarily think she should write the film adaptation. Some of the legal jargon went over my head. But, she covered a lot of ground in this book and my interest never wavered.

Notice how I keep calling this book “this book.” I don’t really like the title! “They Don’t Want Her There” is boring! It does not do justice to Jean Jew’s courage and resilience in the face of misogyny. I really wish Dr. Jew had written the afterward so we got to hear more from her directly. The title fell short, and so did the afterword.

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

[Rod Snavely · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an important book to understand workplace harassment.
I was at the University of Iowa as a student during some of the time this harassment occurred. When it became public I was busy starting my career and family, so I didn't follow the story.
This many years later the issues in this book still need to be vigilantly watched.

I am disappointed in the University of Iowa and the state of Iowa in the ways they attempted to sweep sexual and racial harassment "under the rug."

I recommend this book to everyone.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an important read for people who work in higher education - They Don't Want Her There tackles the workplace sexual harassment in education. I learned a lot from this book and although it was a very dense read I thought the author did a good job of making it readable and easy to understand.


Thank you to the author, University of Iowa Press, and NetGalley for providing an advance copy to review.

[Lilli Richardson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read for #history class

[riley!! · Rating 2 out of 5]

read for feminist history class. only bohemian representation in modern media and he was a sexual harasser so

[Isabel Polinsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for US Women’s Legal History, then both Carolyn Chalmers & Jean Jew came to speak to my class. Crazy opportunity & insanely intelligent women

[Hadley Hawkins · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is one of the heaviest books to read, and not because of the way Chalmer's tells the story, but because of the painful truths in the real world which Chalmer's writing has amplified.

In giving this book five stars, I hope to uplift Dr. Jean Jew and other diverse female voices who have joined the fight against a male-dominated society by speaking out against their oppressors.

[Gursimrat Dahry · Rating 5 out of 5]

A seminal reading to understand the field of employment discrimination law in its nascency, the relationship between an attorney and her client– both remarkable professional women, and the personal sacrifices endured to create a Title VII legal precedent for women in the workplace.

I had the pleasure of meeting both Dr. Jean Jew and Carolyn Chalmers to discuss the writing process behind this memoir. Their passion, grace, and no-nonsense attitude was palpable. I’m grateful for the opportunity to have read their story.