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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to think Camila Batmanghelidjh is fucking awesome?

448 replies

bejeezus · 04/07/2012 10:50

I saw her talk on a news programme last night...

shes so composed and articulate, and clear-sighted and insightful and compassionate and calm and stylish and unique...

and the work she does/ what she acheives is OUTSTANDING..

heres a link to her wiki page...but it doesnt do her any justice

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camila_Batmanghelidjh

OP posts:
Gemauve · 07/08/2015 09:15

unpleasant sexual behaviour between clients over the age of consent

So that's OK, then? Weight off HR departments' minds: "never mind if you're being sexually harassed in the workplace, you're both adults, sort it out amongst yourselves, nothing to do with us".

Good to see we're all now OK about a return to the 1970s when undergraduates were seen as fair game for horny lecturers, too: everyone's over the age of consent, so that's OK.

Christ. Why do people's faculties go out of the window when CB enters the room?

AIBU: My boss keeps telling me that if I don't sleep with him I'll be sacked, but HR say we're both over sixteen so it's nothing to do with them. AIBU to think they are being a bit harsh?

BertrandRussell · 07/08/2015 09:38

That's not what I said at all.

I think her response to the allegations was shocking and I think there is something very dodgy indeed about the whole deal. I am just very puzzled about why they choose those particular allegations. Neither of them would warrant serious police investigation- and neither of them involve the abuse of children which is what the press have been talking about. If Newsnight had evidence of child abuse of some sort, why didn't they put it to her?

BertrandRussell · 07/08/2015 09:39

And maybe next time think before you attack? Just a thought.............

ItsAllGoingToBeFine · 07/08/2015 09:46

The only allegations Kirsty Walk put to her was some unpleasant sexual behaviour between clients over the age of consent,

I thought the allegations were of rape?

and and assault- of a member of staff by a child where it was decided not to press charges.

I thought that the member of staff had been strongly advised by CB not to go to the police? (Although in that case I think it is fine that the member of staff didn't)

tobysmum77 · 07/08/2015 09:53

I'm not minimising the sexual allegations but it is inevitable in these circumstances that something will happen. The issue is that it wasn't necessarily dealt with properly. It's another symptom of it all growing completely out of hand.

Gemauve · 07/08/2015 09:55

If Newsnight had evidence of child abuse of some sort, why didn't they put it to her?

Because they've already given it to the police, and quizzing a witness on live TV about something where these is a live investigation would be completely irresponsible.

drudgetrudy · 07/08/2015 09:56

Ipitythepontipines makes an excellent point. The government are so opposed to public services and local authorities that they will promote charities even with no evidence base for their work.

Locally to me at one stage both the NHS and the local authority had very good children's services which used evidence based interventions. Money was taken off them and put into the NSPCC which was randomly trying all sorts of things which had no real evidence behind them.
Then the danger of getting under the spell of self-promoters comes into play.

BertrandRussell · 07/08/2015 10:00

Fair enough. But why interview her at all, then? Because it certainly looked as if they didn't have much on her. Which will play right into the hands of her fan club. Still waiting for an apology for your outrageous 9.15 post, by the way.

coffeenowalnuts · 07/08/2015 10:00

unpleasant sexual behaviour between clients over the age of consent

That could mean almost anything, 'unpleasant' things happening with over 16 year olds. I read that they refused to ever exclude someone from Kids Company, everyone was always welcome. Great in theory - but in practice it can often lead to vulnerable people not having much protection from predators, of any age. Like at my son's school, where the worst bullies and the worst bullied often ended up being thrown together into the special program for children who couldn't be/cope in normal classes.

GoblinLittleOwl · 07/08/2015 10:10

I think Camila Batmanghelidjh is an extremely skilled manipulator of public opinion, and I hope there will be far more analysis of Kids Company ethos, actual achievements and financial affairs, and less Ms. Batmanghelidjh's avid self promotion. I have been slightly suspicious of her for years; lot of style, little substance.

LurkingHusband · 07/08/2015 10:10

I think there are lots of shades of grey. I dont think she's a coin artist

Sometimes, you have to wonder if there is a cosmic intelligence behind autocorrect ?

Gemauve · 07/08/2015 10:17

Still waiting for an apology for your outrageous 9.15 post, by the way.

Don't minimise sexual offences involving sixteen year olds as though they are somehow lesser crimes, then. I apologise if you are upset.

grovel · 07/08/2015 10:25

GoblinLittleOwl, completely agree. DH is a trustee of a couple of charities. He was gobsmacked by CB's (non) answers about the charity's reserves. Totally negligent.

Metacentric · 07/08/2015 10:26

To expand.

The issue of "age of consent" is entirely bogus. In any setting with vulnerable young people, there is a presumption that safeguarding is required until they are at least eighteen (English universities, for example, are currently tearing themselves to pieces over how to deal with the occasion student who's under 18; I don't know how Scotland, where this is more common, manage).

I read you to mean that "age of consent" made it OK, or at least not something that KC should deal with. If that was a wrong reading, I apologise.

Gemauve · 07/08/2015 10:27

Whoops, namechange fail. I was using Gemauve for CB stuff so resurrected it for that purpose...

BoffinMum · 07/08/2015 10:33

FurtherSupport

Quite right, good point

Ain't no Barnado's factor here, no obvious success stories ...

AugustHasToBeBetter · 07/08/2015 10:44

Lurking Smile that's woo I relate to. Yesterday on "Threads I am on" a post about Kids' Company with the consecutive words hash and cash on separate lines was shown fused to give a rather cheeky description of their handouts.

Gummydrops · 07/08/2015 10:51

Hahaha comparing Camilla to Ghandi really?

LurkingHusband · 07/08/2015 10:52

AugustHasToBeBetter

Lurking Smile that's woo I relate to. Yesterday on "Threads I am on" a post about Kids' Company with the consecutive words hash and cash on separate lines was shown fused to give a rather cheeky description of their handouts.

There's probably more intelligence between your computer and the Mumsnet servers than you can imagine.

The machines are taking over ...

Salmotrutta · 07/08/2015 10:55

I will admit Id never heard of Kids Company or this Camilla woman until all this news started breaking - probably because I'm in the wilds of rural Scotland.

But it has all made interesting reading and it strikes me that often these "awesome" types turn out to be be behind the scenes bullies and manipulators whose private face is very different.

And people like that never want unsavoury or awkward details about poor practice coming out do they?

JugglingFromHereToThere · 07/08/2015 11:14

I was a bit disappointed by my experience of CB when I was working as a teacher in a school in South London and Place2B were running a project there.
I didn't feel they engaged with us as teachers of the children as well as they might have done
I visited the Place2B project for sessions on the school site with the young children in my class. It was a good slightly alternative experience for them but I didn't feel there was that much sense of teamwork with the rest of the school - and the rest of the children's experience
Just feel you can maybe achieve more if you work collaboratively with others
I expect she might have won me round more if I'd had the opportunity for a longer talk with her. I asked her a question once in a busy meeting and didn't feel I got much of an answer

Viviennemary · 07/08/2015 12:18

I watched the programme. I am not a fan of hers but I thought it was brave of her to appear and face up to the allegations. A lot of people wouldn't have. It doesn't sound as if the allegations were dealt with according to proper procedures. She can't just say no basis and dismiss them.. She isn't judge and jury.

But was it not up to the person to pursue charges if they felt a criminal act had taken place. On the other hand if these are vulnerable people would they have reported it. Doesn't sound as if it was very professionally run even apart from the financial issues.

ShelaghTurner · 07/08/2015 13:00

Why have I never heard of this woman till this week? It's not like she's easy to miss, both clothes wise and with such an awesome name.

And having no previous knowledge of her, I've yet to work out whether she's a good guy or a baddie...

CrabbyTheCrabster · 07/08/2015 13:00

I think there are lots of shades of grey. I dont think she's a coin artist

Sometimes, you have to wonder if there is a cosmic intelligence behind autocorrect ?

Grin Lurking! Yes, very apt. Autocorrect/sp error of 'memorised' for mesmerised made me Grin too - had images of lots of dubious people trying very hard to remember Cameron. Grin

BareGrylls · 07/08/2015 13:06

I am always wary of anyone being deemed so saintly as to be untouchable.

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