Language Heals: Understanding Institutional Betrayal
Have you had that experience where a word or phrase lands like the answer to a riddle you didn’t know you were searching for? I was researching trauma + sexual harassment when I stumbled upon Dr. Jennifer' Freyd’s work on institutional betrayal and betrayal trauma. These concepts deeply resonated in my body, creating that know-in-your-bones feeling of being found and understood. Turns out my pain has a name:
A betrayal trauma occurs when someone you trust and/or someone who has power over you mistreats you. For instance, it’s a betrayal trauma when your boss sexually harasses you. Our research shows that betrayal traumas are toxic. They are associated with measurable harm, both physical and mental.
Institutional betrayal, developed from betrayal trauma theory, occurs when the institution you trust or depend upon mistreats you. It can be overt but it can also be less obvious, for instance, a failure to protect you when protection is a reasonable expectation. Our research shows that institutional betrayal is also related to measurable harm —again both mental and physical.
I have long known the power of calling things by their proper name. These definitions did nothing less than save me.
#MeToo at Lam Research
I came forward about the sexual violence I experienced while working for semiconductor giant, Lam Research, in 2018. After years of silence, I began having nightmares and a haunting suspicion that I was not then-CEO, Martin Anstice’s only prey. His alleged abuse permeated Fremont headquarters and spanned the globe to Asia and Europe. This pervasive reach doesn’t happen in a vacuum - it requires active accomplices and institutional support.
Anstice’s “resignation” was a quick solution to quiet the uprising and reduce litigation, but Lam Research has failed to acknowledge decades of alleged harm to past and present employees, vendors, and suppliers. Sure, one predator was kicked to the curb, but what about the ones that remain? What about all those who maintain the silence and violence? While there was some justice in seeing Anstice ousted - without severance (!) - the vague “allegations of misconduct” is an insulting euphemism that clouds the truth.
We can’t fix what we refuse to name; dancing around the crime protects the perpetrator and the entity but does little to acknowledge those who experienced or witnessed alleged abuse. Without recognition, an apology, or any accountability, Lam’s statement is little more than an institution covering it’s ass and praying for the storm to pass. It fails to center survivors trauma and obfuscates a restorative process.
Furthermore, while Lam Research threw out Anstice and snuck a couple more execs out as “retirements,” their shielding of predators and accomplices within their structure gaslights survivors and erodes psychological safety of all members affiliated with the institution. This “failure of institutional integrity,” to borrow from Dr. Estelle Freedman (see video link below), is why I’m still out here rallying for justice and accountability at Lam Research. The sexual violence I experienced was a betrayal trauma that’s had some closure, whereas Lam’s ongoing failure to safeguard employees is institutional betrayal.
It doesn’t have to be this way.
What Institutional Courage Looks Like
Institutional courage is the antidote to institutional betrayal. It includes institutional accountability and transparency, as when institutions respond well to disclosures and when institutions conduct anonymous surveys of victimization within the institution and then use the data to become healthier. Dr. Jennifer J. Freyd
In this video, a webcast from the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University, Dr. Freyd argues there is “a social and institutional responsibility to address harm caused by institutional betrayal.” Her studies reveal the personal and institutional costs to betrayal, and point to the remedy - institutional courage. This provocative discussion, which includes Dr. Jennifer Gomez, Dr. Carolyn Warner, and Dr. Estelle Freedman (cited above), identifies the importance of strategic plans, anonymous surveys, and continual assessment. One-off trainings don’t work, but education and reducing ignorance do. Risk Management Mindset too often drives how education is developed, but, “We cannot attain excellence without taking risk.” And as Dr. Gomez points out, “Doing nothing is not riskless.” Burying the problem is a risk, too.
Panelists assert, “There is a hunger for our institutions to do better” and the possibility to transform leadership and reorient our institutions. Movements like #MeToo and #TimesUp create “ecological pressure” during an era where accountability is mounting. Consistent media coverage and catalyzing networks of survivors remain critical, along with grassroot organizing to bring change.
These four trailblazers address multiple sectors, exploring institutional betrayal in the workplace, military, universities, the Catholic Church and beyond. Somehow they also manage to addresses health disparities amid COVID, Anti-Black racism, and patriarchy, while invoking hope and optimism. How do they do this?! By infusing energy and action to all who dare to change oppressive structures.
“We are the institution,” Dr. Gomez reminds us - it’s not just The Big Bad Guys. By empowering each other in telling our collective stories, we build solidarity to become “all of us” instead of isolated individuals.
Carve out time to watch this webcast -these scholars studies must not be limited to academia. Their understanding of trauma and relationships make them more than researchers; they are Healers and Truth Tellers, with a message of hope for every survivor and a challenge for every leader who values courage and integrity.
My Promise & Call to Action
Buoyed by the stories I’ve collected from Lam Research survivors, I remain committed to pulling back the veil, revealing the massive cover up so diligently constructed to hide the violence perpetrated by its “leadership,” past and present. I will not be silenced by fear and intimidation, instead using my privilege and personal power to walk with and for all those ever branded #MeToo by Lam executives.
I am a white, cis, able-bodied woman who recognizes why I was deemed credible and believed. For every Black, Indigenous, and person of color who has experienced harm at Lam Research, your stories matter, too. For every LGBTQ+ member in the Lam community, your justice is my justice. And for the men who cautiously shared your stories of sexual violence with me - toxic masculinity spares no one. I see you and bear witness to your pain.
Tim Archer, as current CEO of Lam Research, watch the video cited above and implement the Ten Principals of Institutional Courage. Access your wise Self to act with integrity and honor, and center the needs of survivors - not #LRCX shareholders.
You can learn more about sexual harassment here. If you need to speak with someone who is trained to help, call the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 800.656.HOPE (4673) or chat online at online.rainn.org.