Editing Derek Walcott (section)

==Allegations of sexual harassment==
In 1982, a Harvard sophomore accused Walcott of sexual harassment in September 1981. She alleged that after she refused a sexual advance from him, she was given the only C in the class. In 1996 a student at Boston University sued Walcott for sexual harassment and "offensive sexual physical contact". The two reached a settlement.<ref>{{Cite news|first1=Angela A.|last1=Sun|url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2007/6/4/poet-accused-of-harassment-students-in/|title=Poet Accused of Harassment|work=[[The Harvard Crimson]]|date=4 June 2007|access-date=25 March 2017|archive-date=14 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180814062322/https://www.thecrimson.com/article/2007/6/4/poet-accused-of-harassment-students-in/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=The Lecherous Professor: Sexual Harassment on Campus |first1= Billie Wright |last1=Dziech|first2=Linda |last2=Weiner|edition= second|publisher=University of Illinois Press|location=Urbana. IL|year= 1990|isbn=978-0-252-06118-9|url=https://archive.org/details/lecherousprofess00dzie|url-access=registration |pages=[https://archive.org/details/lecherousprofess00dzie/page/29 29]–32}}</ref>

In 2009, Walcott was a leading candidate for the position of [[Oxford Professor of Poetry]]. He withdrew his candidacy after reports of the accusations against him of sexual harassment from 1981 and 1996.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Griffiths|first1=Sian|last2=Grimston|first2=Jack|title=Sex pest file gives Oxford poetry race a nasty edge|url=https://www.thetimes.com/best-law-firms/profile-legal/article/sex-pest-file-gives-oxford-poetry-race-a-nasty-edge-trfrtkj9zfn|access-date=5 April 2017|work=[[The Sunday Times]]|date=10 May 2009|location=London|archive-date=6 April 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170406020337/https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/sex-pest-file-gives-oxford-poetry-race-a-nasty-edge-trfrtkj9zfn|url-status=live}}</ref>

When the media learned that pages from an American book on the topic were sent anonymously to a number of Oxford academics, this aroused their interest in the university's decisions.<ref name="Woods">{{cite news|url=http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/poetry/article6350589.ece|title=Call for Oxford poet to resign after sex row|date=24 May 2009|access-date=25 May 2009|work=The Sunday Times|location=London|first=Richard|last=Woods|archive-date=17 June 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110617003953/http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/books/poetry/article6350589.ece|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="Ch4News">{{cite web|url=http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/arts_entertainment/poetic+justice+as+padel+steps+down/3169662|title=Poetic justice as Padel steps down|date=26 May 2009|access-date=26 May 2009|publisher=[[Channel 4 News]]|archive-date=28 May 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090528203314/http://www.channel4.com/news/articles/arts_entertainment/poetic+justice+as+padel+steps+down/3169662|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Ruth Padel]], also a leading candidate, was elected to the post. Within days, ''[[The Daily Telegraph]]'' reported that she had alerted journalists to the harassment cases.<ref name="Khan">{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/5378474/Ruth-Padel-under-pressure-to-resign-Oxford-post-over-emails-about-rival-poet-Derek-Walcott.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/5378474/Ruth-Padel-under-pressure-to-resign-Oxford-post-over-emails-about-rival-poet-Derek-Walcott.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Ruth Padel under pressure to resign Oxford post over emails about rival poet Derek Walcott|date=24 May 2009|access-date=24 May 2009|work=The Daily Telegraph | location=London | first1=Urmee | last1=Khan | first2=Richard | last2=Eden}}{{cbignore}}</ref><ref name="Padel">{{cite news|agency=Press Association |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/may/25/ruth-padel-oxford-poetry-resigns |title=Oxford professor of poetry Ruth Padel resigns |work=The Guardian |date= 25 May 2009|access-date=20 September 2010 | location=London}}</ref> Under severe media and academic pressure, Padel resigned.<ref name="Khan"/><ref name="Hay festival diary">{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/video/2009/may/26/hay-festival-ruth-padel|title=Hay festival diary: Ruth Padel talks about the poetry professorship scandal|date=26 May 2009|access-date=26 May 2009|work=The Guardian|location=London|first=Rebecca|last=Lovell|archive-date=8 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808090344/https://www.theguardian.com/books/video/2009/may/26/hay-festival-ruth-padel|url-status=live}}</ref> Padel was the first woman to be elected to the Oxford post, and some journalists attributed the criticism of her to misogyny<ref>Libby Purves, [https://www.thetimes.com/uk/politics/article/a-familiar-reek-of-misogyny-and-mistrust-9tbzbfbk36x "A familiar reek of misogyny and mistrust"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140407081529/http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/opinion/columnists/libbypurves/article2043191.ece |date=7 April 2014 }}, ''The Times'', 18 May 2009.</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/yasmin-alibhai-brown/yasmin-alibhaibrown-a-male-poet-wouldnt-have-been-blamed-for-rough-tactics-1690430.html | title=A Male Poet Wouldn't Have Been Blamed for Rough Tactics | last=Alibhai Brown | first=Yasmin | work=[[The Independent]] | date=25 May 2009 | access-date=26 August 2017 | archive-date=30 January 2012 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130034641/http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/yasmin-alibhai-brown/yasmin-alibhaibrown-a-male-poet-wouldnt-have-been-blamed-for-rough-tactics-1690430.html | url-status=live }}</ref> and a gender war at Oxford. They said that a male poet would not have been so criticized, as she had reported published information, not rumour.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Halford |first=Macy |url=http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2009/05/oxfords-gender-trouble.html |title=The Book Bench: Oxford's Gender Trouble |magazine=The New Yorker |date=7 January 2009 |access-date=20 September 2010 |archive-date=19 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019225021/http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/books/2009/05/oxfords-gender-trouble.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Gardner |first=Suzanne |url=http://www.quillandquire.com/book-news/2009/05/26/ruth-padel-resigns-but-the-gender-war-rages-on/ |title=Ruth Padel resigns, but the 'gender war' rages on |work=Quill and Quire |date=26 May 2009 |access-date=21 March 2017 |archive-date=22 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170322110944/http://www.quillandquire.com/book-news/2009/05/26/ruth-padel-resigns-but-the-gender-war-rages-on/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Numerous respected poets, including [[Seamus Heaney]] and [[Al Alvarez]], published a letter of support for Walcott in ''[[The Times Literary Supplement]],'' and criticized the press furore.<ref>[[Al Alvarez]], [[Alan Brownjohn]], Carmen Bugan, [[David Constantine]], [[Elizabeth Cook (writer)|Elizabeth Cook]], [[Robert Conquest]], [[Jonty Driver]], [[Seamus Heaney]], [[Jenny Joseph]], [[Grevel Lindop]], [[Patrick McGuinness (writer)|Patrick McGuinness]], [[Lucy Newlyn]], [[Bernard O'Donoghue]], [[Michael Schmidt (poet)|Michael Schmidt]], [[Jon Stallworthy]], [[Michael Suarez]], [[D. M. Thomas|Don Thomas]], [[Anthony Thwaite]], "Oxford Professor of Poetry," ''The Times Literary Supplement'', 3 June 2009, p. 6.</ref> Other commentators suggested that both poets were casualties of the media interest in an internal university affair because the story "had everything, from sex claims to allegations of character assassination".<ref name="enotes">[http://www.enotes.com/topic/Oxford_Professor_of_Poetry "Oxford Professor of Poetry"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808090456/https://www.enotes.com/topics |date=8 August 2024 }}, ENotes.</ref> [[Simon Armitage]] and other poets expressed regret at Padel's resignation.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/fromthewebteam/2009/05/ |title=Newsnight: From the web team |publisher=BBC |date=May 2009 |access-date=10 September 2010 |archive-date=6 August 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090806175344/http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/newsnight/fromthewebteam/2009/05/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=Robert McCrum |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/may/31/ruth-padel-derek-walcott-oxford-professor-poetry |title=Who dares to follow in Ruth Padel's footsteps? |work=The Observer |date=31 May 2009 |access-date=18 September 2010 |location=London |author-link=Robert McCrum |archive-date=8 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808090346/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/may/31/ruth-padel-derek-walcott-oxford-professor-poetry |url-status=live }}</ref>