Last updated on 10/23/2015
9/30/2014: Now with a report from KATU News. UO’s well-paid PR flacks Craig Pintens and Tobin Klinger were apparently not willing to talk about this one on camera:
928/2014: It is, of course, common for repentant criminals to give “scared straight” talks about how their bad choices ruined their lives. But is a $4K payment for a keynote talk on sexual assault prevention really an appropriate consequence for trying to rape your daughters’ babysitter, in your house, while your kids are asleep? (Apparently he pled it down to sexual battery). And is Adam Ritz really the best poster-child for the athletic department to trot out? The AD’s accounting of their Sexual Violence Prevention programs is here. It’s pretty thin, as Coach Altman has admitted. Here’s one example – motivational speaker Adam Ritz:
“Keynote speaker for Football. Contractor to provide Alcohol Awareness/Sexual Assualt (sic) Decision Making. May 8, 2013”
Mr Ritz’s mug-shot:
Adam Ritz’s contract with the Ducks (the pdf includes contracts for other “sexual assault prevention speakers” Elaine Pasqua, Tony Dungy and Lee Gordon):
More links on Mr. Ritz, who appears to be making quite a good living from this:
http://www.homefacts.com/offender-detail/IN649373/Robert-Adam-Ritz.html
http://adamritz.com/Adam_Ritz/Media.html
http://www.wthr.com/story/1843004/disc-jockey-gets-prison-time
http://www.mndaily.com/2011/10/13/letter-greeks-apologizes-brash-speaker
http://www.usishield.com/apb-hires-lifetime-sex-offender/
http://timesupblog.blogspot.com/2011/05/listening-to-perps.html
http://archive.today/b5xmW
https://angelzfury.wordpress.com/2011/06/21/listening-to-the-perps-not-the-domestic-violence-victims-societies-accepted-norm/
From one article:
A good, or perhaps I should say bad example of this common mistake occurred at Minnesota State University, Mankato last month. The school paid Adam Ritz $2500 to speak to the students about the dangers of drinking. The event was sponsored by the Residence Hall Association, a fraternity and Men Against Violence. The Women’s Center expressed its opposition to the presentation but was ignored by these organizations including Men Against Violence which claims to be an ally of the Women’s Center.
Adam Ritz is a former local media personality. He is also a convicted sex offender. He reveals this as part of his presentation, but only towards the end. Mr. Ritz came home and attempted to rape the young woman who was baby-sitting his children. He was convicted, but served only six months and is on the sex offender list for his crime. His presentation sparked a controversy on campus that has spread throughout the country. A Facebook page was created to protest the decision to invite him to the school. Rather than treating the student body with a modicum of respect and addressing these concerns Mr. Ritz and the organizers of the program made many mistakes and I would like to look at them in hopes they can be avoided in the future.
Accordingly when the Women’s Center objected to the program with Adam Ritz, the male organizations should have recognized the Women’s Center as the experts on campus and stopped the program. Even better they should have consulted with the Women’s Center before scheduling Adam Ritz. It is unsurprising that they didn’t because they were exercising their privilege. Maya Angelou, the poet, says when people show you who they really are, believe them.
The many egregious, inappropriate and downright hurtful statements made by Adam Ritz illustrates why it is a bad idea to have perpetrators of sexist or other crimes based upon oppression speak to these issues.
A very bad idea. But worse than Tom Hart’s Russian motorcycle prostitutes powerpoint? Hard to say.
Regardless of the $4k honorarium, is inviting a rapist/sex offender onto campus a wise move for the UO? What security did the UO put in place to ensure that he did not rape again? Were students warned that a registered sex offender was on campus?
No warning – that would be a FERPA violation.
I had wondered about this too. Ritz does not mention his rape history on his website or promo, as far as I can see. Apparently he sometimes springs this on the audience at the end, but I wonder if this might be worse. Anyone who works on these issues is aware of how difficult it is for those who have been sexually abused to sit through discussions of it by others, especially if they are female and the speaker is male. In any case, this should have been a matter of discussion before hiring him and having him speak, and the discussion should not have just been within the athletic department.
We’ve long known about the UO administrative class paying themselves well above market, and granting the athletics department the same, with additional perks. I didn’t know that we also paid above market for sex offenders turned public speakers.
So one conclusion that could be drawn from this episode is if your football career tanks and you get convicted for sexual assault, you can still get rich with a speaking career. Power 5 conferences will be the most likely takers.
Next they’ll hire Don Imus to talk about how cultural insensitivity impacted his life.
I’m glad they tried to do something but what the fuck????? Bringing a registered sex offender to campus????? You might as well as play Doug Park as QB this year on that rationale.
You just couldn’t make this effing stuff up. I’m shocked and disgusted. Please let someone be held accountable for this.
Accountability for Robin Holmes and Lorraine Davis? Dream on, friend.
I just read some of the comments on the KATU site…amazing.
Yeah … and check out the comments today on Steve Duin’s article in the Oregonian on the Sexual Violence Campus Survey. There’s one specific professional troll with quite acerbic, slanderous comments, but still the average joe poster seems more upset that UO wants to expose what’s happening on campus than that the football team might easily lose to Arizona Thursday night.
Here’s an article on TA&M football website about how being arrested doesn’t have to ruin your life/reputation. Adam Ritz has spoken to their players and is cited as an example.
http://www.aggiesports.com/football/texas-a-m-ad-says-discipline-an-ongoing-process-in/article_25cd3574-37bc-5fda-8e9d-7dba52454d3b.html
There is a major messaging issue when this guy is able to brand his experience as alcoholism induced poor judgement that hasn’t ruined his life. I wonder if the survivor can say the same about the state of her life after Mr. Ritz’s “poor judgement.”
The judgement issue I see here is teaching athletes that you too can assault people as a public figure and wind up being paid for it later.
Well this certainly explains why Rob Mullens still needs to steal the academic side’s money.
Disgusting!!! Who pays rapist to give talk? ??!!! Pay those suffering fRom lifelong fear and trauma! ! Thier lives will never be the same. What about protecTing the woman whose life will be altered forever. Give victims the Money. . Duh. .. no Brainer. Shame on whoever came up with that shitty idea
Morality aside, from a purely public relations standpoint, this is a boneheaded move. On the heels of a national sex scandal, someone in administration should have said, “No, let’s not bring in a convicted rapist to speak on sexual assault – that would be bad PR.”
Where are all the strategic communicators when you need them. Seems like the one job they should be able to do is protect idiot administrators from themselves.
I hope the person who said “No warning – that would be a FERPA violation” isn’t a UO Student. That has nothing to do with FERPA.
Most substance abuse counselors are former addicts. Maybe this guy can do a better job of reaching the students that need it.
Having not heard his message, maybe you dudes should get off of your high horses.