Outrage in Sweden as 2 women pressured to leave Nobel group

Other Swedish women also posted blouse pictures as anger grew over Danius’ departure, including Social Affairs Minister Annika Strandhall, actress Helena Bergstrom and fashion designer Camilla Thulin.

Danius, a 56-year-old literature professor, resigned from the Swedish Academy on Thursday night after a contentious three-hour meeting. Shortly afterward, the academy announced that another female member, Katarina Frostenson, was “leaving.”

Members of the secretive academy are appointed for life and resignations are extremely rare.

Frostenson is Arnault’s wife, prompting some in Sweden to note that it is sexist to punish a wife for her husband’s alleged abuses.

The prestigious academy has been in turmoil after the resignations last week of three men — Klas Ostergren, Kjell Espmark and Peter Englund — who quit after the 18-member academy voted not to remove Frostenson.

Arnault was banned in December by the Swedish Academy from attending a Nobel banquet after the Swedish paper Dagens Nyheter published allegations from 18 women claiming to have been assaulted or raped by him.

Arnault denies the alleged assaults, which reportedly occurred between 1996 and 2017. Swedish prosecutors said last month that an investigation into reported rape and sexual abuse by Arnault from 2013 to 2015 had been dropped, but a probe into other criminal acts would continue.

Earlier this week, academy member Horace Engdahl, reportedly a friend of Arnault’s, lashed out at Danius in a scathing editorial where he accused her of being the worst permanent secretary ever. It seems Engdahl got his supporters — chiefly men — go against Danius and all those who supported her have now left the academy.

Before the departures of Danius and Frostenson, seven of the academy’s 18 members were women.

In a statement, the academy said Thursday night that “Frostenson has announced that she is leaving her assignments … with the hope that it (the academy) will survive as an institution.”

Neither Frostenson nor the academy would elaborate.

On Wednesday, the Nobel Foundation sharply criticized the Swedish Academy, saying it had damaged its own reputation and was threatening to tarnish the reputation of the Nobel Prize itself.

Bah Kuhnke, the culture minister, said she was following the crisis at the academy “with sorrow.”

“The conflicts obscure the important work of this independent (cultural) institution,” she said, vowing as culture minister that “I will do everything in my power to protect art and literature’s freedom and position.”

Since a wave of allegations of sexual harassment and assault against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein started last fall, multiple men in entertainment, media, politics and beyond have faced allegations ranging from inappropriate sexual behaviour to rape.

Sweden itself saw thousands of sexual misconduct allegations surfacing.

“The aftermath of the autumn’s many calls from thousands of women continues. Now it is enough, we refuse to go back,” Bah Kuhnke said.

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Olsen reported from Copenhagen, Denmark.

David Keyton And Jan M. Olsen, The Associated Press

by Canadian Press

Outrage in Sweden as 2 women pressured to leave Nobel group

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