The Silence Breaker From North Country
Introducing Lois Jenson, the Minnesota miner who was the lead plaintiff in the first ever sexual harassment class-action lawsuit. (Link to Podcast Below)
Lois Jenson’s courage and tenacity have made her an historic figure in the fight against sexual harassment.
She was the lead plaintiff in the first ever sexual harassment class-action lawsuit in the U.S. -- a case that inspired the 2005 film North Country.
I spoke with her in 2018, at the height of the #MeToo movement, for an in-depth Wavemaker Conversation. I’ve decided to repost the conversation now, for historical context, in light of the release of She Said, the new film about Harvey Weinstein.
In 1975, Jenson was hired as one of the first four women miners in the Eveleth Taconite Mine in northern Minnesota. In our Wavemaker Conversation, Jenson shares the details of what a judge on the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals called a “record of human indecency [that] sought to destroy the human psyche as well as the human spirit” of Jenson and the other female miners.
I think you will find Lois Jenson’s voice and indomitable spirit to be a source of inspiration.
You can listen to our conversation on Spotify here, or by clicking the play icon on the YouTube link below.