In fact, women were discouraged from reporting complaints to HR through jokes and comments in conjunction with the fact that Galli and Olawoye were golf buddies with Richard Shields, who was the HR director at the time.
On more than one occasion, when employees did report harassment, they were subject to retaliation. In one instance, a male manager reported Olawoye for the way he saw Olawoye treating a female college intern only to have Olawoye barge into his office demanding an apology. In another instance, a female employee received numerous comments from Galli about how she was “too quick to see sexual harassment in everything.”
On the same day the news article written by Daniel Silliman and edited by Kate Shellnutt was published, Tim Dalrymple, who serves as president, CEO, and editor in chief of Christianity Today, published an editorial outlining the ministry’s failures and explaining that he became aware of a complaint against Galli mere months after he came on as president and CEO in 2019.
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To Dalrymple’s surprise, no previous documentation of formal disciplinary action against Galli existed, though previous complaints had been documented. Dalrymple officially reprimanded Galli, threatening suspension or termination should another complaint arise. None did before Galli’s retirement.
However, in 2021, two female employees came forward with a detailed and credible account regarding Galli’s pattern of behavior. This is when Dalrymple and CT leadership reached out to sexual abuse survivor and advocate Rachael Denhollander, who advised CT to hire Guidepost Solutions to conduct an independent investigation.
The assessment has outlined next steps for CT, which include implementing clear HR guidelines and training with regard to sexual harassment, providing anonymous methods of reporting, and increasing “representation of women and diverse candidates at all levels of the company.”
After the news broke, Dalrymple publicly praised Silliman’s reporting.
“We invited this piece, published it, and stand behind it. If Matthew 7:3 is about anything, it’s that we need to confess and address our own sins before we can help others with theirs,” Dalrymple tweeted, referring to Jesus’ words about taking the log out of one’s own eye before examining the speck in someone else’s. “Grateful to the team for some much-needed eye-surgery here.”
In an email to ChurchLeaders, Silliman expressed his commitment to reporting the truth, which sometimes must include “self critique.”
“Isaac Watts once wrote that Jesus came to restore and rule and reconcile ‘far as the curse is found.’ I think it’s easy to hear that and imagine the cursed places that are very distant. But as I understand the gospel, the curse is also in our hearts, our organizations, our power structures, and the systems we’ve built that don’t have the necessary checks and balances to protect the people who need to be protected,” Silliman said.
