“Value Statements” from Publishers, Contests, and other outlets for Authors
The messiness of neat Venn diagrams
In a cover letter today, I wrote the following statement because my submission required a cover letter and recipient referenced their “Values Statement” frequently during the application process. Lots of links to the value statement. I was rather surprised that it wasn’t an additional checkbox as I completed the process. “Did you read our Values Statement and will you comply?”
If you are a writer in The United States and asking the establishment to read/judge/publish your work, then you too have encountered these statements. Maybe you feel heartened and welcomed by these statements, maybe you feel othered when reading these statements. I respect the intent, I’ve grown to despise the language and execution of these statements. I will not publish today’s version of this “antidiscrimination” policy because they are just too easy to find.
In my required cover letter, I wrote:
Sadly, I am a judgy human with opinions and I do discriminate against some individuals and rather a few groups. I strive not to get too judgy based on the common categories such as age, gender, sexual orientation, disability, national origin, ethnic/cultural history, etc. But my discrimination certainly fits in the category of “any other reason.” Progressively, I am of the mindset that evaluating art ought occur behind the same curtain that classical musicians now use during tryouts. Unfair practices existed and still exist. Humans discriminate, as is our nature. Do I pull the curtain back then inventory the various boxes I check? Or do I keep the curtain closed and let judges evaluate the work as it stands?
I wish I hovered above all and felt welcome everywhere and I welcomed all equally. Neither is true. I am just not that good, noble, or perfect. As Popeye says, “I yam what I yam.” If you need to know which of the boxes I tick because they matter to your evaluation process, feel free to ask or provide a list. If you need to know which groups or individuals for whom I hold contempt and vitriol, either ask me or read a respected, trusted, and curated news outlet.
As I wrote about this, I remember an image of a classic New England village. On the north side of the village green stands a 200-year-old white church that states: “All Welcome.” The moveable-type sign gave a quick quote from the minister. You know the thing: a bible reference and something snappy. On the other side of the village green stands another 200-year-old white church with a sign that states: “All Welcome.” To make sure their message allows visitors to discriminate accurately between similar white churches, this second one had a lovely multi-colored flag. Both churches view themselves as “welcoming” and “safe”.
In the Dire Straights song, “Industrial Disease”, there is the line:
Now, I go down to Speaker’s Corner, I’m thunderstruck
They got free speech tourists, police in trucks
Two men say they’re Jesus, one of them must be wrong
There’s a protest singer, he’s singing a protest song
I love that Mark Knopfler, songwriter, accepts the possibility that one (exactly one) of the men maybe Jesus. The line can be understood as profoundly offensive, or absolutely truthful if one holds the belief that Jesus may return.
I wish to stand on that line with Mark Knopfler. I am likely not welcome at one of those churches. Maybe not welcome at either? If one of those two churches is right, then one of them must be wrong.
I find it difficult, in 2026, to stand on Main Street and not discriminate. I’d rather not have hatred in my soul. It isn’t good for me. But I once swore an oath. That oath asks that I uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic. Those who offend the Constitution, offend me. When I learn that Walmart and Amazon systematically underemploys their staff such that avoid paying benefits and push them to federal subsidy programs, I get upset. When I see a five-year old in a blue hat standing in the cold, I get furious.
How is it that I am not to “discriminate on the basis of age, ancestry, disability, family status, gender identity or expression, national origin, race, religion, sex or sexual orientation, or for any other reason”? I was good right up to “any other reason.” Some of my fussiness seems justified.
I know that if I had a quiet conversation a human working at one of these publishers/ agents/ contest hosts, I’d hear: “But that’s not what we mean.” We live and work in this bubble where our words matter. If a phrase isn’t what you mean, then you failed at writing a clear statement. I get to demand that rules mean rules. Oh, right the “Value Statement” is a rule.
How does a “Value Statement” become a rule? You include a penalty for violation as it written here: “We also reserve the right to deplatform writers if we learn they have broken our values elsewhere.”
Therefore, in this scree I am boldly, proudly and loudly stating that I discriminate. My decisions on discrimination land comfortably in the “for any other reason” category. Frankly, I used to discriminate against red hats. Not all red hats because there is that social organization called the Red Hat Society. So, not those red hats. And not the red hat that Nazis persecuted in Norway. Oh, and not the modern red knitted hats now appearing around the globe in support of human rights. Apparently, I discriminate against only some red hats.
That’s the f’n problem with discrimination. Just when you think you can draw a neat box around that group, you find frayed edges and that lovely, crazy, non-linear xxxx (poop) that we humans are. We just don’t fit in boxes well. When you offer hate based on a box or Venn diagram, we all just have to accept that we will be wrong. Humans are messy.
I honestly believe that adults who traffic children for sex are repugnant. That seems like a statement like should be silly and unnecessary.Yet, it is discrimination. I shall discriminate against such folks. Throw misogynists, and corrupt politicians on that pile. I tend to discriminate (even hate) people who offer hatred to groups of people judge others as less-than-human. But then of course, I view them as lacking that core element of humanity, making them less than human in my mind. Oops, rather tautological.
I have proof that one of my ancestors raided an abby at the direction of Henry VIIIth. Probably not cool. I don’t actually have room for shame. I have who travelled to Massachusetts on the Mayflower in 1620. He was 84 years old when he joined the church, meaning he spent his entire adult life as a warrior battling Native Americans in the area where I grew up. Part of my family had their lands stolen and subsequently came to the US as poor refugees who has been outlawed by the English king. My mother’s and father’s side both fought for the United States during the Civil War, but then lived in one of the most racist cities in the Northeast. I can’t judge my own soul on my family’s heritage.
In my house growing up, I had surrogate grandparents who were German Jews, and Boston Irish. I had one uncle who was Korean and one uncle who was the son of a Choctaw chief. My white Boston parents spoke Puerto Rican Spanish at home. And Yiddish slang was the cool way of communicating that teachers and administrators didn’t understand. I’ve been to temple more than a Christian church. One aunt was a happy-clappy-liberal nun who later married and raised a family. One cousin on the other side of the family is a Catholic priest who appears to have defended pedophile priests. On that side of the family, they believe the Catholic mass should return to Latin (That side of the family hates me).
I am not alone. I am your basic American mutt. My mother hated Catholic church for stealing her sister at the age of 15. My mother hated the Catholic church for their stance on birth control. Except for the obligatory funeral/wedding, I never once heard-of/saw my mother enter a Christian church in her life. My mother showed that hurt.
Wanna feel hatred? Tell a long time, trusted friend that “no, I am not Christian” then watch that friendship disappear forever. Apparently, I lied to him for not telling him this. Wanna feel hatred, get kicked out of your own family (three times over forty years). Wanna feel hatred, listen to your own brother when he tells you to never contact him again and learn that he told his wife and children that you are dead.
What I can’t tell from these value statements is that if I am “underrepresented” or “marginalized” or not? Do I get the extra points? Or do I get tossed the “represented” and “not marginalized” pile?
Oh, right. “underrepresented” and “marginalized” are attributed assigned to groups. They are tags for Venn diagrams. A funny thing happens when you take group attributes and assign them to individuals. It sounds incredibly cringy and racist. Wanna try it with me?
You’re Irish, therefore you…
You’re Jewish, therefore you…
You’re Black, therefore you…
You’re Fat, therefore you…
You’re American, therefore you…
You’re Autistic, therefore you…
You’re Disabled, therefore you…
If I am Irish, then I am well represented in the world of writers. It’s like a thing. If Jewish, then you’ve been over-represented in American publishing. None of this shit works. None of it is true.
In short, it is never possible to understand an individual while ascribing attributes from a group-level analysis. Every time we try, we sound just as cringy and wrong as the above statements.
When I read these value statements and statements of discrimination based on antidiscrimination, I wonder how these values factor into the evaluation of our art. Do the evaluators use our names to infer our demographic data? Do the evaluators simply guess about our buckets/tick-boxes from the writing? Or do the evaluators ignore their over-written statements and judge fairly?
If the statements are contradictory and meaningless, then why write them? Why demand participates read them? If the statements are crafted to eliminate participation by stating “We also reserve the right to deplatform writers if we learn they have broken our values elsewhere” then please write rules that work. Ok, publishing your history is just as messy as the rest of our history. Work daily to make today more fair than yesterday. Small goals and yell “Kaizen” when you feel progress made.
Never once has the sign “All Welcome” been 100% accurate. Wishin’ and policy ain’t gonna make it true. Because: human. Loving, confused, mortal humans. I have 64 great-great-great-grandparents, and 128 5x grandparents. That’s messy man, super messy when trying to fit us humans into neat orderly Venn diagrams.
I yam what I yam.
Follow Up / Following Day
I scribbled an email to one of these organizations asking for a specific list of words not permitted. Am I to follow the FCC rules which apparently allows “bitch” and “ass” these days? Or do I fall back on George Carlin’s famous list of 7 words. I find it odd that there are still words forbidden to write or say in English even though they exists in award-winning literature.
[This organization] “does not permit stories that contain explicit sexual content, hate speech, vulgar language, or political advocacy. This includes the four words you mentioned, along with any other language that would be considered inappropriate for a broad, multi-generational readership. We do not follow an FCC-style list of prohibited words, nor do we rely on a specific set of banned terms. Instead, we evaluate language in context and expect entrants to use sound judgment in ensuring their work is appropriate and suitable for a wide audience.”
Gods, I wish I had that sort of judgement where I knew the difference. I write what I hear and I do mean to push a tiny bit. By no means avant garde, just another trades person plying their craft. Interestingly, the email stated that: “If your story can be revised to remove any disqualifying content, you are welcome to submit a revised version.”
Frankly, I am at the point of wondering if the “disqualifying content” is my story telling. Oh well, someone will say over my corpse: “Gee willickers, she wrote well, but never won an award.”
Well golly, darn, shucks. Drat.