On November 14th, 2017, via social media, Charlyne Yi accused me of sexual harassment. We all know that many victims of harassment have come forward. Their stories are important and their voices should be empowered. Those who know me don’t need me to say this, but Ms. Yi’s story is provably false. And I deny her accusation.
I cannot speak to her motivation. I can only state that Ms. Yi’s description of our evening is fabricated.
In her posts (which she has since deleted from all of her social media platforms), Ms. Yi claimed that I asked her out for drinks to discuss a possible book collaboration. This is an outright lie. I had no expectation we would be discussing any book deal or other business proposal; and, in fact, we did not. I was under the impression that she wasn’t meeting me alone. In texts to her, I told her that I reserved a table at a bar big enough for her and whoever accompanied her. This is an absolute—and pertinent—fact she purposefully excluded from her accusation.
During our evening, I shared personal insight about my relationship with my father. After which, Ms. Yi gave me this.
After two beers, I suggested that we end the evening early—as I’m not much of a drinker. She suggested we drink more. She even drew in my sketchbook for me as we were leaving the bar (seen here).
After drinking, we went for pizza—and she paid. I thought I was with a friend.
I point this out because Ms. Yi noted in her fabrication that she felt “uncomfortable” with me early in the evening. Her actions prove otherwise.
Because I used some coarse language during the evening—as did she—I ended the night by apologizing. I wanted to make sure that what I said didn’t make her feel uncomfortable in any way. She waved off my apology as unnecessary, saying, “If I thought what you said was creepy, I would have said ‘bye-eee’.” She chose to walk me four blocks to the subway. She told me she had a great night. And she hugged me goodbye.
The entire encounter occurred out in public, with plenty of people around, and in view (no doubt) of security cameras. As part of her false narrative, Ms. Yi said she pushed against my alleged advances by “reminding me” of my family. The reality is that I was texting with my wife throughout the entire evening from beginning to end (seen below, note the time stamps). I was star struck, to be sure, but I was in no way trying to flirt with her or entice her into anything.
Days later, she accused me via email of trying to “manipulate” her to get her in bed. I was not. I would not harass anyone—much less a vocal (and popular) opponent of sexual harassment.
But, I again apologized. My apologies were interpreted as admissions of guilt—since I said it was a “weak moment” and that I felt “nauseated”. Yes, for someone who tries to never do anything remotely harmful, it was a weak moment. And, yes, it is nauseating to read from a celebrity with a significant following that something you said to them could be interpreted as “harassment” at the height of the #MeToo movement.
A few days later, she called Penguin’s Human Resources Department—after posting a drawing of me with the word “burn” on it. Penguin conducted two investigations—internally, then externally. The HR representative told me that the investigations included talking to Ms. Yi. I point this out because on Twitter, she said that “no one from Penguin” responded to her.
Both investigations concluded to Ms. Yi’s great dissatisfaction (she wanted me to be fired). So, in response, she publicly defamed me in a scorched-earth manner with reckless disregard to me, my safety, my reputation, or the truth—leveraging her celebrity status and her significant following across multiple social media platforms.
That she called me, among other things, a “manipulative psychopath predator” should have alerted people to the possibility that something was amiss with her story. However, the response was considerable. I was advised by executives and human resources associates at Penguin not to make a public statement, although I desperately wanted to. I see now that my silence suggested her outlandish story was true.
Any suggestion that I am the person described by Ms. Yi is absurd. Having been emotionally and physically harassed in my youth, I believe all forms of harassment are abhorrent—including social media mobbing. Throughout my career, I have worked hard to foster an inclusive and supportive environment for my colleagues and the illustration community at large.
That said, as a result of her online campaign against me, an untenable disruption of business arose—making it difficult for me to continue at Penguin.
KEY FACTS
My employer conducted an internal and external investigation. Both investigations concluded “no wrongdoing that would have resulted in termination”—to directly quote the Director of Human Resources, Paige McInerney. She also said:
“No one else came forward.”
“The designers said you were the best boss they ever had.”
She went on to say that the social media furor was, “too much”. A petition by literary agent, Marietta Zacker of Galt & Zacker—who had no connection with the incident or insight into the facts whatsoever— was submitted to my employer before the external investigation concluded. That petition was the “untenable disruption”.
Meanwhile, Harold Underdown, a book editor, who also had no connection with the incident or insight into the facts claimed on Facebook that his “insiders” told him there were other incidents. There were not. Still, his Facebook post spread to Twitter. The narrative that I was a “serial predator” took hold.
Ms. Zacker’s petition (and her efforts to “keep Penguin’s feet to the fire”—as one person described it) threatened the day-to-day business of the nascent imprint for which I was working. So, it was with tremendous sadness—from the President of Penguin Young Readers, executive staff, my direct staff (all but one of whom were women), others at Penguin, and me—that I had no choice but to resign from my dream job. To help me and my family, Penguin provided substantial compensation.
Weeks later, three of the eight designers working on my team resigned in protest of my employer’s decision.
These facts can all be verified by contacting Penguin’s HR department.
Even after my traumatic resignation, Ms. Yi continued to post hateful, mob-inciting, wholly fictitious statements, like this one (in which she also admits that the investigation proved her allegations to be false):
In an interview, some time later, we see Ms. Yi’s disturbing idea of who she thinks I am—which, again, could not possibly be further from the truth:
The facts, two investigations, testimony from my thoroughly interviewed design team, and Ms. Yi’s own statements and lies clearly show that someone can, in fact, lose their livelihoods from false allegations mixed with outrage culture.
I now begin the overwhelming work of restoring the damage done to my name, my mental health, and my reputation—caused by Ms. Yi’s truly reckless choices—while I continue to care for my wife and three small children.
I was asked on Twitter: “If what she’s saying is false, why don’t you sue her?” It would have been far too expensive. And, it would have been a years-long, traumatic process for me and my family.
My name (my name!)—was included among huge celebrities on lists compiled by AP, Yahoo, NBC, New York Times, and elsewhere. Millions upon millions of people saw “Giuseppe Castellano” on a list of accused sexual harassers.
The surreal nightmare of it all is still too big to fully comprehend. Suing Ms. Yi would have made it much, much worse. And there would be no guarantee—at the height of the #MeToo movement—that I would win my case (as was advised to me by an attorney).
For the few of you who chose to believe Ms. Yi’s story without hearing my side: It is quite clear that there is no presumption of innocence when facing allegations, even ones as strained and contorted as Ms. Yi’s. That, too, should be a fair dialogue.
I will remain an ardent supporter of the children’s book community. And I will continue to assist and encourage illustrators in every way I can.
I want to express my deepest gratitude to my family, friends, colleagues, former co-workers, therapists, and all who are standing by me through this ordeal.