Burkheart Issues Response to ArmadilloCon Incident
On August 8th, ArmadilloCon issued a statement regarding an “incident” that took place at the event in Austin, TX. While the details were sparse, the report states that a panel participant went “significantly off-topic” and later “laid hands” on another convention attendee.
Author K. Tempest Bradford took to Twitter to share that she had been invited to participate in the same panel — Writing From Other Perspectives, moderated by Suyi Davies Okungbowa — and that the “off-topic” panelist was Becky Burkheart, who seemed to take offense to a question from the audience. Bradford writes that she was told that Burkheart confronted the audience member at the hotel bar later that evening.
Bradford’s account of the incident is second-hand, and an online search for corroboration yields no results, nor can we find video of the panel to confirm Bradford’s description of how Burkheart went “off-topic”.
Burkheart has since provided us with a statement in response to the events of that weekend:
First of all, I want to say that I deeply regret that I upset other panelists and con-goers. It was not my intention and I fully understand why the management asked me to leave under those circumstances. I wholeheartedly apologized to con management however, I wasn’t immediately able to express my regret to the other parties involved — so I very much appreciate the opportunity to do so now. I hope, if they are watching this, they can accept my apology and perhaps even be willing to reach out to let me know if there is any action I can take to make amends. In closing, I would like to encourage listeners to use my gaffe as a learning experience. For me, it will be a constant reminder to be ever mindful of convention protocols, personal boundaries and common courtesies. I’ve been a respected member of our local writing community for over 20 years, without incident, and I can assure you that this will never happen again. Thank you again for allowing me to express my contrition.
