Lincoln Project’s Only Female Cofounder Says Culture of Toxic Masculinity Drove Her to Resign

Jennifer Horn, the only female cofounder of the Lincoln Project, issued a statement Thursday shedding more light on the toxic culture that prompted her resignation from the group last week.

Horn initially said her decision was based on the “sickening” behavior of John Weaver, the Lincoln Project cofounder who was ousted from the group after being accused by multiple young men of inappropriate sexual behavior. The Lincoln Project responded by accusing Horn of demanding more money than she was worth.

In her statement on Thursday, Horn said this bullying behavior was typical given the Lincoln Project’s male-dominated culture. When the New York Times published a story on the Weaver scandal earlier this month, Horn said the Lincoln Project “released a statement without my knowledge or input.” When she expressed her disapproval to one of the group’s founders, she was “yelled at, demeaned, and lied to.”

Despite her status as a cofounder, Horn said she was “never part of, or included in, the Lincoln Project’s inner circle” and was “earning a small fraction of what some of my male counterparts did.”

Horn claimed that, in the course of her contract negotiations with the Lincoln Project, she demanded that the group “properly address the Weaver issue publicly and issue a call to action to take on sexual harassment and power imbalance/exploitation issues.”

These demands were “rejected outright,” prompting Horn’s resignation and the Lincoln Project’s “angry” response, which she called “a direct assault on my character” that will likely persist as long as she continues to speak out.

Hours after Horn’s statement was released, the Lincoln Project posted photos of what appeared to be a private Twitter conversation between Horn and Amanda Becker, a reporter for 19th News who was working on a story about the group.

The photos, which appeared to be taken by someone with access to Horn’s account, were quickly deleted after George Conway, the Lincoln Project cofounder who cut ties with the group in August, pointed out that posting the private conversation without Horn’s consent was “a violation of federal law.”

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