March 08, 2024
Provided Image/Maria Emelianov
Chess star Jennifer Shahade has been the leader of a Me Too movement within the sport, joined by multiple women who alleged sexual assault and abuse by Alejandro Ramirez. Shahade, a Philly native, said this she's progressed in her push for accountability from the U.S. Chess Federation.
Prominent U.S. chess player and Philly native Jennifer Shahade sent shockwaves through the chess world last year when she went public with allegations that she had been sexually assaulted by one of the game's biggest stars, Alejandro Ramirez, on two occasions about a decade ago. This week, it was determined that the game's U.S. governing body will formally hear her grievances, her legal representatives said.
The two-time U.S. women's champion and women's grandmaster — the highest distinction in the sport — is a Masterman High School graduate who has remained in the city and comes from a family of competitive chess and poker players. She's a published author, commentator and influential mentor to young women who are serious about chess, which underwent a boom in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ramirez is a Costa Rican chess prodigy who began representing the United States in international competition in 2011. He coached elite chess clubs and emerged as a luminary in an intellectual sport that usually doesn't get much mainstream fanfare.
In February 2023, Shahade posted on X, formerly Twitter, that Ramirez was being investigated by multiple chess organizations not only for the alleged incidents involving herself, but for the alleged sexual assaults of at least 10 other women who had come forward with their stories. Several of the women were minors when they allegedly were abused and harassed by Ramirez.
"The road to investigation and potential consequences has been a very stressful process," Shahade, now 43, wrote at the time.
Weeks after Shahade's post, the allegations against Ramirez were detailed in a Wall Street Journal story that examined how complaints from Shahade and other women had gone unaddressed by some of the sport's most powerful organizations in the United States — specifically the U.S. Chess Federation and the Saint Louis Chess Club, where Ramirez held distinguished roles.
Shahade alleged that on one occasion in 2014, Ramirez, now 35, had "slammed" her against a wall and forcibly kissed her while the two were attending a small gathering at a home in St. Louis — one of the nation's top cities for chess. Other accounts reviewed by the Wall Street Journal detailed how Ramirez allegedly made aggressive sexual advances on girls as young as 15 and used alcohol to take advantage of multiple women. Ramirez formerly coached various girls' and women's teams, giving him regular access to talented young chess players who recognized his star power and influence in the sport.
Ramirez’s attorney, Albert Watkins, said, "Mr. Ramirez has always been and remains supportive of women raising concerns about issues of the nature raised by Ms. Shahade."
The U.S. Chess Club, which governs U.S. competition, claimed it first received "formal complaints" about Ramirez in late 2022. But a lawyer for the Saint Louis Chess Club said it had been aware of Shahade's allegations as early as 2020, and that both organizations had been informed of disturbing reports about Ramirez by the following year. Still, Ramirez was chosen to coach the U.S. women's team at the World Chess Olympiad in India in the summer of 2022. And around the same time, Ramirez was swept into another major chess scandal when he interviewed teen grandmaster Hans Niemann, who was accused of cheating in online games and at the 2022 Sinquefield Cup in St. Louis.
Months later, blowback from the investigations that were sparked by Shahade's viral tweet led Ramirez to resign from his roles at the Saint Louis Chess Club and as coach of the affiliated Saint Louis University chess team. He also resigned from his position at U.S. Chess, which permanently banned Ramirez from being a member. The organization said its third-party probe concluded the response from U.S. Chess had been "timely and appropriate," and the governing body made a series of commitments to enhance policies protecting its members. U.S. Chess did not release the investigation report, citing the confidential nature of witness testimony.
Shahade, who formerly served as director of the U.S. Chess Women's program, resigned from her role in September and wrote on her Substack that she was leaving with "heavy concerns" about the way the allegations against Ramirez had been handled.
"Instead of support, I was greeted with hostility," Shahade said. "Those familiar with institutional betrayal and whistleblowing won’t find any of this surprising."
In another post last month, Shahade alleged that U.S. Chess had made legal threats against her during the investigation, including a demand that she refrain from contact with teen members who reach out to her about her books and her work.
On Tuesday, Shahade announced that she has retained legal representation to mediate her claims against U.S. Chess "in an attempt to reach a fair, just and equitable resolution." The organization had invited Shahade to enter mediation regarding her qualms with U.S. Chess.
"We await the next steps in this matter and will remain committed to keeping the public informed, recognizing that Shahade serves as a powerful representative of all sexual assault victims across the United States," Shahade's attorneys said.
When contacted Thursday, Shahade referred questions to her attorney, Tamara Holder, who declined to comment about the goals of mediation with U.S. Chess and how the parties reached this step.
"We are waiting to hear back from US Chess, after we accepted their invitation to mediate Ms. Shahade’s claims," Holder said. "We hope that their invitation was legitimate and not an attempt to further victimize Ms. Shahade. We appreciate the public’s great interest and concern."
U.S. Chess declined to comment on entering mediation with Shahade but reiterated that it had severed its ties with Ramirez. The board of the Saint Louis Chess Club admitted in a letter in October that it had not been vocal enough about the problems Shahade and other women brought to light.
"We were silent on this very real and important issue for too long – and in doing so – we let down those whom we champion: our students, players, donors and friends. Our failure to use our influence to publicly step up and fiercely advocate for keeping chess safe is a mistake that will not be repeated," the board said.
Shahade told the Wall Street Journal that she had confronted Ramirez in 2020, when she had been scheduled to commentate a chess event alongside him and objected to working with him. Ramirez, who has largely been absent from the chess world since the scandal broke, reportedly told her then that he regretted his past behavior and would agree to back out of the event.
The public nature of the investigations came at a time when Shahade and other chess players were getting more national recognition, aided by the popularity of the hit Netflix series "The Queen's Gambit." Around the time she confronted Ramirez — before going public — Shahade told Vanity Fair she views chess as an "equalizer" for women that allows them to compete outside traditional boundaries. She also said women chess players remain caught in a world that sends them mixed messages.
"There’s that combination of getting lots of positive attention and opportunities because you’re one of the few females in the game, whereas there’s also the negativity of trolls and scrutiny and overall questioning of whether girls and women belong," she said.
In her Substack post last month, Shahade said she feels compelled to fight for accountability that will send a strong signal to organizations that ignore or overlook allegations of sexual abuse.
"Whistleblowing is not for the faint of heart, and in my case, required privilege, mental stamina, influential friends and journalists," Shahade said. "The price included job loss, violent threats, severed relationships, legal costs to defend against a cease and desist, and both covert and direct attacks on my credibility. The cost is too high to wish on anyone. Institutions must build systems to funnel truth to power."
