Women join forces against sexual assault with 'me too' social media campaign

Actress Alyssa Milano asked her social media followers to tweet 'me too,' if they have ever suffered sexual harassment or assault as claims against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein continue to come forward.

|
John Shearer/Invision/AP/File
Alyssa Milano arrives at the Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on May 19, 2013. Thousands of women responded to Ms. Milano’s call to tweet 'me too' in order to raise awareness of sexual harassment and assault following the recent revelation of decades of allegations of sexual misconduct by movie mogul Harvey Weinstein.

Thousands of women are identifying themselves as victims of sexual harassment or assault following a call to action propelled by actress Alyssa Milano in the wake of Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein's downfall over of allegations of sexual misconduct spanning decades.

Ms. Milano passed along a suggestion from a friend on Sunday that women who have been sexually harassed or assaulted post "me too" to "give people a sense of the magnitude of the problem."

The campaign quickly trended on Twitter and Facebook, with notable names like Lady Gaga, Monica Lewinsky and Rosario Dawson identifying themselves as victims. Others shared personal stories.

"Being raped once made it easier to be raped again. I instinctually shut down. My body remembered, so it protected me. I disappeared. #metoo," actress Evan Rachel Wood wrote as part of a series of tweets on her experience. "Sharing my stories and feeling less alone really helps. So thank you for listening."

Some women weighed in with stories of assaults while in the military, gang rapes, and catcalls.

Milano's former co-star on TV's "Charmed," Rose McGowan, tweeted in support of the campaign. Ms. McGowan has accused Weinstein of raping her.

Milano called the Weinstein allegations "disturbing" in an essay last week, but added that she had been reluctant to comment publicly because of her friendship with Weinstein's wife, Georgina Chapman.

"I am constantly part of this conversation even if I don't publicly comment on specific scandals," she wrote. "Sexual harassment and assault in the workplace are not just about Harvey Weinstein. We must change things in general. We must do better for women everywhere."

A similar social media campaign is playing out on Instagram among models who are sharing stories of abuse and harassment in the fashion industry.

Model Cameron Russell put out a post four days ago offering help to models and has been deluged with responses. She has shared many on her Instagram feed, blacking out identifying factors but leaving the stories otherwise alone. Some women who reported unwanted touching and worse said hearing from their sister models has brought long-buried recollections to mind.

The effort has launched the hashtag "MyJobShouldNotInclude Abuse."

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

QR Code to Women join forces against sexual assault with 'me too' social media campaign
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2017/1016/Women-join-forces-against-sexual-assault-with-me-too-social-media-campaign
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe