The #MeToo movement began in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein allegations in October 2017. By February 2020, the disgraced 67-year-old media mogul had been convicted of one count of committing a criminal sexual act and one count of third-degree rape. He now faces a minimum of five years in prison, and a maximum time behind bars of 29 years.
Weinstein denies any wrongdoing, despite sexual assault and misconduct claims against him from more than 90 women. His lawyers say he will appeal the verdict.
There is still a long way to go. In the United States, statistics suggest that only 1 in 4 sexual assaults are ever reported to police, and out of every 1,000 sexual assaults, only 4 rapists will be incarcerated.
In Europe, the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights reported in 2014 that more than half of all women in the EU have personally experienced sexual harassment. Since the Weinstein allegations came to light, surveys have shown that half of women in Britain have been sexually harassed at work, and more than half of French and German women have experienced sexual harassment and / or sexual assault at least once in their lives.
Nevertheless, could the Weinstein trial be a turning point? Might it embolden victims and survivors to come forward? Could it encourage greater public debate about these issues, and the circumstances that allow sexual assault and harassment to continue?
Is #MeToo winning the fight against sexual harassment and sexual assault? Where does #MeToo go from here? Let us know your thoughts and comments in the form below and we’ll take them to policymakers and experts for their reactions!
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What’s that?
metoo brought many good things but also bad.
He will go to jail but a lot of other men who sexually assolted women are not. So no, we are not winning yet, but I hope he get the max od 25 years.
Well if it takes the word of a hundred women to convict Weinstein in 2 out of 5 points winning or anything related is most definitely not the correct wording. Also what wrong impressions of justice this provides.
wow…what about all the women that sexually assault man? Why do people, this days, still believe domestic violence, sexual assault or sexual violence is only commited by men? The fact is, #metoo didn’t changed absolutely nothing because many women were found lying about their complaints. This was a witch hunt.
If you have 10 people saying someone did something, do you still need to make proof or is that enough??
Is #MeToo winning the fight against sexual harassment and assault?
This entire case sounds a set up to me. Some powerful guy in Hollywood decided to cut his cajones off. He fleeced him or something and had it coming, mafia style.
I am sure Weinstien is a nasty repulsive piece of work, one no woman would want to be in contact with, as his reputation went way ahead of him. So, how did these women end up in his hotel room, office or apartment the way they appear to have? None of them particularly beautiful. In fact, many of them mediocre as far as movie stardom is concerned.
One of them saying she was forced to give him ‘head’ against her will or desire for him. Yet, no explanation as to how she was forced to do this? Was she held down by his friends, whilst he sat exposing himself? Was she tied up on the floor in a position that would make it possible for him to contort and get his body parts available for her. And if he did all these things, when he placed his organ where she says she didn’t want it, why didn’t she bite the offending protrusion right off his body as hard as she could? Had that been done to me, I would have mutilated him in a way he would never be able to do it to another woman ever again. Prison would have nothing on how spiteful I would be if the son of a witch had managed to get me in that position.
There is a lot to be looked at here. Guilt has to be proven, not just accepted as fact because someone says so. Why did these women go alone to a room with a known nut case and couch caster and do so repeatedly, in the hope of selection for one of his movies? And then decide decades later he forced it on them after they didn’t get famous or the part they hoped for? And why didn’t they tell his wife, their guy, their doctor, those around him. Club together at the time to sink the bastard in his own environment. Were they all ‘too afraid’ to make a stink? How come so many of them wanted to be seen on his arm trophy style? And, additionally, make contact with him in the first place? He is a short, fat ugly little git, what was the original attraction? And what is it they are plying for now? Some kind of fat settlement?
None of these women were sweet little naive babies who didn’t know the game they were playing. Did they think they were going to kiss this frog and he was going to become their prince? Not a hope in hell. None of them didn’t know what was coming. Yet they went to his den anyway, regardless of knowing the act they were likely to experience.
Being a woman does not absolve you of responsibility. Perhaps scary fairy tales mother told you were good for the psyche after all.