Hundreds of women working in Hollywood's entertainment industry have unveiled an initiative to help victims of sexual harassment in the US. It aims to ensure survivors have access to justice and support.
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More than 300 women working for Hollywood as top actors, directors, writers and other media executives on Monday launched an initiative to combat widespread sexual harassment across the United States.
An open letter, published as a full-page ad in the New York Times and the Spanish-language La Opinion, introduced the "Time's Up" campaign, outlining a call for change that demands accountability from perpetrators, access to justice and support for victims and survivors, and gender equality.
"We want all survivors of sexual harassment, everywhere, to be heard, to be believed, and know that accountability is possible," the letter says.
The campaign has an emphasis on providing support for women in working-class jobs and includes a Legal Defense Fund, which has already accumulated $13.4 million (€11.17 million).
"We also want all victims and survivors to be able to access justice and support for the wrongdoing they have endured," the letter adds.
"We particularly want to lift up the voices, power and strength of women working in low-wage industries where the lack of financial stability makes them vulnerable to high rates of gender-based violence and exploitation."
High-profile sexual misconduct cases in the US
Since The New York Times published allegations of sexual misconduct against Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein in October, many other prominent US men have faced harassment allegations. DW looks at some high-profile cases.
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The case that sparked a global debate
Harvey Weinstein has been accused by dozens of women of sexual harassment or sexual assaults, including rape. Under investigation by police departments in New York, London, Beverly Hills and Los Angeles, Weinstein denies all allegations of non-consensual sex, but apologized for causing "a lot of pain." The case prompted many other women to come forward.
Image: Reuters/A. Kelly
Media men in glass houses
PBS and CBS host Charlie Rose is accused by several women of unwanted sexual advances, walking naked in front of them or making lewd phone calls. He has apologized for his behavior but questioned the accuracy of some of the allegations. Meanwhile, Journalist Mark Halperin is accused of harassing about 12 women while at ABC News.
Image: Reuters/C. Allegri
Politicians from the Republican party...
US Senate candidate Roy Moore, a Republican from Alabama, is accused of sexually assaulting two teenagers and pursuing relationships with several others decades ago, when he was in his 30s. He has denied the allegations. Former President George H.W. Bush was accused of patting seven women below the waist. The 93-year-old has issued apologies through a spokesman "to anyone he has offended."
Image: Getty Images/W. Frazer
...and the Democrats
A senior figure in the US Democratic party, Minnesota Senator Al Franken is accused of forcibly kissing radio personality Leeann Tweeden and groping her while she slept during a 2006 tour to Afghanistan to entertain US troops. The former comedian who became a senator in 2009 has apologized, saying he felt "disgusted" with himself.
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Sexual misconduct in sports
Ex-USA gymnastics team doctor Lawrence "Larry" Nassar is accused of abusing over 100 female athletes. He pleaded guilty to multiple counts of criminal sexual conduct and could face 25 years in prison. Three of his victims were under 13 years old. Israeli IOC member Alex Gilady is accused by two women of rape and by two others of inappropriate conduct. He denies the rape accusations.
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Hollywood stars under scrutiny
Actor Kevin Spacey has been accused by at least 24 men of sexual misconduct or assault. London police are investigating two sexual assaults and he was fired from "House of Cards." Dustin Hoffman is accused by a woman of harassing her when she was 17. He has apologized for his behavior. Writer-director James Toback is accused by hundreds of women of sexual harassment. He denies the allegations.
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Imbalance of power
The letter emphasized the role systematic gender inequality and imbalance of power played in fostering an environment that is "ripe for abuse and harassment against women."
"Harassment too often persists because perpetrators and employers never have consequences. This is often because survivors, particularly those working in low-wage industries, don't have the resources to fight back," the letter says.
“The struggle for women to break in, to rise up the ranks and to simply be heard and acknowledged in male-dominated workplaces must end; time’s up on this impenetrable monopoly," it continues.
Image: Time
Time's Up supporters include actors Meryl Streep, Ashley Judd, Alyssa Milano, Cate Blanchett, Charlize Theron, Eva Longoria and Reese Witherspoon, feminist writer Gloria Steinem and lawyer and ex-Michelle Obama chief of staff Tina Tchen. Tchen will assist in leading the Legal Defense Fund.
The campaign has asked that women walking the red carpet at the Golden Globes ceremony in on January 7 show their support and raise awareness of the campaign by wearing black.
The movement comes after a flood of allegations disrupted or ended the careers of powerful male leaders in not only entertainment but also in big business, politics and the media, sparked by the Harvey Weinstein sexual misconduct scandal.
In early December, Time magazine announced that its Person of the Year for 2017 was "the Silence Breakers," referring to everyone who had come forward about sexual harassment and assault and cast light on a pervasive behavior that has long gone ignored or covered up. The #MeToo movement saw thousands of women share their stories of sexual harrassment.
Time's 2017 Person of the Year: The Silence Breakers
Giving power to the #MeToo movement, the people who came forward with their stories of sexual harassment have been named Time's 2017 Person of the Year. Here are some of the most high-profile "Silence Breakers."
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Ashley Judd
In 1997, upcomer Ashley Judd was invited to meet star-maker Harvey Weinstein at an LA hotel, whereupon he tried to coerce her into bed. Judd escaped but refused to be silenced. Many in Hollywood then said the producer's sexual misconduct was an "open secret." "There wasn't a place for us to report these experiences," said Judd, the first to call out Weinstein in the New York Times in October.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Samad
Rose McGowan
When actor Rose McGowan first told people that Harvey Weinstein had raped her, she says some in Hollywood threatened to end her career. "They threatened [me] with being blacklisted. I was blacklisted after I was raped, because I got raped, because I said something," she said in a January interview first published in the Observer. But that didn't stop her from later speaking out.
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Taylor Swift
When Taylor Swift alleged that Denver radio DJ David Mueller reached under her skirt and groped her, he took her to court after it lead to his firing. "I'm not going to let you or your client make me feel in any way that this is my fault," she told his lawyer. Swift also told Time magazine that if Mueller was "brazen enough to assault me... imagine what he might do to a vulnerable, young artist."
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Selma Blair
Blair claims that writer/director James Toback invited her to his room and asked her to remove her clothing while she read a script before asking her for sex. When she refused, he blocked her way and masturbated against her leg. He then threatened to kill her if she dared to talk. "I didn't want to speak up because, it sounds crazy but, even until now, I have been scared for my life," said Blair.
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Alyssa Milano
"Me Too" was first used in 2006 by gender equality activist Tarana Burke as a rallying cry for young sexual harassment and assault survivors. Actor Alyssa Milano was sent a screenshot of the phrase in October and later tweeted: "If you've been sexually harassed or assaulted write 'me too' as a reply to this tweet." She woke to find that over 30,000 people had used #MeToo and burst into tears.
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Wendy Walsh
After Bill O'Reilly and Fox News spent millions on lawyers to settle, and silence, sexual harassment claims, Wendy Walsh, a psychologist and Fox contributor spoke out about O'Reilly after initial reluctance for fear of retaliation. "I felt it was my duty," Walsh told Time, "as a mother of daughters, as an act of love for women everywhere and the women who are silenced, to be brave."
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Megyn Kelly
TV news anchor Megyn Kelly has accused Fox host Bill O'Reilly of sexual harassment. "What if we did complain?" she said to Time, "if we spoke our truth in our strongest voices? What if that worked to change reality right now?" Perhaps that change has already started to come. "I always thought maybe things could change for my daughter," said Kelly. "I never thought things could change for me."
Image: Getty Images/K. Winter
Susan Fowler
An Uber engineer, Fowler felt powerless with "a harasser in the White House" and decided to out sexual harassers at Uber in a blog post. Uber CEO Travis Kalanick was subsequently forced to resign and 20-odd employees were fired. "There's something really empowering about standing up for what's right," said Fowler, who has been described as a whistle-blower — which she calls "a badge of honor."
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/S. Van Tine
Terry Crews
The actor and former American football star is one of a number of men who have said "me too." Crews has taken out a sexual assault lawsuit against talent agent Adam Venit, who he accuses of groping him at a party in Hollywood in February 2016. Also among Time's Silence Breakers is actor Blaise Godbe Lipman, who's accused talent agent Tyler Grasham of sexually assaulting him when he was a teenager.
