If anything positive has come from the Harvey Weinstein scandal, it’s that sexual harassment (both in and out of the workplace) is being openly discussed in a serious way. More women and men are coming forward to share their stories and hold their harassers accountable.
Wednesday, on MSNBC’s All In With Chris Hayes, activist Gloria Steinem and actress Jane Fonda appeared as representatives from The Women’s Media Center to discuss the numerous allegations of harassment, assault and rape that Weinstein is facing. In the interview, Fonda made the argument that while this is an important moment because so many women are standing up for themselves, the reason this movement is gaining traction is many of Weinstein’s accusers are famous, white women, with the exception of Lupita Nyong’o.
Fonda said, “It feels like something has shifted. It’s too bad that it’s probably because so many of the women that were assaulted by Harvey Weinstein are famous and white and everybody knows them. This has been going on a long time to black women and other women of color and it doesn’t get out quite the same.”
Fonda makes an excellent point. Some women are not able to speak up about instances of harassment and assault, whether it’s because of their race, financial situation or other factors. However, I sincerely believe that this will change in the future.
Women (and men) are banding together to raise awareness to hopefully end—or at least drastically decrease—sexual harassment. And while I hope that in the future no person is ever harassed, a good step toward that future is making sure that every person has the ability to speak up.