Created by Daniela Vega
The 'Me Too' movement was originally founded in 2006 by American social activist Tarana Burke who used the phrase on social platforms to bring awareness to the occurrences of sexual harassment and assault. The movement is set to provide "empowerment through empathy" (metoomvmt.org) - helping and inspiring survivors to heal from their pain and experiences and continuing the idea that they are not alone and are supported.
Photo credit: Global Connections for Women foundation (GC4W)
In 2017, actress Alissa Milano helped Burke's cause become more prominent when she and other high profile actresses spoke up about their experiences with sexual harassment and assault in the film industry.
Though Burke's initial goal was to increase attention on sexual harassment and assault issues in the racial and cultural minority population, as "she read the #MeToo stories women were sharing, she was blown away" (npr.com). In response to the allegations against Harvey Weinstein and many others, the opportunity for attention leading to change looked promising.
Twitter has shown to be more of an advocate for the movement and overall issue. According to the National Council of Nonprofits, advocacy is any “action that speaks in favor of, recommends, argues for a cause, supports or defends, or pleads on behalf of others” (National Council of Nonprofits). In a tweet posted by @leannewood, about a sexual misconduct incident covered by The Guardian, she is pleading for people to take a stand and fight against the intolerable acts make by certain individuals. One of her lines reads “men who harm women should not be politicians” (@leannewood). This is important because it highlights the fact that an increasing number of incidents being publicized are perpetrators who are highly respected people (politicians and celebrities).
Twitter users take advantage of the platform’s advocacy tool to educate the public on sub-factors of a main topic. In one tweet posted by Masih Alinejad, she provides a video that discusses the difficulties Iranian women face in the topic of sexual harassment due to their religion being a factor. Many may not know or understand what other groups of people go through and this tweet allows for those people to become more educated and understanding about the issue.
In the recent findings of John C. Depp, II v. Amber Laura Heard, the public idea of the Me Too movement has extended to the acknowledgement and acceptance of men also being victims. Though this case focuses more on mental and physical gender-abuse and the movement, nonetheless, does advocate for the integration of gender and race/culture equality.
Why can’t men be victims of similar situations? Society has changed and so has the perspectives on the definitions of who and what a person is supposed to be.
Instagram on the other hand, is more of a tool used to bring awareness on the matter. Users have commonly posted about about the different perspectives and opinions that they have on the matter- mostly in favor of the movement.
Two additional accounts posted about the perspective of why many more people blame the women rather than the men. @endingviolence posted a quote said by Farida D.: "We ask why didn't she leave instead of how he made her stay. And then we wonder what makes men's violence against women persist to this day", followed with a detailed caption. The second account, @womenforchangesa posts: "They scream 'Don't get raped' instead of 'Don't rape.' So don't ask why we don't report it". These offer the public to take a second and understand the "minority" opinion about how to look at the issue of sexual violence. Although these posts lean more towards how women are affected, the movement's advocacy of overall equality, suggests that these posts represent all victims and survivors.
The fashion and entertainment industry have often been ridiculed by their approach to certain societal and political issues. In relation to the #metoo movement, two articles explained how the importance of issues can be ‘easily’ dismissed.
Two years since being accused of several sexual assaults, renowned fashion designer Alexander Wang held a show where famous models walked the catwalk and other celebrities enjoyed and congratulated the work. One of his accusers said in a statement to the Observer, “Some people don’t really care about what doesn’t affect them personally” (Britten). An industry that is seen to be untouchable- supported by other celebrities working with other criminally accused fashion designers, shows that they fail to support the issue so many of their members suffer from.
Similarly, the comedic stunt made by co-host Regina Hall at the recent Oscars was a demonstration of how Hollywood dismisses the issues of sexual assault. “Seeing an Oscar host grope and objectify a group of men on a public stage for the entire world to see, set to a chorus of uproarious laughter, contributes to this systemic issue” (Colangelo). Although the participating individuals did not seem to mind, Colangelo says, to which I agree with, “culture continually mishandles discussions surrounding men's assault, playing it off as a joke and not giving it the serious weight it deserves.” The continuous praise for comedy skits about issues like these or even the praise given to accused men for the job they did on screen, shows that while there may be public outcry, there is not enough to change how certain influential groups and figures react and deal with it.
It is instances like these that can cause women and other individuals to second-guess speaking out- they will either be faced with dismissal or harsh reactions. In an interview with Megan Fox, she said that because of who she was, she "didn't want to speak out because I didn't feel like it would be received in a positive way" (Fox).
In the NY Times article The Case That Killed #MeToo in Sweden written by Jenny Nordberg, Cissi Wallin, a resident of Sweden, had been put to trial twice for speaking out against a prominent figure. Although Sweden is a feminist country, Wallin's lawyer says that it seems as though the country wants to send the message "that this is something we must stop: we must stop her. We must set an example so that no man will ever again be subjected to having the truth about him spread around" (Nordberg). Though she has faced trial, Wallin is showing that one has to continue to speak up, speak up to get a message across.
As the public continues to share their experiences and make calls for justice, the important aspect that needs to be obtained is having people confident in speaking up. The uncertainty of reactions and the resulting outcome is what keeps victims and survivors from proving that this is an issue that needs to be rectified. No matter the race, culture, or gender, the more that are confident and the more that speak out, will change the course of action from the receiving side.
References
?eleanor? (2022, April 26). Being a feminist also means that you acknowledge when the victim of a physical and mental abuse is a man for the #MeToo movement includes men too and #johnnydepp is one of those men.#justiceforjohnnydepp#neverfeartruth#amberheardisanabuser#johnnydeppvsamberheard pic.twitter.com/ciookmj18s. Twitter. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/pale_spring/status/1518883716927533056?s=20&t=IWnqTPbhBO6EuDhBBMyi0Q
Wood, L. (2022, April 24). Absolutely sick of misogyny & sexism in politics. from domestic abuse to sexual assault - it's as though #MeToo never happened! we have to call it out & demonstrate zero tolerance. men who harm women should not be politicians. https://t.co/otte1eHvtk. Twitter. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/LeanneWood/status/1518082001575854080?s=20&t=IWnqTPbhBO6EuDhBBMyi0Q
Alinejad, M. (2022, April 20). Listen to Iranian women speaking up about sexual harassment. added to challenges any victims has talking about sexual harassment, they face an extra hurdle of living in a religious society with strict dress code on women and a blood price for Loosing "honor".#metoo #LetUsTalk pic.twitter.com/3nlzjexwl7. Twitter. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/AlinejadMasih/status/1516847771197747201?s=20&t=hmm3Xr2cDHKc9QSyYPdr0g
womenforchangesa. (2022). Rape - A pandemic which was never solved! Instagram. Retrieved from https://www.instagram.com/p/CcYNc2sqN-m/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y
safe_bae. (2022). #SAAM may be almost over, but we have to remember to stand for our survivors everyday ? sending everyone love today. Instagram. Retrieved from https://www.instagram.com/p/Cc55v2quTZF/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=
UN Women. (n.d.). End Harassment. GIPHY. Retrieved from https://media.giphy.com/media/YrGs4Cms0t008UbibY/giphy.gif
Britten, F. (2022, April 23). As Alexander Wang Basks in praise, has fashion shrugged off #MeToo? The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/fashion/2022/apr/23/as-alexander-wang-basks-in-praise-has-fashion-shrugged-off-metoo
Colangelo, B. J. (2022, March 28). The Oscars inexplicably decided jokes about sexual assault were okay if they're made about men . SlashFilm.com. Retrieved from https://www.slashfilm.com/813967/the-oscars-inexplicably-decided-jokes-about-sexual-assault-were-okay-if-theyre-made-about-men/
Nordberg, J. (2022, March 15). The case that killed #MeToo in Sweden. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2022/03/15/opinion/cissi-wallin-fredrik-virtanen-metoo-sweden.html
You're not alone. me too. Movement. (2021, November 22). Retrieved from https://metoomvmt.org/bth/
Starstruck Megan. (2022, April 26). She's talking about #metoo 👇. Twitter. Retrieved from https://twitter.com/MeganTheeeFox/status/1518972801507799040?s=20&t=6ENtGIKn4nlEaudL1Llymg
Global Connections for Women foundation (GC4W). (2018, November 1). Tarana Burke discusses the "Me too" movement.: Movement Photography, movement, Strong Women quotes. Pinterest. Retrieved from https://www.pinterest.com/pin/115615915418755175/
Get to know us: Tarana Burke, founder. me too. Movement. (2020, July 17). Retrieved from https://metoomvmt.org/get-to-know-us/tarana-burke-founder/
Mosley, T. (2021, September 29). 'me too' founder Tarana Burke says black girls' trauma shouldn't be ignored. NPR. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/2021/09/29/1041362145/me-too-founder-tarana-burke-says-black-girls-trauma-shouldnt-be-ignored
Advocacy vs. lobbying. National Council of Nonprofits. (2019, September 12). Retrieved from https://www.councilofnonprofits.org/advocacy-vs-lobbying