It has been a hot minute since I wrote anything here, but over the past few days this topic has dominated my thoughts. The more information I gathered, the more I seethed at the barbarity. I had a presentation on Tuesday and we all decided that the #metoo was a relevant topic, one which, for some reason, no one else in the past weeks chose. I know this is an uncomfortable topic, which makes people slightly squirm in their seats, but I hope that you continue reading because this is important.
Let me start by saying, 'This is not okay. Sexual harassment and sexual assault are NEVER okay." Hopefully, most of you must be thinking, "Well, is something this basic not apparent?" But numbers do not lie. Studies show that around 80% of women have, at some point or another, encountered sexual harassment or sexual assault at work; some cases being more severe than others.
In the past few weeks, the Harvey Weinstein scandal has triggered massive outrage. But I distinctly remember thinking, when I first heard about this, "What's new?" Casting couch and salacious behaviour have always been synonymous with Hollywood. Some prominent names like those of Kevin Spacey, Brett Ratner and Dustin Hoffman have long been known, even outside the industry, when it comes to inappropriate lewd behaviour. It would have been bad enough, if this kind of feigning of ignorance had just been contained within one industry, but the truth is that this phenomenon is omnipresent. It seems to follow us into every industry. No matter how hard we try, we do not seem able to get rid of it.
One example is Bill O'Reilly. It might seems like this happened an eternity ago, but Bill O'Reilly made the headlines not very long ago because of his constant lewd behaviour. One of the many woman, who accused him of sexual harassment, relayed in an interview as to how he preyed upon her, when she worked as a temp in Fox News. She said that it was a slow progression from "innocent" grunts and groans when he walked by her desk to one day, when they were in an elevator together and on the way out he let her go in front of him and then said and I quote her, "Looking good there, girl." This harassment continued in the following weeks as he carried on going to her desk, despite having no reason to be there, and leering at her: looking her up and down, and peering at her cleavage. One of the final straws was when he walked by her one day and said, "Hey, hot chocolate."
"I didn't respond. I was mortified - because not only did it go - was it sexual, I took that as a very plantational remark. Such a blatant person with such a high profile making me feel uncomfortable, but then not even acknowledging me," she said in an interview.
Keep in mind this is only one of the many woman who suffered at his hands. One former Fox employee said that she remembered him (O'Reilly) having an aura of invincibility.
One might ask, "Didn't he get ousted from Fox News?" The answer is yes, he did. But only after fifty sponsors threatened to leave the channel. The truth is that everyone around him feigned ignorance and brushed things under the rug for decades. Deplorably, he was eventually invited back on Sean Hannity's show to "promote" his new book, but spent most of the interview discussing how men in media were persecuted.
A lot of the victims get flack for not coming forward and speaking up when these things happen. We conveniently forget that when they do, indeed, come forward, follow protocol and go to HR, they often either do not hear back or get a nonchalant "what can we do?" Critics also discount the fact that these victims are then turned into pariahs. Studies also prove that most of these women who speak out are either fired or their working conditions are made so unsustainable, where they need to leave, within the first year of having complained.
This has existed for hundreds of years, then why are we just hearing about this? Why is this not a social issue that is given more importance? One of the reasons is because there are not enough women at the top. The top management positions are mostly dominated by males, who protect their own. There has to be a more resounding outcry, not just by women, but also by men. The simple "boys will be boys" is no longer a sufficient excuse for women to be treated as inferior objects. Sexual harassment is too prevalent for us to simply brush it off and forget about it; it permeates into our everyday lives and is something that most women have to live and deal with for the rest of their lives.
Let me start by saying, 'This is not okay. Sexual harassment and sexual assault are NEVER okay." Hopefully, most of you must be thinking, "Well, is something this basic not apparent?" But numbers do not lie. Studies show that around 80% of women have, at some point or another, encountered sexual harassment or sexual assault at work; some cases being more severe than others.
In the past few weeks, the Harvey Weinstein scandal has triggered massive outrage. But I distinctly remember thinking, when I first heard about this, "What's new?" Casting couch and salacious behaviour have always been synonymous with Hollywood. Some prominent names like those of Kevin Spacey, Brett Ratner and Dustin Hoffman have long been known, even outside the industry, when it comes to inappropriate lewd behaviour. It would have been bad enough, if this kind of feigning of ignorance had just been contained within one industry, but the truth is that this phenomenon is omnipresent. It seems to follow us into every industry. No matter how hard we try, we do not seem able to get rid of it.
One example is Bill O'Reilly. It might seems like this happened an eternity ago, but Bill O'Reilly made the headlines not very long ago because of his constant lewd behaviour. One of the many woman, who accused him of sexual harassment, relayed in an interview as to how he preyed upon her, when she worked as a temp in Fox News. She said that it was a slow progression from "innocent" grunts and groans when he walked by her desk to one day, when they were in an elevator together and on the way out he let her go in front of him and then said and I quote her, "Looking good there, girl." This harassment continued in the following weeks as he carried on going to her desk, despite having no reason to be there, and leering at her: looking her up and down, and peering at her cleavage. One of the final straws was when he walked by her one day and said, "Hey, hot chocolate."
"I didn't respond. I was mortified - because not only did it go - was it sexual, I took that as a very plantational remark. Such a blatant person with such a high profile making me feel uncomfortable, but then not even acknowledging me," she said in an interview.
Keep in mind this is only one of the many woman who suffered at his hands. One former Fox employee said that she remembered him (O'Reilly) having an aura of invincibility.
One might ask, "Didn't he get ousted from Fox News?" The answer is yes, he did. But only after fifty sponsors threatened to leave the channel. The truth is that everyone around him feigned ignorance and brushed things under the rug for decades. Deplorably, he was eventually invited back on Sean Hannity's show to "promote" his new book, but spent most of the interview discussing how men in media were persecuted.
A lot of the victims get flack for not coming forward and speaking up when these things happen. We conveniently forget that when they do, indeed, come forward, follow protocol and go to HR, they often either do not hear back or get a nonchalant "what can we do?" Critics also discount the fact that these victims are then turned into pariahs. Studies also prove that most of these women who speak out are either fired or their working conditions are made so unsustainable, where they need to leave, within the first year of having complained.
This has existed for hundreds of years, then why are we just hearing about this? Why is this not a social issue that is given more importance? One of the reasons is because there are not enough women at the top. The top management positions are mostly dominated by males, who protect their own. There has to be a more resounding outcry, not just by women, but also by men. The simple "boys will be boys" is no longer a sufficient excuse for women to be treated as inferior objects. Sexual harassment is too prevalent for us to simply brush it off and forget about it; it permeates into our everyday lives and is something that most women have to live and deal with for the rest of their lives.
