In the wake of the blistering New York Times exposé on Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein, which detailed decades of his alleged sexual harassment against current and former employees, women are coming forward with their own experiences with predators.
https://twitter.com/annetdonahue/status/916013442221400064
It’s reminiscent of the thread started by Canadian author Kelly Oxford, after the release of the Access Hollywood where then-presidential candidate Donald Trump bragged about sexually assaulting women.
https://twitter.com/kellyoxford/status/784541062119456769?lang=en
This one, by fellow Canadian Anna T. Donahue, is no less harrowing. If the allegations about Weinstein are true – and we have to use words like ‘if’ and ‘allegations’, because even though there is no benefit and every cost to women speaking up about powerful, predatory men, there’s still the matter of defamation – then Weinstein has been systematically sexually harassing women, and taking steps to silence them, for decades.
And the awful truth is that you’d be hard pressed to find a woman who hasn’t met a sexual predator. The Human Rights Commission estimates that about 1 in 5 women (and 1 in 20 men) have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace alone.
This thread is some harrowing, confronting reading.
Heeeeeey I had a radio boss like that too! He would always exhort me to climb under the audio board and pleasure him while he worked.
— Brooke Binkowski (@brooklynmarie) October 5, 2017
https://twitter.com/MarillaWex/status/916033313369976832
It’s so hard to actually place this because there have been so many dudes who have tried so many things at so many points in my life.
— Meghan O’Keefe (@megsokay) October 5, 2017
This isn’t profesh, but there was a guy who worked at Gulf, the cheapest gas station in my hometown. He started hitting on me when I was 14.
— Meghan O’Keefe (@megsokay) October 5, 2017
he trapped me in a bathroom and tried to get me to touch his dick even after i begged him to leave. reeeeal champ. he still has a job.
— raina douris (@RahRahRaina) October 5, 2017
He was a substitute teacher who rubbed his crotch on all the girls’ desks. We were in junior high…
— Becka Grose (@benditlikebecka) October 5, 2017
First was HS coach who constantly made pointed comments bc I hung out with his players (platonically), then messaged me on FB years later
— Erin Donnelly (@erindonnelly) October 5, 2017
he shot back, “I’m not lonely, I have 29K Twitter followers.” Later learned this is his MO with female writers.
— Erin Donnelly (@erindonnelly) October 5, 2017
https://twitter.com/janinebrito/status/916041096559452160
I ALSO had a teacher who massaged female students’ shoulders while we typed. This was fifth grade. What is it with the shoulder massages?!
— Kaitlin Menza (@heykmenz) October 5, 2017
https://twitter.com/karmagypsy/status/916014759966785538
Was a 24 yr old single mother emailed by a senior exec who asked to watch the sunset/sunrise…
— Meegan Read (@MeeganReadCBC) October 5, 2017
This was after him previously asking if the skin all over my body was as smooth as the skin on my arms. I didn’t answer so he assaulted me.
— Francesca Hogi (@DearFranny) October 5, 2017
https://twitter.com/KatyWentBang/status/916075460085338113
https://twitter.com/AmandaLeduc/status/916018840344989696
https://twitter.com/AmandaLeduc/status/916019342663327744
Sexual harassment has been outlawed since 1984, but that doesn’t stop it being an all-too-familiar occurrence. If you want to know more about your rights, head here.
