LibGuides: English: Past Issue: The #MeToo Movement

What is the #MeToo Movement?

In 2006, Tarana Burke founded the me too. movement to help survivors of sexual violence, particularly young women of colour from low wealth communities, find pathways to healing. Using the idea of “empowerment through empathy,” the me too. movement was ultimately created to ensure survivors know they're not alone in their journey. Source: metoomvmt.org

In October 2017 actress Ashley Judd accused media mogul Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment in a breaking story by The New York Times. Soon after, actress Alyssa Milano reignited "Me Too" with the tweet "If you've been sexually harassed or assaulted write 'me too' as a reply to this tweet," and it quickly turned into a movement.

Read more about the progression and key events in the movement in the following articles: #MeToo: A timeline of events (Chicago Tribute) and Timeline: #MeToo and how the sexual misconduct scandal unfolded (The Times).

Video: Q&A Special: #MeToo

From Hollywood to Australia #MeToo has seen women calling Times Up! on sexual harassment. Virginia Trioli hosts a special Q&A with Isabella Manfredi, Josh Bornstein, Janet Albrechtsen & Catharine Lumby.

Production Year: 2018

Duration: 1:01:55

Via ClickView (login required)

#MeToo and Street Harassment

The Guardian: Women respond to Eurydice Dixon murder: 'We all have a right to walk home safely'
Six women reflect on the death of a talented Melbourne comedian as she walked home late at night.
The Age: Another vigil for another woman who should be here
"There’s another vigil in Melbourne tonight. Another young woman who had too much life yet to live is dead. All we can do is mourn Eurydice Dixon and remember her; celebrate her too short life and it’s not enough."
Q&A: Being Careful, North Korea and Culture Wars
The opening few minutes of this Q&A episode (broadcast 18 June 2018) focus upon violence against women and situational awareness.
The Guardian: Oi you! Catcallers and street harassers – your time is nearly up
"Women and girls run a gauntlet of ingrained misogyny whenever they step outside. But as #MeToo shows, they are not going to shut up about it any more."
The Guardian: I'm tired of being scared on my own streets. Here’s how we can make our cities safer
"Harassment is deeply entrenched, right down to the way our cities are designed with men in mind. It needs to change now."
The Age: After Eurydice, what should men do?
"I get off the train in the darkness, and see a woman. She is smaller than me. Most are. She strides with purpose – upright, head on a swivel – seemingly alone, with only her “situational awareness” for company."
The Sydney Morning Herald: The 'not all men' excuse is absurd
"When Melburnians woke up on Monday morning, it was to the news that vandals had desecrated a memorial placed at the Princes Park location where Eurydice Dixon's body was found last week. Firefighters spent the morning working to remove the white paint that had been used to paint "offensive" slurs."
The Sydney Morning Herald: For Eurydice's sake, we need to do more than go to vigils
"Of all the violent deaths of women, the death of Eurydice Dixon, the 22-year-old rising comic, is one we can embrace when we signal our opposition to violence against women. We see it's not her fault. A stranger allegedly killed her and no one could predict that. It could not have been her fault."

#MeToo in Australia

The Sydney Morning Herald: Enough with the offhand and ignorant 'witty' remarks today
"'What are we supposed to do on International Women’s day? Do I have to bow down to anyone?' My colleague asked me this today. ... I am a woman and it was a man who jokingly asked me whether they would have to “bow down to anyone”. I responded with my own “witty” remark to escape the conversation. At that moment, I felt silly for being a woman. Silly for being part of a day that celebrates and fights for women’s rights. I should just be quiet - a feeling that I have been familiar with from childhood."
The Age: Westco backdown follows shirt fury
The State Government accused clothing retailer Westco of breaching state and federal laws by ordering young staff to wear "provocative and suggestive" T-shirts. The Government says the white shirts - bearing the words "Stop pretending you don't want me" in lime green print across the chest - left the staff vulnerable to sexual harassment. From 2004, but still relevant.
The Sydney Morning Herald: 'A high-grade, twisted abuser': Don Burke a sexual harasser and bully, claims series of women
"For almost two decades Don Burke was one of the most powerful men in Australia's entertainment industry. His popular gardening program Burke's Backyard was a ratings juggernaut for the Nine Network until it was unceremoniously axed in 2004.
But now a major Fairfax Media/ABC investigation can reveal that behind the scenes those who worked with Burke claim he was a "psychotic bully", a "misogynist" and a "sexual predator" who indecently assaulted, sexually harassed and bullied a string of female employees."
The Age: Robert Doyle quits as lord mayor of Melbourne
"Robert Doyle has quit as lord mayor of Melbourne, just days after he was handed the key findings of a council investigation into sexual harassment claims against him by multiple women."
ABC News: Craig McLachlan accused of indecent assault, sexual harassment during Rocky Horror Show
"Victoria Police have confirmed an investigation is underway into allegations that award-winning Australian actor Craig McLachlan committed multiple sexual offences while performing in the hit musical Rocky Horror Show in 2014."
ABC News: Sydney University bans Rake Chambers from careers hub as Charles Waterstreet denies sexual harassment claims
"Sydney University has banned the Rake Chambers — run by high-profile Sydney barrister Charles Waterstreet — from its careers hub for the "safety of students". Earlier this week, a female law student from the university alleged Mr Waterstreet had sexually harassed her during an August job interview, something the master silk denies."
ABC News: University sexual assault report: Half of students harassed at least once in 2016
"A survey of university students by the Human Rights Commission has found more than half of respondents were sexually harassed on at least one occasion last year. Fifty-one per cent of students were sexually harassed at least once in 2016, the commission found, while one in four students was sexually harassed in a university setting on at least one occasion in 2016."

#MeToo in Hospitality and Retail

MamaMia: The industry where sexual harassment is just part of the daily routine
"I was stocking drinks on the bottom shelf of the beer fridge last night when I heard him: “You look so good on your knees, sweetheart”. These crude, uncomfortable comments are part of my every day life."
The Guardian: Sexual harassment rampant in hospitality industry, survey finds
"Exclusive: nine out of 10 workers say they have experienced abuse, research by Unite reveals. Workers in bars, restaurants, clubs and hotels face a barrage of abuse so common it has become entirely normalised, with the vast majority of workers subjected to sexual harassment, according to new evidence seen by the Guardian."
The Age: Hospitality workers and venues pledge to stamp out sexual harassment
"Long hours. Barking orders. Burning food. Jess Browning quickly learnt how to cope with these pressures when she signed up for a job as a chef 12 years ago. What she did not expect in her first year apprenticeship was to be asked by her male boss why one of her breasts was larger than the other."
The Herald Sun: Respect is the Rule campaign aims to end sexual harassment in hospitality
"A Brunswick bartender who has been grabbed, followed home, pinned against the bar and assaulted says sexual harassment in the hospitality industry needs to stop."
Vox: These are the industries with the most reported sexual harassment claims
"Allegations of sexual misconduct in Hollywood, the media, and on Capitol Hill may have been dominating headlines lately, but sexual harassment is prevalent across a range of industries that are out of the spotlight as well."
Racked: What Makes Retail Workers Uniquely Vulnerable to Sexual Harassment
"Inferior complaint procedures, lack of corporate oversight, and low-wages for workers mean that retail has a sexual harassment problem."
ABC News: Sexual harassment rife in service industry because 'customer is always right'
"A "customer is always right" and "flirting is just part of the job" culture is driving an alarming rate of sexual harassment by customers towards young women in the service industry, new research shows."

#MeToo in the Film and Television Industry

The New York Times: Harvey Weinstein Paid Off Sexual Harassment Accusers for Decades
The article that started the #MeToo movement.
The Age: Is Brad Pitt the ultimate post-feminist fantasy man?
In 1994, Brad Pitt allegedly threatened to kill Harvey Weinstein following an attempted assault upon Gwneth Paltrow.
The Hollywood Reporter: 'Star Trek' Star Claims Kevin Spacey Made a Pass at Him at Age 14; Spacey Apologizes, Comes Out as Gay
Spacey's decision to come out as gay in response to sexual assault allegations was criticised by prominent members of the gay community as an attempt to change the subject from Rapp's accusation, for using his own drunkenness as an excuse, and for implying a connection between being gay and sexually assaulting a minor.
ABC News: Woody Allen says he should be 'the poster boy for the Me Too movement'
"Woody Allen says it is unfair he has been named alongside other Hollywood figures accused of sexual misconduct, adding he should instead be a "poster boy" for the Me Too movement."
The Guardian: Actor Terry Crews: I was sexually assaulted by Hollywood executive
"Brooklyn Nine-Nine star says he did not speak out after unnamed ‘high-level’ executive groped his genitals for fear of being ostracised or jailed"

#MeToo in the Music Industry

Beat Magazine: Corner Hotel replace Riff Raff show with panel tackling sexual abuse in the music industry
"Last Thursday, rape allegations against US rapper ‘Riff Raff’ surfaced in a Facebook post. Melbourne woman Eliza Stafford detailed the horrific account of an encounter with the musician at his concert five years ago when she was only 19 - a public declaration brought to light by his impending Australian return. As one of the first venues to cancel Riff Raff’s performance, The Corner Hotel is seizing the opportunity to host a panel discussion about the state of sexual harassment and assault across industries, and the way responses to this are changing."
The Age: An 'astonishing response' to the rape allegations against Riff Raff
"The #MeToo movement continues to show that powerful things can happen when women are believed about the violence perpetrated against us, with the truly astonishing collective response from promoters and businesses to allegations of rape against Texan rapper “Riff Raff”."
Vice podcast: The Music Industry's #MeToo Movement Has Been Systematically Silenced
On this episode of 'The VICE Guide to Right Now Podcast,' Noisey's Andrea Domanick discusses the industry's hidden underbelly of sexual harassment. Duration: 12:15
The full investigation can be read here: "The Dollars and Desperation Silencing #MeToo in Music".

#MeToo in Sport

Vox: Young women reported Larry Nassar for decades. No one took them seriously — until now
"When Kyle Stephens told her parents at age 12 that she had been abused by gymnastics coach Larry Nassar, they didn’t believe her.
Nassar, a former sports medicine physician at Michigan State University and doctor for USA Gymnastics, successfully convinced her parents she was lying about six years of abuse, and they believed him so completely that they made her apologize to him, according to the Washington Post. As a result, Stephens, as a teenager, began to pull away from her family.
On Wednesday, Nassar was sentenced to 40 to 175 years in prison for sexual abuse in addition to a 60-year sentence for child pornography handed down in December 2017. More than 150 survivors spoke over the course of seven days at his sentencing hearing before the Ingham County Circuit Court in Michigan about how his abuse had affected them."
Sports Illustrated: Jerry Richardson, Panthers Have Made Multiple Confidential Payouts for Workplace Misconduct, Including Sexual Harassment and Use of a Racial Slur
"Friday was Jeans Day, when most staffers at the Carolina Panthers team offices would wear denim to work. The female employees knew what that meant. As the team’s owner, Jerry Richardson, made his rounds on the way to his spacious office, he would ask women to turn around so he could admire their backsides."

#MeToo in the Literature/Publishing Industry

The Sydney Morning Herald: Drop the 'himpathy': Clarion call of Sydney Writers' Festival's #MeToo moment
"A frisson flashed through the Sydney Writers' Festival last week when US author Zinzi Clemmons unexpectedly took a microphone and accused American Pulitzer Prize winning author Junot Diaz of sexual misconduct."
The Sydney Morning Herald: Why I'm uneasy about this chapter in the #MeToo revolution
"Last weekend Australia played host to a spectacular chapter in the #MeToo revolution that felled Pulitzer-prize winning Dominican American novelist Junot Diaz. The dramatic arc is worthy of an airport page-turner."
The Age: Naked women in Sports Illustrated isn't about giving them a voice
"The Sports Illustrated annual swimsuit edition, a magazine serving up an array of sexy young women in bikinis for the viewing pleasure of a male audience, hit newsstands this month. This year's edition features a nude spread entitled ''In Her Own Words'', a collection of photos of naked women with words scrawled across their bodies that apparently represent who they are.
According to the magazine's Instagram, the series of naked women in the men's girlie mag is intended to celebrate "more than just their bodies". Which raises the question, why are they posed naked? Surely if the aim is to humanise the women included rather than to sexualise them, stripping them off, laying them on the ground passively and photographing them naked isn't the best way to achieve this?"
The Irish Independent: Post Weinstein and #MeToo is it Time Up for the Fifty Shades of Grey phenomenon?
"Fifty Shades of Grey was first released in 2011, a novel that originated as fan fiction based on the vampire romance Twilight. Critics were appalled by the quality of the writing (lest we forget the "inner goddess doing the merengue with some salsa moves"), but fans were rapt. It became a publishing sensation, selling more than 100 million copies worldwide, and immediately caused controversy: was it empowering to women or did it celebrate female disempowerment? Was it feminist? Post-feminist? Anti-feminist?"
School Library Journal: When Cosby’s ‘Little Bill,’ Alexie and Asher are on the Shelf: What Should A Librarian Do?
"The conversation among librarians in school districts, colleagues at public libraries and classroom teachers is ongoing and difficult: What do we do with the books written by authors accused of sexual harassment or, in Bill Cosby’s case, authors convicted of sexual assault?"

What is Sexual Harassment?

Sexual harassment is an unwelcome sexual advance, unwelcome request for sexual favours or other unwelcome conduct of a sexual nature which makes a person feel offended, humiliated or intimidated, where a reasonable person would anticipate that reaction in the circumstances.

Examples of sexually harassing behaviour include:

unwelcome touching;
staring or leering;
sexually explicit pictures or posters;
unwanted invitations to go out on dates;
requests for sex;
intrusive questions about a person’s private life or body;
unnecessary familiarity, such as deliberately brushing up against a person;
insults or taunts based on sex;
sexually explicit physical contact; and
sexually explicit emails or SMS text messages.

A working environment or workplace culture that is sexually permeated or hostile will also amount to unlawful sexual harassment. Some of the factors which may indicate a potentially hostile environment include the display of obscene or pornographic materials, general sexual banter, crude conversation or innuendo and offensive jokes.

The Sex Discrimination Act makes sexual harassment unlawful in many areas of public life, including in employment situations, educational institutions, the provision of goods, services and accommodation and the administration of Commonwealth laws or programs.

A person who sexually harasses is primarily responsible for the sexual harassment. However, in many cases, employers and others can be held responsible for acts of sexual harassment done by their employees or agents.

Source: Fact Sheet: Legal Definition of Sexual Harassment - Australian Human Rights Commission