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Sexual Harassment - Why Now?

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oldmandeac

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Help me with this one... what is really going on? I don't raise this as an individual attack on anyone who has been accused or resigned over this issue regardless of party affiliation or women's rights.

But, I want some broader opinions on why this is all such an issue NOW.

Let me frame the discussion... the casting couch is part of Hollywood lore. Presidents and people in the position of power have had their mistresses as all powerful men from King David to JKF to business leaders and Hollywood moguls.

So, the practice isn't new (and please, I am not saying that past history makes it right).

Which leads to the question - why now?

The recent round started probably with Bill Cosby and then unto the toppling of conservatives - Roger Ailes, Bill O'Reilly, an attempt on Sean Hannity...

It has morphed into a lot of top tier liberals being outed (Harvey, Franken, Rose, Lauer, to name a few plus possibly the throwing Clinton under the bus)...

Virtually all of the allegations are from years ago so one can assume the behavior was known and likely by multiple people. People who have turned a blind eye for decades are suddenly calling foul.

So... why now does this topple all these people? Is there a conservative version of George Soros who is the puppet master getting retribution against the liberals? Are liberals throwing their own under the bus in an attempt to have credibility to take down Trump?

In statistic analysis there is a cause and effect part of the study. We are seeing the effect in the firings and resignations but I don't hear any investigation into the cause.

Thoughts?
 
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Because in 2017, people are more likely to believe women and act on what women say than any other time in history.

These things snowball. If one woman comes out and people believe her, that encourages another to come out and expect people will believe her too.
 
Mostly that. It may have helped that Weinstein's victims were actresses, making it harder to play the "15 minutes of fame" card.
 
Sure it helps when the accusers are more famous than the accused but I don't think many people could name most of the accusers.
 
Many got away with because of the fear of retribution and cover ups. When that fear goes away, people are more likely to speak up.

And not ever issue is liberal vs conservative.
 
Many reasons but bravery and tenacity by the person that reported Weinstein combined with an epiphany by many, and maybe an emerging narrative in the news, that turning a blind eye to assaults and harassment is shameful in and of itself.

The issue has been on a slow build for the last couple years. Events like Stubenville and Vanderbilt shocked the conscious of many concerning the treatment of women and the capacity of "normal" people to be so vile and indifferent. Then there were high-profile employment cases, like Bill O and others, where women were finally believed and vindicated.

Ultimately, however, the solutions must require accountability for people who know harassment is occurring but nonetheless remain silent. That boils down to a failure of leadership and responsibility in most organizations. People like O'Reilly, Weinstein, Lauer, Clinton, Trump, are faces of the issue but the thousands of people that knew and did nothing are the core of the problem. The failure to intervene is precisely why events like Stubenville and Vanderbilt escalated into gang rapes and the workplace examples like Weinstein and O'Reilly were so out of control.
 
I just assumed this was a big reaction to 'grab em by the pussy'
 
Good post, AMC.
 
Very rarely does a tag say anything substantive, but pos rep to the "if not now when?" tagger. My response to this is "why not now?"
 
DeacHead said:
Very rarely does a tag say anything substantive, but pos rep to the "if not now when?" tagger. My response to this is "why not now?"
Click to expand...

TITCR. No time like the present for powerful people to be held accountable.
 
The current generation(s) of Americans aren't jerks like the boomers
 
buckets said:
The current generation(s) of Americans aren't jerks like the boomers
Click to expand...

Yep, you guys aren't to blame for anything. You are perfect. All of your problems are based on what others have to you and not for you.


WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
 
06deacon said:
God you're an idiot
Click to expand...

I guess it is idiotic to think adults should take some responsibility for themselves rather than blaming others who did terrible things like send them to Wake and grad schools and business, support them, etc. But's it's the fault of boomers that subsequent generations aren't handed the world on a silver platter.
 
I think Trump actually winning had a lot to do with it. After the Access Hollywood tape was released, the majority of people (media, pundits, normal non-fucked-up people) thought that was the end. "Sexual harassment is OK, but not when you get caught," seemed to be the prevailing sentiment. The fact that DJT still won and the sexual harassment and assault didn't matter probably triggered what in hindsight seems the obvious thought: "This is not OK, full stop."

But there still had to be a watershed moment where an accuser came forward and there were actual consequences. Harvey Weinstein getting taken down was that moment, and from that point on, women who were victims of harassment and assault finally could point to something and say, "They finally believe us, we can safely come forward." Reporting sexual harassment and assault was no longer a career killer, no longer got them ostracized. And it all comes back to the fact that a sexual assailant was caught admitting his crimes on tape and he was still elected to the highest office in the American government. If he had lost, I don't know if we would have gotten to this point.
 
I think it mattered from a standpoint of women realizing they can't just sit by and expect men and the system to hold people accountable.

Many women also realized how many women out there are not their allies as well. The fact a majority of white women voted for Trump stunned the other white women.

From the women's march to the VA House elections, more women are standing up for themselves.
 
oldmandeac said:
Help me with this one... what is really going on? I don't raise this as an individual attack on anyone who has been accused or resigned over this issue regardless of party affiliation or women's rights.

But, I want some broader opinions on why this is all such an issue NOW.

Let me frame the discussion... the casting couch is part of Hollywood lore. Presidents and people in the position of power have had their mistresses as all powerful men from King David to JKF to business leaders and Hollywood moguls.

So, the practice isn't new (and please, I am not saying that past history makes it right).

Which leads to the question - why now?

The recent round started probably with Bill Cosby and then unto the toppling of conservatives - Roger Ailes, Bill O'Reilly, an attempt on Sean Hannity...

It has morphed into a lot of top tier liberals being outed (Harvey, Franken, Rose, Lauer, to name a few plus possibly the throwing Clinton under the bus)...

Virtually all of the allegations are from years ago so one can assume the behavior was known and likely by multiple people. People who have turned a blind eye for decades are suddenly calling foul.

So... why now does this topple all these people? Is there a conservative version of George Soros who is the puppet master getting retribution against the liberals? Are liberals throwing their own under the bus in an attempt to have credibility to take down Trump?

In statistic analysis there is a cause and effect part of the study. We are seeing the effect in the firings and resignations but I don't hear any investigation into the cause.

Thoughts?
Click to expand...

Lumping in mistresses and affairs (consensual) with Cosby and Feinstein and Moore and Franken (non consensual) is not correct.
 
AsesinoDeTortugas said:
I think Trump actually winning had a lot to do with it. After the Access Hollywood tape was released, the majority of people (media, pundits, normal non-fucked-up people) thought that was the end. "Sexual harassment is OK, but not when you get caught," seemed to be the prevailing sentiment. The fact that DJT still won and the sexual harassment and assault didn't matter probably triggered what in hindsight seems the obvious thought: "This is not OK, full stop."

But there still had to be a watershed moment where an accuser came forward and there were actual consequences. Harvey Weinstein getting taken down was that moment, and from that point on, women who were victims of harassment and assault finally could point to something and say, "They finally believe us, we can safely come forward." Reporting sexual harassment and assault was no longer a career killer, no longer got them ostracized. And it all comes back to the fact that a sexual assailant was caught admitting his crimes on tape and he was still elected to the highest office in the American government. If he had lost, I don't know if we would have gotten to this point.
Click to expand...

I agree with this theory. I think the country overlooking Trump's transgressions pissed off a lot of people (Fuck, the largest protest in American history occurred the day after Inauguration Day) and that feeling has been simmering below the surface for the past year. Then the Weinstein scandal burst a hole in the dam that kept those feelings in place. Weinsteins crimes were particularly horrific and could not be explained away given his celebrity status and the status of the victims coming forward.

At the end of the day, all of this re-affirms that the arc of the moral universe is long but ultimately bends towards justice. As a society we are now at the point where criminal sexual assault won't be tolerated by a majority of the country (ex. Alabama) and that is a good thing.
 
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