Contributor Post Created with Sketch. Are We Allowed to Ask #TimesUp Women “What Took So Long?”

 

I was on a British radio station Sunday night talking about the Oscars and two in-studio guests (who happened to be women) were horrified when I said my sensitive stomach couldn’t take watching these people–men and women–who’d remained silent about a pervert/monster in their midst congratulate themselves for their courage after 20 years of silence.

I was accused of “blaming the victim,” which I found rather odd, but I thought about it and then wrote this for the Boston Herald today (it’s a theme we’ve touched on in the podcast):

When the guy who hosted the breast-obsessed “Man Show” appears onstage with an NBA player once accused of rape to give awards to people who spent decades doing business with Harvey Weinstein — you know Hollywood has gotten serious about sexual harassment.

I have no comment about the crop of overrated movies honored by the Academy Sunday night — other than to note that giving the Best Picture nod to “Handicapped Woman Has Sex With Fish Man, Is Saved By Communists” may be the most #Oscars! moment ever. What is worthy of notice is the nonstop self-congratulations from society’s most notoriously corrupt class, the Hollywood Left…

I realize I’m not supposed to mention the fact that Hollywood women happily appeared with Weinstein to pick up awards — not to mention checks — year after year. Some were victims of his cretinous come-ons; others knew about it. But only a handful spoke out the way Rose McGowan did, and even she didn’t bother to show up on Sunday. “Why would I?” McGowan asked, dismissing the night’s theatrics as a fraud.

I’m not supposed to ask about the women who were harassed and assaulted by men their entire industry knew were dirtbags, but about whom the “courageous women” of Hollywood remained silent.

I’m told that to question the silence of women after they’ve been assaulted or harassed is to “blame the victim.” So am I allowed to ask the first 50 Weinstein victims what they would say to the next 50? Am I allowed to ask, “Isn’t it a shame that so many people in Hollywood would rather get an Oscar than give a report to a studio’s HR department or the police?”

So that’s the question: Are we allowed to have any expectations, pass any judgment on victims of sexual harassment who (apparently) believe that what they’ve undergone is harmful and traumatic…but refuse to do anything to prevent the next victim from being treated the same way? Do they have any personal responsibility? When you confront your abuser 20 years–and 50 victims–later, are you a “courageous hero?” Or a shameful coward?

Or is it hate to even ask?

PS: If you have a thought on this and would like for it to be part of the podcast, call the Confession Hotline: 617-903-8255. The best of the best calls are part of the show every Friday!

There are 7 comments.

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  1. Joshua Bissey Coolidge

    Mr. Graham, that was brutal. In a good way; not in that Harvey Weinstein way.

    Were it just one or two women victimized, and declined to speak up, I’d withhold judgment. Victims of sexual assault are notoriously shy about calling attention to it. But it seems most of Hollywood knew about this. A lot of people besides the victims could have spoken out. #metoo should be #weknew

    • #1
    • March 6, 2018, at 12:06 PM PST
    • 7 likes
  2. Aaron Miller Member
    Aaron MillerJoined in the first year of Ricochet Ricochet Charter Member

    Can a person in pain be expected to prioritize other people and spare them that pain? Answers might not be easy, but the question is not cruel.

    • #2
    • March 6, 2018, at 1:12 PM PST
    • Like
  3. Hoyacon Member

    Let’s also not forget that it’s very likely there are non-victims who were well aware of “business as usual” in Hollywood and elected to say nothing. On a bit more speculative note, it’s possible that this group includes actors/actresses who were bigger stars than those victimized because they had sufficient box office power to get roles without playing the game. What did they know and when did they know it?

    • #3
    • March 6, 2018, at 1:29 PM PST
    • 3 likes
  4. Columbo Member

    • #4
    • March 6, 2018, at 2:43 PM PST
    • 2 likes
  5. CarolJoy, Thread Hijacker Coolidge

    You are a man. Apparently if you want to “get with the program” you will accept that you are supposed to listen.

    They made Matt Damon apologize for suggesting that perhaps that class of men who was guilty of aggressing on women should be judged individually, with any charges against any individual man proven. Then the retribution should be commensurate with the degree of the crime. Damon tried to point out that pinching a woman’s fanny was rude, and insensitive. We all know that, but certainly not on the level of more serious offenses. (Like roof-y-ing a woman’s drink and then raping her once she was comatose. Or pedophilia.)

    For that offense of his, Damon had to stand by and watch as a petition was circulated and then came to have 21,000 names on it, demanding he be pulled from a film production in which he was involved. So he finally apologized to women everywhere, for his having spoken truth. But speaking truth is not really encouraged, unless that truth is in line with whatever the Puppet Masters over at the Liberal Left are decreeing as being truth.

    “Two legs bad, four legs good” is being replaced with “women good, no matter what; men bad bad BAD.”

    Wish I could offer a saner analysis but judging Cra Cra makes me rather crazy myself.

    • #5
    • March 7, 2018, at 4:09 PM PST
    • 1 like
  6. contrarian Member

    I’d usually agree with you that there’s a responsibility to do something so the wrongdoer can’t just continue victimizing people but Weinstein seems to be a special case. In his community, he wasn’t just a powerful man who’d protect himself, but someone so intimidating that he inspired fear and hopelessness at the thought of trying to bring him down – like a politically connected head of an organized crime family.

    .

    The same could apply to an especially ruthless general, governor, senator, etc. I don’t know enough about Las Vegas, but Wynn may have had Weinstein like power there. I think it applied to Clinton when he was governor. That kind of power is pretty rare though. It certainly does not apply to someone like Matt Lauer or Charlie Rose. I think Kobe Bryant

    Hoyacon (View Comment):
    Let’s also not forget that it’s very likely there are non-victims who were well aware of “business as usual” in Hollywood and elected to say nothing. On a bit more speculative note, it’s possible that this group includes actors/actresses who were bigger stars than those victimized because they had sufficient box office power to get roles without playing the game. What did they know and when did they know it?

    What I wonder about are the actresses who took Weinstein’s deal and are stars today because of it. It’s not just that they didn’t out him. They profited from the same setup that victimized and destroyed others. #TimesUp/#MeToo would call them victims. Aren’t they complicit?

    • #6
    • March 13, 2018, at 8:23 AM PDT
    • 1 like
  7. contrarian Member

    PS: Worst thing at Oscars was Kobe. If she hadn’t already had struggles with mental health and she had been strong enough psychologically to keep fighting, I think he’d have gone to prison.

    • #7
    • March 13, 2018, at 10:06 AM PDT
    • 1 like

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