In 2006, Tarana Burke founded the Me Too organisation as a support network for victims of sexual harassment and assault. Burke being a survivor herself brings resources, support, and pathways to healing where none existed before. However, in 2017 Me Too became more than an organisation, it became a movement, Despite the perception that the Me-Too Movement was exclusively a women’s movement, it has helped significantly contribute to changes in both the rights and roles of women since its emergence. The campaign is known for protesting and marching in support of women’s rights, with Harvey Weinstein‘s sexual assault charges being among the campaign‘s most noteworthy events. During the crusade, media coverage played both a positive and negative role in the outcome, and sexual harassment has been handled differently than before the movement.
The MeeToo Movement earned a significant amount of publicity in 2017 which resulted in the achievement of crucial fame which in turn has allowed the movement to make greater change. In most cases, when individuals hear about the Me Too Movement, they immediately think of Harvey Weinstein, who was accused of sexual harassment and assault by multiple women, including Ashley Judd. In her complaint before the United States Court of Appeals, Judd alleged that Weinstein sexually harassed her during a ‘general business meeting’. [ CITATION Jud20 \l 2057 ] Weinstein who was wearing a bathrobe also ‘asked Judd if he could give her a massage[ CITATION Jud20 \l 2057 J. In this case, Judd was exposed as vulnerable to Weinstein’s manipulations, which shows why the Me Too Movement is focused on spreading awareness and stopping the weakening of women by men. Another instance of where women were left vulnerable, is in an article by the Guardian which raises concerns about guns have not been removed from domestic abusers.
The victim Paige Mitchell husband Bradley Gray had reportedly ”showed her a Glock in a holster and threatened to use it” [CITATION Kat21\|2057 ] In spite of the article appearing in 2021, it still relates to the Me Too movement, as women are still being abused by men to the extent that the Me Too Movement seeks to raise awareness about it. An insightful and trustworthy view of the Me Too Movement is presented by the US Court of Appeal and the Guardian article. Based on the evidence from both sources, the Me Too Movement achieved fame because of the puinCIty surrounding major events like the Harvey Weinstein saga, and since Judd spoke and acted publicly about her ordeal, the movement might not have been one of the most powerful and historic activism developments the is continues in 2021, The movement also got crucial fame due to a Twitter post by Alyssa Milano in 2017.
127 our experts are availableright now
In the Me Too Movement, Milano played a pivotal role in revealing the extent to which sexual harassment and assault are problems. The actress wrote on Twitter “If you‘ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet” (Milano, 2017) Tweets like this help to demonstrate a movement’s rise to fame because the post gained 20k retweets which illustrate how social media can be used to increase the effect of important messages. There is no doubt that both sources acknowledge the Me Too Movement as one of the most popular movements and a catalyst for many changes in women’s rights and gender roles, Milano‘s direct comments from 2017 and the fact that the source came from her positively impact the validity of the source. An article by The Conversation discusses how Me Too has changed the way social media is used in the movement.
The corporate world is making changes and getting on board with “tapping into the potential of #MeToo to ask how men can do better to call out sexist attitudes and behawours that condone violence against women”[ CITATION Fi|19 \I 2057 ] By using one simple hashtag, the movement was able to influence large corporations to take action on issues that made women more vulnerable in the workplace and in addition, it was able to enact changes. Based on evidence from both primary and secondary sources, it can be concluded that the Me Too Movement’s fame was enhanced by the publicity it received, Throughout modern society, women’s roles and rights have changed because of the fame gained by the movement. The Me Too Movement’s success was a result of the media’s both positive and negative effect as a method. The media create and enforce positive changes to important issues such as the Me Too Movement; however, the media also creates opposing viewpoints on issues causing movements to lose purpose. Tarana Burke, the Me Too Movement’s founder delivered a speech at TED X which conveyed the importance of Me Too being recognised as a movement not a moment in women’s history.
The speech discusses the media’s contribution to the success of the Me Too Movement, however, the media didn’t always have a p05itive impact. Burke discusses the questions that were raised by the media about the movement’s intentions; questions like “The Me Too Movement is a witch hunt Right?” (Burke, 2018) The movement’s intention was not to be a witch hunt but “the media has been consistent with headline after headline that frames this movement in ways that make it difficult to move the work forward” (Burke, 2018). Ajournal article released by the University of Chicago Legal Forum also reinforces the idea that the media had an impact on the movement. The article discusses a new type of activism, ’Social Media Activism’ which refers to the “effectiveness and viability of using social media platforms for political engagement in furtherance of social movements” [CITATION Bow19 \| 2057 ].
The article also states that “The simple hashtag #MeToo has added names, faces, and stories to the statistics in what is arguably the most powerful activism in women’s movement history” [CITATION Bow19 \| 2057 ] Both sources clearly state that media has significantly enhanced the effect the Me Too Movement has had on changing the rights and roles of women in modern society. Therefore, the media as a method has led to the movement’s success. The sources are trustworthy because the speech comes from Tarana Burke and the journal article is comes from the University of Chicago, with the authors having Ph.D.s. The evidence from both sources confirms how the media has both a positive and negative effect on the success of the movement. Consequently, the media has had both positive and negative effects as a method for the movement’s success. Finally, the movement has also changed the prominence of sexual harassment in the workplace. With the scandal of the Harvey Weinstein cases, workplace practices had to be changed to better handle sexual harassment. According to the Equal Rights Advocates Title VII Civil Rights Act of 1964 makes it illegal for employers to allow anyone to be sexually harassed at work. “It is designed to make employers accountable for providing a work environment that is free from harassment and other kinds of discrimination” [ CITATION Equ21\l 2057 ]This comment is supported by the journal article which revealed shocking statistics about how many women experience sexual harassment or assault. “38% of women have experienced sexual harassment in the workplace” [ CITATION Bow19 \l 2057 ]. This raises concerns about if women are safe in the workplace and if action has been taken to stop sexual harassment, Both sources clearly acknowledge the problem of sexual harassment in the workplace and the magnitude of the issue.
Therefore, the prominence of sexual harassment can be handled differently than prior to the Me Too Movement. Both sources provide an insightful view on sexual harassment in the workplace because one states the federal law in America that deals with sexual harassment and the other reveals the statistics on sexual harassment. The evidence from both sources reinforces the idea that because of the Me Too Movement sexual harassment has been handled differently and has become an important issue for employers to focus on. As it is clear, the Me Too Movement has drastically changed how sexual harassment is dealt with in the workplace, To briefly summarise, the rights and roles of women in modern society has changed because of the Me Too Movement.
Ultimately, people interpreted the Me-Too Movement as a women’s only movement, however the emergence of the movement has significantly promoted a change to both the rights and roles of women in the 20005. In conjunction with the movement gaining publicity the movement was able to gain crucial fame, the media’s coverage had both positive and negative effects on the movement’s success and the prominence of sexual harassment changed in the workplace. The effect that the Me Too Movement had on the history of women’s movements has continued to shape and form, different societal expectation for the rights and roles of women in modern society.
References
- Bowman-Willams, 1., Singh, L, & Mezey, N. (2019). #MeToo as Catalyst: A Glimpse into 215t Century Activism. Chicago Legal Forum. 372—375. Equal Rights Advocates. (2021. June 14). Know Your Rights At Work Sexual Harassment . Retrieved from Equal Rights Advocates : http5://www.equalrightsorg/issue/economic-workplace— equality/sexuaI-harassment/
- Fileborn, 3.. Loney-Howes , R.. & Hindes, S. (2019, March 8). #MeToo has changed the media landscape. but in Australia there is still much to be done . Retrieved from The Conversation : https://theconversafion.com/metoo-has-changedvthe-media-landscape-but-in-australia- there-is-sti||<much-to-be-done-111612
- Judd v Weinstein. 957 F.3d 952 (United States Court of Appeals For the Ninth Circuit July 29. 2020).
- Sypher, K. (2021), How the US fails to take away guns from domestic abusers: ‘These deaths are preventable. Retrieved from The Guardian : https://www.theguardian.com/us- news/202l/oct/26/domestic-abuse-gunwiolence-reveal
- Milano. A. [@AlvssaiMilano]. (2017, October 16). If you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet [Tweet]. Twitter httDSI//lwitter.tom/alyssa mllano/status/9196594387006709767lang:en Burke. T. (2018). Me T00 is :1 Movement. Not a Moment. Speech. Retrieved October 14. 2021, from https://singjupost,(om/me~too»ls-a-movement-nct-a>moment-tarana-burke-iull-transcript/? singlegage=1
