Weinstein's Scandal and Exeter
It was recently revealed that Harvey Weinstein, Hollywood movie producer and mogul, had sexually harassed and assaulted a number of women over the course of decades. He is not the only influential person to make headlines regarding sexual misconduct, as Amazon studio head Roy Price was also recently placed on leave due to accusations of harassment against him.
Although both cases are extremely serious and need to be fully addressed, one particular aspect of Weinstein’s case stands out to me- the people around him had known what was happening for years, and no one had ever chosen to speak about it until now. Famed director Quentin Tarantino, in his own words, “knew enough” of the abuse Weinstein inflicted on women to put a stop to it, but instead he did nothing. Tarantino only admitted to his inaction as accusations against Weinstein came to light. Actor Matt Damon tried to absolve himself of any blame by saying that he never personally witnessed any abuse from Weinstein, but he later backtracked and admitted to knowing that Weinstein had harassed actress Gwyneth Paltrow. Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep, both deeply connected actors, also initially denied any knowledge whatsoever of Weinstein’s sexual misconduct.
Some aspects of this scandal remind me of Exeter. Even though the sexual assault allegations of 2016 have all but dissipated, are they really as distant from us as we think they are? That doesn’t seem to be the case, at least when it comes to the general attitude and culture that allowed those incidents of sexual misconduct to happen. I have heard guys referring to girls in all the sexist slurs known and witnessed countless examples of mansplaining around the Harkness table. Another poignant example that we all know of is in the ALES video, where a girl was accidentally added to the group chat of a boys’ dorm and witnessed the people in it talking about her in a repulsively racist and sexist way. Although that happened a while ago, there is no way for us to find out the difference in how people act in private settings and the language that they choose to use around a Harkness table versus with their friends where no one can hear them.
Girls can also be, and are, guilty of perpetuating this culture of normalized casual sexism and a lack of consequences. Although usually they are not the ones who speak or act in that manner, we still can’t let those actions slide or slut-shame other girls behind their backs. I know that I definitely have been guilty of this as well, of not speaking up against a casually sexist joke or act when it was easier for me to laugh along and not say anything. The worst thing we can do is to create and maintain a culture of silence, which allows sexist and sexually violent acts to be repeated over and over again without consequence.
Let’s not pretend as though the culture doesn’t exist. If we are quick to separate ourselves from people like Harvey Weinstein and the people who knew about his abuse of women while doing nothing, then we will never be able to solve our own problems. We still have a lot of work to do, and it can only progress when all of us voice out about the everyday incidents of sexism and sexual misconduct that we witness and experience, no matter how big or small. By remaining silent, we contribute to the normalization of it.