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Could this be the end of Harvey Weinstein’s “Reign of Terror?”
Harvey Weinstein is charged with rape and sex abuse in cases involving two women
What a sad week, for the second sexual harassment and assault scandal has made breaking news in a span of 2 days. Harvey Weinstein, a former American film producer, is charged with rape and sex abuse, in cases involving 2 women.
This is not new to the public, however, since October 2017 is when sexual allegations first were made against Weinstein when he was also dismissed from his company and expelled from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. By October 31st, over 80 women has made allegations against Weinstein, which triggered the #MeToo social media campaign. This is an international movement against sexual harassment and assault, and to help demonstrate the widespread prevalence of sexual assault and harassment, especially in the workplace. Furthermore, it encouraged a wave of sexual abuse allegations against powerful men around the world and the dismissal of them as well, called the “Weinstein effect.”
The allegations were first written about in The New York Times reporting a dozen women in the film industry accused of Weinstein sexually harassing, assaulting, and raping them. He denied all of them, but nonetheless was fired and expelled, and subsequently, his wife left him. This opened up an investigation by the LAPD, plus New York and London police.
After more than 7 months, the potential of justice finally being served was in the air, when on May 25thof this year, Weinstein was charged by the New York Police with “rape, criminal sex act, sex abuse, and sexual misconduct for incidents involving 2 separate women.” This was a result of charges filed from incidents in 2013 and 2004 in the Manhattan district, 2 out of the various alleged victims were being brought justice in a sense. However, shortly after he was arrested, he was released after 10 million dollars of bail was posted on his behalf. The 66-year old is now required to wear a GPS monitoring system at all times and is restricted from certain travel. So now a confirmed rapist gets to travel between New York and Connecticut freely, as dozens of women constantly endure the impact of his actions. Some believed that they would never see justice. “I, and so many of Harvey Weinstein’s survivors had given up hope that our rapist would be held accountable by law. Twenty years ago, I swore that I would right this wrong. Today we are one step closer to justice,” actress Rose McGowan, one of the first women to publicly accuse Weinstein of assault, said Thursday.
More charges are expected as the grand jury continues to hear the testimonies of more women who are willing to speak out. Additionally, Weinstein is also under investigation for alleged sex crimes in LA and London.
“After decades of abusing women with impunity, finally, the beginning of the end of Harvey Weinstein’s reign of terror,” Asia Argento said in a statement to CNN, a actress who came forward of Weinstein’s misconduct. “I wish I could say this brings me peace. Unfortunately, the damage he has done to women can never be undone. He belongs in prison.”
The empowered movement that came out of this is something that must not be taken lightly, as it has allowed sexual assault victims to gain their voice against powerful men, who continued to victimize the women by silencing them. It is also allows for a deeper look into sexual abuse and harassment culture in the workplace, particularly on the sets of movies. This is something that is not looked into, and maybe it should, to avoid it in the long run.