Never too late to speak out

Re: “Taking quick action against harassment” (Letters, Oct. 19)

The dreadful Harvey Weinstein saga involves the complaints and testimonies of now-successful women in the film industry.

The letter-writer wonders rhetorically why they are coming forward only now, contrasting this with her own youthful experience of quitting a job immediately when her supervisor was sexually inappropriate. I applaud her choice back then to place her personal dignity above keeping a job. I have had such moments myself when I was able to confront the perpetrator and leave the situation.

However, I think what the writer is missing is an appreciation of the factors that can constrain girls and women in situations of unwanted sexual attention and harassment: embarrassment, intimidation and fear, power imbalances favouring the perpetrator, confusion about how to interpret the situation, investment in a developing career, financial dependency on a job, and social conditioning to be nice and accommodating.

Most women experiencing sexual harassment are not wealthy and successful celebrities; they are regular women. The high-profile women who have spoken out have made it easier for the rest of us to find our voices — even if belatedly.

Cerise Morris, Montreal