Thousands reply ‘me too’ on sex abuse

ACTRESS Alyssa Milano has sparked a huge outpouring with a simple Twitter request that women respond “me too” if they have been sexually assaulted or harassed.

More than 27 000 people replied, making #MeToo the top trending topic through the day on Sunday.

The avalanche of painful personal stories comes amid a series of high-profile sex abuse scandals – the latest centred around powerful Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein.

More than 20 women – a who’s who of Hollywood – have come forward to accuse Weinstein of rape, assault and sexual harassment.

Milano, probably best known for her role in the 1980s sitcom Who’s the Boss, is not among the accusers.

“If you’ve been sexually harassed or assaulted write ‘me too’ as a reply to this tweet,” she wrote.

The response underscored how the problem affects the lives of women around the world.

In France, a similar campaign with the top-trending hashtag #balancetonporc (“Expose the pig”) saw women share their experiences of being sexually harassed at work or in the street.

Many women in the US and France appeared to be speaking out for the first time about abuses they had suffered, often saying they had to overcome feelings of shame and embarrassment to do so.

Some women using the #metoo hashtag said they had been abused as children by relatives, or as a teenager by a person they trusted. That nobody believed them when they spoke about it emerged as a common refrain.

Meanwhile, a new law banning cat-calling and harassment of women on French streets will see men fined on the spot for lecherous and aggressive behaviour, France’s women’s minister said yesterday.

The legislation is being piloted by 34-year-old Marlene Schiappa, a feminist and early supporter of French President Emmanuel Macron who wants to tackle sexist male attitudes in public spaces.

“It’s completely necessary because at the moment street harassment is not defined in the law,” she said yesterday.

Asked about the difficulty of drawing a line between harassment and flirtation, she said: “We know very well at what point we start feeling intimidated, unsafe or harassed in the street.” – AFP