THE RISE OF #METOO

A movement is born

The rallying cry of #Metoo took Twitter by storm in October 2017. The slogan was coined by activist Tarana Burke, who had years earlier formed a group helping sexual-violence survivors. After the Weinstein story broke, actor Alyssa Milano tweeted suggesting anyone who had ‘been sexually harassed or assaulted write “me too” as a reply’; it was retweeted 23,000 times. In one year, according to Pew Research Center, #Metoo would be used over 19 million times.

Rose Mcgowan

Actor turned activist Rose Mcgowan was among the women to come forward about

Weinstein, claiming that he had raped her in 1997, and that she was later offered $1 million to stay silent by someone close to him. Over 80 women, including actors Salma Hayek and Gwyneth Paltrow, have made accusations including sexual harassment, abusive behaviour and rape. Weinstein denies all allegations. He is awaiting trial, due to begin in January.

The Women’s Marches In January 2017, five million people worldwide protested in Women’s Marches against Trump. The next year saw #Metoo and these marches (and, in the UK, a centenary of women’s suffrage) collide. Millions hit the streets again.

Time’s Up

A response to #Metoo, the Time’s Up campaign fights sexual harassment in the workplace. It launched in January 2018 with an open letter signed by over 300 prominent women in Hollywood, including Meryl Streep and Michelle Pfeiffer. At that year’s Golden Globes, guests wore all black in solidarity.