Hollywood stars fight harassment with $13m fund
A-listers among 300 women joining forces to fight for change in wake of Weinstein allegations
THREE HUNDRED Hollywood women have launched a group to tackle the sexual harassment problems revealed by the Harvey Weinstein scandal.
Reese Witherspoon, Eva Longoria, America Ferrera and Emma Stone are among the actresses, movie executives and writers backing the Time’s Up campaign group.
A $13million (£9.6million) legal fund will help “less privileged women”, such as “janitors, nurses and workers at farms, factories, restaurants and hotels”, who are the victims of sexual misconduct, to get justice.
Film stars are also being urged to wear black at the Golden Globes awards ceremony this month to show solidarity and speak out against inequality on the red carpet.
The group has placed a fullpage advert in The New York Times and La Opinion, a Spanish-language newspaper, calling for action.
“The struggle for women to break in, to rise up the ranks and to simply be heard and acknowledged in maledominated workplaces must end; time’s up on this impenetrable monopoly,” it read.
The group is the most prominent example of women in Hollywood turning outrage at allegations against Weinstein into a wider movement for change. Weinstein, who co-founded Miramax, the entertainment company, faced of accusations of rape, sexual assault and harassment from dozens of women last year. His spokesman has repeatedly denied “any allegations of non-consensual sex”.
Time’s Up is run by volunteers and made up of a number of working groups. It has drawn support from many high-profile women in the acting industry, both in front of and behind the camera. Witherspoon, who starred in Legally Blonde and Walk The Line, told The New York Times: “We have been siloed off from each other.
“We’re finally hearing each other, and seeing each other, and now locking arms in solidarity with each other, and in solidarity for every woman who doesn’t feel seen, to be finally heard.” Longoria, who appeared in the TV series Desperate Housewives, is among those backing a campaign for stars to wear black at the Golden Globes. “For years, we’ve sold these awards shows as women, with our gowns and colours and our beautiful faces and our glamour,” she said.
“This time, the industry can’t expect us to go up and twirl around. That’s not what this moment is about.”
The legal fund will be housed at the National Women’s Law Center and help victims who “have been silenced for too long”.