Born of #MeToo fury, Time’s Up has struggled to define itself
LOS ANGELES—Bound by fury, 300 women in entertainment came together last fall in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein sexual harassment scandal to form a loose-knit coalition with big ambitions.
The group quickly raised $12 million and vowed to fight discrimination and sexual harassment by giving voice and support to those who have suffered abuse. It took out “Dear Sisters” newspaper ads and staged a dramatic “blackout” at the Golden Globes, with A-list actresses and producers dressed in a monochromatic display of unity. Oprah Winfrey used her speech that January night to condemn “a culture broken by brutally powerful men” and repeat the organization’s undeniably catchy name, Time’s Up.
“For too long, women have not been heard or believed if they dared to speak their truth to the power of those men,” Winfrey said. “But their time is up.”
Nearly one year in, however, confusion persists about the mission and inner workings of Time’s Up.
The group has raised more than $22 million, much of it coming from big names in Hollywood, for a legal defense fund that has provided assistance to dozens of women. But efforts to shift the balance of power largely have fallen short, even during the contentious confirmation of Brett M. Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court. Beyond the image of actress Alyssa Milano silently sitting behind him during a Senate hearing, its efforts were ignored. A day after the testimony by Kavanaugh and his accuser, Christine Blasey Ford, Time’s Up co-sponsored a protest at L.A. City Hall. It drew a sparse crowd.
Several groups came together last fall as women shared #MeToo stories of abuse. One, the Commission on Eliminating Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality in the Workplace, is led by Anita Hill—who became a public figure when she accused then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of harassment. But with its inspiring name and star power, Time’s Up overshadowed the others; indeed, it was often considered synonymous with #MeToo, which remains a movement rather than an organization.
Initially fashioned as a democratic collective, the organization prided itself on not having a single leader, typically speaking through an unsigned statement. Announcements of smaller groups and other areas of interest such as helping female farmworkers and promoting film critics of color, only added to the confusion.
“It’s never been clear what Time’s Up is,” an attorney who has worked with the group said. “We don’t even know who Time’s Up is.”
The group appeared to realize some of the problem; this month, it was announced that Lisa Borders would be leaving her job as president of the Women’s National Basketball Assn. to become president and chief executive of Time’s Up. When a few reporters were hastily summoned to a news conference to meet her, the sense of relief among other group members was clear.
Already the group has certainly changed, or highly influenced, the wave of outrage unleashed by sexual harassment allegations against dozens of high-profile men in the last year.
“To say that we did not know what we were launching was an understatement,” Rebecca Goldman, the chief operating officer, said recently. “We literally ordered 300 T-shirts and 500 lapel pins. We did not know if anyone would want them. What happened was this incredible outpouring of women … calling us, coming together, wanting to mobilize.”
Early on, the energy was electric and meetings were massive, and often unfocused. In Hollywood, where gatherings were held at the homes of actresses including Eva Longoria and Brie Larson, there were debates between women who had spoken out against high-profile men and those who had not.
In one meeting before the group made its public debut in January, a few members began drafting an “enemies and allies” list so they could zero in on executives whom they viewed as not supportive of women, according to one participant. Some demanded that Time’s Up dictate who would be hired to lead Amazon Studios after its former chief, Roy Price, was ousted in a harassment scandal. A discussion in Lifetime Television network’s New York offices dissolved into vitriol over Bill Cosby (before his conviction), according to another group member who also was not authorized to comment.
“There were varying levels of irateness,” she said. “It was like having a meeting of 200 members of PETA. And while you are trying to come up with a strategy, someone stands up and says: ‘My local restaurant has rabbit on the menu, and I think it is terrible. Should we call the police?’
“Things got in the weeds very quickly.”
One member equated the leaders’ attempts to corral members during meetings to herding cats.
Goldman took issue with that characterization.
“It was actually a really informed, strategic process to gather feedback, to gather opinions,” she said. “We have done that groundwork of listening, learning and examining so that we can turn it into action.”
Roberta Kaplan, a prominent New York attorney, was more blunt.
“We needed a leader,” Kaplan said. “We want this thing to not just be words and talk and slogans, we want it to result in real concrete action. In order for that to happen, we have to have a structure with leadership.”
Caroline Heldman, an associate professor at Occidental College who has become a leading advocate for victims of rape and other sexual assault, said Time’s Up has done a remarkably good job with two things: “They have helped keep the #MeToo movement and the issue of sexual violence in the national agenda. And they have raised a lot of money for the legal fund, which goes beyond the women of Hollywood to help people in other industries.”
Money has poured in. Big talent agencies, some tarnished by accusations of abetting Weinstein and others, forked over million-dollar donations. Steven Spielberg and his wife, Kate Capshaw, through their foundation, contributed $2 million. Abrams and McGrath donated $1 million. Reese Witherspoon, Meryl Streep, Jennifer Aniston and Sandra Bullock each gave $500,000.
Time’s Up turned to the National Women’s Law Center in Washington to administer its legal defense fund.
“We pivoted into something that would be a real demonstration of sustained support for women who don’t have the visibility that women in Hollywood do,” McGrath said.
Kaplan said she got a call in early November from Tina Tchen, a Chicago attorney and former chief of staff for Michelle Obama. Movie producer Brett Ratner had filed a defamation lawsuit against a woman in Hawaii who wrote on her Facebook page last October that he had raped her. Ratner, who continues to deny the accusation, withdrew the defamation suit this month. Still, the ramifications were enormous.
“We saw (her) case as the beginning of a wave,” Kaplan said. “Women (were) sued to stop them from talking. … There was no upside for a lawyer to take that case, but we needed lawyers to protect these women.”
“We’ve been focused on low-wage workers,” said Sharyn Tejani, who is director of the legal defense fund. “And we have seen that in almost every case, there is a claim of retaliation. If they complain, they are told there is no work for you, or their shifts get cut. That makes it incredibly difficult for people to come forward.”