#MeToo

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     In many families, cultures, and societies, sexual harassment and abuse were the norm and were often overlooked. Due to the manifestation of sex inequality and the unequal balance of power among sexes in society, violence against women was extremely common. Most women don’t report these assaults for many reasons, some of which include the fear of retaliation, the belief that the police would not help, and also the belief that the situation was their fault. Other reasons for this could be that the situation isn’t important enough to report and the fear of getting the perpetrator in trouble. However, ever since its beginning, the #MeToo movement led to a cultural shift that focuses on the experiences of the survivors and allows them to express their stories and feelings.

     Since October of 2017, the movement spread virally as the use of the hashtag on social media platforms brought attention to the issue. However, the start of this movement is rooted in the Harvey Weistein case that occurred around the same time. Harvey Weinstein was an award-winning film producer and a long-time sexual predator. Public news of the sexual misconduct allegations against Weinstein spread quickly and so a woman named Alyssa Milano urged those on Twitter who are victims of sexual assault and/or harassment to identify themselves by saying ‘me too’.  

     Social media provides a platform for its users to express their opinions, feelings, and views on different topics. Yet, most movements on social media rarely manifest the physical world and often create unrealistic expectations of what the world is going to look like outside the internet. However, since the rise of the #MeToo movement, it has shown to be an example of a successful social media activist campaign. Twitter confirmed that in less than a week since the beginning of the movement, there had been 1.7 million tweets that included the hashtag, with 85 countries having at least 1,000 tweets.

     #MeToo continues to spread across the online world and dozens of women have stepped up to denounce sexual abuse and harassment. The sense of community established as a result of this movement allowed many survivors to step forward and take action to make a change in our world.