Pittsburgh Arts, Regional Theatre, New Work, Producing, Copyright, Labor Unions,
New Products, Coping Skills, J-O-Bs...
Theatre industry news, University & School of Drama Announcements, plus occasional course support for
Carnegie Mellon School of Drama Faculty, Staff, Students, and Alumni.
CMU School of Drama
Wednesday, September 30, 2020
Anita Hill On Sexual Harassment In Hollywood And Beyond
90.5 WESA: In the three years since the Harvey Weinstein story broke and the #MeToo movement took off, a new report finds that people working in Hollywood and the entertainment business say not enough has changed.
5 comments:
Elizabeth P
said...
Anita Hill is absolutely right - removing some high profile individuals from their positions is not the way to guarantee harassment doesn’t occur in the workplace. This type of harassment is built into our systems, and while it occurs nearly everywhere - many people also have their eyes on this problem in the entertainment industry. It’s really disheartening to hear from others, oh be careful of so-and-so,” or “avoid this company,” because of how they have harassed employees in the past. It’s scary as a young woman trying to work in the industry. It’s talked about so much that it may as well be the norm - but that is not okay. We need appropriate systems of reporting, but not just a place to report - but we need to know that our reports will be acted upon in some way. As Hill said in part of her interview, “People don’t come forward, because they think they won’t be taken seriously.” Women like Anita Hill and Christine Blasey Ford courageously came forward, and were met with an inept system.
There is so much change needed when it comes to improving the way sexual harassment is handled in the workplace, more so talking about an entire industry. The problem should be tackled from the root instead of trying to troubleshoot what could’ve been prevented. The way the general industry views people who choose to speak up is part of the solution. Like Anita Hill said, often times it ends up coming down to deciding whether to put your career on the line to maybe get some sense of closure or do nothing but maintain whatever current status you have. Many decide the former, which leaves people who should be charged walking free and probably continuing to do whatever they have done to others. More so, there’s the blatant reality that victims are not taken seriously. Even if you come as far as speaking out, going through the process, having the events relived over and over again, there is the possibility authority figures will simply sweep it under the rug. This way of reacting needs to change for the betterment of the industry workers.
The article says that the #Metoo movement has done a lot to remove big sexual harassment cases from power in the industry, but like Anita Hill says, it is simply not enough. Removing these titans from power is still a big catalyst of action, especially with preventing harassment in the workplace. However, it is only the surface. There is still so many abusive behaviors going on under the table, and it may be because it is easier to hide it for workers on lower levels. The big wave of the #Metoo movement hit 3 years ago, but the fight has only begun. People are forgetting about this and moving on to the next movement like they are trends, but they are failing to understand that this is a continuous battle. I am surprised by how Hill addresses the next election and how she is endorsing Biden. However, given our options, I think it was important for her to use her platform to do this. Out of the two evils, one is definitely greater. We must vote for the one who will take responsibility for the Violence Against Women Act.
I think Anita Hill brings up very good points that removing people from their roles does not get rid of the entire problem. I do think that there are many many abusive acts that go on that people did not have the courage to speak out about and it seems to be more of a culture thing. It seems that in the entertainment industry it has been a norm for so long and people who have no fully established their career are very vulnerable. I think it is very important to acknowledge that this movement will be going on for many years as it needs to combat centuries of abuse and hurt that has happened in all workplaces. This problem plagues our country and the fact that an open sexual abuser was able to be elected president 4 years ago does not give me faith that the populations mentality is changing. I think it is very important that we vote for senators and representatives that are actively fighting against violence and abuse against women, specifically in the workplace. I was very hesitant to this article bringing up Joe Biden as he has also been accused of inappropriate behavior in the workplace, showing me that people are willing to brush it under the rug for other policies they may think are more important.
The rampant sexual harassment and blatant abuses of power in Hollywood that still exist and show little sign of changing prove once again that the #MeToo movement is a force that needs to continue to be sustained. Everyone in the industry should be encouraging it to continue so it does not die out. There are way too many cases in Hollywood, and sexual assault and harassment are so hard to prove that it is imperative that public attention never diverges away from this topic. If real, systemic change needs to happen, the first way to initiate it is to drum up enough support and enough attention; therefore, I feel like we are on the right track, but still so far from anywhere we desire to be. Even though the movement has dredged specific circumstances to the surface, the statistic still remains the same: “64% of people surveyed said they did not think a person who was found to have harassed a subordinate would be held accountable.” This number should not even be higher than 0%, and the #MeToo movement consists of the first baby steps toward changing this.
5 comments:
Anita Hill is absolutely right - removing some high profile individuals from their positions is not the way to guarantee harassment doesn’t occur in the workplace. This type of harassment is built into our systems, and while it occurs nearly everywhere - many people also have their eyes on this problem in the entertainment industry. It’s really disheartening to hear from others, oh be careful of so-and-so,” or “avoid this company,” because of how they have harassed employees in the past. It’s scary as a young woman trying to work in the industry. It’s talked about so much that it may as well be the norm - but that is not okay. We need appropriate systems of reporting, but not just a place to report - but we need to know that our reports will be acted upon in some way. As Hill said in part of her interview, “People don’t come forward, because they think they won’t be taken seriously.” Women like Anita Hill and Christine Blasey Ford courageously came forward, and were met with an inept system.
There is so much change needed when it comes to improving the way sexual harassment is handled in the workplace, more so talking about an entire industry. The problem should be tackled from the root instead of trying to troubleshoot what could’ve been prevented. The way the general industry views people who choose to speak up is part of the solution. Like Anita Hill said, often times it ends up coming down to deciding whether to put your career on the line to maybe get some sense of closure or do nothing but maintain whatever current status you have. Many decide the former, which leaves people who should be charged walking free and probably continuing to do whatever they have done to others. More so, there’s the blatant reality that victims are not taken seriously. Even if you come as far as speaking out, going through the process, having the events relived over and over again, there is the possibility authority figures will simply sweep it under the rug. This way of reacting needs to change for the betterment of the industry workers.
The article says that the #Metoo movement has done a lot to remove big sexual harassment cases from power in the industry, but like Anita Hill says, it is simply not enough. Removing these titans from power is still a big catalyst of action, especially with preventing harassment in the workplace. However, it is only the surface. There is still so many abusive behaviors going on under the table, and it may be because it is easier to hide it for workers on lower levels. The big wave of the #Metoo movement hit 3 years ago, but the fight has only begun. People are forgetting about this and moving on to the next movement like they are trends, but they are failing to understand that this is a continuous battle. I am surprised by how Hill addresses the next election and how she is endorsing Biden. However, given our options, I think it was important for her to use her platform to do this. Out of the two evils, one is definitely greater. We must vote for the one who will take responsibility for the Violence Against Women Act.
I think Anita Hill brings up very good points that removing people from their roles does not get rid of the entire problem. I do think that there are many many abusive acts that go on that people did not have the courage to speak out about and it seems to be more of a culture thing. It seems that in the entertainment industry it has been a norm for so long and people who have no fully established their career are very vulnerable. I think it is very important to acknowledge that this movement will be going on for many years as it needs to combat centuries of abuse and hurt that has happened in all workplaces. This problem plagues our country and the fact that an open sexual abuser was able to be elected president 4 years ago does not give me faith that the populations mentality is changing. I think it is very important that we vote for senators and representatives that are actively fighting against violence and abuse against women, specifically in the workplace. I was very hesitant to this article bringing up Joe Biden as he has also been accused of inappropriate behavior in the workplace, showing me that people are willing to brush it under the rug for other policies they may think are more important.
The rampant sexual harassment and blatant abuses of power in Hollywood that still exist and show little sign of changing prove once again that the #MeToo movement is a force that needs to continue to be sustained. Everyone in the industry should be encouraging it to continue so it does not die out. There are way too many cases in Hollywood, and sexual assault and harassment are so hard to prove that it is imperative that public attention never diverges away from this topic. If real, systemic change needs to happen, the first way to initiate it is to drum up enough support and enough attention; therefore, I feel like we are on the right track, but still so far from anywhere we desire to be. Even though the movement has dredged specific circumstances to the surface, the statistic still remains the same: “64% of people surveyed said they did not think a person who was found to have harassed a subordinate would be held accountable.” This number should not even be higher than 0%, and the #MeToo movement consists of the first baby steps toward changing this.
Post a Comment