Many common criticisms of #meToo focus on the 'poor men' who now have to watch their behaviour. It's time to put the focus back where it's needed - on women who have always faced harassment and never had the opportunity to speak up.
Many common criticisms of #meToo focus on the ‘poor men’ who now have to watch their behaviour. It’s time to put the focus back where it’s needed – on women who have always faced harassment and never had the opportunity to speak up.
#MeToo India has engulfed us in more ways than one. Media – print and social – have ensured we are in the know of all stories of abuse and harassment, most of which were known in hush-hush conversations, while a few others shocked us!
But let us all acknowledge one fact: in more ways than one, the stories on workplace harassment have for long existed and then hidden and remained ensconced in personal accounts to counsellors, personal diaries, HR departments and in nightmares.
#MeToo has been about spontaneous outpouring of harassment and abuse faced by women, but like all movements, soon enough it has seen massive criticism from diverse quarters as well, a few of which I will attempt to discuss and then debunk!
#MeToo was never about playing victims, it was about outing the behaviour of normalising sexual abuse of power at the hands of a few men. The #MeToo tales are not tales of women playing victims, they are accounts of abuse, of workplace transgressions that need to be called out.
#MeToo is not about about demonising men. It is about catharsis of something that took a long time to come!
Varsha Pillai is a former television journalist who quit the fast lane in media when she moved to the erstwhile 'laid back city' called Bangalore. She earnestly believes that she can ‘write stories that people read more...
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Falling in love, marriage, a hidden secret, divorce. Despite all this, Vinita noticed her life was full of love that came in various unexpected shades!
“Aap jinke kareeb hotey hain, woh badey kush naseeb hotey hain…”
Just as Vinita was settling down into the cab seat, the driver put on music and the song started to play. It took her back immediately to that evening ten years ago, when Gautam had sung that very same song to her on the first evening they had met. She could remember every single detail of that evening so very clearly.
Neena Gupta shares her terrifying childhood experiences of being molested - like most assault survivors who often go to great measures to minimise these incidents by remaining silent, she was scared to tell her parents.
Neena Gupta shares her terrifying childhood experiences of being molested – like most assault survivors who often go to great measures to minimise these incidents by remaining silent, she was scared to tell her parents.
Trigger warning: This deals with child sexual abuse and may be triggering for survivors.
The #MeToo movement brought down many powerful men internationally over the last months. So why are some women distancing themselves?
The #MeToo movement has been the undoing of many powerful men internationally over the last months (Steve Wynn, the Las Vegas casino mogul from the Wynn group being the latest, and more cases emerging each passing week).
While the accused happily got more work, the women lost out on jobs as people tarnished their reputation. How effective was #MeToo in Bollywood?
#MeToo has been a huge influence in starting the conversations about the hidden realities of ‘sexual harassment’ everywhere. Recently, ‘The Fault In Our Stars’ actor Ansel Elgort was accused of sexually abusing a minor girl. Though he denied the claims, Hollywood seems to have taken notice.