Privileged Victims by Eddie Scarry

Author:Eddie Scarry
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: N/A
Publisher: Post Hill Press
Published: 2019-12-20T16:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 8

Victim Status for Her and Her and

#MeToo, Please!

Nothing pure goes uncorrupted by America’s social justice movement. The very concept of privilege itself was innocent, a simple observation that men—white men in particular—might consider whether they have inherent advantages in certain situations and that they might express more empathy for anyone who doesn’t. But then the social justice mob seized on the idea, turning it into a weapon for shaming and stigmatizing.

The same fate has met #MeToo.

The #MeToo movement kicked off in 2017 with serious accusations against movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, related to his pattern of appalling and abusive behavior. Over a number of years, he had repeatedly groped and exposed his hoggish nude body to young aspiring actresses and other women hoping to break into the movie industry. He duped them into believing that he would advance their careers if only they’d touch him or watch him shower.

The New York Times in October 2017 broke the blockbuster story that Weinstein “for decades” had paid off an untold number of women accusing him of sexual harassment.

“Across the years and continents,” the Times article said, “accounts of Mr. Weinstein’s conduct share a common narrative: Women reported to a hotel for what they thought were work reasons, only to discover that Mr. Weinstein, who has been married for most of three decades, sometimes seemed to have different interests.”345

Women employed by Weinstein, and who traveled around the globe with him, described his “appearing nearly or fully naked in front of them, requiring them to be present while he bathed or repeatedly asking for a massage or initiating one himself.”

When these women sought a coveted, close working relationship with Weinstein so that they might get an intimate look at the movie industry, I suspect that seeing his fat ass hop into a tub wasn’t what they had in mind.

Famous men might be wrongfully accused of sexual misconduct for any number of reasons: the accuser wants money or attention, or perhaps the accuser is getting even for a perceived slight from the past. If the man accused denies the charge and there’s no evidence outside of an uncorroborated account, the allegation often ends up in a stalemate.

Fortunately for America, Weinstein rid us of any of those uncomfortable scenarios with his personal situation by simply admitting to his long history of predatory behavior.

“I appreciate the way I’ve behaved with colleagues in the past has caused a lot of pain, and I sincerely apologize for it,” he said in a statement to the Times for its initial report. “Though I’m trying to do better, I know I have a long way to go.”

Weinstein expanded on those feelings in a separate statement he sent to the paper shortly after the story was published. “I realized some time ago that I needed to be a better person and my interactions with the people I work with have changed,” it said.346

At the bottom of that statement, as though he knew this was just the thing that would cleanse his soul

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.