From Thomas Jefferson, Bill Clinton, Donald Trump to Bill Cosby, Roger Ailes and Bill O’Reilly, men like Harvey Weinstein are in every professional. While the recent focus has been on prominent men in the media and politics, the truth of the matter is powerful men who seek to use women as sexual objects for their own power perks have existed since the beginning of time. And the crime of rape has also existed since the before the beginning of this country. As a lawyer, I have encountered my own Harvey Weinstein.
There are powerful men who view women as toys for their own sexual satisfaction. And in many professions, the practice is pervasive, in all areas. While the encounter may last only a few minutes, in some instances, for women, the stigma and emotional trauma may last a lifetime. While women seek to advance in their careers on their professional merits, often times, some powerful men have other misogynist ideas in mind which may make or break a woman’s career or her self-esteem.
I spoke recently to a lawyer who represents companies in sexual assault and other discrimination cases. She confirmed that the practice of powerful men who want women to pay to play is in every profession from law, business, entertainment, politics, tech and even the medical profession. And although the Harvey Weinstein defense is that it was a different culture earlier than it is now, that is not true. Sexual predators, perverts and rapists existed in the early Weinstein days and now. And the fact that most of these men can get away with decades of wrongful sexual allegations shows the power of silence.
In 16 states, the statute of limitations has changed to no statute of limitations. This means that there is no longer a year limit in which to file a claim in these states. This is why New York and Los Angeles are investigating alleged claims against Weinstein. But for many women, the harm has been already done and some may still prefer to stay silent.
In these misogynist cultures, it is incumbent upon other men to speak up, in defense of women who are victimized. In the Weinstein case, there were men who knew of his sexual transgressions. According to accounts, at least several women allegedly confided in male colleagues. If the all -male board had been advised of the alleged Weinstein sexual predator actions, then perhaps some women may have been spared his advances.
Many times, women may not want to speak up. Silence is the protector of male sexual predators. I encourage men to become more actively involved in speaking out against these sexual transgressions by their male colleagues, instead of staying silent on the sidelines.
For further commentary on the subject, I participated in a lively panel discussion with anchor Bruce Johnson.